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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Solder
| Author | Message | ||||
palcal Guru  Joined: 12/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1993 |
My roll of .5mm solder is coming to an end, so I ordered some more. Not wanting to end up with cheap rubbish I went to RS components where I buy a lot of my bits. Well I got an email from them saying they can't sell to me unless I have a business number because it contains LEAD. I can buy it from the hardware store or the local electronics shop or EBay for that matter but not from RS. That deadly lead. "It is better to be ignorant and ask a stupid question than to be plain Stupid and not ask at all" |
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Grogster Admin Group  Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9610 |
I basically don't bother with RS at this point. They are usually shockingly expensive with their prices too compared to other houses. I get my 0.5mm(and 0.3mm) 60/40 multi-core solder from Element 14. Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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hitsware2 Guru Joined: 03/08/2019 Location: United StatesPosts: 719 |
Interestingly lead is illegal here also , but it is not enforced . my site |
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| robert.rozee Guru Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 2442 |
soon you'll need a note from your mum just to buy a replacement for your lead-acid car battery. think about it... those batteries contain not one, but TWO deadly substances - LEAD and ACID  ingesting either will make your hair prematurely curl!cheers, rob :-) |
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bigmik Guru Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2950 |
Hi Palcal, How did you go with sourcing your `decent’ solder? I know I am late responding but my usual supplier Radio Parts didn’t seem to stock the 0.5mm any more.. I just received an email from Rocky electronics and they are selling 0.56mm 60/40 solder at Reasonable price $13AU for 250Gm See this specials ad.. Rock by I hope its useful to you. Regards, Mick Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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| palcal Guru Joined: 12/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1993 |
@ bigmik, I bought it from Altronics, all is good. "It is better to be ignorant and ask a stupid question than to be plain Stupid and not ask at all" |
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Poppy Guru Joined: 25/07/2019 Location: GermanyPosts: 486 |
Is it really illegal for everyone? In Germany it is still available for exclusively private purpose (at least theoretically, recently I also had some probs getting good stuff for myself), only commercial use is strictly prohibited here. Edited 2020-07-24 19:24 by Poppy  Andre ... such a GURU? | ||||
| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 5090 |
Solder containing lead is illegal for many many puposes. Also for private use. There has been a transition phase of some 10 years or so, in which more and more product categories where enforced to transition. ATM only military and aerospace stuff may be produced with solder containing lead. Previously computer servers where still allowed to contain leaded solder, but that category has also transitioned. The only reason solder containing lead can currently be sold is for repair purposes. Volhout P.S. IMHO this change was not needed at all. It was driven from electronic equipment ending up in landfills polluting the drinking water. A subsidy system would have made this all unnecessary (PAY FOR RETURNED LEAD, AND SELL IT AGAIN). Similar to companies that re-sell the gold from old computer boards and chips. And about the risk of lead: I have been using leaded solder for 50+ years now daily, and still breathe..... PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| lizby Guru Joined: 17/05/2016 Location: United StatesPosts: 3378 |
I molded, painted, and played with about 1300 lead soldiers from about age 10 through high school . . . and still breathe. But I admit that the fact that some smokers live to 100 is not an argument that there is no danger to smoking. PicoMite, Armmite F4, SensorKits, MMBasic Hardware, Games, etc. on fruitoftheshed |
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thwill Guru Joined: 16/09/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 4311 |
Isn't the lead-free stuff even worse for the user and the environment, it's just that "lead polution" grabs headlines and hardware failure due to "tin whiskers" doesn't ? Ditto on the toy soldiers ... though sounds like you grew out of it faster "lizby"  Tom Edited 2020-07-25 05:00 by thwill MMBasic for Linux, Game*Mite, CMM2 Welcome Tape, Creaky old text adventures |
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| Poppy Guru Joined: 25/07/2019 Location: GermanyPosts: 486 |
The only legal basis that I know is DIRECTIVE 2011/65/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 8 June 2011 on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment and it simply says "no lead in electric/-onic equipment" it says nothing about specially solder itself, except depending on: but still nothing about solder as an autonomous product. Or I just missed it?!? I guess the production of lead-containing solder is generally running out due to decreasing industrial usage. . Andre ... such a GURU? | ||||
| bigmik Guru Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2950 |
Hi All, To the best of my knowledge Leaded solder is not illegal in Australia.. But in the last 2 or 3 years of my working career the company changed the rule to only use lead free solder.. We all had our own stock of leaded solder because we hated the lead free rubbish.. We often had to re-solder connectors out in the dirt and mud and not in exactly pristine working conditions and trying to do that with junk that doesn’t like to stick unless its perfectly clean and even when it does it looks like it hasn’t soldered properly and looks `grainy’ instead of shiny silver.. I cannot believe in this day and age a better solution hasn’t been designed.. Would NASA actually use this stuff on space ships that go to Mars and beyond? Regards, Mick Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 5090 |
There is a good reason to go to lead free solder these days. All production processes have been "tuned" for lead-free solder now a days, and the result is not bad at all. Assembly houses will generally not even have a process for leaded solder anymore. There is a variety of lead free solders, some based on silver, some on copper, and even more exotic variants (bismuth). Circuit boards have higher Tg's, Components have been re-engineered to withstand the higher temperatures. Have pure tin plating on the pins (leadframe finish). Why go for a (theoretical) better material, when the mainstream process is adequate these days. And mechanical properties of leadfree solders are better. In vibrations tests, components typically stay connected. One of the disdavantages of lead free solder is the mechanical strength however. In large temperature shocks, the lead free solder could rip copper traces from PCB's since it is stronger than the glue that holds the copper to the board. This is especially true for BGA's, that have very fine traces and pads. Typically at the edges of large BGA's is where the problems show. on the other hand, the leaded solder would tear apart and show micro cracks, and eventually would also fail. But for manual soldering and rework...nothing beats the old 37/63 or 40/60 leaded solder. Volhout Edited 2020-07-26 07:13 by Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| BrianP Senior Member  Joined: 30/03/2017 Location: AustraliaPosts: 292 |
Same for me - just try not to breathe in the fumes while using.  |
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