DIYstompboxes.com

i put this in this section for max exposure ...
unfortunately , i have run out of all my garbage picked / gifted solder :(

i have purchased solder one time in my life , many years back at radio shack , and it wasnt THAT pricey .
looking around for a second , i couldnt believe how much it is !

a bit busy , anyone know of a good source for affordable solder , anything i should avoid purchasing ?

i would like to get a large ammount to save mney / hassle so getting something good at a decent price would be ideal .

i say sodder , do you say soLder ? well you are prolly a lot smarter than me anyway .

thanks :) !!

Wherever you get it, get either 60-40 tin-lead or 63-37 tin-lead. Whether you are a believer in lead destroying the world, calling in the Death Star, poisoning the stratosphere, causing global ...er, climate change, killing the tooth fairy, wiping out generations unborn, yada, yada, or not, your use in building a few pedals is not going to make a difference one way or the other.

And there is a reason that these two alloys were the standard - they're good. They melt well, adhere well, are easy to see defects in, and in general are the pinnacle of the electronics solder technology.

Something like an 0.020" to 0.032" diameter rosin core. I'm on my second roll (ever ... !) of Kester SN60PB40 rosin core, 0.031" diameter. I bought my first roll in about 1974. Clearly I don't do production runs here.  :icon_lol:

Pick the smaller 0.020" size if you do much SMD.

And frankly, since it lasts so long, just go find a pound roll of Kester. Their flux formulation is proven (by me, to myself, for decades) to be reliable and not rot a way over time. It's been ready when I am.

I can't wait until we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper. 

Quote from: R.G. on June 06, 2013, 07:53:01 PM
Wherever you get it, get either 60-40 tin-lead or 63-37 tin-lead. Whether you are a believer in lead destroying the world, calling in the Death Star, poisoning the stratosphere, causing global ...er, climate change, killing the tooth fairy, wiping out generations unborn, yada, yada, or not, your use in building a few pedals is not going to make a difference one way or the other.

And there is a reason that these two alloys were the standard - they're good. They melt well, adhere well, are easy to see defects in, and in general are the pinnacle of the electronics solder technology.

Something like an 0.020" to 0.032" diameter rosin core. I'm on my second roll (ever ... !) of Kester SN60PB40 rosin core, 0.031" diameter. I bought my first roll in about 1974. Clearly I don't do production runs here.  :icon_lol:

Pick the smaller 0.020" size if you do much SMD.

And frankly, since it lasts so long, just go find a pound roll of Kester. Their flux formulation is proven (by me, to myself, for decades) to be reliable and not rot a way over time. It's been ready when I am.

I can't wait until we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper.  

to be fair, properly used and taken care of, all materials are "safe", or at least "not dangerous". Too much caffeine can kill a person.


I always laugh when people buy "crystal-ware" based on how much Pb it has in it. Yeah, serve acidic drinks in lead containers so it can leech into the people you're serving. Delicious.

I like using flux paste myself, even if the solder has flux core. It seems to flow like water pretty quickly.

Quote from: R.G. on June 06, 2013, 07:53:01 PM
I can't wait until we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper. 

This just in...

(http://hostmypicture.com/images/daddywasac.jpg)

lead is ok, its evaporation is not. so dont solder in closed room to long. get some small PC cooler to vent air in front of you if you feel like it.

@ecologists: 2000+ nuke tests should wary you more xD

Quote from: Gurner on June 06, 2013, 08:10:22 PM

Quote from: R.G. on June 06, 2013, 07:53:01 PM
I can't wait until we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper. 

This just in...

(http://hostmypicture.com/images/daddywasac.jpg)

that's just his version of a bench press before he eats it.

Quote from: Thecomedian on June 06, 2013, 08:06:16 PM
to be fair, properly used and taken care of, all materials are "safe", or at least "not dangerous".

I would have agreed with that until I read about chlorine trifluoride here: http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/things_i_wont_work_with/ (http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/things_i_wont_work_with/)

Any substance that will cause bricks, asbestos and sand to burn is going on my list of things that ought to be un-invented.

Dioxygen difluoride (FOOF...) deserves a place on the list too.

Quote from: bukas on June 06, 2013, 08:14:34 PM
lead is ok, its evaporation is not. so dont solder in closed room to long. get some small PC cooler to vent air in front of you if you feel like it.

@ecologists: 2000+ nuke tests should wary you more xD

It's a good idea to have good ventilation when soldering, but not because of lead vaporizing. The boiling point of lead is much higher than the temperature of soldering irons. The vapors fumes that you see and smell are the flux burning. It's not a good idea to breath a lot of fumes from anything burning.

To avoid allowing lead that has gotten on your hands to enter your body, after you handle solder, wash your hands before eating, smoking, rubbing your eyes, going to the bathroom, having sex, or picking your nose (or any combination of those things ;)).

