Hello Greg,

Sounds like a worthy effort. Also sounds like a few of those in the forum
have some thoughts on the matter already. Here a couple of extra cents
worth...

One method of maintaining US competitiveness would be to continue to use
traditional manufacturing technologies rather than adopting needless, counter
productive and net environmentally negative fads such as lead-free. (I would
not use legislation as an excuse. Bad legislation, however well-intended,
needs to be changed or amended, not honored.  To do less is to do a
disservice both to the industry and the environment)

This approach seems especially appropriate as there now appears to be a
growing consensus in Europe and Japan (apparently picking up on some US
discussions) that recycling is the ultimate solution to concerns over
potentially toxic metals such as lead and silver which are found in most
electronic solders. If this holds true, all of the lead-free solder issues
are moot.

Moreover and perhaps more important, our industry's legacy electronics burden
demands a specific recycling remedy.  Having only one or two major alloys of
very similar composition seems a highly rational way to address the problem
now and into the future. (as opposed to having up to a dozen or more options)

Staying with traditional solders seems also to be the most rational approach
to maintaining relative productivity. It allows the manufacture to avoid all
of the costly bakes, the use of solder specific assembly lines and line slow
downs due to longer preheat and soldering cycles while minimizing the risk of
product damage and reduced reliability due to the higher heat requirements of
most lead-free solders.

What we need most desperately is to apply common sense.

When I think of the lead-free effort and compare it with recycling I am
reminded of the story about the little boy who observed the situation of a
truck stuck under a bridge and he saw how the tow truck operator struggling
to pull the truck out. After watching for a little while he simply said "Hey
mister, why don't you let the air out of the tires"
 ;-)

Kind regards,
Joe