Where do you buy your reflow solder paste?

I’m looking for good quality but not too over-priced, in both the lead free and traditional leaded versions. No-clean is a plus.

Thanks in advance for your help. :smiley:

http://www.stanleysupplyservices.com/product-detail.aspx?pn=143-782

Shipping is gonna be a killer… overnight/ice pack required. Also that syringe is for an automated dispenser. Most people will want a manual syringe.

PilotPTK: Thank you for the link :slight_smile:

texaspyro: Can you tell if this one from Amazon is automatic. It looks a lot like the above link. $2 shipping :wink:

Also has anyone tried this lead free solder …does it compare well to the others?

I appreciate the info.

Speaking of solders (sorry to OP for OT)

I have been looking at picking up some SAC solder and paste for better thermal connections and wonder if by chance anyone can guide me as to what to get.

What I have been looking at is this solder and this paste

I am a bit reluctant to get thm due to them being lead free and I read posts from both TexasPyro and PilotPKT saying that they are much more difficul to solder with than ordinary solder.

Any hints and help much appreciated.

Yes it is. It has no manual plunger or needle tip. You will probably have to find some repackaged stuff for that… and it will probably be well past its expiration date.

I use ChipQuick low temp solder paste from Amazon.com.

Works great for reflow soldering of emitters and other mods.

Yesterday, I built up part of a pill with it for a mod. I place 4 copper rounds together with ChipQuick in between, then baked the entire thing in the oven in the kitchen. Came back later and it was all nicely soldered together.

Thanks for the feedback, I was thinking about buying this one and had a couple of question if you don’t mind. Does it really solder at only 281 F? (That would be nice but I didn’t realize it was possible with tin based solder.) Does it give you any kind of instructions for reflow cycle?

Also did it come with a reasonable expiration date?

I appreciate it. :slight_smile:

I bought some Kester no-clean EP256 from HERE. You don’t get dinged with the special shipping charges. I think this was recommended in another BLF thread.

Not super crazy about the EP256 for syringe dispensing. The tackiness seems pretty low. It is hard to lay a small blob on a pad. You have to dispense a small bit, then wipe it off by grounding the needle to the board. Maybe that is just the way it works? Seems like a little extra flux in the formula would have helped.

I’d be a little nervous with the low melt point chip quick. Great stuff for floating off smt parts though for replacement or repair.

nickelflipper: Thank you for pointing out the “not-sticking to the board” issue. I’ve noticed the same problem with DX Paste, but after a minute at room the glob warms up and “melts” to cover the board better.

Would it be possible to have a sticky thread on solder paste for LED reflowing that reviews products for issues with such as melting point, clean/no clean, automatic or manual dispensing etc.?

I recently took all the blobs of solder that were around my soldering station, melted them into a chunk, then rubbed the chunk against a file until it was nearly gone.

Then I took some flux, put it in a film bottle, warmed it in the microwave until it was liquid, then dumped in the filings.

After getting accustomed to how much I need to put on a PCB, it works fine - although I would definitely prefer no clean flux.

Funny you mentioned the DX Lodestar paste, as that was my first experience with reflowing. It sat at the post office for a few months before picking it up. The flux has pretty much separated, and makes a real mess, which is why I bought the Kesters.

The Kester EP256 could just take some getting used to, as far as manual syringe application. If I ever get around to using a stencil, it would probably be excellent.

Nowhere, because almost nobody sells it beside the chinese crap solder paste.
Well they do sell it elsewhere but for prices around $20-$30 minimum.

I’ll grind the solder with my teeth to make it a paste than pay $30 for a tiny bit of solder paste :wink:

I purchased mine (Kester EP256) from CML Supply, via Amazon.com

Amazon Link

sra-solder.com has great solder. I,m loving the 96.5% 3.5% This is some high quality stuff, by far the best I have ever used. You cannot compare it to that stuff from dx. They have all kinds of different solder pastes and the advertise the melting points as well. They also have some solder that is supposed to stick aluminum and copper together. I have some but havnt tried it yet.

Hi,

I have a question: Why do you use “low temp” solder paste?

Let me re-phrase that: I guess that it’s easier to use for reflow because it melts at lower temperature, but isn’t that low-temp melting point a problem if the emitter/PCB gets “too” hot and the solder re-melts while it’s in a light?