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$10 soldering irons

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Ferroto:
Ok about a year ago I saw a soldering iron at "The source" which was once in canada known as radioshack. So i bought it i've done some simple repairs with it but I don't like how long you have to hold the tip to the component to get it hot enough for the solder to flow to the component and the lead this iron is almost useless through for PCB work and completely useless for surface-mount devices. On the other hand a good soldering station will cost almost $200. What type of soldering station would you guys recommend a hobbyist such as myself get.

desolatordan:
Weller WES51 or Hakko 936 are ~$80 and both excellent irons with good tips available. I'd recommend both of them.

The Aoyue 2900 looks REALLY nice for $65, I wonder if it has good tips. The grip is small and close to the heating element which is nice. Anyone had experience wit this model before?

charliex:
The problem is a lot of irons are rated at X watts but thats not the whole story, so you get one thats rated where you think you need, and it performs really badly. For light work on the road, when i'm not at the bench, I use a Weller WM120 http://www.cooperhandtools.com/brands/CF_Files/model_detail.cfm?upc=037103477118 , its 12W and 800F which is quite hot but its a tiny tip, it'll struggle to do heatsinks and what not but handles components fine. But the Weller's are great irons.

A good temperature controlled iron is definitely the way to go, but a lot of people just take it as read that the temperature they set on the dial is the temperature they'll get, its good to check.

The irons i use on bench are the metcal mx500, Edsyn 1036DX and EdSyn 951SX, with a hakko 808 desoldering gun, that covers me for most stuff.

ebay again is an excellent source of used irons, i've seen metcals go for just over $100, the tips are replaceable but can cost as much as a cheap iron, but the temperature is preset. They've got that 'smartheat' technology that keeps the tip temperature hot, some irons just don't have the juice to keep the tip at the temperature needed.

like this one, just remember the metcal replacement tips can be costlly though, but they also turn up on ebay cheap too.
http://cgi.ebay.com/METCAL-SMARTHEAT-Soldering-System-SP-PW1-10_W0QQitemZ370277857269QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item563647b7f5

of course avoid those instant on 'cold' irons at all costs.

dexters_lab:
i used to use antex 25watt xs irons, but when i started soldering up proper pcbs, some with smd components i wanted something a bit better and with more control.

There's loads of cheap soldering kit on ebay, but for myself i thought well if i'm going to buy something i better get something half decent and something that can be serviced/repaired in the future.

So i ended up buying a Xytronic LF-1000 ( http://www.xytronic-usa.com/LF-1000_index.htm ), i can certainly recommend it and are available pretty much globally

KuchateK:
Aoyue 936 (~$45 with shipping on ebay), 937 digital (~$55 on ebay) or the one I have, 908 with hot air (~140 ebay) are compatible with Hakko 900 series tips. They are rated 35-40W, but I think they are about 30W. Beware of auctions with good price but with shipping charge of $50-$100. If you check ebay regularly you can get them even cheaper. There is big step in quality and how easy is actually to solder when you move to temperature regulated soldering station with very good tip.

Original tips are crap, but with Hakko stuff that equipment is very good for nice soldering. Hakko tips are packed individually, there is Hakko logo on the foil. That is stuff you need to get. When buying on ebay look for pictures, because there are a lot of auctions with tips "for hakko", basically useless aoyue copies. I got 5 genuine Hakko tips on ebay for $15 shipped, but they are usually going for $5 a piece. Amazon has good selection, sometimes with free shipping.

Since those stations I've mentioned are copies/clones of older Hakko models there is big chance that 2900 is also copy of something and good tips are available. Someone would have to try it.

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