Opinions on particular soldering iron tip maintenance product

[kalemaroni]

Has anybody tested this product? Posting this question on a Facebook tech group I'm in got a few responses like "that kind of thing corrodes the tips" and "just using normal solder paste is much better" so I'm not looking for generic responses like that, but rather, does anybody know for certain whether this exact product is good or bad for soldering iron tips?

[stj]

dont touch that shit, it's a mix of acids and amonia crystals used to burn the surface of the tip
it's only for unusable tips as a last-chance before binning them.

to answer your exact question,
i have used / tried to use the "Mechanic" branded version of the same stuff.
it will get a lot of crap off the tip, but the effect doesnt last and neither does the tip plating!

[kalemaroni]

Wow thanks stj!

[ktmmotocross]

i dont care about tips. i use classic metal shavings. when i see the tip is not i like i just buy another. its not expencive and working with bad equipment is not worth that little money for new

[clearchris]

Just always keep some solder on the tip when you turn off the iron. If you buy real (hakko, etc) tips, and have an iron with an auto shutoff (so it's not left on for days) it takes a long time to wear one down.

But yeah, I have some "tip refresher" from a different brand, it does nothing worthwhile.

[CapLeaker]

I use the tip cleaner from MG Chemicals. Works good. Another problem is the solder. Don’t use the cheap Chinese solder. That is utter crap. If you use quality solder like Kester leaded, you hardly going to use the tip cleaner. Works for me for many years.

[clearchris]

I use the tip cleaner from MG Chemicals. Works good. Another problem is the solder. Don’t use the cheap Chinese solder. That is utter crap. If you use quality solder like Kester leaded, you hardly going to use the tip cleaner. Works for me for many years.

Are you allowed to use the real solder up north? I thought you guys outlawed it like in the EU.

But yeah, a pound of good solder doesn't cost much from digikey and will last you a long time and will be a joy to use. I do have a spool of chinese solder, I use it mostly for adding Pb to non PB joints that need desoldering. Using the chinese solder to solder with is just frustrating.

[CapLeaker]

Are you allowed to use the real solder up north? I thought you guys outlawed it like in the EU.

But yeah, a pound of good solder doesn't cost much from digikey and will last you a long time and will be a joy to use. I do have a spool of chinese solder, I use it mostly for adding Pb to non PB joints that need desoldering. Using the chinese solder to solder with is just frustrating.

There is no problem getting leaded solder here. While a pound or big spool of solder lasts me for quite a while, I do go through it after a couple of years. I had bought a small roll of this Chinese solder years ago and it is utter garbage for my liking. It’s so bad I chucked it.
The only thing that is outlawed here for air transport are lithium batteries. So all special lithium batteries with tabs or sizes I have to convert into something I can get from the grocery store. Try go to a Canadian version of DigiKey, Mouser etc, and you will find they do not ship to Canada via UPS and others. That really sux.

[stj]

legally you can use leaded solder on anything built with it to begin with, and for non-comercial products.
IE: your own stuff.

but you dont need it, the leadfree formula's have come a long way now.
interestingly a side-effect of that is the development of new fluxes that work better and now come in leaded solder too.

HS10 is a rosin/synthetic blend that doesnt burn,
and Krystal is completely clear and colourless - it looks like glass on the board so you dont have to clean it.

[CapLeaker]

Too late for me now. I grew up where leaded gas, asbestos, leaded paint etc was the norm. I survived. Don’t care much about what solder it is as long it is quality and flows good.