Warning: New Weller WXSmart solder station

[McCarthy]

So I bought this all new Weller WXSmart solder station with 2 handles, 2 tweezers and a bunch of tips / inserts worth around $2,600 a few months ago on Tequipment.

The order was not shipped from Tequipment, but drop-shipped from Apex Tool USA directly.

Below a few photos, showing how that expensive station arrived at my doorstep, without ANY shipping box, let alone packing material. Apex slapped the shipping label on the retail box and sent it off, didn't even bother to tape the lid shut. The station would have fallen out of the retail box if I wouldn't have supported it with my hand underneath.

My impression is, that this was a demo unit or customer return, considering how dirty the retail box was, fingerprints on the display and all.

I plugged the station in, used the touch screen menu for a couple minutes, and was greeted with lagging and sluggish inputs. That was enough for me.

Needless to say, I returned everything. I will not accept a delivery like that. And then it took over 2 weeks to get my money back, countless emails, calls, and chats.

My money went into a JBC DDE station with accessories, been working great for 3 month now.

I will let a few pictures do the talking. Be warned.