My Weller TCP is 58 years old and still works perfectly. I never need adjustable temperature so the tip controls the temperature, I always use 700 degrees F with Name Brand 63/37 rosin core solder.
I never eat solder so I never use lead-free, but the soldering station works fine removing and replacing a lead-free soldered defective part on a product.

 

I always use 700 degrees F with Name Brand 63/37 rosin core solder.

Thanks for your input, AG. Mind explaining why you prefer 63/37?

 

63/37 solder is explained in Google.
It cools and solidifies in an instant without becoming gooey for a few seconds like 60/40 solder. The gooey time produces "a cold solder joint" if a wire or something in the joint moves while the solder is cooling. A cold solder joint might allow wires and things soldered together to fall apart.

 

63/37 WITH NO CLEAN FLUX CORE

 

63/37 solder is explained in Google.
It cools and solidifies in an instant without becoming gooey for a few seconds like 60/40 solder. The gooey time produces "a cold solder joint" if a wire or something in the joint moves while the solder is cooling. A cold solder joint might allow wires and things soldered together to fall apart.

How easy is the 63/37 to melt? I’m afraid of using too much heat and lifting a pad? …Which I’ve had problems with before. I never noticed the solder composition I’ve used but occasionally run into problems with solder that doesn’t melt as I expect. And no, it wasn’t lead free AFAIK

 

60/40 bar for the solder pot

 

63/37 is the eutectic alloy, which means it has the lowest melting point for any alloy using those metals. You can’t get an easier to melt tim/lead solder

 

My Weller TCP is 58 years old and still works perfectly. I never need adjustable temperature so the tip controls the temperature, I always use 700 degrees F with Name Brand 63/37 rosin core solder.
I never eat solder so I never use lead-free, but the soldering station works fine removing and replacing a lead-free soldered defective part on a product.

My TCP probably wasn't quite that old, but it worked perfectly until it was introduced to lead-free solder.

 

A cheap soldering iron has no control of its temperature, even if it has a light dimmer circuit that you can "turn down".
Then the rosin in the solder is incinerated instead of removing dirt and corrosion. A temperature that is too high lifts pads and damages semiconductors. Each of my solder joints takes only 1 second.
Videos of soldering on You Tube shows the incinerated rosin making smoke and each too hot joint taking many seconds of cooking everything.

 

One more thing, I don’t know what sort of wires you are using, but it’s probably a good idea to invest in a solder pot or two and put some 60/40 alloy in it to tin the wires before trying to solder them.

Solder pots are cheap and the results are much better. Be sure to get a piece of heavy screen, like a bunsen burner screen for a tripod, to cover the pot when not in use and cooling. It can splash as it cools down.

Just bought the solder pot, plus a good 60/40 solder bar. Many thanks for your suggestion.

 

63/37 solder is explained in Google.
It cools and solidifies in an instant without becoming gooey for a few seconds like 60/40 solder. The gooey time produces "a cold solder joint" if a wire or something in the joint moves while the solder is cooling. A cold solder joint might allow wires and things soldered together to fall apart.

Yes, I know I could've googled an answer. But I much prefer to hear it from people with direct experience.

I'm now thinking that it's best to use the 63/37 for hand soldering delicate SMT components (such as an MCU) because of its expected more reliable joints and because of its lower melting temperature. And using 60/40 for ordinary components such as resistors and caps.

 

With all my ranting about eutectic alloys and no clean fluxes and soldering stations I am really surprised you hadn't run across all of this advice previously.

I would be inclined to write a "all about soldering" blog with chemistry and physics, materials and tools, methods and nest practices but I doubt anyone would read it.

 

I doubt anyone would read it.

I can assure you, your blog would have at least one guaranteed reader

 

Yes, I know I could've googled an answer. But I much prefer to hear it from people with direct experience.

I'm now thinking that it's best to use the 63/37 for hand soldering delicate SMT components (such as an MCU) because of its expected more reliable joints and because of its lower melting temperature. And using 60/40 for ordinary components such as resistors and caps.

The 60/40 soldier will always be worse for hand soldering because of the potential for cold solder joints. It is good for tinning because of it's superior wetting, but it is not a good choice for making joints.

 

I can assure you, your blog would have at least one guaranteed reader

Well, maybe I will do it then. It would have to be in potentially widely spaced posts because I haven't even been able to get back to my mailbag blog and I have a huge queue of things to write up. But I am moving my studio to a larger and more suitable room and that will make a big difference.

It would be nice to have a write up I could point to with all of the information in it...

 

The suggestion about using a solder pot to tin the wires has also been duly noticed. I'm getting myself one right away.

Oddly enough, I found this:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/uJ9xHmizOtc

 

Just thought I'd let you guys know that I got myself a high quality soldering station (a Weller), and a solder pot in which I'm using a 60/40 solder bar (with no rosin nor flux) and that's solved pretty much all of my problems. To tin a wire, all I'm doing now is I'm briefly dipping its tip in soldering paste and then dip it in the solder pot. It works like a charm.

And you were right @Ian0 , the fumes produced by the solder pot are a nasty thing. And therefore I'm making sure that the work area is well ventilated.

 

Just thought I'd let you guys know that I got myself a high quality soldering station (a Weller),

What model did you end up getting?

 

What model did you end up getting?

The WE1010NA. I know there are better and more potent stations out there, but this one fits the bill just fine.

 

Just thought I'd let you guys know that I got myself a high quality soldering station (a Weller), and a solder pot in which I'm using a 60/40 solder bar (with no rosin nor flux) and that's solved pretty much all of my problems. To tin a wire, all I'm doing now is I'm briefly dipping its tip in soldering paste and then dip it in the solder pot. It works like a charm.

And you were right @Ian0 , the fumes produced by the solder pot are a nasty thing. And therefore I'm making sure that the work area is well ventilated.

I use a fume extractor with an activated charcoal filter.