TS100 Soldering Iron test ?

[MrZeroo00]

Hey guys,

I would like to know if somebody already tested the Chinese TS100 Soldering Iron ? It showed up on Bangdood and AliExpress a few weeks ago http://www.banggood.com/TS100-Digital-OLED-Programable-Interface-DC-5525-Soldering-Iron-Station-Built-in-STM32-Chip-p-984214.html

It seems pretty good for quick soldering and repair especially considering the price, any thoughts ?

[nukie]

Notice the length of the shaft between the tip and the grip? What you want is a shorter tip for precision work. However it looks pretty good design coming from China.

[spadger]

I have  used TS100 for a long time, and It's a wonderful tool.

Hey guys,

I would like to know if somebody already tested the Chinese TS100 Soldering Iron ? It showed up on Bangdood and AliExpress a few weeks ago http://www.banggood.com/TS100-Digital-OLED-Programable-Interface-DC-5525-Soldering-Iron-Station-Built-in-STM32-Chip-p-984214.html

It seems pretty good for quick soldering and repair especially considering the price, any thoughts ?

[continuo]

It seems pretty good for quick soldering and repair especially considering the price, any thoughts ?

Buy one and do a review, please 

Judged only by the looks of it, the handle seems to be made out of slippery hard plastics and there is no rest or indexing for your fingers. Doesn't look very comfortable to hold or very ergonomic, imho... It's also quite funny how they brag about their "upgraded" soldering tip and compare it to a Hakko T12, but don't mention that the T12, for the most part, rests inside the handle. Grip-to-tip distance on the Hakko may very well be superior to their "Upgrade", lol... But, yeah, buy one and do a review 

[KL27x]

My first thought is that if I didn't use it regularly, I would probably lose the cord.

My second thought is to wonder how much li ion battery power I could pack into that thing to make it self-contained. But I would probably end up tossing it and making my own simpler control board, to make room for more battery.

I also wonder if I wouldn't rather have a butane powered Portasol, to begin with.

If you have access to 12+VDC where you need your portability, this would be great. Working on or around your car or model airplane/drone, etc.

[spadger]

4x18650 can work well. 12Vdc also can work well. The DC jack is 5.5*2.5.

My first thought is that if I didn't use it regularly, I would probably lose the cord.
My second thought is to wonder how much li ion battery power I could pack into that thing to make it self-contained. But I would probably end up tossing it and making my own simpler control board, to make room for more battery.

I also wonder if I wouldn't rather have a butane powered Portasol, to begin with.

If you have access to 12+VDC where you need your portability, this would be great. Working on or around your car or model airplane/drone, etc.

[KL27x]

I was thinking something more like 6x AA-sized cells wrapped into two bundles to make a trianglular core for the grip. That would get around 18-20V of juice.

All that fancy electronics and OLED. Programmable temperature curves? LOL, no. Replace that with a buck converter and charging IC for the integral battery, so it can charge with a USB cord that I CAN lose as many as I want. And for controller, simple temp regulation +- 10 degrees or so is fine. A thermocouple in the tip, a couple opamps, a comparator, a pot, and a mosfet. Controls: on/off switch and a knob; don't even need degree markings, just a dial indicator and a scale from 1-10. I don't want to hold a button for X seconds to start up and shutdown or to cycle thru menus, or to use a touch capacitive control to slide the temp up/down. And I don't want a soldering iron to give me warning messages thru an OLED. If I can't tell my iron is malfunctioning, then it's working fine. If the iron knows the iron is too hot, then it can switch off the heater like it's supposed to and keep that info to itself.

Better yet, instead of using a 24V heater element designed for a bench station, how about a design made to run off 6-7V at high current. Run from 2x high output 18650 cells. It doesn't matter if it lasts 10 minutes, because you're probably using this kind of iron to fix something, not to assemble a board. Manufacturing a heater and tip is the hard part, though.