Quote from: Jdansti on June 06, 2013, 10:31:52 PM

Quote from: bukas on June 06, 2013, 08:14:34 PM
lead is ok, its evaporation is not. so dont solder in closed room to long. get some small PC cooler to vent air in front of you if you feel like it.

@ecologists: 2000+ nuke tests should wary you more xD

It's a good idea to have good ventilation when soldering, but not because of lead vaporizing. The boiling point of lead is much higher than the temperature of soldering irons. The vapors fumes that you see and smell are the flux burning. It's not a good idea to breath a lot of fumes from anything burning.

To avoid allowing lead that has gotten on your hands to enter your body, after you handle solder, wash your hands before eating, smoking, rubbing your eyes, going to the bathroom, having sex, or picking your nose (or any combination of those things ;)).

well, there goes my friday afternoon...

I love the smell of burning flux in the morning!  :icon_mrgreen:

Hi Petey
I've just started using Silver line 60/40. I dont know if its available over the pond.
I love it.

What R.G. said!!!!

John's comments re ventilation are good advice also. I spent almost 10 years hand and machine soldering (for a living) over 20 years ago without problems. These days I get my iron out and do a half hour's work and I notice my nose feels funny (and it's not because I'm burning it on the iron!).  In my experience this sort of exposure seems to cause sensitivity.

davidt

everytime I solder these days, the back of my throat gets sore pretty quick. maybe I'm doing it wrong.


and since I haven't smoked a cig in 17 years or so, I can always smell the room stinks after soldering.

Quote from: Gurner on June 06, 2013, 08:10:22 PM

Quote from: R.G. on June 06, 2013, 07:53:01 PM
I can't wait until we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper. 

This just in...

(http://hostmypicture.com/images/daddywasac.jpg)

Do you see what you did, RG? I hope you're happy!  ;D

I suspect that the EPA would decide I was environmentally incorrect for even thinking of such a thing.    :icon_lol:

> we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper.

It was supposed to cause the demise of excess sexual urges.

Agree: less than one pound of good brand-name 60:40.

I like Multicore; my other roll is Kester. I have not gone through 2 whole pounds in my whole life (including large patch-bays). If you don't over-pay for a Half-Pound, do that.... it ain't Silver, it isn't a good monetary investment hedge.

> serve acidic drinks in lead containers

It's *in the glass*. If your drinks etch glass, they are too acidic.

^Would anyone care for a hydrofluoric %^&*tail?  ;D
(Dang!  Talk about an aggressive auto-anti-cursing feature!  That word is supposed to be c0cktail ;))

%^&*ade
%^&*amamy
%^&*apoo
%^&*atiel
%^&*atoo
%^&*ed
%^&*er spaniel
%^&*eyed
%^&*fight
%^&*leshell
%^&*pit
%^&*roach
%^&*scomb
%^&*y
cold%^&*
game%^&*
pea%^&*
pet%^&*
poppy%^&*
shuttle%^&*
stop%^&*
wood%^&*

On a side note, I work in construction, historical restoration and such.  Technically, a lead paint chip the size of a quarter, ground into a powder form can, by code, contaminate 2000sq ft.  Burning, or melting, lead is a big no-no.  So, that being said, what are the concerns (in y'all's education/opinion) on soldering with partial lead solder?  I was populating a PCB the other day, and thought to my self, "dude, put on your n-100 respirator, fool!"  Ha ha!

^ oops, dang small devices!  Didn't see that there were opinions posted.

Quote from: Jdansti on June 08, 2013, 12:12:00 AM

^Would anyone care for a hydrofluoric %^&*tail?  ;D
(Dang!  Talk about an aggressive auto-anti-cursing feature!  That word is supposed to be c0cktail ;))

%^&*ade
%^&*amamy
%^&*apoo
%^&*atiel
%^&*atoo
%^&*ed
%^&*er spaniel
%^&*eyed
%^&*fight
%^&*leshell
%^&*pit
%^&*roach
%^&*scomb
%^&*y
cold%^&*
game%^&*
pea%^&*
pet%^&*
poppy%^&*
shuttle%^&*
stop%^&*
wood%^&*

Translation

^Would anyone care for a hydrofluoric %^&*tail?  ;D
(Dang!  Talk about an aggressive auto-anti-cursing feature!  That word is supposed to be c­ocktail ;))

c­ockade
c­ockamamy
c­ockapoo
c­ockatiel
c­ockatoo
c­ocked
c­ocker spaniel
c­ockeyed
c­ockfight
c­ockleshell
c­ockpit
c­ockroach
c­ockscomb
c­ocky
coldc­ock
gamec­ock
peac­ock
petc­ock
poppyc­ock
shuttlec­ock
stopc­ock
woodc­ock

^How did you do dat?

