A 37/63 alloy solder is easier to work with than 60/40 because it has a
lower melting point, and being a eutectic alloy, it has no plastic state
- it goes right from a liquid to a solid, therefore no cold solder
joints resulting from crystallization from movement of the connection
during the plastic phase of 60/40.
A "nice" solder IMHO is one with a Mildly Reactive Flux. It does not
leave a mess of solder resin like Highly Reactive Flux will do - save
the highly reactive stuff for wires that have some corrosion on them.
As far as the solder diameter, a smaller diameter solder makes it easier
to control the amount of solder applied. I routinely work with .020
diameter for thru-hole construction, .015 for SMD work.
Kester 285 is one example of a 37/63 alloy with mildly reactive flux.
Kester 44 is OK, but its highly reactive flux will leave a mess -- do
*not* clean the boards, you may end up with more problems than messy
flux. The flux residue if not conductive and will do no harm.
73,
Don W3FPR
On 3/24/2014 5:13 PM, JohnE wrote:
Also make sure you use nice solder - like .032 60/40 solder.
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