[mikeselectricstuff]

Just ordered one - looks like some wanky features but shows promise.
Having given up looking for a decent lithium battery powere iron, looks like this could run from a laptop supply or power bank.
Manual here
http://hrajme.si/pictures/articles/00/280/TS100%20Soldering%20Iron%20Instruction%20Manual.pdf

[Mochaboy]

I just received mine...I got mine from ebay for $75 (didn't see it listed anywhere else but I see it's on Banggood for $62).

Unfortunately mine was defective out of the box.  Either an issue with the tip or the temperature probe.  It starts to heat up but the temperatures fluctuate all over the place from 200 to 400C but it never comes up to heat.

Reaching out to the manufacturer for a replacement (and another 3-6 week wait).

First impressions - Coming from a WES51 - it's small - like really small...as mentioned - there are no rubber grips or otherwise any other ergonomic features that make it nice to hold and the plastic is slippery.  I had a bunch of 12v barrel plugs here but they were all 2.1mm ID and this one needs I think a 2.5mm ID so if you're DIY'ng your power supply you'll want to account for that.  I do a lot of radio control so I have tons of 12v batteries I can chain into a nice light 24v power supply but you will still have that wire to contend with.

Real shame it didn't work - this is definitely one of those geek purchases you get for the guy who has everything

[AF6LJ]

Is it okay to say I'm not impressed?

[Mochaboy]

So I opened it up and took a look around under the microscope.  I didn't see anything that popped out at me, but once I reassembled it - it suddenly started working fine (smh).  I'll see if I can slap some video together of it in action. 

I do a lot of field repairs on the flying field so a Portasol Pro Piezo has a permanent place in my field box, but even that butane torch has trouble when there's a stiff wind blowing.  So much so that for larger events, I just tossed my WES51 in the car with me.  I was in the market for a portable-'ish soldering iron and so far this fits the bill.  I would definitely like to have seen some ergonomic design go into the handle, but for the size, (not so much the price) I'm ok with it.

I also reinstalled the firmware.  Very simple process - plug in micro usb cable - press A on power up to enter DFU mode. After the driver is installed - and the usb soldering iron shows up as virtual disk in your file manager, copy the .hex file into the drive and it should disconnect on its own.  When you reconnect the iron - the file extension should have changed to .RDY and you're done.  This step wasn't really necessary I just did it to be safe.

I got those instructions from this forum post:
http://miniware.com.cn/forum.php?mod=forumdisplay&fid=67

With only 4 tips available and each costing ~$17, I'll mostly likely pick up the fine point conical tip and leave it at that.  I have 3 models to build so I'll put this little guy through the paces and report back.

[Mochaboy]

Sorry one last gotcha - if/and when you folks get yours and you feel the need to open it up (who doesn't love a good tear down) - when you go to put it back together take special note of a copper tensioner plate near the shoulder of the iron.  When you lift the back hatch off it springs down - you have to pry that plate up before reseat-ing the back plate or the back plate won't fit.

[Mochaboy]

Here it is next to old faithful (which died this last weekend - talk about timing).

[Mochaboy]

Found the tips cheaper here:

http://www.banggood.com/Original-Replacement-Solder-Tip-For-TS100-Digital-LCD-Soldering-Iron-p-984215.html

Looks like the TS-I should be just about right for surface mount parts - I'll let you know in another 3-4 weeks

[Augustus]

Firmware upgrade, really? 

[GreyWoolfe]

Is it okay to say I'm not impressed?

I will see your  and raise you  .  Ergonomics regarding tip to grip distance looks dismal.  Hopefully, it won't be a regrettable purchase.

[Mochaboy]

Yeah - I got this specifically so I could toss it in my field box but I don't see it replacing my Weller (that is if I ever get around to diagnosing and fixing it)...

Time to put all this 3D printing gear to use and print out a mold for a silicone grip. 

I did manage to do a little bit of soldering with it today and it's more than capable of handling whatever tasks you throw at it, but it took some getting used to with nothing substantial to grip on to.

