Oxidation by flux comparison - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: pcm81
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 15, 2025, 04:58:27 pm
content: Been playing with soldering fluxes and have a couple in my possession to be able to create an oxidation comparison. The results match expectations, the ORH1 type flux Kester 2331-ZX is the most aggressive; while other ssupposed to be ROL0 and are less aggressive/corrosive. Here is the picture.The HMP-1 is Kester 2331-ZX mixed into pine resin to make it into a paste.Heated column means i rubbed soldering iron at 380 degrees C in the flux to simulate effects of soldering.Fluxes on plate are:Kester 184 -18Kester 2331-ZXStirri V3 pasteNorth Ridge fix new fluxHome Made Paste, which is Kester 2331-ZX in pine rosin.Enjoy!

author: jpanhalt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 15, 2025, 05:03:51 pm
content: Are you looking for a flux that causes oxidation? Why?

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 15, 2025, 05:12:06 pm
content: Fluxes, by definition, remove oxidation.However, they can cause corrosion if not removed properly.

author: pcm81
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 15, 2025, 05:22:53 pm
content: Quote from: jpanhalt on September 15, 2025, 05:03:51 pmLOL the opposite... ideal flux will do several things:1. at elevated temperature it will remove oxidation2. it will not fully evaporate at temperature below soldering3. it will not cause oxidation4. its residue will not cause oxidation5. its residue will not be conductiveFor certain applications, like soldering a stranded wire, it is impossible to remove all of the flux, because it gets wicked up under the insulation by capillary action. Hence a good understanding of which fluxes will promote oxidation is important.

author: Faranight
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 15, 2025, 05:57:39 pm
content: I'm curious what people have to say about the newNorthridgeFix flux(NF.Flux) in comparison to other fluxes.Alex made such a big advert and a sale in the first week or two after he announced it, but is the flux really as good as he says?Has anyone else here tried it?EDIT: Bah, why did the youtube video show up in place of a text link? Fixed.

author: pcm81
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 15, 2025, 07:44:50 pm
content: Quote from: Faranight on September 15, 2025, 05:57:39 pmI like it. Picked up a 10cc cyringe with my recent order from them. Id say it is probably a ROLO or RELO type.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2025, 01:00:30 am
content: I tried amtech clone flux on bare copper and no corrosion, tested for over 1 year.Also got some Amaoe M50 recommended from this review:https://www.eevblog.com/forum/other-blog-specific/nanofix-youtube-flux-comparison/new/#newWill test on some bare copper now.edit: 24h with no signs of corrosion.Quote from: pcm81 on September 15, 2025, 07:44:50 pmWould be nice if he put up the MSDS but then you'd be able to figure out what product he's reselling. Description just says synthetic resin flux, so itshouldbe REL0.

author: elektryk
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2025, 11:12:56 am
content: Another comparsion thanks toshapirushttps://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/good-soldering-flux/msg5416469/#msg5416469

author: Faranight
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 16, 2025, 05:44:56 pm
content: Quote from: thm_w on September 16, 2025, 01:00:30 amIf I'm not mistaken, he said in one of the videos that he's not reselling it, but it's rather a new product custom-made for his shop by a certain company.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2025, 06:15:16 pm
content: Quote from: pcm81 on September 15, 2025, 04:58:27 pmI once did similar testing, though I don’t have the results anymore.Your test is a good start, but not actually that indicative of differences between the ROL0 fluxes: those won’t appear after an hour or a day, but rather on the scale of months.You also need to use carefully applied, identical amounts of flux, because the speed at which they dry out makes a huge difference. A flux that is perfectly safe when a thin layer is applied can be corrosive when a glob is applied, because it’s only corrosive (at room temperature) before it dries out. If it takes days to fully dry out (which is not unusual for modern tacky fluxes) because it’s a thick layer, it can have enough time to cause corrosion.I need to redo my test, which used bare copper stranded wire with clear insulation, one end heated (by tinning the wire), the other not. You could see how many fluxes eventually corroded the wire inside the insulation, where it wicked up during heating.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2025, 09:17:40 pm
content: Quote from: Faranight on September 16, 2025, 05:44:56 pmMaybe, but if its a reputable company then the company should be named. All of his other stuff is justrebranded junk.

author: pcm81
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 16, 2025, 10:47:44 pm
content: Bought some new pine rosin.Made a mix of 50g or rosin in 50ml of kester 184. Corrosion testing in underway. My first impression is that it is OK. It leaves a hard and dirty coating on the soldered parts, as would be expected from rosin, that you need alcohol to clean off. I'd say that if the soldered joint is something that cannot be cleaned, like stranded wires in the middle of wilderness, then this would work well. If i don't have real paste flux like amtech v3 or similar then i would use it. The trick to using it is to apply allot more than you need, so that you burn only like 5%-10% of the applied amount. That way it stays liquid enough to easier wash away with alcohol. It is definitely not as nice as amtech or stirri or the NorthRidgeFix flux, but lets be real... kester 184 is $90/gallon and pine resin is $20 for 2lbs... the resulting paste flux is dirt cheap and works OK.

