4square wrote:
I have heard, not seen anything in print yet, that the sale/supply of
lead based solder of any type is to cease within the next few years,
due to EU ruling. Anyone else heard of this, any info. on it?


More than you ever want to know...

For a start, scroll down to "lead-free soldering", at:
http://www.ifwtech.co.uk/g3sek/in-prac/index.htm

The basic aim is very praiseworthy: to drastically reduce the amount of
lead going into landfill in the solder content of scrap electronic
equipment. But lead-free solder requires much tighter process tolerances
than the old tin/lead, and many industry commentators are expecting a
decrease in reliability of electronic equipment.

Hand soldering and repairs are significantly more difficult with
lead-free solder. Bit temperatures have to increase, and/or it takes
significantly longer to heat up the joint, both of which increase the
risk of overheating the components and PC boards.

In trying to avoid that risk, you may instead risk making 'cold' joints
that will very quickly fail... but even good joints made with lead-free
solder *look* like they are cold joints! Your experience in judging the
quality of tin-lead solder joints by their appearance can actually
mislead you with lead-free. That can lead you into a vicious circle of
re-heating joints that actually may be perfectly OK... if only you could
be sure.

For ordinary DIY hand soldering, stock up on all the leaded solder
you're going to need for a lifetime, while it's still available. If you
use it to repair existing equipment and extend its working life, then
IMO you'll have done more than your share to keep lead out of landfill.


--
Ian White