Soldering technology

Brazing: Top products from pistons to tin

Soldering has proven to be a highly effective technique when it comes to joining workpieces with a material bond. The joining material is usually the eponymous solder, an easily melted metal alloy. The thermal process is very often used in industrial operations. But the technique also benefits all those who tinker with electrical engineering projects in their own homes. At Berrybase, you can get all the tools you need for the process - of course, as usual, in the highest quality. What is the difference between soft soldering, brazing and welding? Perhaps you have already come across these terms in technical books. All three processes are used to create joints. However, the differences are great, both in the applications and the tools. You practice soft soldering whenever you hold a soldering iron in your hand. Since it usually involves electrical components, the heating here may only take place selectively. Soft soldering is used, for example, in electrical engineering to attach components to a circuit board. Soft soldering offers the advantage that the working temperature is somewhere between 200 - 250 °C degrees. The components to be soldered are therefore not subjected to excessive thermal stress. The solder joints are usually small, but provide sufficient support for the lightweight components. The material is only heated for a very short time and also cools down again quickly due to the small volume. Apart from a solder fume extraction system, you do not need to take any special safety precautions. Brazing is something for the rough and tumble when it comes to joining different metal profiles together. Typically, plumbers use this technique to stably connect pipes or gutters, for example. In brazing, the heating must take place over a large area. A soldering iron has far too little power here, which is why gas torches are usually used to heat the entire workpiece. In brazing, the temperatures are above 450 °C. When brazing a bicycle frame, for example, brazing temperatures of around 700 °C are used with propane or butane as the fuel gas. As you can see, brazing is much more time-consuming and also requires appropriate protective clothing. Welding is only mentioned here for the sake of completeness. As a pure maker, you will probably not come into contact with it, but at the latest when you need, for example, a suitable metal frame, welding will also become interesting for you. Welding involves working at temperatures far in excess of 1000 °C, and special acetylene-oxygen mixtures are used here. The workpieces are molten together with the welding wire along the weld seam and then fused together. Welded joints are much more stable than brazed joints. However, welding involves much more effort and extensive protective equipment is required. Also, not all materials are suitable for the high temperatures of the welding process

High-quality solder - completely without lead

Obligatory in soldering is, of course, the solder. When choosing the right solder, its diameter is of great importance. This should depend on the purpose for which you are using the soldering process. At Berrybase you can find different types of high quality solder. The available diameters range from 0.35 mm to 1.5 mm, which allows you to use them in a wide variety of applications. Another pleasant feature: all products are free of lead.

The right soldering iron makes the difference

Berrybase offers you a wide range of products so that you can find the right soldering iron for your individual project. You will find soldering irons with different advantages, such as soldering irons with integrated desoldering pump, USB connection or gas drive. Especially the latter feature can be advantageous if you want to solder independently of a power source, for example. However, all our soldering irons have in common that they are ideally suited for professional soldering work and promise excellent results. Your project requires you to solder on SMD assembled circuits? Then our SMD (surface-mounted device) soldering irons, which have been specially designed for this purpose, are the most suitable. The special pistons solder the sensitive components particularly gently and grip them simultaneously from both parts. A gentle soldering process is of great importance here, as SMD components do not have any wire connections, but are instead fixed to a circuit board with the aid of solderable connection surfaces.

High-quality products in a practical set: The benefits of a soldering station

If you want to be fully equipped for your next electrical engineering project or any repair work, a soldering station is recommended. Included in these sets are soldering irons with various attachments, a desoldering pump and a practical soldering iron stand. The soldering irons in these packages usually have a power of 30 watts. However, there are also soldering stations with hot air soldering guns that have a power of 300 watts. Depending on your needs, you can also use an SMD station here. If you value exact temperature control of the soldering iron, you will be very pleased with our digital soldering stations with target and actual temperature display.