Recommend a Soldering Station Please

[kPATm]

Hello. Iv been using a Dremel Versa Tip Butane Soldering Iron for a while ( Its been very handy) Now the Catalyst has worn out and they are hard to get a hold of and they are expensive :-(

Im looking at replacing it with a wired soldering iron with temp control and if the price is right a hot air gun.

I know for a decent bit of kit you are looking at a fair few £ but I only have a small budget of £50. Thanks

[Avacee]

I went from a butane soldering iron to one of these and am very happy with it and the difference is staggering
https://www.pcb-soldering.co.uk/aoyue-937-soldering-station.html

Add in a tip set and that's your budget:
https://www.pcb-soldering.co.uk/soldering-iron-tips-aoyue-conical-chisel-bevel.html

Have used a Hakko FX-888 at a makerspace and will be upgrading sometime - You definitely get what you pay for there

[kPATm]

That does look good Avacee. How accurate are the temps on it?

[Avacee]

Couldn't say with a high degree (no pun intended!) of accuracy as I don't have a tester but on mine 345 will be in the ballpark and can then tweak up and down a bit.

[stj]

try cleaning the catalytic end of your butane thing with a solvent,
i used to have a butane iron and there was a tar-like byproduct that used to build up.

[kPATm]

Thanks stj but the catalyst is beyond saving. Iv ordered a cheap butane soler iron hoping that I can use the catalyst in that to repair the Versatip

[BradC]

I went from a butane soldering iron to one of these and am very happy with it and the difference is staggering
https://www.pcb-soldering.co.uk/aoyue-937-soldering-station.html

If you are going Aoyue, buy genuine Hakko tips. You'll be floored by the difference and Hakko tips last pretty much forever if you don't abuse them.

[Assafl]

I've seen older Metcals go for a wee bit over 50E (usually around 100$). There was an MX500 power base for about 50$ not so long ago.

I think it is a cut above most I've ever used (albeit I liked JBC as well but couldn't find one at a decent price). Also heard (but not from experience) Ersa Icon and some Pace are excellent.

When I was a kid I saved up my allowance and bought a Weller W60P (I think there was a 40W version at the time). It had interchangeable tips and was extraordinarily powerful (compared to the Antex my father had). It got lost somewhere in the last 30 years.... Obviously Metcal MX500 is much faster....

I'd wait for one of those rather than go China... I tried a Tenma and couldn't do it. I hate it when they stick to the board... Drives me insane...

[KL27x]

+1 on genuine Hakko tips if you use a Hakko clone.

I have been using chinese T12 tips, and they don't compare in the level of finish to my Hakko T18 tips. The better ones are more than decent, but the QC is lacking.

Chinese BCF3
#1 is not so bad, other than a big notch and a finish that is ridged like a soup can.

#2 is a trainwreck. This is brand new, unused:

There are chips in the chrome all the way around the face, but this spot is the worst. The cracks go farther up, so I expect a lot more chrome to fall off after the first couple of uses. It looks like the tip took a big impact that made it flare out at this spot. I might have blamed shipping/handling, except the sealed plastic bag and factory tinning on the face of the tip are both pristine and unblemished.

Genuine Hakko T18 CF3:

You can see where the chrome wears away, but mind that this is the exact spot that has been dragged across perhaps 280,000 thousand IC pins in 4 years. The rest of the tip is pristine (a little dirty, though )

[kPATm]

Iv been looking at these two

http://www.circuitspecialists.eu/soldering/soldering-stations/csi-8786d-desoldering-hot-air-rework-station-with-50w-soldering-iron/

http://www.circuitspecialists.eu/soldering/soldering-stations/csi-premier75w-digital-temperature-controlled-solder-station-with-75w-soldering-iron/

Anyone have any experience with these? Thanks

[nanofrog]

Iv been looking at these two

http://www.circuitspecialists.eu/soldering/soldering-stations/csi-8786d-desoldering-hot-air-rework-station-with-50w-soldering-iron/

http://www.circuitspecialists.eu/soldering/soldering-stations/csi-premier75w-digital-temperature-controlled-solder-station-with-75w-soldering-iron/

Anyone have any experience with these? Thanks

The latter one has features that are really nice.  And based on external appearance, it seems better made (hopefully a properly sized transformer).

I'm also a fan of separate units, as you can use one to fix the other (even if one tool is still working, you don't want to solder on live circuits).