[KL27x]

If you have access to mains, seems like a Peakeep iron may do the trick for a portable temp-controlled iron.

http://www.amazon.com/Peakeep-Temperature-Performance-Soldering-Capability/dp/B00WM6CKLC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1446077476&sr=8-1&keywords=peakeep+iron

It takes the ubiquitous 900m or T18 tips, and you don't have to carry around a laptop brick. The rating is only 40W, but it reportedly heats up as fast as a 65W Hakko FX888, takin only 8-10 seconds to melt solder.

The Hakko 73W FX600 stick iron takes around 25 seconds per reviewers. Makes me think the Hakko sticks are simply power-modulated with an SCR, not temp-controlled, like the Peakeep would appear to be in comparison.

There's the relatively more powerful Hakko FX601 (at only 65W, but I guess it has more thermal transfer). It takes the larger T19 tips. Limited selection/availability.
http://www.amazon.com/Hakko-FX601-02-Adjustable-Temperature-Controlled/dp/B00FZPSX3G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1446077598&sr=8-3&keywords=hakko+soldering+iron

[crispy_tofu]

I was nearly sure that someone's posted this already, but I can't find it, so:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/trial-on-the-ai-controlled-ts100-soldering-iron/

[mikeselectricstuff]

It takes the ubiquitous 900m or T18 tips, and you don't have to carry around a laptop brick. The rating is only 40W, but it reportedly heats up as fast as a 65W Hakko FX888. So maybe the heating element manages to be more efficient.

But chances are you'll already be carrying the laptop brick anyway, and a DC iron gives the additional advantage of powering from a battery pack - laptop, drill or powerbank.

[zagnut]

Just ordered one - looks like some wanky features but shows promise.
Having given up looking for a decent lithium battery powere iron, looks like this could run from a laptop supply or power bank.

what's wrong with the weller WSM with the WMRP handle?  well other than the ridiculous price.  the "cheaper" non-battery version still has room for a 3 cell 18650 li-ion which should last for 3 hours if you go with something around 3,000mA.

there is also the red WHS "hobby" version that is identical inside,  just add a jumper and the WSM firmware is enabled.

[mikeselectricstuff]

Just ordered one - looks like some wanky features but shows promise.
Having given up looking for a decent lithium battery powere iron, looks like this could run from a laptop supply or power bank.

what's wrong with the weller WSM with the WMRP handle?  well other than the ridiculous price.  the "cheaper" non-battery version still has room for a 3 cell 18650 li-ion which should last for 3 hours if you go with something around 3,000mA.

there is also the red WHS "hobby" version that is identical inside,  just add a jumper and the WSM firmware is enabled.

hadn't seen that. A bit expensive, and big.

I definitely think the TS100 is the right direction - self contained control, with flexible power options so you have a very small package to use with a PSU or battery you already have for other purposes

However it falls down in implementation :

Poor ergonomics - they've tried to make it too small, with no decent grip, or inbuilt stand. Both could probably be addressed with a suitably shaped silicone grip below the main body.

No way (AFAICS) to turn it off via the buttons

Supply voltage range is a fairly reasonable 12-24v, covering laptop PSUs, drill batteries and 19V power banks, with varying power depending on supply voltage, however it would be much better if it had a proper buck (or boost) regulator, so you could set a current limit, e.g. to stay within the limit of a power bank, laptop supply or other source.
Probably asking a bit much technically to have it run down to 5V, though 10W at 5V might just be useable at a pinch.

