My little rant on JBC, regarding built quality of my new CD-2BD soldering iron

[John Coloccia]

FWIW, my JBC is rock solid. No wobble, or other problems.

[zapta]

Yes it just unscrews, but the Hakko you can just pull the hot tips straight out with the rubber pad.

Easy tip change is an important feature that is often overlooked. It increased the chance that you will use the right tip for the job. When I had a nut based Weller station I rarely changed the tip but with my current MX500 doing it all the time.

I also like the ability to easily rotate the tip. This way I can align hoof tips with the 'natural' orientation of the handle and the cable  .

[John Coloccia]

I have to say, though, that for the cost of the JBC, I would be upset if it wobbled too. Not acceptable in something that is meant to be used as a professional station. But the station's performance is out of this world, and I'm finding that the tips last a good long time as well.  Mine's seen heavy use for well over a year, and I've yet to replace a tip. They get abused, too, sometimes up to 800 or 850 (I forget...cranked as high as it goes) for some operations.

But I HATE their brass wool holder. The wool always goes to the back of the holder and gets all mangled up. My Hakko wool holder still has the original wool in it from 10 years ago. I replace the JBC wool about every month or so.

[nanofrog]

Easy tip change is an important feature that is often overlooked.

Very true.  But if it's down to say ~5 seconds difference per tip change, is it genuinely that much of a difference for a hobbyist? 

Please understand, I'm not trying to start a brand/tech war, just wondering how important a few seconds are when the worst case is still quite decent for people where things like man-hour expenses aren't likely part of their decision making process.

For disclosure, I prefer cartridge tips and would love to have JBC on my bench.  But I don't, as the tip costs took precedence in my case (JBC street prices hadn't come down yet).

When I had a nut based Weller station I rarely changed the tip...

Was the nut metal or plastic?

I'm thinking in terms of locating any necessary tools (retainer screw types are worse IMHO), and potentially getting burnt in the process. The plastic ones have really improved matters in my case. 

Cartridges definitely have the advantage on setting the desired rotational orientation. 

But I HATE their brass wool holder. The wool always goes to the back of the holder and gets all mangled up. My Hakko wool holder still has the original wool in it from 10 years ago. I replace the JBC wool about every month or so.

Have you tried stuffing the Hakko wool in the JBC stand?

I'd even try a second one if it wasn't large enough to fill the hole.

[John Coloccia]

Have you tried stuffing the Hakko wool in the JBC stand?

I'd even try a second one if it wasn't large enough to fill the hole.

I've tried everything, including double wools.  The problem is the design and shape of the holder. There are even little teeth on the inside of the dome that catch the wool and hold it back, preventing it from moving forward.     It's almost like it's designed to be annoying. Really baffling on an otherwise fine station.

re: tip changes
I would be lost without quick tip changes. I do it all the time. I only wish their holder/changing station could hold more than just two tips. Really, it just holds one tip..the other is in your iron. That's just not enough. I need at least 3, and 4 would be better. At a minimum, I need to have a small, medium and large chisel tip at the ready.

Hakko's tip changes are convenient on their higher end stations. I have an FP101 (long discontinued, but basically the same tips/holder as their current lineup). They're not nearly as convenient as JBC, though, and having to do it by hand always puts you at risk for some nasty burns. I've burned myself a number of times. Still, it's much better than having to remove locking collars.

Pace did a good job with their irons. Very low tech, but very usuable...just a simple set screw, and a combination tool that allows you to loosen the screw, grab the hot tip, replace it and snug the screw. Great design that's almost as convenient as a cartridge.

No worries with buying tips. As I said, I do a lot of soldering for my business. I'm still on my original tips from last year. They last a good long time. I've yet to replace a Hakko tip from my FP101 too. Weller's disintegrating tip problems from early 2000s are what drove me to Hakko in the first place. A mistake on a production run of boards (somehow forgot thermal reliefs on a pour) is what drove me to JBC. I just needed something to muscle through a really difficult soldering job. JBC got it done and has been my main iron ever since, but I truly love the higher end Hakkos as well and use their desoldering station.

And if you do anything with guitars, soldering the trem claw with a JBC and big fat tip is an experience that everyone should have. The amount of heat you can dump into your work with the right tip and a nice fat solder bridge is just phenomenal. I don't even have the heavy duty station...just the lowly compact with the standard handle.

[ElectronicsNewbie]

John Coloccia, thanks for your input! I watched all your videos and enjoyed them a lot  O0 When you have some free time, please, take a look at a message that I sent you weeks ago on YT 

I'm still waiting for a replacement unit so I can't post a follow up yet 

If anyone is interested, I still have for sale couple of tips for the JBC: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/buysellwanted/fs-jbc-c245-cartridges-for-t245-handpiece-(eu)-worldwide-shipping!/

I need to do some serious SMT rework (incl. drag soldering with a spoon tip), and as you know, now, I'm without a soldering iron...

[John Coloccia]

John Coloccia, thanks for your input! I watched all your videos and enjoyed them a lot  O0 When you have some free time, please, take a look at a message that I sent you weeks ago on YT 

I'm still waiting for a replacement unit so I can't post a follow up yet 

If anyone is interested, I still have for sale couple of tips for the JBC: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/buysellwanted/fs-jbc-c245-cartridges-for-t245-handpiece-(eu)-worldwide-shipping!/

I need to do some serious SMT rework (incl. drag soldering with a spoon tip), and as you know, now, I'm without a soldering iron...

I'm not sure which comment is yours!    Could you quote it, or point me to it? I apologize, but I tend not to check YouTube often, and I don't use google mail or Google+ at all...a lot of times people send me stuff and it seems like it disappears before I have a chance to look at it. I just keep the channel around to host videos, and sometimes to do little tutorials like you saw.

[zapta]

When I had a nut based Weller station I rarely changed the tip...

Was the nut metal or plastic?

Metal, and I needed a tool to screw it off.