Which soldering iron do you like?

@Robert Is it possible to merge this with

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 forum.pedalpcb.com

So that all the good reviews and recommendations are in one place?
 
KR Sound said:
@Robert Is it possible to merge this with

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 forum.pedalpcb.com

So that all the good reviews and recommendations are in one place?
Click to expand...

Done.
 
Ginsly said:
The FX-888D is a pleasure to use, well worth it.
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For a little over a hundred bucks, I think it's silly to not get one of these or something equivalent from Weller or whoever.

Fast heat up time means you can shut the iron off whenever you're not actively soldering something, and not letting it sit in the stand at full temp means the tip isn't oxidizing, and going to cause you trouble.

Getting one of those and learning some discipline about keeping the tip nice really changed how much I enjoy soldering.
 
Giorfida said:
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.
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okthat sounds good, however after you mentioned lower wattage irons being weak enough to not damage sensitive things what are your thoughts on a 15watt, I mean I have used mine for years now and it does work, its just frustrating at times (especially when trying to use non-leaded solder). I have a feeling Im doing what I normally do when starting a new hobby, which is upgrade what I need and stock up on things needed as well, before actaul doing any of the actual hobby lol.
 
radam84 said:
okthat sounds good, however after you mentioned lower wattage irons being weak enough to not damage sensitive things what are your thoughts on a 15watt, I mean I have used mine for years now and it does work, its just frustrating at times (especially when trying to use non-leaded solder). I have a feeling Im doing what I normally do when starting a new hobby, which is upgrade what I need and stock up on things needed as well, before actaul doing any of the actual hobby lol.
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I don’t use unleaded solder, so I can’t speak to what will work or not
 
Giorfida said:
I don’t use unleaded solder, so I can’t speak to what will work or not
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yea I have a bunch of it, bought it when I bought the iron from the source (canadian radioshack). Back then I just assumed solder solder is solder and lead free sounded like a good thing, Ive used it a few times when I had nothing else but I hate it with a passion. Though, if my iron got hot enough Im sure Id hate it less.
 
I have a Yihua solder station and reflow gun and I love it. Everyone raves about hakko, and I may look there next time I need one, but this is great for me. Use it daily, holds temperature well, easy to use. Just buy a good set of tips to go with it and you are set 1000023442.jpg
 
This is the opposite of a soldering iron, but I do like it, and you could solder with it in a pinch.

I got it to desolder a bunch of ICs in a synthesizer and I have not regretted it.


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I just know it heats super fast - maintains temp and is very "light" in terms of the handpiece

SmartHeat® heaters® heaters consist of two basic elements; a high-frequency alternating current (AC) power supply, and a heating element. The biggest difference between a conventional soldering station which consists of a ceramic or wire wound heating element, separate sensor and temperature control circuitry, and a Metcal heater is that the Metcal heating element itself is capable of heating and then maintaining a predetermined temperature. In other words “the heater is the sensor.”

The Metcal heater depends upon the electrical and metallurgical characteristics of two different metals; copper is a material with high electrical conductivity and the other is a magnetic material with high resistivity.

When the Metcal heating element is energized by the high-frequency alternating current (AC) power source, the current will automatically begin to flow thru the conductive copper core of the heater. However, as the AC current continues to flow, a very useful physical phenomenon occurs, the current flow is directed to the skin of the heater assembly. This is of course known as the “Skin Effect”, it drives the majority of the current through the high resistance magnetic layer, causing rapid heating.

The Curie Point​

As the outer layer reaches a certain temperature (which is controlled by its heater alloy formula) it loses its magnetic properties. As most of you know this “certain temperature” is the Curie point. The Curie point temperature is when the “skin effect” begins to decrease again, permitting the current back into the conductive core of the heater starting the whole cycle over again.

The selection of a material with a fixed Curie point results in a heater that will produce and maintain a specific, self‐regulated temperature; and a heater that requires no calibration and responds directly to thermal loads. When a thermal load is applied to the tip, the heater temperature drops, and the power supply responds with the power required to correctly solder the joint on the board.
 
I've been using a Circuit Specialists Station 75 unit for the past few years. And I've been fairly happy with it. But I just upgraded to the Weller WE1010NA.

Here are my reasons for upgrading and why I choose the Weller unit.

Better tip temperature consistency.
Sleep mode.
On/off on front of station.
Longer iron wand lead.
Easy temp control change.

I did not consider the Hakko unit due to the numerous mentions the less than simple matter of turning a knob or pushing an up/down button to change the temp.
 
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