And like every other portable iron, nowhere to store a small supply of solder

[zagnut]

the WSM is basically an empty box with a single barely populated board inside.  with a smaller display it could easily be shrunken to the size of a tic-tac box or smaller.  going by the 3 cell LiFe battery and the car adapter it must be fine with something like 9-14v already.

here is a simple arduino project that works with the same RT headphone jack tips.  if it can control temps even half as good as the weller then it's going to be a far better option than this TS100 thing.  just need a short piece of aluminium tube over headphone jack to make it more comfortable.
http://www.martin-kumm.de/wiki/doku.php?id=Projects:SMD_Solderstation

[kenny_ken]

Hey guys,

my TS100 arrived today and I need to say - It's incredibly awesome! For a chinese product coming from a website like bangood it's really nice and sturdy. The quality feels good, the tip heats to 300°C within a few seconds (I'm using by 19V laptop PSU) and configuring is really easy. Besides that, the soldering tip is pretty short, which makes soldering a lot easier compared to those long ones. Almost no shaking and very controlable.

I tried soldering a few SMD components, works like a charm. Also, the standby mode works very good by just laying the iron on a little metal stand for soldering tips.

The next step would be making my own firmware, which seems to be pretty easy, since you can get the firmware toolkit. It's just plain C, and all needed libraries are included aswell as functions to read temp, write characters on the OLED display and many more. I am just struggling a bit because I haven't found out yet which libraries I need to include and how to "initialize" the iron, but as soon as I found that out I will provide a few sample firmwares

Greetings from Germany

Kenny

[mikeselectricstuff]

[dr.diesel]

Damn I'd not see the TS100 before, that is perfect for several of my applications, thanks.

[amyk]

I suppose the initial impressions of the huge tip-to-handle distance are just because the handle is so skinny, so it looks long in comparison.

No need to reverse-engineer anything, the firmware and schematics are available here:
http://www.minidso.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=892&extra=page%3D1%26filter%3Dtypeid%26typeid%3D63

As for a 2x18650 iron, I think a LED torch body might be suitable for a base or battery holder. The heads of some of them are quite bulbous but you can find slimmer ones too. A boost converter can be fit in place of the LED and it'll have plenty of heatsinking.

[pmaggi]

I recently bought one of these soldering irons. I normally use an ATTEN 8586 soldering station with a 907 type iron and was surprised how small the TS100 is.
Using the recommended power supply it works really well. I can solder as easy as with the station.
It reaches the working temperature (290 C in my case) in almost 10 sec.
At no time I could note the lose of temperature on the tips during the soldering, even when soldering "large" components.

Really a recommended product. 

One positive thing that I noted is that the end of the tips, the one near the handle, doesn't get hot, so there is no danger of touching it by accident. It would be nice if some kind of stand could be supplied with the iron

[Mickster]

Been reading this forum for a while but I may as well lose my posting virginity some time...

I too bought one of these TS100 soldering irons, along with the 19.2V power supplies, from Banggood.
I have found it to heat up very quickly and hold the set temperature whilst soldering.
The length of the tip from the body is not a problem for me during usage and I have rather large hands.
I do not have any experience with high end kit such as Hakko, Metcal etc. so cannot make any comparison
with those, but I much prefer this iron over the likes of cheap unregulated irons, unregulated Weller 25W,
Aoyue 968, or various butane pencils that I have used in the past.

My $0.02

[Mark]

I've been using mine for a few months and loving it.  It works very well from an old laptop power supply.  It heats up quickly and goes into sleep mode after a period of time, then wakes up when lifted.  Definitely a useful addditon to the bench and will take up little space in my travel bag. 

[AlessandroAU]

Hi Everyone,

Does anyone know if it is possible to have the oled display turn off after awhile? I worry about it wearing out when left on 24/7.

[thisguy]

Hi Everyone,

Does anyone know if it is possible to have the oled display turn off after awhile? I worry about it wearing out when left on 24/7.

If you don't move it, it drops to sleep mode at reduced temp. Don't move it for another 3-4 minutes, it turns the led off, drops to room temp (Standby mode). Pick it up after that the led comes on in standby mode (room temp). This is with firmware version 2.11.

The operating firmware for the iron is open souce. The boot/usbdrive/flashing firmware and tool chain are not open source.

