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When it comes to soldering, I consider myself a soldering fanatic. I make no excuses for my choices of soldering wire and flux core. This is part of my soldering training in the Air National Guard. We used only leaded solder that was a pure eutectic alloy with an RMA flux core. This has proven over decades to be the best combination to produce joints of the best appearance, best quality and best reliability. Joints produced using a pure eutectic alloy have only two states of being, liquid or solid. This is the easiest solder to learn with because of this point. RMA flux core is the best because it produces the best appearance and the joints endure G forces, physical and mechanical stresses and thermal inversions. This is the level of quality and reliability necessary for avionics, aerospace, biomedical electronics and even high end audio. When human life and class A assets are involved, failure is not an option nor is mission failure. For those who go with lead free, ask someone else. For leaded soldering, there are get by solder wire and there are pure eutectic alloys with RMA flux cores which deliver the ultimate in soldering excellence. This isn’t opinion, it is proven fact over decades of use. Kester, AIM, Alpha Metals and Multicore are the brands who have proven themselves over time. Each must use what they can afford and tolerate. Having a solder which only has two states, liquid or solid, and a proven flux core of decades of use that endure the worst of conditions make the best solder joints you can deliver. It won’t make you a solder expert, but it will give you the ability to produce this level of quality and reliability with practice, practice, practice! It’s up to you and your budget. If you only want to produce the best results, you need the solder wire that yields this. A pure eutectic leaded solder alloy, Sn63, 63% tin/37% lead or Sn 62, 62% tin, 36% lead and 2% silver are the best choices. The solder’s flux core that makes the best joints is RMA, Rosin Mildly Activated. When decades of proven results tell you that you have made the best choice, no argument exists. Save yourself frustration, use only a pure eutectic alloy with an RMA flux core. You can’t lose. Frustrations melt away when you use the best solder!
Mark could recommend a brand and thickness for through hole pcb work thanks
@@charlieoscar09, there are only a few brands that I can recommend that offer the consistency, repeatability and quality that yields the right results. The only brands I have used and recommend are Kester, AIM, Alpha Metals and Multicore solders. RMA, rosin mildly activated, flux core is the only flux core I will use in a leaded solder. Sn63, 63%tin/37%lead or Sn62, 62%tin/36%lead/2%silver are the two options I use with high reliability and high quality results. 0.025” or 0.020” are the two sizes I use for through hole soldering. Anything larger is just wasteful and great solder isn’t cheap. There is no Sn60, 60%tin/40%lead I would ever use as it is not a pure eutectic solder. Sn60 has a plastic state or range as it is called. This is why I only use a pure eutectic solder. I will gladly answer any other questions you may have. Feel free to ask. 3.3% flux ratio to weight is the best you can get. The solder I am using is Kester 282 solder and Kester 186 liquid flux. I use 0.015” size solder which allows me the greatest control with the least waste.