Google Translator, American English -> Canadian English.




I think it was Haveyouseenhim Mike i first saw let the genie out of the bottle, insert a 'blank space/character' within the word in question and the software doesn't recognize it as a naughty bit. Blank = Alt0173, must use the numeric keypad.

Aha...Leave it to Mike to figure that one out! :icon_twisted:

i went thru a pound of kester in two years .

(http://hostmypicture.com/images/solder3.jpg)

:icon_mrgreen:
Now how do say older, bolder, folder etc?    

Exactly....

Kock dik sh!t v@gin@ cooter... gotta learn the slang lingo yo :icon_mrgreen:

Quote from: J0K3RX on June 09, 2013, 07:07:08 PM
Kock dik sh!t v@gin@ cooter... gotta learn the slang lingo yo :icon_mrgreen:

I'm sorry  :icon_redface: that was inappropriate...

Quote from: PRR on June 07, 2013, 11:49:51 PM
> we find that cornflakes is leading to the demise of the ring-tailed grasshopper.

It was supposed to cause the demise of excess sexual urges.

Agree: less than one pound of good brand-name 60:40.

I like Multicore; my other roll is Kester. I have not gone through 2 whole pounds in my whole life (including large patch-bays). If you don't over-pay for a Half-Pound, do that.... it ain't Silver, it isn't a good monetary investment hedge.

> serve acidic drinks in lead containers

It's *in the glass*. If your drinks etch glass, they are too acidic.

http://ask.metafilter.com/14337/Does-the-lead-in-lead-crystal-glasses-leach-into-wine


Glass is a high viscosity liquid, by definition. That's why cathedral glass always looks like it's melting and pooling at the bottom, with the tops being very thin and the bottom being very thick.

All metals are fluxes. Lead is a super cheap abundant metal, that has an extremely low melting point. Added to silica, this allows people to form and create glass at 1000 degrees, instead of, say, 2000 or 2400, (my ceramics professor teaches us to create work at 2345 degrees Fahrenheit).

The lead makes it cheaper for them to make, and then they turn around and tell people it's the best thing ever, where people only look for the label of how much useless metal was put in it, and they believe that makes it more valuable. It's pure ignorance and marketing.

for Further info:

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/19/science/q-a-945129.html

QuoteQ. Is it safe to drink from our lead crystal wine glasses?

A. It is probably safe to have wine with dinner from your glasses, though varying trace amounts of lead do leach out of lead crystal, as a Columbia University study found in 1991. Those researchers estimated that the lead released in the course of a meal posed a negligible risk.

Canadian government tests also found that the amount of lead released into a glass of wine in the time a meal can be eaten is well below the Canadian maximum allowable concentration of lead in a beverage, 200 parts per billion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_glass

QuoteLeaded crystal wineglasses and decanters are generally not considered to pose a significant health risk, provided that these items are washed thoroughly before use, that beverages are not stored in these containers for more than a few hours, and provided that they are not used by children.[14][verification needed][15]

It has been proposed that the historic association of gout with the upper classes in Europe and America was, in part, caused by their extensive use of lead crystal decanters to store fortified wines and whisky.[16] Lin et al. have statistical evidence linking gout to lead poisoning.[17]

Items made of lead glass may leach lead into the food and beverages contained.[18][19] In a study performed at North Carolina State University,[20][verification needed] the amount of lead migration was measured for port wine stored in lead crystal decanters. After two days, lead levels were 89 µg/L (micrograms per liter). After four months, lead levels were between 2,000 and 5,000 µg/L. White wine doubled its lead content within an hour of storage and tripled it within four hours. Some brandy stored in lead crystal for over five years had lead levels around 20,000 µg/L.[21][22] To put this into perspective, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's lead standard for drinking water is 15 µg/L = 0.015 parts per million.[23] Citrus juices and other acidic drinks leach lead from crystal as effectively as alcoholic beverages. [24][25]

http://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/19/science/storing-wine-in-crystal-decanters-may-pose-lead-hazard.html

Remember, Our skin is a permeable membrane as well, so handling = leeching. It's one of the reasons I think it's ridiculous that we treat animals for fleas and ticks using a topical substance that we are supposedly in grave danger if we eat without washing our hands. Bloodstreams are bloodstreams.

Quote from: Thecomedian on June 09, 2013, 08:02:34 PM

Glass is a high viscosity liquid, by definition. That's why cathedral glass always looks like it's melting and pooling at the bottom, with the tops being very thin and the bottom being very thick.

I always thought that, too - It seems opinions differ:

http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/physics/General/Glass/glass.html

Quote from: nocentelli on June 10, 2013, 03:59:19 AM

Quote from: Thecomedian on June 09, 2013, 08:02:34 PM

Glass is a high viscosity liquid, by definition. That's why cathedral glass always looks like it's melting and pooling at the bottom, with the tops being very thin and the bottom being very thick.