I'm loving mine.

[alexanderik]

Hello
i make new firmware with voltmeter (if you use external powerbank 12-24V) and  left handed mode (settings from config.txt )  - https://goo.gl/QKreNR, description and source code on my github - https://goo.gl/iPkmJk?

I hope someone will be useful.

[hpapagaj]

Which tip do you recommend for general purpose?



B2 is the default, I am thinking on D24, everywhere this is the most recommended type of soldering tips.

What I am soldering? Pretty basic stuff: wires, esp8266 related components etc. 

[neslekkim]

D24, BC2 and probably TS-K would be my choices. Not seen much use for tips as TS-I yet.

[sn4k3]

D24, B2(Default) and TS-BC2 for general
TS-I, TS-ILS and TS-C1 for tiny SMD work
TS-K and TS-C4 for solder pad clean and wick

Depending on personal usage and preference.
I recommend to buy the whole set and test, they are not that expensive to own them all

[Gyro]

I just wanted to share a quick tip (pun intended).

I've added a ptfe washer to mine, it sits on the 10.6mm 'step' at the base of the element so doesn't affect the mating depth. It provides a positive finger stop and makes it more compatible with standard holders. It also acts on it's own to keep the tip away from the work surface.

The temperature at the base of the element probably isn't high enough to actually need ptfe, but I had a washer to hand and you can find them easily on ebay anyway.

BTW, I agree -  the TS-BC2 makes a good general through hole tip but the TS-I still has plenty of thermal conductivity for fine work.


P.S. Does anyone know if the TS-K tip can be tinned? It looks a bit like a plastic cutting blade.

[hpapagaj]

Thanks for the tips.

And what are these new tips?

https://www.getfpv.com/accessories-247/tools/ts-ils-soldering-iron-tip-for-ts100-mini-soldering-iron.html

[Gyro]

And what are these new tips?

Presumably either to provide additional cooling or to protect fingers (although the base doesn't seem to get that hot).

[YU2]

)I am looking for a decent solder station for up to about 50$. Is this TS100 the best it can get in terms of thermal power and heating speed?

[sn4k3]

)I am looking for a decent solder station for up to about 50$. Is this TS100 the best it can get in terms of thermal power and heating speed?

I can say yes, for that price TS100 is absolute must buy. I have the TS100 and ERSA i-CON 2V. And i can say TS100 perform extremly well compared to my i-tool.
Also you can read this: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/(tip)-best-budgetcheap-soldering-stations-and-tools/

EDIT: TS100 will not only give you thermal power and heating speed, but also high performance and durable tips, good heat recovery, hibernation, standby, firmware freedom and all that for little money

[TJ232]

I have them both and I think is, let's say, a liiittle bit exaggerated to say that TS100 is better than a ERSA i-CON 2V soldering station.

[Gyro]

)I am looking for a decent solder station for up to about 50$. Is this TS100 the best it can get in terms of thermal power and heating speed?

I can say yes, for that price TS100 is absolute must buy. I have the TS100 and ERSA i-CON 2V. And i can say TS100 perform extremly well compared to my i-tool.
Also you can read this: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/(tip)-best-budgetcheap-soldering-stations-and-tools/

EDIT: TS100 will not only give you thermal power and heating speed, but also high performance and durable tips, good heat recovery, hibernation, standby, firmware freedom and all that for little money

When costing, don't forget that you also need to source a DC power supply - as close to 24V as possible for best heat recovery. A decent brand (3 pin mains connector) laptop adapter with grounded output is the normal choice.

[YU2]

 I already have one of the better hakko clones but I am not really sattisfied with the thermal mass and it does not solder smd good. So practically no use of it except for couple of application.
For electronics repairing I still almost always use my old 60 or 100W soldering guns they heat instatly but I would like to have some quality temp. Controlled iron that could replace them.

