Hacker News Reader

Comment by chongli | Hacker News Reader

You're probably fine with 60/40 loctite multicore

Where do you buy this stuff? I’ve looked everywhere and I can’t find it. Amazon doesn’t have it, Mouser doesn’t have it, Digikey doesn’t have it. Seems like it might be discontinued!

View on HN

I've never used loctite solder, but I've had excellent luck with Kester or alphametals. I don't see smaller spools than 1 lb on digikey, but they have an excellent spec sheet. Personally, 8oz spools are a good size where they aren't too heavy or bulky, but that's personal preference. Additionally, 0.032" is for me a nice balance where you can still do SMT (id say 0603 is ideal, 0402 can be done but for that I'd recommend smaller) but you can still solder larger stuff, up to around 14AWG wire.

https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/kester-solder/24-...

Newark?

https://www.newark.com/w/c/tools-production-supplies/solderi...

Also, Amazon appears to have it, per this listing:

https://www.amazon.com/MULTICORE-LOCTITE-3096525-M-SOLDER-WI...

Looks like you can get it from Digikey as well:

https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/multicore/386824/...

Note that part of the problem might be if you're searching for "Loctite Multicore" and not just "Multicore". I think the brand might have been sold off, or something of that ilk, so you may not see it with the "Loctite" branding everywhere. I don't know the backstory on that entirely, but it's something I've noticed (being a big fan of Multicore solder!)

Oh I forgot to mention that I'm in Canada, so the Amazon link says "cannot ship to your location. The Newark link doesn't work either, although they do have one Multicore solder product when I search their Canadian site, it's only about 6 feet in length. The Digikey link has a price of $60 which seems outrageous for solder.

The good news is, there are plenty of good solder brands out there. If the Multicore stuff isn't readily available to you for whatever reason, you can also consider products from Kester, MG Chemical, Stannol, Cardas, Chip Quik, etc. And while I've never used it myself, I've actually heard good things about one of those cheapo Ali-Express brands - "Mechanic"[1].

And since this whole sub-thread started with a mention of "silver bearing" solder IIRC, I'll point out that there are a couple of decent options there. I actually like the Radio Shack brand silver-bearing solder, but I don't know if it's still available or not. But Chip Quik have a product in that space[2] and they are a pretty reputable brand so I would expect it to be fine. That said, I don't think the whole "silver bearing" thing is terribly important and I rarely use the stuff myself these days. YMMV.

[1]: https://www.aliexpress.com/i/2251832830340296.html?gatewayAd...

[2]: https://www.amazon.com/Solder-Wire-Lead-Silver-no-clean/dp/B...

Many countries have outlawed leaded solder, even for at-home/hobbyist use. Much annoying.

I’d you’re in Europe where it’s banned, eBay and hamfests.

60/40 is available at Home Depot.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com