General > General Technical Chat
what portable-ish soldering iron should I buy?
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tooki:

--- Quote from: wraper on June 22, 2020, 02:15:16 pm ---I just checked and TS100 draws up to 2.7A when powered from 24V.

--- Quote ---and also EEVlog showed the TS80 soldering 15 gauge wire with lead-free solder at 370C
--- End quote ---
There is no standard 15 AWG wire, only 16 and you don't need much power to solder it.

--- End quote ---
Well, there certainly is a standard for what size 15AWG is. But yeah, nobody makes odd-numbered AWG wire. But often, nominally-metric wire is stated by vendors with the next-smallest AWG. For example, 1.5mm diameter (not cross section) solid wire is just a hair thicker than 15AWG, which would be 1.450mm diameter, so one might sell it as 15AWG in USA.
Benta:

--- Quote from: pickle9000 on June 22, 2020, 03:56:08 pm ---For field work I always used butane. They are reliable, quick to recharge and light. Weller is a good brand.

--- End quote ---

I agree completely. Gas soldering irons are brilliant, I even use them at home, not just for "portable" jobs.

But forget Weller, their gas irons are rubbish (as their electrical irons also are nowadays).

I use the Portasol SuperPro with piezo ignition, here's a link (you'll need to click on the UK flag):
https://www.zevatron.de/loetkolben/regelbare-gasloetkolben-2/

It ignites reliably every time (which my previous Weller did not)
Temperature control is super (it wasn't with my Weller)
Tips and accessories are really good and do the job (Which the Weller parts didn't)
You can use it without tip as a burner.
And, and, and...

I've NO affiliation to this company at all, but am completely satisfied. For very fine electronics work I use an ancient Antex 25 W electric iron :)

ciccio:
Thw buthane soldering tools sold by Weller were not manufactured by Weller, but by some Japanese Company.
Now Weller sells Portasol branded tools , like the ones  quoted by Benta.
For what I know, Portasol tolols are made in Ireland, but if you search Weller Portasol you'll find some with dual logos.
Benta:
ciccio is right, on my Portasol it says "Made in Ireland". But as it's over 10 years old (and still going strong), who knows what's happened in the meantime.
It appears that Weller has merged from being a quality manufacturer to just doing brand marketing.

Gyro:
Are gas irons really that good for temperature stability / controllability?  I've always naively assumed that they would have similar characteristics to an unregulated element, ie. constant heat input, leading to excessive tip temperature when idling and temperature drop when soldering.  :-\

Do they have some sort of temperature feedback regulation mechanism?


Edit: The reason I ask is because when my son was at Uni, one of his friends who was working part-time at Maplin, was offering gas soldering irons at staff discount price. At the time, I told him not to touch it and gave him my spare Weller TCP (Magnastat) instead. Come to think, he's still using it!
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