Great ideas for the practitioner of high technology, high performance assembly. Looking at: Soldering & Rework Selected for: Has moving to lead-free caused soldering or desoldering tip problems? Being RoHS compliant and lead-free brings all sorts of new issues. If you have sorted out your machine soldering changes, now is the time to look at your hand soldering, either as part of your normal assembly process, or during rework and repair. 1) First, check that your soldering iron tips are themselves RoHS compliant. All Plato Soldering Tips manufactured since January 2004 are tinned with lead-free solder. 2) Higher temperatures and high tin content solders, common in lead-free soldering processes, place additional strain on soldering iron tips. Many of our customers report that the tip life of our competitors' product has been badly affected when going lead-free. The long life of a Plato Soldering Tip reduces tip changes, decreasing the total number of tips used and decreasing production time... and saves money. Some have reported five times the life of their previous tip. 3) It can be even worse for desoldering tips, where there is extra abrasion during use. Plato is one of the largest manufacturer of soldering iron tips in the world, producing tips to fit the most popular soldering irons and soldering stations. The long life and fast heat recovery of Plato Soldering Tips increases user effectiveness and decreases production times. Please request our 48 page full colour catalogue. It lists 100s of replacement soldering and desoldering tips for popular soldering equipment. Try our Lifetime & Performance! Evaluation samples are available - please ask for examples of our compatible soldering or desoldering tips. We will provide you with a competitive quote. Unit 17 Station Field Industrial Estate, Banbury Road, Kidlington, Oxfordshire, OX5 1JD, ENGLAND Tel: +44 (0)1865 842842     Fax: +44 (0)1865 842172 e-mail: info@intertronics.co.uk    www.intertronics.co.uk Read our web log Please don't send any more of these great ideas, thanks!