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Customers most agreed on the following attributes:
EET student. I use this solder on my projects now instead of the 60/40. Particularly because 60/40 doesn't come in as small diameter as this does at my RS. The small diameter is great for SMT.
If you use this, make sure you have hot iron. We found that it melts better around 410 deg. F. or so. Once it is down, it is hard to get it to reflow without a high temperature (which is expected with the silver content). It almost has a gummy consistency when it reflows. Those new to soldering should be careful not to overheat their components when using this.
from Maricopa, AZ on 10/20/2008
If you work with your hands long enough, you learn the difference between a really great tool, an average one, and the one that gets in your way.
This silver solder to me is one of the special tools. I would pay twice as much for it because it makes everything about soldering easier.
I did board repair for several years and always used this after I discovered it. It is stronger than regular solder, flows better to make great joints, and even seems to stick to more metals than other solder. It is harder (but not at all brittle) after cooling, which can reinforce a weakened circuit trace. The thin diameter is a reasonable size even for surface mount repair (which I did just a few days ago).
My only concern is that the next time I need to get more that it may not be there. I have not seen it anywhere else. I should probably hoard a case or so.
It may sound nuts, but I have even given it as a gift to someone I knew could use it. This can actually make your work better and easier at the same time.
[1 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
I grabbed a roll of this by mistake one time, and it's perhaps been one of the best mistakes I've made.
This solder is a wonderful general purpose electrical solder. The lead content makes it very easy to work with, unlike most of the lead-free solders I've used.
The silver gives it additional mechanical strength as well as conductivity over conventional tin-lead solders.
Plus, the formulation is such that this is a nearly eutectic solder-it goes almost immediately from liquid to solid with no intermediate phase like conventional 60/40 solders have. This means that it's very difficult to get a cold joint.
[1 of 1 customers found this review helpful]
from oakland, ca on 12/27/2007
great stuff, I buy 10 at a time online for my use, I'm a freelance electronics designer. Better than the (admittedly few) soldering-gear-supply-houses types I've tried. However the flux should be cleaned for long-term reliability, which requires flux cleaner - available from electronics distributors (I don't think RS carries it). I'm guessing the combination of whatever flux RS uses and the 2% silver is why this works so nicely.[...]
[2 of 2 customers found this review helpful]
from Manhattan Beach, CA on 11/20/2007
I never thought much about the lead content of solder, since there were no feasible alternatives anyway. I just was careful to wash my hands after handling the stuff.But now that lead-free solder is mandated, it's easy to find lead-free alternatives, which usually contain tin and silver, plus one or two other non-toxic metals, such as bismuth and copper. So when I needed more solder, I hurriedly purchased this 'silver bearing solder', thinking that was just another name for 'lead free'. It is NOT! And it is far from 'lead free'. The arcane numbers on the label "62/36/2" refer to the percentages of tin, LEAD, and silver. 36% lead is certainly not lead-free.OK, so I'm stupid. My mistake. Yes, this stuff works like any other solder you've likely used, and it works just fine in that respect. It's just the 'poison' part that bothers me. :-) BTW: [...]
Simply, it works!