RohS lead free soldering

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Eva

Eva

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Joined 2003
jneutron said:

Complete recovery of materials is rather expensive. Only when it is cheaper than using virgin materials will it be taken up.

Cheers, John
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We are stupid because we know that using virgin materials will end up being more costly than recovering them from existing equipment quite soon, yet we act as if we had unlimited sources of virgin materials and unlimited dumpster space to throw the complex mixtures that we make out of them once used.

We are so stupid that we are even trying to produce dumpster-ready stuff instead of recovery-ready stuff, but the recovery effort *must* be taken anyway. If we don't take it now with calm, we will have to take it later in a hurry. We can fool ourselves but we can't fool nature :)
 
jneutron

jneutron

Member
Joined 2004
Eva said:
We are stupid because we know that using virgin materials will end up being more costly than recovering them from existing equipment quite soon, yet we act as if we had unlimited sources of virgin materials and unlimited dumpster space to throw the complex mixtures that we make out of them once used.
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When the virgin materials are more costly, recovery will happen. It is a self limiting process.

Eva said:
We are so stupid that we are even trying to produce dumpster-ready stuff instead of recovery-ready stuff, but the recovery effort *must* be taken anyway. If we don't take it now with calm, we will have to take it later in a hurry. We can fool ourselves but we can't fool nature :)
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At least some are realizing the issue of the throwaway stuff as being a concentrator of heavy metals.

Claims of dire futures consistently fail to come true.

Not because the claims were incorrect....sometimes it is the simple awareness of the possibility that opens our eyes.

Given the surge in population on the planet, it was predicted that we would not have enough food, I think that prediction was to come true in the late 70's..

Cheers, John
 
M

mzzj

Member
Joined 2005
richwalters said:
.I'm having to change tips quite regulary with Pb free.

richj
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How many kilos of solder you use per month? :D

Is Your soldering iron is oldish magnastat-weller? 8-9 number tips dont last so long in these, try Hakko or Metcal and you will be supprised how long your tips last. I have had metcal for something like 2 years on daily use with temperature similar to 8-number weller and its still running fine with orginal tip. Sometimes I forget it on for week or two, sure its bit oxidized but "Tip-Tinner" made by multicore cleans it in seconds.
 
richwalters

richwalters

Member
Joined 2003
mzzj said:


How many kilos of solder you use per month? :D

Ah... ok about 2 to the equipment, probably a 1/4 as oxide scale to the environment....

Is Your soldering iron is oldish magnastat-weller? 8-9 number tips dont last so long in these, .
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Ja...okay I'm an old-fashioned impatient git..I've learnt my trade repairing bottle amps and electronics for 40 yrs.....(now it all comes out...)...With little respect these Magnastat tips with this new fangled solder stuff are rotting as fast as i LOOK at'em. I know I'll get told off about this ......... It's case of getting on with the job (on piecework) with a Decent HOT tip and not having to fxxg long waiting looking at it.

Okay point made...I'M being a bit naiive. What you are implying me to do to is to buy a new SS temperature controlled soldering pencil (station) ?..:joker: ... Eva would say <I told you so>...exactly das (the) problem of putting more excellent 60/40 equipment junk in the trash bin.

I suppose I'd better move on...

LL60/40

richj
 
Eva

Eva

Member
Joined 2003
That's right Rich, paradoxically a lot of working equipment and parts full of Pb are going to be put in the nearest dumpster just because new RoHS regulations make them "outdated".

BTW: I'm considering a straightforward triac dimmer with a potentiometer to keep my (bare non-regulated) soldering irons somewhat hot but not evaporating themselves when I 'm not using them (maybe even some stupid system that only applies full power to the heat element when it detects that you have the iron off the holder).
 
H

Hector Ruiz

Member
Joined 2006
Reply to Eva

A simple fix would be to put an ordinary silicon diode in series with the iron's heating element. By rectifier action ony one-half of the AC waveform is allowed to pass through the heating element, thereby lowering the temperature of the tip. If you are mechanically inclined, you can rig-up some sort of mechanism linked to a leaver-activated MicroSwitch. When the iron is lifted the MicroSwitch will short out the diode allowing full AC to flow through the heating element.
 
D

DragonMaster

Member
Joined 2004
dmsaudio.ca/
Better LF? I think the one with silver.

I'm still OK for years to come, just bought a pound of 63/37 Kester solder for $15. (I just finished a quarter pound that I bought 2-3 years ago)

I think that high-reliability (Military/Medical) equipment in North America is untouched by RoHS, so SnPb will always be available somewhere.

Else, if you can't find Pb solder in your electronic store, I think that some countries still have 60/40 or 40/60 for cooper pipes in hardware stores...
 
soongsc

soongsc

Member
Joined 2005
Consumer products are continuous sources of lead polution, that's why it's a good idea to start from these products. Military and medical equipment have a longer grace period, but since product certification take longer, manufacturers always want a head start so they don't get left out of the game.
 
richwalters

richwalters

Member
Joined 2003
Someone mentioned 60Pb & 40 Sn.....that would imply too wide a plastic range for electronics...that grade is (was) for the big stuff...transformer & motor windings etc. For electronics this takes far longer for joint to cool down risking dry joint. There is more to this metallurgy stuff than meets the eye, the contact angles of iron to globule & joint is also important but all taken for granted these days. It's too easy to slam a 8 or 9 spade bit in a Weller and get-on with it.
However, having been accused of being a <bull in a china shop> with my electronics, soldering is one of those arts one HAS to master for success. (I'd admit though my times I've put 75% of other peoples projects right, simply by a decent hot iron, understanding the process and replacing damaged components).

I think solder manufacturers could have done better to inform users about the Eutectic range of fangled Pb free. (perhaps it's been out there and I've been ignorant not finding it) Disclosing the melting point isn't enough.
Like many others, one cannot beat the near Eutectic perfection of the 63Sn&37Pb which melts at 183°C.

In the late 1950's one studied soldering practises by attending Radio & electrnics evening tech classes. Everyone did this by their own conviction then afterwards nip down to the local to have a Jar or two. That was the British way of doing things.
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The Romans gradually poisoned themselves by drinking wine from lead containers.

richj
 
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