Electronics Forum | Wed Apr 01 07:18:29 EDT 2020 | proceng1
We are using Superior 515 flux to clean and tin selective solder nozzles. Yesterday the flux turned a bright yellow (like a highlighter) when heated after the flux being applied. This does not happen with our Lead Free solder, only the Lead alloy.
Electronics Forum | Wed Jan 09 13:39:48 EST 2008 | ck_the_flip
Mask finish is the #1 variable for micro-balling with wave and selective processes. The #2 variable is the Flux. There are some flux formulations out there who're known to have additives that virtually eliminate micro-balling. However, keep in min
Electronics Forum | Wed Jan 09 13:03:22 EST 2008 | patrickbruneel
Matte solder mask greatly reduces the potential for solder balls, and since you altered the machine parameters with no improvement it might be flux related. Do you use a VOC free (water based) or alcohol based no-clean flux? Do you use machine settin
Electronics Forum | Tue Jan 15 13:47:11 EST 2008 | realchunks
Yes, the mask finish is prolly the #1 contributor to solder balling. Seen it many times. It's not that it's cured or not, went down that path about 3 or 4 times as well. Different fluxes can help too. But also check your preheat. If your are get
Electronics Forum | Tue Jan 15 13:16:25 EST 2008 | ck_the_flip
Yes, the previous "non-balling" flux was alcohol based, but very weak activity. We found it was worth the switch to water-based, to get prettier solder joints - but...at the expense of having to "brush off" solder balls on a couple of assemblies wit
Electronics Forum | Tue Jan 15 14:03:18 EST 2008 | patrickbruneel
Hi �Pb-Head� I agree with everything you say, except for your statement that alcohol based fluxes perform poorly with convection heat. The fluxes you tried might have performed poorly, but that doesn�t mean that all alcohol based fluxes perform poor
Electronics Forum | Tue Jan 15 12:37:17 EST 2008 | gregoryyork
SORRY I did not offer a solution so here goes - The best way to get rid of this issue if you cant change flux is to reduce your flux consumption to a minimal with a spray flux and keep the heat REALLY high to boil off the alcohol before it can be abs
Electronics Forum | Tue Jan 15 16:44:54 EST 2008 | gregoryyork
I found some machine manufacturers put convection nozzles in line parallel with each other instead of staggering them so you get a nice parallel line up the board where there is no flux be it no residue alcohol or VOC Free. The best I could find was
Electronics Forum | Wed Jan 09 14:46:29 EST 2008 | chef
Besides changing fluxes, do you have good knowledge of actual flux volumes? Do you have a micrograms per square value? Pre-heats can affect flux by burning off too soon and also not enough - therefore moisture hits the wave- how's your humidity cont
Electronics Forum | Tue Jan 08 10:10:29 EST 2008 | noid
We are building class 3 products, using no clean on wave and selective solder machines. Both processes are producing micro solder balls between the leads of through hole components. I have searched the site and haven't found any recent threads on h