@@markphilpot8734 very detailed information from you Mark, I would also like to know what solder and flux is best to use for soldering Brass, I build model trains and want to have the best strength when it comes to physical and mechanical stresses because of the they will be handled and carried around to different shows and layouts. I read somewhere that the one with Silver is the way to go for Brass but of course I would like for you to shed some light on this as I am a beginner and would love to learn the proper way from the start. At the moment I have a reel of Kester Sn62 Pb36 Ag2 (24-7150-8800) with no clean 245 flux but I'm not extremely impressed by it and doesn't seem to flow very good on my Brass joints. Thank you
@@daniell37, Daniel, this depends on what flux matches what is in this solder. In order to achieve top drawer performance, the flux core of the solder must match the extra flux used. This is key to soldering anything. If the fluxes are mismatched, the results are not ideal and dubious as their chemistries are mismatched and therefore not optimized and there will not be predicable, compatible, ideally optimized for maximum performance. The one key thing is flux core/extra flux matching. I use Kester 282 which has an RMA flux core and has a flux percentage of 3.3% flux by weight ratio. The extra flux I use is Kester 186 liquid RMA flux. Same manufacturer yields the best possible match. By brand, also known as brand matching is the other optimum way to get perfect chemical matching of both flux core and extra flux. This is the best because they’re both manufactured for each flux type to each type of flux core offered. Always use brand matched solder and extra flux regardless of which flux type for whatever brand used. It would be the same if it were AIM, Alpha Metals, but I have not seen any for Multicore which is what my Sn62 is with an Rosin flux core. I use Kester 186 with any Rosin cored solder. The base of the fluxes is rosin. Only the activation is different while the bases are identical. This is the key to results. An R, RA or RMA may use and RMA extra flux. The RMA is less active than either the R or RA flux core. The results offered with the RMA flux is how it cleans the joint and the appearance it achieves as a result. The RMA flux helps yield that jeweled look that wows. This is the critical circuit mentality. Focus, one joint at a time, cleaning between joints and always starting and ending cleaning always. Cannot yield if you want the best result. I know jack about brazing, but clean surfaces, no vibration during the procedure, apply the right amount of extra flux and time management to minimize tempering. That’s the best for you. Mixing flux core types with extra flux yields questionable results as the chemistry is not exact and maybe even conflicting which leaves you with very bad end product which has a less than favorable result. Only matched flux core and extra flux will yield the optimum results. Silver content solder is used in jewelry making and electronic instrumentation. Think about that. Ideal for jewel and instrumentation use. There is something special about silver content solder. When you have tin plated stranded wire and you pre solder the wire, the wire has the silver solder on it. If you are soldering to a board, your joint is clean and the pad. Best practices, as it is called, work for brazing as well. Excess extra flux use is something you also want to avoid. There is an ideal amount of flux for any fluxed operation is learned. Practice is where you gain this. You will tire of the flux cleanup if you use too much. It makes you a better solderer or brazer. Hope this helps, a bit long winded. Brass is used as a base for connections on electronic components. Maybe ask some specialty lighting companies to see what they use. Flux core and extra flux needs to match for optimum results, even with brazing. Take care and be safe Daniel.
For the most part, I agree. However, there is ONE lead-free solder that I can't differentiate from lead so much so it's the only thing I use. It's 100% eutectic, it wets incredibly well, it shines like a diamond and has similar vibration cracking resistance than 63/37 SnPb ( "RELIABILITY TESTING OF Ni-MODIFIED SnCu AND SAC305 - VIBRATION" ). It's Nihon superior's SN100C licensed and produced by AIM. There's no God-given reason why Lead makes the perfect counterpart to Tin in solder. It's just technology and eventually something better will come along. I think SN100C is that combination.
Greatest soldering wire comparison on YT. Hands down.
Wow.. that is one comprehensive collection of solder you have there. Thank you so much for doing these test. Cheers!!
Should take quite some time to get through them all...
@Forrest Raul making a new account to promo your self
@Raul Franklin no one cares about fake hackers
I bought the Mechanic solder. Really happy with the result. It behaved just as you showed. Thanks!
Starving EE students everywhere thank you for this, and the flux review videos. You've earned a new subscriber. Keep up the good work!
Well, you can't get much more comprehensive that this. Thanks a lot for being so fair. I was beginning to wonder about lead-free solders, but you've convinced me that they're worth looking at.
Thank you for taking the time to help us all pick the right product for each of us. Well done !
Great tests, thanks. Would love to see some mechanical vibration or stress tests to simulate how they may perform in a working environment over time.
Love these sort of videos, nothing was spared to give us the information we need to choose a solder to work with! Thanks!
Extensive, great test! Thank you for making this comparison. I was relieved when I tested Mechanic HXT-100 63/37 solder. It has nice amount of flux in it, it melts and flows just like some older solder that I've been using for years. Reason for getting new brand of solder was the ban of lead (=not being able to buy "regular" solder locally). Cheers!
