[Elecraft] Source of poor solder joints?

[Don Wilhelm]

Kieth,

Very likely IMHO.  Cold solder joints will look gray because of the
fractures.

That is exactly the reason I recommend a eutectic solder (63/37 alloy)
rather than the 'standard' 60/40 stuff.  There is no plastic state with the
eutectic alloy.

73,
Don W3FPR

> -----Original Message-----
>
> Looks like poor soldering joints is the #1 problem with rigs we build.
> While building my KSB2 I was wondering about and came up with an idea.
>
> I wonder if many poor solder joints occur because of the lead moving as
> the soldering tip is removed.  In the case of an IC, while I'm applying
> heat, I'm pushing against the chip's lead.  When I remove the soldering
> iron, the lead is going to spring back just a bit (i.e. move) as the
> solder connection is cooling.  Could this be a major contributor to poor
> solder joints?
>
> - Keith N1AS -
> - K2 5411.ssb -
>