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Old 4th Jun 2021, 8:42 pm   #21
Oldcodger
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Default Re: Leaded solder

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On the subject of lead solder the last reel that I bought was supposed to to be 60/40 but when making a joint I noticed it dries dull. I have taken to using a bit of plumber's flux with it which seems better. Mick.
Some of the cheaper stuff I've bought recently was like that. I must admit to wondering if it wasn't 40/60 rather than 60/40. Lead is cheaper than tin.....
Higher lead content solder was common in some MOD radios with multi bands due to the heat generated at higher powers on the inductors and at times it was found that at 50 W the solder could crack.
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Old 4th Jun 2021, 11:54 pm   #22
emeritus
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Default Re: Leaded solder

I have some early 1940's issues of "Wireless World" complete with advert pages. One has an ad for Ersin Multicore solder that lists the solders then available. Higher lead content than pre-war was the preferred range to save tin. The need to use a higher temperature solder iron was mentioned. Special authorisation had to be obtained to buy (and use) solders with a higher tin content.

Last edited by emeritus; 4th Jun 2021 at 11:55 pm. Reason: typos
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Old 7th Jun 2021, 8:39 pm   #23
duncanlowe
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Default Re: Leaded solder

Be careful with plumber's flux. The conventional rosin flux in solder is fairly passive and is relatively inert unless hot. Other kinds of flux can be much more active and continue to be so after soldering. I once (well twice actually, 12 months apart) had a situation where someone decided that they would use a special flux to solve a problem with a soldered product. Problem was said flux left a residue that became conductive after being subject to DC voltage for a few hours and ended in a self destruct situation.
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Old 7th Jun 2021, 11:09 pm   #24
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Default Re: Leaded solder

Here's the Multicore advert, from the September 1943 WW. Multicore solder was only available for "firms on Government Contracts and other essential Home Civil requirements", max. tin content allowable without a special licence was 45/55 tin/lead.
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File Type: pdf Ersin Ad WW_194309 .pdf (282.5 KB, 65 views)
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Old 8th Jun 2021, 7:50 pm   #25
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Default Re: Leaded solder

Considering that plenty of new [very high quality] roofs comprise lead, ditto most flashings/soakers/trays and other assorted roof components ..... plus of course lead-acid accumulators, and vehicle wheel weights etc. etc. - it does make one wonder about the logic behind phasing-out its use in solder? I mean .... no sane person is going to lick or devour half a roof, accumulators or a circuit board! (Its phased removal from anything in contact with potable water supplies is of course fully endorsed and sound thinking.)
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Old 8th Jun 2021, 8:43 pm   #26
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Default Re: Leaded solder

My understanding is that lead pipes are perfectly safe for conveying drinking water in hard water areas. It is only soft water that is plumbo-solvent. When I removed the lead pipes from my first house when I re-plumbed it, the bores of the cold water pipes were coated with a layer of limescale.

Just noticed that the 1943 ad stresses that, with the use of zinc-plated components, it had become necessary to use antimony-free alloys. I know that in the case of MAZAC, very small amounts of impurities ( such as lead) can result in embrittlement. Possibly some interaction between antimony and zinc had been found to have similar unforseen consequences for solder joint reliability.

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Old 9th Jun 2021, 12:55 pm   #27
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Default Re: Leaded solder

I do have a couple of reels of tin/antimony solder, last used for soldering to a mains dropper on account of the higher melting point.

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Originally Posted by Tractionist View Post
Considering that plenty of new [very high quality] roofs comprise lead, ditto most flashings/soakers/trays and other assorted roof components ..... plus of course lead-acid accumulators, and vehicle wheel weights etc. etc. - it does make one wonder about the logic behind phasing-out its use in solder?
I guess lead pipes, roofs, lead-acid accumulators are recycled en masse so won't end up in landfill. Vehicle wheel weights, which could fly off into the undergrowth, are now I believe bismuth.

Whereas for old electronics, the solder content is harder to recover. And what's hard to do, tends not to be done.
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Old 9th Jun 2021, 1:16 pm   #28
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Default Re: Leaded solder

Lead soakers etc, most newbuilds don't have soakers for chimneys because most newbuilds don't have chimneys that need them and if they did they would probably use plastic ones because they're more cost effective at the construction phase.

One planet.

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Old 9th Jun 2021, 2:55 pm   #29
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Default Re: Leaded solder

As said, building-use lead is likely to be a relatively-easily separated item and obviously weighty, so recycling is obviously worthwhile, even lucrative to most people whereas lead in electronic solder is a far less conspicuous source and probably "too much hassle" to do much more than toss ephemeral consumer items into general rubbish.

I gather that, largely due to the vehicle-battery scene, lead is actually one of the most successfully recycled metals but I have a bad feeling that it probably often involves piling them up with the old tyres and pallets in Third World countries and collecting the silvery puddle once it's cooled and solidified....
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Old 14th Jun 2021, 1:41 pm   #30
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Default Re: Leaded solder

I used lead free solder once and try to avoid using it now. It just didn't flow like the 60/40 type, and many of the joints looked dull.

I use Weller 60/40 now that's still available & I'm very happy with it.
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