Yeah tottaly my problem i've been buing one Brand localy and it was amazing now i've tried a lot of lead solders but nothing could even compare to my favourite one. I Will try the pros kit looks great
this was insanely informative. I always felt so lost going to the store to buy solder. I feel like i could make really informed ecisions now. Thank you so much.
Which one did you go for?
Here is a tip from Germany: Flux residues (rosin) left by the Felder solder can be removed with 99% ethanol. Felder "RA" is activated with halide, so I would highly recommend it when it comes to soldering very old components.
Look no further than home! Stannol, a German brand, has a couple of halide activated flux core alloys. The red ones are leaded.
You Germans know your stuff about engineering and electronics.
Dankje!
As a Multicore user myself, thanks for this review !
This video deserves a follow up. A comparison between different solder pastes
I have a video coming up soon for comparing different fluxes. I may consider testing a small number of solder pastes, but it gets expensive quickly! The solder wire has no shelf life to speak of, so less of an issue :)
This Video and the flux comparison you did are both extremely informative and helpful, thanks! :)
At first, I was going to post a cynical remark like "clearly, you have far too much time on your hands" but refrained as I found myself watching hypnotically as you ran through your tests. Thank you for your efforts and the information!
Useful information and test methods. Thank you for the tremendous effort.
I got tired just looking at the image of all those. What a great job you did. Thanks for sharing!
Very well done, thank you for such a comprehensive test and review
Fantastic! Thanks for making the effort to do this. Very interesting and useful! 👍🏼 I've been using Warton 63/37 for a few years now, and it's an excellent solder, but considering how well the cheaper brands perform, I may consider one of them....if I live long enough to use the remainder of the 500g Warton reel. 😆
A mine if gold of information for every professional, hobbyists and maker about soldering, thanks
Excellent! As ever in the world of electronics there are questions to ask, these tests are no different. Testing in this manner I suggest you have covered all of the main Brands, Alloys available and demonstrated clearly what’s going on. For me, I’m always having to go away and look at the Halides, Rosins etc. Now that’s when things can get confusing. Maybe its an area I just have a mental block. A BIG 👍 from me. Keep up the great content.
I would have previously said that the types with high rosin and high halide content would typically be the best solder to buy, but following these tests that doesn't appear to be the case any more. The Multicore Smart solder is testament to this. Thanks!
You did a lot of work here. Thanks a great Video.
This comparison is priceless!
That's an impressive breadth of options.
Thanks for this very good test. I'm very impressed by the difference they each have.
Here’s the thing. There are many opinions on solder and which is best. While in the Air National Guard, I used three different brands of solder which all had the same specs. All were Rosin Mildly Activated flux cored, all were 3% flux content and all were 63/37 pure eutectic leaded solders. The key was the type of soldering we did and the standard of quality was stringent. DOD STD 2000-1 was the soldering standard back then and compliance to it was not a question as critical circuitry has no lower standard. Human life and mission requirements are harsh realities in avionics and also other fields. Mediocrity does not exist in this environment and failure is not an option. As I stated, human life and mission requirements are not subject to arguments, they are requirements! This skill is hard as are it’s processes. It is learnable and was by myself. Over four decades I have practiced my craft and all with pure eutectic leaded solder. The higher flux content aided the processes, but cleaning was done only with 99% isopropyl alcohol as it poses no harm to plastic parts(PCBs). I haven’t used lead free and based on what I have heard, it is harder to achieve the level of appearance that the leaded solder yields. We used additional flux and cleaned everything including the solder as corrosion would leave air pockets in the joints. At lower frequencies, this was not as much an issue, but at higher ones, the air pockets would act like tiny capacitors and reap sconion with the circuitry. So even solder must be clean to solder on critical circuits to obtain the required results. The RMA solder and flux always produced the brightest and shiniest joints, these joints can withstand G forces, mechanical and physical stresses and thermal inversions and vibration resistance. The methods and materials were chosen based on this ability and for their consistency, reliability and repeatability. When someone’s going to fight a war or save a life, there is no place for second place. Second place means loss of life and or mission failure. No one wants that on their conscious. That is it in a nutshell. The J STD level 3 is the same as DOD STD 2000-1 back in the day. It is a hard standard, but level 3 is the critical requirement level and not for the lazy or the uncommitted techs. There is no tomorrow or second place in this level. Second place is first loser. Therefore, you must have your head completely in the game and at all times. It’s not for everyone, only the committed need apply! Life is precious and mission is first. That is the way it is in the high quality, high reliability world of professional soldering. That’s not an opinion, that’s a fact! Stay safe mates!😊👍🏻😷
You should do a video about the case where the PCB is old. We need to know what the best flux and solder combo is for that.
