The Benefit of Flux

I learned to solder at a very young age, and have kept doing so ever since. I've gone through a couple different soldering irons, but only last year discovered the benefits of using flux. For about $3 for a can, you can improve your soldering projects tremendously.

In soldering, heat transfer is key. If your don't get the joint heated properly, you'll never get a good solder connection. What the flux does is melt and transfer heat throughout your joint. When you touch the solder to this area, the solder will melt and transfer quickly and efficiently to where you want it. I've used flux on soldering rail joints, and other than perhaps cleaning the excess flux off, never had to do anything to the rail to run trains.

A little flux goes a long way, and be careful not to use too much. If soldering with an iron, you'll just wind up with a mess, but if soldering with a torch, that extra flux could burn and leave a nasty black residue.