The 858D would be a viable hot air station on the low-end of the price spectrum (a lot of members use them). There's an 858D+, which adds 3 presets (~3GBP more, shipped).

[kPATm]

While reading up on these Iv seen a few post about some clones not being oroperly earthed. Are there any popular clones that are like this and what needs to be checked and fixed? Thanks

[Towger]

He won't get a MX500 Metcal in the UK on ebay for his budget. Getting the MX500 base alone for £60 is good going, a SP200 with handle might possible for £50.  There are quality European brands such as JBC, ERSA I-Con and of course endless Weller models etc.

OP, you should PM Toploser, he is always getting customer returns and selling them off for a good price when he runs out of space!

[woody]

https://www.banggood.com/MINI-TS100-Digital-OLED-Programable-Interface-DC-5525-Soldering-Iron-Station-Built-in-STM32-Chip-p-984214.html

Fits your budget, and can be fed with a battery or power supply. Do not own it myself, but a friend of mine seems very happy with it. At least with the portable part.

[Psi]

These are pretty damn good for the price.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/138x88x38mm-Digital-Soldering-Iron-Station-Temperature-Controller-EU-Plug-Temperature-180-435-Degrees-T12-Handle/32692999653.html

you could throw a genuine Hakko T12 tip on it if you want, but the knife tip it comes with is actually pretty good.

[kPATm]

Thanks for the recommendations. Would prefer ordering from the UK mind as I need it pretty soon and I dont want to mess with the returns if it bought from China. I think I will do that Towger. Thanks

[kPATm]

Any more recommendations for me?

[eugenenine]

Hako 951

This forum talked me into going up to the 951 instead of the 888 and it was a good choice.

[GreyWoolfe]

Hako 951

This forum talked me into going up to the 951 instead of the 888 and it was a good choice.

I went from a real 936 to the 951.  No comparison.  I didn't need a better soldering iron, I just wanted a better soldering iron.  TEquipment.net EEVBlog discount made it affordable for the budget I had.

[nanofrog]

Another vote for the Hakko FX-951. 

Link is for Batterfly, which sells it for 279EUR before VAT (least expensive source in the EU/UK market I'm aware of). Add a couple of tips or so to reach the 300EUR mark, and the shipping is free.

[kPATm]

Thanks. But like my OP says my budget is £50.

[4CX35000]

Thanks. But like my OP says my budget is £50.

At £50 then you can look at one of the cheap Katsu 936D soldering iron stations on eBay which go for around £25 to £30. Your not going to get a £400 pound quality Weller which many clowns seem to enjoy comparing these iron's with on this forum or doing some daft YouTube video, but still, the Katsu 936D and other similar models do provide reasonable results for the price and ideal for those with a tight budget and want a full solder station.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KATSU-936-Digital-Electronic-Soldering-Rework-Station-60W-312087-/292130123261?_trksid=p2349526.m2548.l4275

If you want a ordinary iron then you can look at the Antex range on eBay which cost £20 upwards and in the past I have used the Antex digital controlled TCS230 which cost £69 when a colleague bought it and I thought it provided good results for the price. He was impressed for home use and he is someone who uses a £800 solder station everyday.

[woody]

I must have an RS-components soldering station somewhere:

http://nl.rs-online.com/web/p/soldering-stations/0186719/

I got it as a gift years ago. Still in the original packing and never used, as I expected it not to be in the same league as the JBC on my desk. God knows where I stacked it, but if you're interested I can take a look :-)

I'll trade it for a good quality bench multimeter.

Paul

[kPATm]

Thanks for the offer Woody but I dont have anything to trade

[nanofrog]

Thanks. But like my OP says my budget is £50.

My appologies, got side tracked. 

Given your budget, I'd still go with one of the KSGER T12 stations available on Aliexpress (example), and add a stand for the iron (examples). Possible to get both shipped within your budget. 

Regarding the station, I've ignored kits as I've no idea if you've an iron at all. If you do however, you could give one a go to save even further on funds.

As per a stand, I'd actually recommend a Hakko 633-01 as it's not nearly as prone to falling over and will last you the rest of your life (this version also includes the 599B brass wool tip cleaner). If you're unable or unwilling to go this route, you could add some weight to the bottom of a cheapie to reduce the chances of it falling over.