'Lead free' soldering kit ?

[T i m]

Hi All,

My friend wants to give their 13 year old son something 'electronic / kit' based for xmyth and have looked to me for help ?

I note that there are now 'lead free' solutions and just wondered how they worked re basic electronc kit constuction / soldering please?

Should I get them something like this Maplin starter kit?

18w be 'right' for small component assembly with 'lead free' ?

I assume in the absense of lead the temp would be higher (and would my 'ex BT' Weller soldering station cope?)? ;-(

I was going to suggest a couple of basic kits that 'do something' (electronic dice / light sequencer) might hold more interest 'after' the kits were complete.

What impact would 40 years soldering with the 'full fat' stuff have had on me? [1]

All the best ..

T i m

[1] Obviously not dementia .. not bought a hybrid car yet! ;-)

[manatbandq]

Lead free will soon be mandatory for all commercial production and availability of lead based solders will lessen.

A good place to start is the Farnell website

that link doesn't work, click on the RoHS link on the homepage and then the solder focus link.

You will need a slightly higher temperature iron, but I suspect many are already suitable. If buying new, like you, I would go for a 25W model and would recommend the Antex XS for which bits and elements are widely available.

One thing to be aware of is that the fluxes used can be more aggressive and can wear the bits away. Coated bits are available for use with lead free. It also much harder to get a nice shiny looking joint with lead free solder.

Alternatively, just buy in a stock of lead based solder, assuming the

13yr old isn't being used as slave labour to produce things for sale on the open market!

If they become proficient and interested enough then a nice temperature controlled iron may be on the cards for next christmas.

You should be wary of the flux fumes just as much as the lead

see my other thread about fume extraction.

MBQ

[David Hazle]

I had an electronics kit as a 12-13 year old (about 25 years ago!). It consisted of a series of individual components wired up to what was basically springs. You bent the spring, inserted a stripped end of a cable and that was your connection - all of course comletely reusable. An instruction manual gave the wiring required to create burglar alarm, crystal radio, light sensitive switch etc etc. As your knowledge increased you could modify/create your own circuits.

The maplin equivalent appears to be:

of the best presents I ever received.

David

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Yup.

It should do - most will go to the higher temperature.

[T i m]

Ok..

It did and thanks very much for that .. ;-)

Ok, 18w too small as an 'all rounder' you think?

It also much harder to get a nice shiny looking joint with lead

;-(

LOL! I've probably got more full fat solder here than he's ever likely to use in his lifetime .. ;-)

Good point / thought. And I note the 'If' (something you can't seem to predict with many of todays kids).

Doh! Why is it all the nice smells are bad for us .. solder flux, petrol, tar, creosote ...

All the best ..

T i m

p.s. I have learnt to keep quiet about some smells though ..

Wife "What do you think of my new perfume"? Me "Smells like fly spray" ..

[T i m]

Hmm, I'm glad you mentioned that David .. I have just one of those in a bag upstairs (nearly unused) marked 'boot sale' I could give them!

I must admit I think the title '130 great projects' might be a bit missleading .. you can make a project where a light flashes on and off and another where the light flashes off and on .. ;-)

Also you can't 'keep' the working project like you could with a Vellerman type kit but there is probably more 'learning' in what you suggest. ;-)

in the spare room 'hurrah'! ;-)

I'm not sure what that would be for me ..

Probably my first tool kit when I was about 8 .. or a Xmyth present when I was 12 of a 'Sea Commander' .. ~30' ply on frame RC motor cruiser kit, a 1+1 RC tx / rx kit and and Enya 35 marine engine ;-)

[manatbandq]

Ah, fond memories. Mine was mid 70s and came from J Bull Electrical (still in business). It consisted of a white plastic box with a hinged lid which contained a sheet of paxolin with three 12 way strips of choc bloc on it and a bag of obviously surplus components. A set of photocopied "wiring diagrams" also came with it. You had to provide your own screwdriver to tighten the choc block. Despite the heath robinson nature of it, I thought it was great and had manny happy hours of fun.

MBQ

[Steve Firth]

TBH, you really shouldn't be worried about the lead in the solder. The rosin used as flux is more of a health hazard in use, and presumably the

13 year old isn't thinking of eating every last scrap of solder in the kit.

Stop the middle-class angst thing, and just get a decent priced soldering iron/kit.