Great comparisons and examples here mate. I'm going to have to get me some of that Smart26 solder, the finish looks great. Cheers, John
I was quite surprised how little differences there are, but the Smart flux and the silver alloy really look good.
Excellent content, interesting topics and reviews, I have only just discovered your posts ( now subscribed ), nice unbiased , sensible comments. I am a now retired electronics technician, ( life long in the industry ) and fully endorse your KZhead channel. Best wishes. Richard.
Much appreciated!
Thank you for this video. Very informative.
Really enjoyed this one. I went with the Pro's Kit some time ago after watching this and have been completely happy with it. Finally almost through one tube so I ordered 3 more. Would love to see some more comparisons between gear - especially a larger comparison of flux.
Thanks Steve! I use Kester 63/37 mostly.
I noticed the actual solder wire on the Kester is extremely shiny in comparison to any other solder I've seen. Seems to work well, but the brand is very uncommon in the UK. I had to import this reel.
Mine is "44" rosin core 0.020". I am happy with it. My solder joints look pretty shiny as well.
I had a hard time remembering which THT was better, but the hot-plate test was good because you could see all of them at once. Maybe a summation in order of best to worse in each category, like shiniest to dullest, etc. All the cheap Ebay solder tests that I've seen all came out frosty like the Jinhu, like some local 99% tin I got, but that Mech looks like it's worth a risk.
the ENIG finish sometimes does mess with the alloy because it gets dissolved in it, but it is a realistic use scenario, no worries.
Brand new parts to gold plated pads is not much of a challenge for the solder or the flux. Maybe a bit more of a challenge would help to sort out the capabilities of each. I know I am not alone in having tried some lead free solders that were awful. In your tests everything works great and it seems any differences are really subtle. Get some uniformly old parts and some uniformly oxidised copper contacts and then see what works better and compare the costs & availability. Thanks!
Exactly what I was looking for. I was wondering if the tin amount matters that much in non-lead solder, but every brand seemed to function pretty well!
Nice comparison. Thank you.
Thanks Steve, this is an excellent reference. Very detailed reviews with the product stats shown on the screen, including the price. I have 250g of the mechanic stuff @1mm which is perfect. I also bought 250g of a 60/40 rosin lead free cheap reel at the same time and that is terrible. You have to run your iron around 380 to even start melting it, whereas the mecanic stuff begins to melt from 320c. Although I mainly use 350c like Big Clive due to the boards and the speed I work at.
The mechanic solder definitely seems pretty good. Thanks
The mechanics solder works pretty well around 250c when doing small through hole stuff. I do have my solder iron calibrated so temps I quote should be pretty accurate.
Spent quite some time on trying out different affordable types of solder, and settled on the Mechanics brand. They are consistently good. Wish I had seen your video though, would have saved so much money :D.
Yes, Mechanic is much better than other Chinese brands, because Mechanic is Hong Kong brand. Other solders at banggood or aliexpress are all garbage and waste of money.
Hey, thank you! This video has some very helpful information
Best in the West Thank you for this resolved a lot of issues for me. Thumbs Up buddy!
would love to see you do an updated video with only the AliExpress brands or cheaper brands that are current.