[sn4k3]

I already have one of the better hakko clones but I am not really sattisfied with the thermal mass and it does not solder smd good. So practically no use of it except for couple of application.
For electronics repairing I still almost always use my old 60 or 100W soldering guns they heat instatly but I would like to have some quality temp. Controlled iron that could replace them.

Did you calibrate your T12 station? Because sometimes the offset is huge!

[YU2]

I have a classic Hakko handle clone, not a t12.

[sn4k3]

I have a classic Hakko handle clone, not a t12.

What station are you using with?

[YU2]

Yihua 862d+
Iron is with a original hakko heater and it heats pretty fast. But trmall recovery is not sattisfied and I do  have some better tips. Uncomparable  to a good heat pistol.

[sn4k3]

Yihua 862d+
Iron is with a original hakko heater and it heats pretty fast. But trmall recovery is not sattisfied and I do  have some better tips. Uncomparable  to a good heat pistol.

I think Yihua 862d+ is far away from the better T12 clones as you said.
Thermal recovery is controled by station so maybe the station you have sucks.
There are good T12 clones and cheap controllers that perform well

[YU2]

Yea but ib ternmof smd and thermall mass ts100 is better even than a genuine t12 hakko, right?

[sn4k3]

Yea but ib ternmof smd and thermall mass ts100 is better even than a genuine t12 hakko, right?

TS100 is very good and strong, thermal mass have a fast recovery if you use proper PSU, i can say its better in any way than a T12 clone at least for me.
About geniune T12 hakko + its station i can't say because i don't have any to compare, better let others come and say something about it.
But i can say you will never go wrong with TS100, for me is a must have/buy! Even if you own a 400-800€ soldering station, TS100 will be handy. I have brought 6 of them
I have tried TS-I and TS-ILS for tiny smd, leg by leg, multi layer board it work flawless and we are talking about 0.2mm and 0.15mm tips, so respect here for TS100

[hpapagaj]

Thank guys for the answers, I just ordered from GB. If anyone interested, here is a coupon code DANY090, price will be 38,99$. This coupon is valid for 10pcs, and I bought 1pc. I think you can't find better price. 

[sn4k3]

Thank guys for the answers, I just ordered from GB. If anyone interested, here is a coupon code DANY090, price will be 38,99$. This coupon is valid for 10pcs, and I bought 1pc. I think you can't find better price. 

Nice price
Write about it when you get it 

[tautech]

Member Defpom has just done a vid on these:

[MacMeter]

I saw this a few hours a go, and left him some hopefully constructive criticism on YouTube. There are many reviews of this product in the last 1.5 years, this review or better put, “first time user unboxing”, misses the mark on many levels. Don't base a buying decision on this video alone, there is a lot of missing information that would have been addressed if the reviewer had learned more about the product doing some pre-review homework.

[DarrenHerondale]

Would you buy this as a main iron (for smd work) ?

[Shock]

Would you buy this as a main iron (for smd work) ?

Portable when a power supply or battery bank/pack is available. Firmware can be updated. Looks like large amount of thermal mass in the tips which can help deliver heat.

I'm not trying to hate on it, there are just many downsides.

Has no storable temp presets. Not really designed for easy tip swapping, limited range of tips. Has a warning in the manual that 40mins use it gets to between 50-60C (so could be uncomfortable to use). Possibly be slippery after a while with hand oils (I know but I had to point it out). If you need a work horse or in a dirty environment perhaps not the best choice.

It's not ESD safe by default, requires a separate ground wire to be attached to a screw. Requires you to supply your own 24V 2.7A power source for full 65W power. The warm up time is on that supply to reach 300C/572F is 11s . On a minimum 12V 1.4A supply it's 40s. Aside from no power supply, there is no stand, no sponge, no brass wool etc (you get the idea).

The working tip distance is deceiving and has no finger guard. Not really suitable for large hands. Here is a comparison photo of the new Pace TD-200 120W iron that comes with the ADS200 station. Note the guy with the TS-100 iron is really bunched up on it.

