Hi!
A couple weeks ago there was a series of postings about soldering flux, with the point being that the OP was having electrical problems and he traced it to the liquid flux he was using - brand name TIX.
Well, sure enough, I was using the same product, although I had stopped using it as I suspected it was causing some black corrosion at track joints. I threw it away, and now am resigned to cleaning these joints every few weeks.
I was always well aware that - for the home mechanic - there were two kinds of Flux - Acid core and rosin core. And, rosin core was the only kind to use for electrical work. Well, when I went to Sears hardware to pick up some new Weller soldering tips, there was - in the electrical area - a display of these small bottles of TIX liquid flux. As I had always used paste flux, the idea of a liquid appealed to me - so I picked it up. By the way, I assumed it was ok, as it was in the electrical department and frankly the printing on the bottles was too small/blurry for me to read clearly.
It really worked well, but as I mentioned, I soon saw a blackish residue at the joints - and finally concluded it is the fault of my using the TIX flux.
In keeping with the decorum of this Forum, I can only say that I am really unhappy about this, and wish to warn you all against making the same mistake.
Mobilman44
ENJOY !
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
Some get caught in this as Micro Mark sells it and recommends it. Good for assembling brass rolling stock or locos but not electri9cal soldering.
A clean joint with rosin flux, proper type solder gun/iron does a very good job. I have done soldering since 1956 when the old Heatkit electronics kits told me to use Only Rosin Flux not the type solder Micro Mark sells Tix anti-flux and is 30 percent zinc chloride. Zinc chloride paste is known to cause long term corrosion. May not be important to short lived layouts.
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.
I caught this ball from the slightly earlier thread where the OP gave his first warning about TIX flux.
Happily, I was able to pass it on to a poster in the Garden Railways who inquired about Micro-Mark's TIX sticks.
As for me, I've been using Burnley's non-acid paste - and have solder joints in service that were assembled in 1980 and have yet to give me the first iota of trouble.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
I wonder what really is going on here. I use Kester acid based paste flux for all my soldering (I don't do decoders and other such...just the tracks and feeders). I even used it to solder the sub-bus elements to the -in-series 12v tail light bulbs that I use for shorts management. I have some bared solder joints still visible four years after making them and I can't see any blackening. The solders are strong, too. Also, all my Fast Tracks turnouts had the rails soldered to the PCB ties with the same paste flux...no broken solders. No oxidation/verdigris or anything else apparent on those turnouts, now four years and three months old.
-Crandell
I buy my solder at Radio Shack, with the rosen core.
I've been caught in this trap as well. Back in the 80's I started taking the contact strip out of my Athearn locos and replacing them with thin wire to stop the momentary loss of power you can get with that type of movable joint. All was fine for a while but then the contact arms in the locos began showing heavy rust where the solder connections were made. I immediately suspected the solder. I studied the spool carefully but couldn't find anything that told me what kind of solder it was other than that it had a liquid core. The flux I was using also didn't indicate what kind it was. It turned out that the solder was the proper type. Tin/lead with rosin core. The paste flux however was a different story. I went back to the place I had bought it from (the place shall remain nameless but the flux was in their electrical section) and was told, after some checking by the clerk, that it was an acid based flux and was the only brand they sold. I looked around at some other places but many of them sold paste flux in containers that didn't indicate whether it was acid or rosin. As a result I now get my paste flux from Radio Shack only. It tells you right on the container what type it is without it being buried in nearly microscopic fine print. Incidentally the acid based flux I had been using was Dutch-Boy brand as is the solder (rosin core) that I still use. I haven't had any problems with rust, corrosion or black/gray gunk since.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
Thanks for all the good words! I still can't believe I made this mistake, although it was an "honest" one as I thought I was getting electrical compatible flux.
I'm in a position now (before scenery) that I can access the dirty joints fairly easily. As every section of flextrack has feeders, I don't care to replace the joints. BUT, my thought is a clean up with alcohol and also a baking soda solution brushed on with a toothbrush might be a big help. I'm not certain of this - do any of you know ??? Or have other ideas ???
Thanks,
A baking soda solution should neutralize the acid in the flux. Getting it thoroughly cleaned without soaking your benchwork might be a bit of a trick though. You'll have to rinse with plain water afterwards or there will end up being white spots from the baking soda.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Hi again!
Well, I made a thick baking soda solution and hit all the blackened joints with a toothbrush and soaked it in pretty good. Two days later, its left behind a white powder/crust - which of course we knew it would.
When I am ready to ballast, I'll run a dry toothbrush over the area to loosen it up, and then vacuum the residue up. Using a Sharpie and/or brush with a black/brown wash, I'll paint over the ties to get them back to color, and then do the ballast thing.
After a number of layouts going back to the mid-'50s, I never had this problem before - and I've really paid for my "assumption" that the Tix flux (being sold in the electrical dept of Sears) was OK.
Thanks again,
Are you sure that the tix flux is acid based? It's advertised as a non corrosive flux for use with soft solder and is used for jewelry. That should be safe for sure.
Springfield PA
Tix is a solution of zinc chloride which is somewhat acid. Old time roofers made their own by putting a piece of the zinc coating off a battery into some muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid).
Joe
The Tix solder is NOT appropriate for electrical work. The joints where I used this flux have a re-occuring black/brown coating that comes back even after I cleaned it off. Other joints (I changed flux mid layout when I suspected the problem) are just fine. The only other variable is the solder, but I used the same reel since the first connection was made.
My opinion is that TIX is not as corrosive as regular acid core solder, but it is corrosive.