Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

[stj]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

keep in mind most fluxes are based on Rosin and a carrier - that could include petroleum jelly or animal fat!!

[eccerr0r]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

flux absorbs moisture, so lifespan depends on how you store it.

btw, i like this - try it.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/UANM...864986454.html

I have this, and don't think it works that well. Comparing it to the flux that's inside Kester 44 solder, it doesn't help solders stick as well. I still use some anyway in hopes it helps a little, at the very least it does prevent additional oxidation as it coats the surface.

Is this fake cheap chinese clone flux?

[stj]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

that's strange, not only is it not translucent from what i can see, the inside of the tin is painted too.
my original stuff the inside of the tin is not painted.

also, your tin has 2 sizes printed on it????????

[eccerr0r]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

Yeah they painted the inside of the tin as well, an extra cost. And yes it's waxy and not translucent. It's very soft, softer than wax. And yes two sizes, I suspect that it depends on how much was put into the tin.

Very weird that they have the same typos, minus "made in china" and that one japanese character instead of the chinese character...

Sigh... more knock offs...

[Dannyx]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

Seems to me there's two routes one can choose: Amtech or the others The other knock-offs all seem to be the same, or at least at the luck of the draw

[eccerr0r]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

I have some ~30-odd year old rosin flux and some recently "expired" acid flux (for pipes) that I need to try, to see what age did to them...

[Agent24]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

also, your tin has 2 sizes printed on it????????

Maybe they use the same lid for a shallow and a deep tin?

[eccerr0r]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

True, could be the same label used for more than one container too...
I never measured how much rosin is in this tin. Doing a back of envelope calculation, this tin couldn't hold more than 50g actually...

Speaking of rosin, where's a good cheap place to buy it locally... seems like you're forced to buy online and pay tariffs nowadays...

[stj]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

you mean pure hard rosin?
china sells it very cheap - i think they are the only people who even use it.

[Agent24]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

I have a little box of that, it was a free gift from UTSource. I heard you're supposed to dissolve it in alcohol and then you can use it. I haven't tried yet. Maybe once my pork lard runs out I'll give it a go.

[stj]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

lol
i had one of those little boxes too - gave it to a friend.
it was a gift from an ali seller when i got some iron tips.

[eccerr0r]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

Yes supposedly rosin + isopropanol = usable as flux directly.
No local source, was thinking may have to try a music shop that sells violins to try, but chances are it's cheaper paying the tariff.

[Dannyx]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

Isopropanol ? Doesn't evaporate almost instantly and much more so when exposed to heat ? I wouldn't think of it as being the base ingredient for homemade flux

[mariushm]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

Dannyx ... i buy my liquid flux from TME.eu, they distribute flux from a Polish company, AG Thermopasty

Flux TK-83Liquid, medium-active flux, type 1.1.2 / 3 A acc. to ISO 9454-1, which is an alcoholic solution of rosin with the addition of organic activators, max. soldering temperature 280ºC. Solids content 24%. Ideally suited for manual tinning to restore solderability.

2$ 50ml : https://www.tme.eu/en/details/flux-t...mopasty/tk-83/
3.75$ 100ml: https://www.tme.eu/en/details/flux-t...mopasty/tk-83/
15$ 500ml : https://www.tme.eu/en/details/flux-t...mopasty/tk-83/
27$ 1000ml : https://www.tme.eu/en/details/flux-t...mopasty/tk-83/

Shipping is around 5-6$... or it used to be... i remember it was around 17 RON when I last ordered from them.


18$ 1 liter https://www.tme.eu/en/details/rf800_...ag-termopasty/
(but this one it's recommended to clean boards after use)

they also sell rosin granules for example, 5$ for 500g bag, 100% rosin... https://www.tme.eu/en/katalog/fluxes_100484/

And yes, isopropil alcohol is used in liquid fluxes. You can pound those rosin chunks into tiny granules and mix them with isopropyl alcohol (i forget the ratio now, the video below says between 20% and 80% something of weight is rosin, rest is alcohol) and leave the bottle closed for a day or so to have the contents mix well.Optionally shake from time to time.
Also optionally you can add a tiny amount of glycerin, less than 1% by weight, basically a drop or so in a 100ml bottle.

See https://youtu.be/iv_2ULCmA28


tip you can also check the MSDS notes for fluxes.
For example here's the MSDS for that TK 83 flux above:

<85% isopropyl alcohol
20-25% rosin
<5% benzoic acid
<5% adipic acid

[stj]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

"diode gone wild" uses the solid rosin by dipping the iron in it and splashing it onto the joint!!!!

[mariushm]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

It's a bad technique but my father did it the same way... that's how he soldered stuff in the 1990's when I was a kid. Romania being an ex communist country, there was no access to more clever soldering stations, you had no choice but to use those 100w soldering irons.

Problem is he can't help it as long as he uses that soldering iron... it's a 100w iron which uses a shitty "transformer" that's not designed to run for more than 15-30s at a time and the copper wire at the tip heats fast.

So he gets a chunk of rosin on the tip and basically just hopes the copper wire cools enough before it gets burned by the iron tip (if the finger keeps pressing on the trigger)

[stj]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

it wouldnt be too hard to hook one of those guns to a reostat or lamp dimmer, motor speed controller etc.

[Agent24]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

You'd need a motor controller wouldn't you? The inductive load of the transformer would be bad for a simple Triac dimmer?

[RJARRRPCGP]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

that's strange, not only is it not translucent from what i can see, the inside of the tin is painted too.
my original stuff the inside of the tin is not painted.

also, your tin has 2 sizes printed on it????????

The second one on the left, looks like the inside of a bee hive, LOL!

(A.K.A. the "bee hive flux")

[eccerr0r]

Re: Does flux expire ?? Flux discussion.

Maybe once my pork lard runs out I'll give it a go.

How well does lard work?

I collected a bunch of tallow that I rendered before tossing a piece of food waste that I should try...but I suspect it has little cleaning activity... incidentally, I wonder if this foggy "flux" is animal fat plus a little rosin...