any opinions for zd 917 soldering station

[exodia]

Yes i know it's a Chinese product but i wonder if it's any good.

http://www.antoniadis.com.gr/product_info.php?cPath=94_50&products_id=1060

Unfortunately i can't find any hakko in Greece and most ebay second hand station are for 110 V AC

Any opinions - suggestions on alternative? I quite like the desoldering combo

[Varal]

I would personally look for something else - this is a soldering iron and a desoldering iron in one. In Poland I was able to get a soldering station with an iron and hotair gun for the same price of the zd 917 station. I think that a hotair gun is more usefull since you can desolder your components using solder wick or an iron and a suction tube (I'm not sure if this is the correct name for those syringe-looking things that can suck in melted solder)

But then again I never had a desoldering iron in my hands nor did i work a lot with hotair guns so I'm not the best source of info

[marianoapp]

most ebay second hand station are for 110 V AC

why don't you use a stepdown transformer? i have several appliances running that way

[Bored@Work]

It is a Zhongdi http://www.china-zhongdi.com/zd-917.htm

Zhongdi soldering stations are pretty common among hobbyists in Europe and are good enough for hobby work. I won't trust them in heavy 24/7 usage in an industrial shop. It is not high-end stuff, but has made its way into the offerings of large electronics retailers (rebadged, of course).

You get them, and - important - spare parts in many online shops and on eBay.

Especially regarding the ZD-917, the desoldering gun is known not to be the most robust.  A spare is about 15€. If you don't absolutely need desoldering, consider a soldering station like the ZD-936 or ZD-937. And the 147.40€ that Greek shop is asking for it is way out of line. 99.99€ like here http://www.komerci.de/shop/product_info.php?products_id=237&cPath=24 is more realistic. But check that vendor's ZD-931 and other Zhongdi offerings, too.

[exodia]

The problem is that it's 99€ but it ask for 34 € shipping so it's almost the same. I tried searching ebay for Zhongdi but i didn't find anything. Do you know any other brands that are re badged Zhongdi or any soldering station with desolder gun that are 220V and at the 100-130€ price point?

[FreeThinker]

Try searching ebay for precision gold, or N16CH which is the generic part number most cloners use, Google this number and you should get loads of hits.Just bought one from ebay for £8 +p&p (£9.50 ouch!) but turns out that it is bnib and only needs a new element (£2.49 fron Maplins) .Got pdf on file with schematics if you need it.Cheers!

[FreeThinker]

Got mynew element today fitted it and works a dream, heats up very quickly seems a decent iron.
Found the site I downloaded the instruction manual from (Got a circuit diagram of sorts included)

http://www2.westfalia.net/shops/tools/soldering/soft_soldering/soldering_stations/701395-soldering_station_24v__48w_with_storage_rack_for_soldering_iron.htm

scroll to the bottom of the description for the link.Hope this helps