It would be good to see a similar test of solder paste, I always have to use wick on such as 28 pin ssop packages, the stencil applied paste spreads out when heated and bridges a lot of the pins.
Been working on a 1lb roll of REL22 from AIM lately. The smell took a few uses to get used to, its a bit different but I've been happy with it so far.
Very nice video! Apparently mechanic makes a 60/40 solder as well. Would have been great to include that one as well. They also have much thicker solder in the 60/40.
Thanks you for explaining , i use micanic solder
Very informative video, thanks.
Very nicely demonstrstion guide. Now I know which type of solder wired to get for all my electronic motherboard soldering.
I use the mechanics solder and I have had no real problems with it. I use a really thin solder though because I solder small pitch smd components and it is hard to feed enough solder onto the tip of the iron when trying to do drag soldering. It is good to keep a few thicknesses on hand depending on what you are doing. I paid
Thanks Steve for the detailed analysis...as I was watching I looked over at the bench where there are three 1lb. rolls of Kester/Multicore silver/non-silver that at this point should last me until my soldering iron "goes cold!" Biting the bullet and getting it in quantity pays off in the long run.
Yes, my advice is if you find one you get on well with - just buy a big reel - it's cheaper in the long run anyway.
Thank you very much for this awesome Test! All I wanted to know.
Your Flux comparison is also very good :-)
Im using the Kester one, it's really nice to use, and has a no-clean flux while still having great performance. But I never solder corroded stuff.. but for pcb work, I stay with this Kester one😉
My favorite is the Multicore 362 Solder, it's a dream to solder with, I actually like the generous amount of rosin flux!
Interesting comparison. Solder has gotten ridiculously expensive in recent years. For years, I used Radio Shack solder for general electronic use because it flowed well. Now buying Kester from Kimco. The price is more reasonable than even the Chinese stuff and it's brand name.
Excellent. One of the best videos and best technical videos on KZhead. Lots of information well conveyed. I ordered some Multicore 362 (62, 36, 2 Sn, Pb, Ag)(#5 on your list), it's a little hard to find - I ordered from Newark (the company) and getting one spool from US and one from UK sent to me in Georgia. I considered the Pro'skit solder because of your tests but it's only available in 17 gram tubes and the equivalent amount (to the Multicore I ordered) would have cost 8 times as much. And there's a certain guaranteed consistency with a brand like Multicore (which is now Henkel\Loctite). Thanks for the information. Added credentials: long time IT & Technology consultant. Been around for so long that most of the people I learned soldering from are dead now. Is that too dark?
Thank you for doing this !!
Very nice video, I would be interested in also seeing a comparison between all your lead free solders!
Right now I'm comparing LAOA soldering wire vs Kaina (blu) soldering wire. On Aliexpresss these seem to be the best options available right now (or at least that I'm aware of). LAOA seems to be very good, and costs relatively little - 26 euros for 400 grams.
Sadly (?!) really enjoyed that. I've the identical Maplin solder I bought 30+ years ago (still works fine!). Also bought some Koccu branded solder from China which appears identical in all but name to your Jinhu, and which went straight in the bin after a few tests because the joints looked so weird. Am going to try Mechanic solder on the basis of this vid. Thanks!
try the kester. its the best one in my opinion because the flux is very well proportioned so when you solder there will be no flux leftover on the board. I have never had to clean my boards witch saves me a lot of time.
very good test, what about cynol, what i saw at beggining of video. im curious because that brand is most available localy in my area
I have some experience with Mechanic soldering wire. It's ver easy to use, It's smooth, clean and shiny when you are soldering with it.
