Which soldering iron do you like?

[Giorfida]

I’ve had good luck with my Weller W60P temp controlled iron, which I’ve had for over 20 years now. Temp control protects delicate parts, but the 60w element means it will recover faster from soldering ground wires to back of pots on guitars, or ground busses in amps.
Only downside I’ve found is that you MUST use their specific stand as the temp control is magnetic and cheaper stands could cause it to overheat- but even that’s held up well.
Still on my original tip! Only thing I’ve had to replace was a few weeks back I finally had to replace the sponge in my stand.

As someone who cheaped out on irons before dropping the $$ for a good one, I will again repeat the sentiment: buy once, cry once

 

[Robert]

I used Hakko stations for over 20 years before getting my Pace stations.

If I needed a new soldering iron and wasn't going to get another Pace it'd definitely be a Hakko.
I don't mind the Fisher Price "My First Soldering Iron" color scheme. I always assumed the blue is meant to blend in with blue ESD-safe workbenches. Like others have mentioned, I much prefer the older FX888 with the knob.

With that said, if you don't mind spending a little more I would highly recommend the Pace ADS200.

 

[TheHammer1982]

I bought a Yihua 939D+ back in May of 2021. In April of 2022 the soldering iron handpiece failed and started to overheat no matter what I had the base set to. I ordered a replacement handpiece and used it maybe a dozen times since April of 2022 until now and once again the handpiece has started overheat.

 

[PapaBear]

Weller WE1010NA

 

[BuddytheReow]

Weller WE1010NA

I can vouch for this. It was a christmas present 2 years ago and still going strong.

 

[radam84]

So what are good starting points for soldering irons? Ive seen so many things lately that my brain is fried, currently Im "using" a 15watt nexxtech that Ive had for years. Its done the job for the tings Ive used it for but Im certain I should upgrade. Im assuming 60w is good enough but also at the same time how much heat is to much? Ive seen a butane one that states 1300 Celsius, I used to keep one in my car for automotive side of the road type crap. Dont worry I have no ontention on using something like that for building but at the same time curious if you could lol. Ive aslo seen some cheap 120w adjustable irons 200-600 celsius, something tells me that 120watts is exagerated, is it? Anyways to keep things simple, what sorta heat should I be trying to land on for 60/40 and I guess no leaded solder.

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

I have used this one for years and like it. I know others swear by Hakko irons.

Weller WLC100 40-Watt Soldering... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AS28UC?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

 

[radam84]

I have used this one for years and like it. I know others swear by Hakko irons.

Weller WLC100 40-Watt Soldering... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AS28UC?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

thanks Ill give it a look, at a glance I see it goes up to 900 F (480 C) so I can basically assume anything that is variable temp and can get as hot as roughly 480C should pretty much work for me then eh?

 

[Synchrony Pedalworks]

thanks Ill give it a look, at a glance I see it goes up to 900 F (480 C) so I can basically assume anything that is variable temp and can get as hot as roughly 480C should pretty much work for me then eh?

Correct. I keep this model at about 4 1/2 on the dial. I don’t know the temp that it equates, but it does the job nicely.

 

[Brett]

Not to derail your thread or sound rude, but there's a search function here and this specific topic has been covered with lots of suggestions (six pages of them, actually).

Which soldering iron do you like?

Well I’ve been building for just shy of a year now. And when I first started I bought an op amp but muff landtone kit from Amazon and a cheap little soldering iron kit for like 15$ that came with a pump, cutters etc. I’ve been using that same soldering iron since and I think I’m at...

forum.pedalpcb.com

 

[joelorigo]

Lots of good stuff in that other thread!

My limited experience is that I started with no knowledge or skills in 2019 with this:

Build Your Own Clone Message Board • Login

buildyourownclone.com

It work fine (for about 35 builds and a few guitar mods). Last fall I upgraded to this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ANZRT4M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I feel it is a substantial increase in quality. And I like how it only takes about 20 seconds to get to temperature! It was recommended by Dave Friedman on a Tone Talk episode.

 

[radam84]

Not to derail your thread or sound rude, but there's a search function here and this specific topic has been covered with lots of suggestions (six pages of them, actually).

Which soldering iron do you like?