author: John Coloccia
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 17, 2025, 02:23:45 am
content: I buy Kester 184 pens, and simply pop off the top and pour it into a little brush dispenser....because no one, approximately, needs a gallon of 184.I had a very interesting conversation with the lead chemist at Kester once, some many years ago, and got a bunch of great information re: flux.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 17, 2025, 09:29:59 pm
content: Quote from: thm_w on September 16, 2025, 09:17:40 pmNowt wrong with that - it's not dissimilar to OEM badged products. And although the price is lower on Aliexpress you have to account for shipping and QA (is the Ali one pukka or a knock-off that really is shit?). And NF is promoting this particular one out of all the ones he could have chosen, so if you think he has taste then that's a benefit too.Nowadays, half our problems is knowing the exact minimum price of things and then expecting the supplier to supply at that without making any profit. They don't have a life, don't eat, have kids, pay rent, nothing - they should be giving it to you for no extra cost. Even worse if they're a manufacturer since all their equipment comes out of their pocket and they're not allowed make any of that expense back by selling the things at any more than the base component costs.Let's be realistic for once. If you want to buy of Aliexpress then do so, but clearly some people prefer to buy stuff that is curated by NF.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 17, 2025, 10:22:59 pm
content: Quote from: PlainName on September 17, 2025, 09:29:59 pmHe doesn't do QA and has a 30 day return policy. If you just want curated brands then referral links works well enough (but obviously not as much profit as rebranding). Anyway, I'm just going based off of his track record, unless I see proof otherwise.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5upKluG-qi8https://www.reddit.com/r/soldering/comments/z4keby/do_not_buy_anything_from_northridgefix_website/I have zero problem if you want to support a content creator, but the best way to do that is to directly send them a donation.

author: pcm81
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 18, 2025, 09:45:58 pm
content: Everyone has their own brain, i use content creators to be exposed to a large set of products and ideas; then i do my own testing based on my own needs. Hence the NRF flux being included in this test. All being fair; it is a nice flux; but no, i would not buy his microscope... I'll spend the money to buy a real one; then add a camera to it.

author: UnijunctionTransistor
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 18, 2025, 11:43:17 pm
content: @pcm81Having done myself similar (not identical) experiments, I can really understand the amount of work and effort contained in this simple image.I appreciate that you did the experiment, and appreciate even more that you decided to share it.

author: Haenk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 21, 2025, 08:54:16 am
content: Quote from: Faranight on September 16, 2025, 05:44:56 pmI listened only half-ear, but I think he said it was made by a canadian company.There are less than a handful manufacturers, so that points to Chip Quik or AIM.I highly doubt they re-invented the wheel for him, so doing just an OEM packaging of a current product. A safety sheet would certainly help there, haven't been able to find one, though (didn't look very hard anyway, so might be hidden somewhere). Wouldn't a afety sheet be required for US sales?Pretty much the same as for his microscope, which gets a different casing color as OEM deal.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 21, 2025, 11:16:05 am
content: Quote from: Haenk on September 21, 2025, 08:54:16 amI have a very strong suspicion that Chip Quik does not manufacture itself, but rather has its products OEMed for them.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 21, 2025, 01:41:23 pm
content: Quote from: tooki on September 21, 2025, 11:16:05 amMight be useful to specify what is meant by OEM in this instance so we understand whether we are talking about a producer who has his unique product manufactured by someone else, or a producer that is merely badging a product other providers badge too.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 21, 2025, 01:52:28 pm
content: Quote from: PlainName on September 21, 2025, 01:41:23 pmI kinda suspect they do both, depending on which product.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 22, 2025, 08:47:05 pm
content: Quote from: Haenk on September 21, 2025, 08:54:16 amMG is the big one, could be some variation on 8341 since it mentions "refined resin":https://mgchemicals.com/products/soldering-supplies/soldering-flux-paste/and got rid of the rosin.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2025, 08:45:58 pm
content: Northwest repair review of the NF flux.TLDW: its good for BGA reballing but not that good for general SMD soldering work (bubbles and turns sticky/black at 330C).Using the Amaoe M50 without many issues, the nice thing is it flows easily and does not seem to dry out as easily in the syringe as the fake NC559 or MG8341 does.

author: elektryk
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 05:52:58 pm
content: QuoteFrom Ali?Is it similiar to any well known fluxes for example OM338 which is also white?

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2025, 09:19:26 pm
content: Quote from: elektryk on October 06, 2025, 05:52:58 pmFrom phonefix, also sold on Ali.Yes white in color and then turns almost transparent when heated, you can see it in the review link above.