Good comparison video. Question: What brand and model or iron/station was used, and what temperature? Thanks
I think lead-free solder is quite different and has the following problems: 1) it may form tin whiskers 2) afaik, it less mechanically robust, lead has much more plasticity and better reacts on thermal stress 3) requires higher soldering temperature, this becomes a problem when soldering big ground polygons, additional equipment like bottom heater may be needed 4) wetting is much worse 5) it tends to form solder bridges on fine-pitched ICs. To have same soldering experience, lead-free requires more aggressive fluxes, flux becomes more important. Most of these observations come from my personal experience (except tin whiskers and mechanical properties, I read about these, but haven't experienced myself yet).
I agree with you on these points. There are quite a lot of lead-free alloys, but the good performance seems to depend mainly on the flux.
Also, leaded solder is toxic and not available anymore in the EU by now
An excellent review/video, thanks Steve. Hey, I am not picking just smiling but when at 23.10 you said "if you buy a roll of 250 POUNDS of solder, it should last you a long time" I nearly choked on my Corn Flakes! Lol! I should think it would, if i could pick it up! Lol! All good fun and thanks again, mate!
Interesting tests! I use Griffon and they make very good solder, however not available in the test ( so many brands available, wow). The lead version is the one I prefer 60 tin/40 lead however it isn't available anymore, produces very nice and shiny joints (melting point 183 celcius) and a very good tempature to not overheat components. The lead-free version is 99/1, 99 tin and 1 copper and is a little harder to use (melting point 227 celcius) and I think the flux they use reacts differently (and different composition ofcourse). You must do it right the first time (heat it a little longer) to get a perfect joint. Heating again (or several times) can result in joints like the Jinhu brand (dim result). Maybe it is a good idea to add this to the tests, what will happen when you heat it up more than one time. Overall great video and a great subject.
Superb I was guided by this 100%, many thanks
A question, pls recommend a solder type with matching flux type to bond SS to zinc and copper . Tks.
You should have shown how well the solder on THT test flowed to the other side of the PCB as I have found during my job that the multicore 362 60/40 solder flows better through the joint so as to make good contact on both sides of PCB
I think it's possible that Jinhu Solder may have some zinc in it for it to look that way. Zinc can wreak havoc for Lead Casters as well. That's my best guess.
I've got a 0.5kg roll of 0.7 rosin core solder, 60/40, RS 4.1/327 (not sure what 327 means) the label says Billiton It's quite old (at least 30 years old I think) but still performs well. As a hobbyist, it will last me a long long time still. It does spit a bit on occasion which can be annoying for smd work with a head band magnifier with my face quite close to the work piece. Should probably invest in a video microscope or something. Thanks for showing what to look for in a good solder joint.
Impressive, it's not a test you can see everywhere. Well made!
A comparison of desoldering braid would be great.
Excellent comparison. I am trying to generate best temperature profile for some cheap solder paste i purchased from China.. Will try to recreate this test
That Duratool solder if I'm not mistaken was the same stuff sold by Rapid Electronics a few years ago, I ought to grab myself some.
Update: I did, it's just as good as I remember it being.
I have just very sadly used the last few mm of my Maplin solder. Like you I have used this for many years and think it was one of the best. It's like losing a good friend. I still have not found anything quite as good.
I do think the Multicore 60/40 is quite similar. The ones with the Crystal flux work well too. Thanks
Great comparative video.
Thank you for your precise work on this, really appreciated! :) What iron temperature do you recommend for soldering THT components and wires?
330C is usually a good all-round temperature
I have always used leaded multicore. Works fine, but one thing I've found over years using it is that it is consistent from one roll to the next in batches that are years apart. Others may be similar, but if I find a good product I stick with it.
Thank you for taking out so much time to make a decision simple. This video is the best for beginners like myself. I just watched the flux, awesome. Can you recommend a soldering iron for newbs.
The KSGER soldering irons are good for the price. I did a video a while back - SDG Mailbag #021
@@sdgelectronics thank you I literally just discovered your channel today and I'm hooked. Thank you.
I really like the TS100 soldering iron.