Well I’ve been building for just shy of a year now. And when I first started I bought an op amp but muff landtone kit from Amazon and a cheap little soldering iron kit for like 15$ that came with a pump, cutters etc. I’ve been using that same soldering iron since and I think I’m at...

forum.pedalpcb.com

yea my bad, I guess I should learn to search before asking lol. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[radam84]

Lots of good stuff in that other thread!

My limited experience is that I started with no knowledge or skills in 2019 with this:

Build Your Own Clone Message Board • Login

buildyourownclone.com

It work fine (for about 35 builds and a few guitar mods). Last all I upgraded to this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ANZRT4M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I feel it is a substantial increase in quality. And I like how it only takes about 20 seconds to get to temperature! It was recommended by Dave Friedman on a Tone Talk episode.

alright perfect, thanks man. Ill check it out, I mean Im guessing Friedman knows what he's talking about lol.

 

[andare]

Lots of good stuff in that other thread!

My limited experience is that I started with no knowledge or skills in 2019 with this:

Build Your Own Clone Message Board • Login

buildyourownclone.com

It work fine (for about 35 builds and a few guitar mods). Last fall I upgraded to this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ANZRT4M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I feel it is a substantial increase in quality. And I like how it only takes about 20 seconds to get to temperature! It was recommended by Dave Friedman on a Tone Talk episode.

I had tone of issues with that cheapo station. Mine takes at least 5 minutes to come up to temp, it has no recovery so it gets cold super easily. Good only for a couple of pots in a guitar but for PCBs I wouldn't recommend it.

 

[PunchySunshine]

I have used this one for years and like it. I know others swear by Hakko irons.

Weller WLC100 40-Watt Soldering... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000AS28UC?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

+1 on this one. I've had mine for nine years now and only replaced the tip once. I'd like a fancy shmancy one but only for my delicate ego.

 

[joelorigo]

I had tone of issues with that cheapo station. Mine takes at least 5 minutes to come up to temp, it has no recovery so it gets cold super easily. Good only for a couple of pots in a guitar but for PCBs I wouldn't recommend it.

I assume you're talking about the Economy Solder Station. Yeah I would usually wait about 5-10 minutes after turning on before soldering. And, I forgot to mention, over time it seemed like the same temperature setting provided somewhat different results, so I was adjusting the temperature from time to time.

 

[radam84]

I had tone of issues with that cheapo station. Mine takes at least 5 minutes to come up to temp, it has no recovery so it gets cold super easily. Good only for a couple of pots in a guitar but for PCBs I wouldn't recommend it.

yea thats how I feel about my current iron, takes forever to heat up and when I use a damp sponge sponge for cleaning, it seems to take forever to heat up again after the fact.

 

[Giorfida]

If you want a GOOD iron, but not spring for a full on station- check out the Weller W60P temperature controlled iron. High enough power that it has FAST heat up and recovery time, but the temperature control ensures it won’t get too hot and fry heat sensitive components (the same reason why lower watt irons are often recommended as they won’t get too hot)
Only caveat is that you MUST use the stand recommended for it, as other stands may be magnetic and mess up the temp control and allow it to burn out. End of the day this iron is about half what a typical Hakko station is. I know I had mine for nearly 2 decades now, and used it on everything from big bus wires in tube amps to delicate, tiny SMT components- never an issue.

I did recently pick up a Hakko station, which I love, but the old Weller still gets love from time to time if I need to do a quick repair etc and I don’t want to deal with setting up the station etc.

 

[Ginsly]

I started out late last year, and this is one of the best decisions I made when initially buying tools:

Really, really glad I didn't start out with a crappy iron. The FX-888D is a pleasure to use, well worth it. I'm sure there are some great cheapo ones out there, but I didn't want to (literally) burn through a bunch just to eventually get the Hakko.

 

[Giorfida]

I started out late last year, and this is one of the best decisions I made when initially buying tools:
View attachment 73775
Really, really glad I didn't start out with a crappy iron. The FX-888D is a pleasure to use, well worth it. I'm sure there are some great cheapo ones out there, but I didn't want to (literally) burn through a bunch just to eventually get the Hakko.

I upgraded to one this year as well. Very nice setup! Prior to getting this (and my Weller W60p 20 years ago), I would burn through 2-3 cheap irons yearly doing my amp work.