One of the things that jump out in Louis Rossmann's videos is the type of flux he uses (and the amount The fluxes I have at home are liquid, and that works well when building new PCBs. The Amtech flux I'm testing here is a jelly when applied and becomes fluid when hot. This may be helpful when reworking surface mount ICs, where my flux is gone by the time I'm halfway reworking them.
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What I'm hoping to get out of this is to improve my success rate when reworking QFN packages and the likes.
I'm not the fastest guy on earth when dealing with these types of components.
What's included?
The flux is AMTECH's NC-559-V2-TF. It comes in a syringe. A plunger and dispense needle are optional.
There's 10 ml in the container. That should be plenty for me. I expect that the shelf life of one year will expire before I've consumed all.
I got one from a fresh batch. It's manufactured in the same month that I placed my order.
Although the label says that it's a lead-free soldering material (technically correct, because there's no lead in the flux), it's not compatible with leaded solder.
There is a lead-free variant (VS-213-A-TF).
The flux isn't corrosive and can be left on the board, but the manufacturer advises against that.
It makes the board more prone to contamination. It can result in increased voltage leakage for sensitive designs and can become a moisture trap.
I'll try it out soon and report back on the experience.
Top Comments
It’s almost as baldengineer’s experience with ChipQuick’s flux. The only thing it doesn’t do is form a bubble and boil. It forms a fluid film that stays in place.
I just retried reflowing a TQFN package…
I'm still using the same spool of leaded solder I bought over 20 years ago. This shows 2 things:
This is what's left from the last one I bought when at school (must be a roll from 85 or early 86):
I switched to lead free, not for the environment as primary reason, but because it's a required skill…