[manatbandq]

Brings back fond memories of the mid-70s and an "electronics kit" from J Bull Electrical. Three strips of 12 way choc block on a paxolin board in a white plastic case with a speaker in the lid. A bag of obviously surplus components and a set of photocopied wiring diagrams.

Despite the heath robinson nature of it, I had endless hours of fun.

MBQ

[Christian McArdle]

18W was too little even for leaded solder. Get 25W minimum. The hotter the iron, the quicker the join and the less strain on the component. An 18W iron would fry many semiconductors before the solder melted, the length of time it would need to be applied.

Christian.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

It's sold by Antex as a non lead capable iron. I used a 15 watt non thermostatic Antex for years with lead solder on normal hobby work.

For serious stuff I'd ignore 25 watt and go to 50 watt thermostatic. There are some pretty decent cheap ones out there - you don't need a 150 quid Weller for hobby use. I think Rapid have one on offer at the minute for about 30 quid.

But I made my own, using Antex 50 watt irons (two - to avoid changing bits) and a Pace de-solder one. One of my more ambitious projects. I just didn't like any of the commercial units - or their prices. ;-)

[Owain]

I'm not sure, I found it too easy to do the wiring-by-numbers and not read the technical description!

If you look around you might find a similar project kit based around a vero breadboard. That has the advantage you can (could?) buy a PCB with the same track layout as the contacts on the breadboard so transfer working circuits to permanent form.

Owain

[Malcolm Stewart]

My guess (and it's just a guess) is that we are responding to the more reactive free radicals in the fumes, and it's the free radicals that tend to be carcinogenic...

[mike ring]

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Me, too. Not just for serious stuff either.

I was just going to chime in because no-one had made this point but now you have.

An iron that gets to the right temperature, and can hold it in spite of thermal loss, is far less liable to either make dry joints or OOTOH fry your components.

mike

[Calvin]

My kids (and I) enjoy "robot" kits. Maplin do a couple of kits for light seeking robots. Basically they have a left and right circuit which is an LDR controlling a small motor. No wheels - the spindle acts directly on the surface. PCB is supplied and you get to do the soldering. Much more learning if it doesn't work first time. They're fun to build and then fun to play with (darkened room, torch, smooth floor). Rapid are big in education and do quite a few really good kits which are suitable for 13 year olds and not too expensive. The best we've had was the "brainibot" which is a programmable bot with light, touch and sound sensors. They do three versions, the most complex of which is programmable by hand or from a PC using a command language - about =A315 from memory and you (sorry they) get the fun of doing the electronic assembly, mechanical build from raw components and setup as well as then developing your own programs for different movement strategies. I recommend it most highly.

Don't worry about the lead free rules by the way. It's (going to be) banned for maufacture but not for rework so the solder will still be available (manufacture doesn't usually use solder on a reel anyway). The old common sense still applies, don't breath the fumes, don't eat or drink while working and wash hands afterwards.

Cheers, Calvin

[--s-p-o-n-i-x--]

Maplin do a Temperature Controlled 50w iron for £12.99.

Tip temperature is continuously variable between 180C and 480C so suitable for either leaded or lead free solder.

Probably ideal for someone starting out.

Order code N79AR (There's an offer on at the moment where you can pay an extra £2 and set a soldering tool kit into the bargain)

(Remember to use different tips for leaded and lead free soldering. If lead free solder is contaminated with lead then joints are more prone to failure)

sponix

[--s-p-o-n-i-x--]

Very true. You are more likely to die whilst going to the shop to buy the kit that you are due to the effects of putting it together!

Eventually even kits from Maplin will be lead free but that'll be down to availiability of components. Just make sure the iron you buy will cope with lead free solder in the future.

sponix

[T i m]

Thanks to all those who have replied so far ..

I'll run it past them on Monday (when I offer them my 130 in 1 electronics project set and go from there) ;-)

All the best ..

T i m

[manatbandq]

Even if all the components are all lead free, you can still solder them with leaded solder.

A bigger problem will be components going obsolete because the manufacturers don't see a big enough market to justify the investment.

MBQ

[Frank Erskine]

This is largely happening, isn't it ? Maplin's shops are pretty hopeless for electronic components. They're going much the same way as Tandy did before they closed down - primarily stage electronics and toy racing cars.