On Mon, 26 Feb 2007 15:33:57 GMT, Art Todesco
wrote:

Just went to look at the Kester paste in
the square blue tin. It
contain zinc chloride, whatever that
means.

Oh, yeah. Mine says that too.

I have used it for
electronics for many years. As I
recall, this product was originally
meant for electronics, although, as we
all know, things change. I
don't think that 30 years ago anyone
cleaned PC boards after soldering.

Do you mean that I'm supposed to that? when I use resin core solder?
Or if I use the Kester paste?

or are we only talking new assemblies which maybe use something else
entirely?

If they didnt' clean boards 30 years ago, I guess that's why I don't.
I've been soldering since I was 13 and only had my wood burning iron
47 years ago. (It was never quite hot enough, but I got by.)

So should I be cleaning solder conections I make now? With what?

I use it to tin stranded wire, or even a
single strand (to help in
soldering to a lug or board). It makes
tinning a whole lot easier.
Before I retired, in our electronic lab
at Bell Labs, we used a
product called "No-Korode" or some
similar spelling, but I'm
sure it was at least a little bit
corrosive.

mm wrote:
On Mon, 26 Feb 2007 00:19:59 -0500, "badgolferman"
wrote:

mm, 2/25/2007,10:55:55 PM, wrote:

I've bought at the store or at yard sales, or found in the trash or
inherited from an old guy several kinds of flux, but I've alsways
saved them for copper pipes, and relied on resin core solder to do
electronics and electrical.

Is this what you guys do?

Sometimes I have trouble getting the solder to spread out, even when
I've scraped the wire etc. with a knife and gotten it very shiny.

One case last week involved 20 gauge single strand wire that had a
white plastic covering and a black plastic covering over that, even
though there was no braid or anything (why two layers?)

Should I be using the flux in cases like this?

Are there any things I should know that aren't obvious among the
following:

Oatey No.5 solder paste, cleans, fluxes, in a round red can a half
inch high
Oatey No. 95 Lead Free Tinning Flux for use with any lead free solder,
in a green can the same size as the red can above.
Kester soldering paste, in a 2x2" square blue metal can about a half
inch high with rounded corners.
Kester All Purpose Soldering flux, liquid in a 4 oz white plastic
bottle.
I can only tell you my experience as an electronic technician for 25
years.

That ought to be good enough.

If you cannot tin the single strand wire properly it is either
coated with some substance or you are not heating it enough. Come to
think of it, why are you tinning single strand anyway? Perhaps I

Sometimes it is just part of the soldering, but last week I was doing
the strand in advance because I was soldering to pcb traces and I
wanted it to go quickly.

misunderstood and you just want to solder it on to a post or something.

That too in some cases.

You really shouldn't need any additional flux. What is in the solder
should be good enough.

Then I'll stick with my long-time practice, which usually works fine.

Thanks, and thanks all.