gunrunnerjohn posted:PLCProf posted:As far as solder goes, for a beginner, I would use something like Kester 44 50/50, rosin core, 062. 50/50 is more forgiving, it has a small plastic range during which it will tolerate SLIGHT motion. It also fills gaps better than 63/37, which melts instantly and has no plastic range. For the beginner, I would stay away from lead-free and silver-bearing solders, they are considerably fussier than 50/50 or 63/37.I'll have to disagree with the recommendations of 50/50 solder over the 63/37 solder. One of the primary mistakes that novices make is moving the connection as it cools and creating a cold solder joint. The benefit of 63/37 solder is that it is an eutectic alloy. It has the lowest melting point of all the common solders used in electronic work, and the melting point is not a range, thus reducing the possibility of creating the cold solder joint. The plastic range is a liability IMO.
No argument on your facts. My recommendation is based on watching people trying to solder those old terminal strips that were ubiquitous in tube radios, a bunch of oblong terminals staked to a phenolic strip. Many is the time I watched a learner put many inches of solder into a joint, while overheating that terminal and the ones around it, in an effort to "fill the hole like the picture." Most tutorials on soldering in those days showed a photo of a shiny completely- filled terminal as an example of a good soldering job. However, if there is a lot of clear space in the hole, and 63/37 is used, a good solder joint will not necessarily fill the hole completely. 50/50 made it easier to make a joint that "looked like the picture."
Oh, all the excess solder ran down and formed a puddle at the bottom of the terminal, where it solidified but did not stick to the aluminum chassis, causing an intermittent short to ground. Troubleshooting delight!
