Ersa i-CON nano vs. JBC BT-2BWA - what to buy for a beginner?

[Soldersoldier]

Hello,

some time ago my brother started doing small repairs that require soldering (changing microswitches in computer mice, soldering together led stripes etc). However, he still uses a really cheap 20€ soldering iron / station (i think it is this one: https://shop.pichler.de/Loetstation-P1) and has mentioned several times that he'd like to have a better soldering station. I'd like to buy him one. It doesn't need to be super high end though.

Now I have looked through the forum and googled a bit and I found two possible options:

The Ersa i-CON nano

and the

JBC BT-2BWA


From what I have read the JBC is better. But it would cost me about twice the price (I could get the 80W i-CON Nano for ~160€, the JBC goes for 300-320€). What do you think. Is it worth it in this situation? Is there any other model I should consider?

[2N3055]

Hello,

some time ago my brother started doing small repairs that require soldering (changing microswitches in computer mice, soldering together led stripes etc). However, he still uses a really cheap 20€ soldering iron / station (i think it is this one: https://shop.pichler.de/Loetstation-P1) and has mentioned several times that he'd like to have a better soldering station. I'd like to buy him one. It doesn't need to be super high end though.

Now I have looked through the forum and googled a bit and I found two possible options:

The Ersa i-CON nano

and the

JBC BT-2BWA


From what I have read the JBC is better. But it would cost me about twice the price (I could get the 80W i-CON Nano for ~160€, the JBC goes for 300-320€). What do you think. Is it worth it in this situation? Is there any other model I should consider?

ERSA will serve him very well, it's a good quality equipment. And tips are MUCH cheaper. ERSA with a collection of tips will be much more useful to him.
Not to mention that in Germany he can buy ERSA tips pretty much anywhere.
My 2 cents..

Regards,

Sinisa.

[wraper]

JBC will also have much higher cost of ownership. A lot more expensive cartridges compared to Ersa tips and on top of that they are much less durable than Ersa.

[abraxa]

As a side note, the Nano is made in Germany, so buying it supports local companies.

[janoc]

I have the Nano for several years now and it is a very good soldering iron.

Just make sure to buy a few extra fixation nuts for the tips - the tip is very difficult to remove from the nut once pressed in and that is definitely not something you would want to be fighting with when you need to change the tip while still hot. This is one of the few pet peeves I have with that iron, along with a rather stiff cable to the handle.

The JBC is certainly better but a major overkill for a beginner. The ERSA will do everything he needs and more and certainly beats all those cheap Chinese irons like Aoyue, Yihua and similar.