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I keep seeing people use the wrong solder for basic board work
For the last month, I've been fixing a stack of old game consoles from a local shop, and I keep finding the same bad repair. Someone used plumbing solder, the thick stuff with acid core, on the main boards. It eats through the traces over time. I found three Sega Genesis units with green crust around the joints and dead power sections. The shop owner said a guy did them cheap about two years ago. You need the thin rosin core solder, 60/40 or lead free, for electronics. It flows right and doesn't damage anything. Has anyone else run into this, and how do you explain it to a customer without sounding like you're just knocking the last guy?
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pipergonzalez2mo ago
But @miles_roberts22, maybe that crust just means the solder formed a protective seal.
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phoenixp3013d ago
Man, it's everywhere. You see the same mistake in cars too. People use regular RTV silicone on engine sensors instead of the right stuff and it kills the oxygen sensor in a year. @miles_roberts22 is right, the green crust is your proof. Show a customer a clean joint from a good 60/40 repair next to that acid eaten mess and it clicks. Nobody wants to pay double later for new traces. It's just lazy people grabbing the closest tube of whatever, same as using duct tape on a radiator hose.
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