How do you protect the microscope from fumes and heat during soldering? thx
Thanks for the video, very interesting results. Did you keep a constant tip temperature for all the through hole tests or were you running at a higher temp for the lead free solders? If so how much hotter did you have to go, roughly, to get these results?
Constant temperature - it was using a Metcal 700 series tip which is somewhere around 350C I think
The quality of solder wire is related to its flux. Flux needs to be active to achieve good soldering good wetting. However it also need to have very reliable residues after soldering. If you have very active flux, means too much acids in it, you do very quick and perfect soldering but in couple of months you start to see very electrochemical reactions. This is why you need to more focus on flux reliability details on product datasheets especially if you are soldering fine pitch components and highly populated boards. We do not recommend post-cleaning after soldering if you use no-clean products.
Gracias por tus vídeos, saludos desde Costa Rica!
Awesome, loved the comparison! The silver based are those also the one's they call white or babbitt metal variants? Is there an advantage to having silver in there except for the shine?
Generally, silver solders are better at dealing with thermal cycles and are mechanically stronger
Excellent and detailed examination of solder. One thing I noticed on the final test is the addition of the flux may have been negative. The flux is mostly doing its job OK, but too much flux the solder flows too much. I noticed in this test, the solder looked cracked past its meniscus point. The non-fluxed solder seemed to flow until it stopped at the right spot before splitting. I am not an expert, but I do a lot of soldering, and that is how I would imagine it. Most of the time, I use flux for either difficult joints or when I reuse solder usually the good stuff. It was straightforward to see the crystalline solders will not last over time. In my 35 years soldering, I have witnessed many dry joints, and they all come from a matt finish.
The solder was still a bit molten in the last test. I think that was rosin that you could see floating around which made it look cracked
@@sdgelectronics There is a lot of variables associated with solder and from my material science studies at University (which I enjoyed) solder when it goes from liquid to solid goes through a Solidus zone that forms crystal and later reduces the structural integrity of solder. This is only part of the reason for the reason why solder goes dry. The use of flux helps resolve this problem, but some solders are just too cheap to go into high-level material science. I have always stuck to Multicore, but from your video, I see a few others that I like as well. ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/3-s2.0-B9780815515937000047-f04-68-9780815515937.jpg (image credit - Jaydeep Sarkar). This image shows the perfect lead-based solder point where the solder goes from liquid straight to solid called the Eutectile Region. Flux broadens this region but not by much. I will leave the rest of the theory up to the scientists.
Thanks for the info, great stuff.
I spent 3 years building satellites and their various sub-assemblies. The first thing was to de-gold and re-tin all components using leaded solder. (reduces possibility of tin whiskers). Memory ddims and other small pcb's had to have the unleaded solder removed, then re-soldered using leaded solder. 0402's were a complete pain! Soluble non-active resin flux in liquid form was always used plentifully, then removed with IPA and careful light brushing. The important thing is to get all the factors correct: Heat available, solder alloy, flux, duration of operation, cleaning, etc. There is no step-ladder long enough to remake a dry joint once the craft is up there...
I have subscribed some time ago, but this is a keep, so placed in file. I do everything but mostly automotive and sick of current crop of solder. This helpful as I solder automotive wire and components. I spent almost 4 decades fixing vehicles for others so now retired, building one for me. If you have kids, you know they have fully grown when they total out their cars instead of yours. I got my C10 this way after son quit lost interest and hit black ice slide into tree then towed to my back yard. I harvested the EFI engine, sold the new trans, kept all wires, connectors, and modules. Instead of outside near engine, mine past thru firewall and sit in vertical slots in console made from PVC board. Facing up for service, the PCM, TAC, BCM is in console for easy service. Magnets hold leather center cover over all including door switches. They use serial data to control engine, power windows, theft, lights, horn & RKE on factory key fob push button. Just having fun as I draw this stuff out and measure everything including power seats as I am 6’ 3” but wife is 120 lbs at 5’7” and has factory switch to change gas & brake pedal for her. Thanks for the work as camera, lights, PCB, planning, filming, editing and watching how many times before uploading? A bunch! Thank you because is solder, shrink tube, etc. Tip: Wrapping harness is needed using electrical tape either cords or bundles. Wrap and place dab of weather strip adhesive on tag end and will not unravel. Thank you again for this work! DK. Omaha. ASE Master Tech since 78
Very good information! Thank you!
white pcb would have been a good test for these, still awesome video and very informational
The black was slightly problematic for the lighting. Really nice finish on the boards though
Comparison series is nice....
