lead-free solder

Fortunately that isn't the case in the US. The local Fry's had 25-30 spools for lead alloy solder in stock and only two spools of lead free yesterday. I wondered in that was because of lead free being sold and lead alloy solder sitting on the shelf, but the sales droid looked on the computers and showed me that the average monthly stock turn on lead-free was .35 spools per month while lead alloy solder had an average turn of 6 spools a month. Stan Rubinstein Assoc's average price for a 63/37 no clean core 0.020 solder in a one pound spool is a little over nine dollars. I have 10-15 pounds of lead based solder in my storage cabinet in various gauges so my personal supply is assured for decades. I am assuming that lead free solder sales to hobbyists and repairmen will eventually pickup and pass lead based alloys. One question that I have, do you need a special type of iron for lead free soldering or just a different tip? I noticed both Hakko and Aoyue shows a different model that is rated for lead free duty. They show the same temperature range but are fitted with a larger heating element (70w vs 50w). -- www.blackcube.org - The Texas State Home for Wayward and Orphaned Computers