[Miti]

Nice toy but just a toy in my opinion. And "not ESD safe" is a bummer for me coming from a manufacturing environment where ESD is an obsession. I would rather make this one:
http://dangerousprototypes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=56&t=7218&p=61175#p61175

Wait, I did make that one. 
I just didn't have time to put it in a box. It can take Hakko, JBC, Weller, Ersa, you name it. Works with AC, DC, you can make it portable if you want, iron auto detection. A bit over engineered in my opinion but works well. Oh, and the software is open source.

[tecneeq]

"not ESD safe" is a bummer for me

I don't use it for stuff where this is relevant, but there is a screw where you can earth your iron. Shouldn't that be enough to be ESD safe? 

Anyway, got mine, but not tested yet. It's small. Smaller than expected. 

[Gyro]

Yes, using the provided tip grounding screw makes it entirely ESD safe.

[rbm]

Louis Rossman also reviewed this iron a few days ago on .  He recommends it, if that adds value to this conversation.

[KL27x]

Rossman has a very specialized need out of his soldering equipement, lol.

Wonder how he gets away with a BR tip on multilayer boards? It's the amazing response due to cartridge tip technology and a superior station, of course.
https://youtu.be/ao39bPEyok4?t=541
Or maybe he sets the station to the max temp of 840F and throws away the key. That is one way to solder an 0201 passive. I suppose Hakko or Pace is preferred if you want your tip to last more than a few hours, but I don't know what kind of technology can make an iron NOT be able to solder at a set temp of 840F. Not that the cost of tips matters on a $600.00 repair job, but perhaps his soldering techniques are somewhat special. Let's hope Hakko makes an FX-961 that goes up to 850F for Louis. Some peeps are obviously being limited by this arbitrary maximum. Maybe this is why he prefers BGA flux. Regular flux probably burns up on contact.

I hope he staged this to show the quirks in the Hakko UI. But if the max temp quirk is a problem, you might suppose he does routinely operate at the ceiling.

[Shock]

Don't believe everything you see in a youtube video, especially when they are selling the product or doing affiliate sales etc.

If you ask me this just looks retarded. Not to mention he recommended his beginner audience to buy a 19V power supply that limits the iron to 40W and the 24V power supply has exposed mains contacts. If he read the manual he would have seen the warning about the handle overheating to 50-60C after 40 mins use.

[Shock]

Bakon does a T12 handle that looks very similar to a metcal handle. Combined with a T12 clone controller (some have DIY firmware) and your own power supply and a genuine tip. The handle appears to have a small working distance. I'd prefer going down this avenue but I decided to bypass T12 series in the end for something with better performance.

[KL27x]

^ I call that the Bakon handpiece. I believe they are the first and/or only company to offer that handpiece. I think it's an improvement, overall. But in certain instances (say with a knife or a large chisel tip), the tip can just ever so slightly spin while you are using the iron. The tip to grip is just about the same as with a 951 handpiece, which is quite short, yeah.

[lisafig]

The third time I used this solder, the OLED backlight did not work anymore, which makes it useless (in the troubleshooting section of the notice, MINI says "check if the screen need to be replaced", absurd). I paid 44€, for the TS100 + an extra-tip + earth clamp)

I will let you know if banggood is serious about warranty (it's the third time I used it), MINI, the seller offers 1 year warranty.

EDIT 1. It's bad: the 7 days delay is over. I did not find the way to contact banggood neither the seller about my after sale problem. The contact menu only offers 2 option: "Package was broken" "I don't like this product". So no way to contact them after 7 days.

I tried to contact banggood using the first one. I'll keep you updated...

EDIT2: bangood replied (within 24h), they offer me to "solve the case" for 7 €... Warranty means nothings for banggood.

I manage to find the manufacturer website  (Mini) and sent them a message through their contact form. I'll keep you updated...

[salavat]

Contact morningtrade.ez@gmail.com, they will reply.