Homebrew PCBs

Yeah, well I bought the heat gun primarily because I was tired of
charring my heat shrink over wire connections (and burning my fingers
with a butane lighter).  That, and the fact that my pro painter wife
can use it for stripping.  Paint, that is. 

As long as nothing is left behind but solder after cleaning the board,
the plumbers' paste sounds ok...I'll certainly give it try.

Changing the subject ever so slightly, I bought a tube of Radio Shack
solder paste, and they don't say exactly what it's supposed to be used
for.  I've been told it's not suitable for use as an SMD paste; it's
about 1/10 the price.  I was thinking of trying it first to make the
solder joints in copper boxes used a compartments in my ham radio
projects.  Any experience with the Radio Shack stuff?

Ted
  
--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, "Stefan Trethan"
<stefan_trethan@...> wrote:
>
> It's washed off after tinning so the acid flux is not a problem
(remember  
> the board was immersed in a pretty nasty etchant not long ago).
> 
> 
> If you buy a heatgun, you really want a temperature controlled one
(closed  
> loop). I had a cheap one, and now a good steinel with temperature
display,  
> and the difference is stunning. Costs like 10 times as much though,
but  
> is  about 100 times as useful..
> For PCB tinning alone you might get away with the cheap one, since
you are  
> not using different nozzle attachments and you can work out a suitable  
> distance once and then stick with it.
> 
> ST
> 
> 
> On Tue, 09 May 2006 03:21:30 +0200, kilocycles <kilocycles@...>  
> wrote:
> 
> > Myc,
> >
> > What's in that plumbers' paste? Nothing that will react with the
> >
> > electronic connections (like acid flux copper pipe solder) I presume?
> >
> >
> > I bought a 1500 Watt heat gun on sale at Harbor Freight for $12, and I
> >
> > think that might get it hot enough.
---snip---