Reflowing Solder Paste
Alloys, Flux, T4, T5, Wetting - Not sure what this all means? Here's a crash course on solder paste.
We currently offer two types of solder paste alloys in T4 and T5 particle sizes:
Tin Bismuth Silver (Sn42 Bi57.6 Ag0.4) is RoHS compliant and is meant for our conductive inks. Tin Lead (Sn63 Pb37) is meant for factory fabricated boards with a HASL finish.
Before reflow soldering on the V-One, check the following:
- Is your board larger than 3" x 4" ( 76.2 mm x 101.6 mm) ?
- Are you reflowing large components like connectors?
- Does your board have multiple ground planes?
If you said YES to any of the above, then the automatic REFLOW mode may not work correctly. The board will act like a large heat sink and will not reach the peak reflow temperatures. Instead, you should use the MANUAL mode.
Tip: If your board will act like a large heat sink, do a MANUAL reflow instead (See below)
reflow-mode
Automatic reflow profile for Tin Bismuth Silver (Sn42 Bi57.6 Ag0.4)
Soak Temp. | Soak Time | Peak Temp. | Peak Time |
140°C (284°F) | 45 seconds | 190°C (365°F) | 30 seconds |
tinLeadBismuth
Automatic reflow profile for Tin Lead (Sn63 Pb37)
Soak Temp. | Soak Time | Peak Temp. | Peak Time |
180°C (356°F) | 45 seconds | 220°C (428°F) | 30 seconds |
tinLead
A manual reflow requires the user to place close attention to the board as it is reflowing. To perform a manual reflow:
- 1.Clamp your board on the heated bed.
- 2.Enter Heat > Manual mode.
- 3.Set the temperature to the soak temperature.
- 4.Hold for 1-2 minutes to let the whole board reach the temperature.
- 5.Set the temperature to the peak temperature.
- 6.Observe the solder paste closely.
- 7.As soon as the last pad finishes reflowing, hit STOP to start cooling the board.
Solder Alloy | Soak Temp. | Peak Temp. |
Tin Bismuth Silver | 140°C (284°F) | 190°C (365°F) |
Tin Lead | 180°C (356°F) | 220°C (428°F) |