I always thought that, too - It seems opinions differ:

http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/physics/General/Glass/glass.html

The difference of the glaze on a ceramic pot and a piece of glass is the level of viscosity (both are made of silica). the explanation that spinning out those rondels of glass (the circles they made) were thicker at one point than the other doesn't hold weight, because evenness is related to the skill of the crafter, and not some standard.

I can go ahead and bring this up with the professor next time I see him, but the atomic structure disordered and not evenly spaced lattices.

They finish the article by saying that saying it's a liquid or a solid can both be valid points of view..

We're well off topic, but never mind: Everywhere i look into it, glass is considered an amorphous solid, and not a liquid: http://dwb.unl.edu/Teacher/NSF/C01/C01Links/www.ualberta.ca/~bderksen/florin.html

QuoteConclusion
Glasses are amorphous solids. There is a fundamental structural divide between amorphous solids (including glasses) and crystalline solids. Structurally, glasses are similar to liquids, but that doesn't mean they are liquid. It is possible that the "glass is a liquid" urban legend originated with a misreading of a German treatise on glass thermodynamics.

I only teach high-school chemistry, but for years went on repeating to my students the same "super-cooled liquid" stuff i was taught at school. I'm not sure it's true. Similarly, for years, we taught that excess stomach acid causes ulcers and gastritis, until Barry Marshall won the Nobel by showing that they're caused by a bacteria (he drank some straight out of a petri dish, apparently).

Quote from: Thecomedian on June 09, 2013, 08:02:34 PM
Glass is a high viscosity liquid, by definition. That's why cathedral glass always looks like it's melting and pooling at the bottom, with the tops being very thin and the bottom being very thick.

Technically, glass can be considered a high viscosity liquid, true.  The definition of 'liquid' is a bit ambiguous in this context, but by some definitions, you could correctly make this statement.  The rest of the statement is false.  The viscosity of glass is high enough at room temperature that the amount of time required for such a deformation is longer than the age of the universe, even if you are extremely generous with the viscosity estimate.  This is an application of continuum mechanics, which I happen to be trained in.  I did a fairly simple calculation in graduate school to satisfy myself that the 'flowing glass' phenomenon was a myth, but here (http://www.df.unipi.it/~leporini/DFWebSite/ReviewsTg/CathedralGlasses.pdf) is a much more complete analysis by Edgar Zanotto (a Brazilian materials scientist), published in the American Journal of Physics, if you're interested.

Even if you don't want to go through the math, there are other obvious bits of evidence that refute the cathedral glass examples.  For instance, glass sculptures that are much older than these cathedrals have been found (for example in Egyptian tombs), and demonstrate no such deformation.  In fact, antique telescopes provide a uniquely relevant test bed for these claims, since the optical characteristics of lenses are sensitive to changes that are not even detectable by the naked eye, so the effect of 'glass flow' would be noticeable at much shorter time scales than cathedral window examples.  While not optically perfect, antique telescopes show no systematic deformation consistent with the 'flowing glass' myth. 

I guess this isn't really relevant to stompboxes, but it's fun anyway.

Well it disturbs me that a Cal state Uni graduated professor who won multiple scholarships from multiple universities and colleges, blows hot glass and has permanent works collection in a national museum, is teaching students that glass is a liquid in the very first class for stained glass design. hm.

Don't be disturbed.  Glass can be accurately described as a viscous liquid, especially when heated to glass blowing temperatures.  As the temperature decreases, it doesn't undergo a phase change, so you can still call it a liquid at room temperature if you want to.  It's just that the viscosity of this 'liquid' is so high that it doesn't behave like a fluid at timescales that are anything less than many multiples of the age of the universe.

So you can say it's a liquid and you won't be lying, necessarily.  You just can't say that it flows like a liquid at room temperature, or that cathedral glass proves that it does.

In science, what you call something is less important than the way it behaves.

Quote from: induction on June 10, 2013, 10:40:25 PM
In science, what you call something is less important than the way it behaves.

Just like stompboxes.   :)

My father passed away in 2010 and last weekend while cleaning up his workbench I found 1m50 of Kester ;-)
Only thing is, I'm wondering if the flux is ok. It was still in the original unopened package but there was some kind of golden dust residue around the spindle...

> wondering if the flux is ok

Yes.

well i ended up paying 14.49 for a half pound at R.S. , i couldnt wait . i did see a pound of kester for 23 but i am not sure on the shipping . guessing it aint free .

if anyone does know of a great deal , i would definitely pick up a pound or so . i am thinking i must be wasting it somehow , i shouldn't have gone thru as much a s i did ?!