Comments on Is there a particular type of lead-free solder that does not degrade soldering tips?
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Is there a particular type of lead-free solder that does not degrade soldering tips?
I have had my soldering iron tips degrading at ridiculous rates. Granted, they are not very expensive, but sometimes it takes less than 8 hours of soldering for them to degrade to the point where they are no longer usable. I use a soft sponge for cleaning, don't leave the iron on for prolonged times and coat it with tin when not using it.
I see that the market is moving to lead-free solder (which is what I am using) and it is getting more difficult to acquire leaded solder. Yes, I have read that there are no real advantages of lead-free solder over leaded solder, except for reducing the waste that goes into the landmass.
However, assuming there are children and pets in the house, it would make sense to not have a spool of lead laying around. Naturally, it should be put away, but nobody is perfect, and you may forget etc.
Hence the question: Are there certain types of lead-free solder to look for, that are easy on the soldering iron tips? If so, are there particular chemical compounds that allow this?
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PCB's and components are expected to be used with the common SAC solder, there's little reason to use SnPb, IMO. I learned on SnPb. After a brief transition for RoHS to re-calibrate the "feel" of it, never went back. Once or twice an oddball situation needed low melting point, used SnBi (also toxic I believe).
Things to look at, many already discussed
- Temperature... Need good temp control. Use "extra hot" only when needed. Design pcb with more thermal reliefs when possible to avoid this need. Also, IMO no need for tiny tips, just ends up needing to turn the heat up. I use 2.4mm for everything.
- I think name-brand tips with quality plating are worth it.
- Avoid any abrasive cleaning of the tip, that would wear away the plating. (but after tip plating is already gone, go to town)
- I am suspicious of aggressive fluxes. I think the stuff on solder wick might be such. Would not want to leave that on there for too long. Simply displace with regular solder when done with it.
- The water quality on the sponge may be another wildcard factor with corrosion.
- Not sure how important it is to wipe off the slag(?) frequently, but I do it.
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