Kester and multicore, silver only with special connections
Excellent, thank you!
That's really a lot of work to make this video. Thank you!. What temperature did you use with your soldering iron and hot air gun? A lot of chips have soldering temperature limit such as 260 celsius. If you set your hot air to 260 instead of much higher, I would be interested to know how quick each brand melt and flow/spread.
The soldering iron was 330C. I can't remember about the hot air I'm afraid
A fantastic comparison video. I enjoyed that very much. Personally, I have had terrible results with the inexpensive solders from China. I mainly stick to name brand types now, Kester and Multicore/Loctite. I don't know if you have access to MG Chemicals brand products in the UK, but I have started using their solders (63/37 No Clean in particular) which is not quite as expensive as the other big brands but performs very well for me. Again, excellent video. Keep up the great work.
Yes, I've got a few items from MG Chemicals, although I've not tried their solder wire. I would normally stick with the known good brands, but the Mechanic branded items do seem relatively genuine - especially the solder paste, which is more cost effective than most other options.
That has been my experience with Chinese brands; a FEW are good but MOST are rubbish
@@kennmossman8701 You get what you pay for.
@@MindFlareRetro which is why I am happy to pay a high price and get good solder.
Interesting test. It's a bit of a pity that you didn't include more lead-free solders, especially since there's much more variety in the alloys. It's quite odd that you don't even seem to have the "standard" lead-free alloy SAC305 included. The latest generations of solder alloys are ways better than the older ones, would have been interesting to see e.g. more Felder solders included for comparison, e.g. some Sn100Ni+ "NiGe" which is just an amazing solder (if the melting temperature of 227°C is acceptable), the best I've ever used (including some of the leaded solders you've included in your comparison).
Thanks for your efforts.....v informative vedio.
This video would be good if any of the solders were available to purchase as your list in the description seems random
Thank you very much - this was very helpful for a beginner... I just ordered 100g of Duratool 👍
Interesting results. BUT I am living in the Philippines and solder here (from China) varies a lot in quality. Many are pretty much useless; lacking flux and having a very high melting point. I had the same experience when I lived in mainland China and gauging from the store sales staff they were well aare of the quality problems; when I asked for VERY GOOD solder they smiled and pointed to a brand and would say, THIS is good.
Really enjoyed this video and many of your other videos. Im new to soldering and already learned that mystery solder from china makes learning a lot harder. I am moving on to better solder but am so confused with all the flux differences. I read there is a water based which is really bad and there is also an acid one that is also bad and rosin is hard to clean and the no clean still needs cleaning. Am I over thinking all of this and any good brand wire will work just fine? I am doing PCB work, game console repairs and learning phone repairs. Thanks much if you get a chance to respond.
You are not running a production facility, are you? There are different types of solders with higher and lower melting temperature that have different long term failure behavior, but since you are not building products with 1 million hours of MTBF, that doesn't really matter to you. If you are not selling your products, use a cheap low temperature leaded solder and buy yourself a large pot of rosin solder flux. That plus a temperature regulated soldering iron is all you need to make perfect solder joints. If you can't do it with that, then you need to work on your skills. Smother everything in solder flux and your life will be good even without any cleaning. The only time you will have a problem with that is with high impedance circuits because the flux residue is slightly conductive. As long as all your resistors are a few hundred kOhm or less it simply won't matter.