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What did you do for solder paste? Seems like most places only sell it in large expensive quantities that have an expiration date.

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Originally I bought leaded solder paste from McMaster Carr, but then I discovered a lead-free solder paste from Sparkfun: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12878.

It's not as good as the leaded solder paste, but hey, no lead. Also, you should refridgerate it at all times. You don't have to, but it doesn't spread nearly as smoothly.

And I just used the credit card OSHStencils.com gives you with their film stencil. Works on QFN and other fine-pitch solder pads. Just gotta clean the excess solder off the film every 2-3 applications. Otherwise it blots and runs over the solder mask.

Cool, thanks. I have been using a standard chisel tip solder iron to do my .5 mm pitch components. It is doable after practice but it requires a flux pen and copper braid to make it work. Excited to see if the stencil hot plate method is easier.

You can buy reasonably small amounts of leaded solder of DigiKey. I would recommend it over SparkFun. That said, every solder paste has an expiration date and will go bad if not stored appropriately.

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