Soldering iron

I gotta replace a knob on a board, I lost my old soldering irn in my move to Chicago. I need to buy a new one. Anyone have a recommendation on a decent soldering iron?

I just use my plain ol $15.00 Radio Shack one, but I'mn sure there's much better out there.

yeah I was gonna go that route, but if there is a nicer one, then why not if its worth it. I figure some nerds out here would know ;)

If bI was going to upgrade I would probably go the statin route

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WLC100-40-Watt-Soldering-Station/dp/B000AS28UC"]Amazon.com: Weller WLC100 40-Watt Soldering Station: Home Improvement@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41soEMghrsL.@@AMEPARAM@@41soEMghrsL[/ame]

If I wanted to go all out I might do this

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WESD51-Digital-Soldering-Station/dp/B000ARU9PO"]Amazon.com: Weller WESD51 Digital Soldering Station: Home Improvement@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41NXlcjXmJL.@@AMEPARAM@@41NXlcjXmJL[/ame]

i always carry a little gas powered one in my bag, has came in handy a few times.

hmmm that $40 one doesn't look bad.

I just realized I have the same soldering station I ordered from a paper catalog when I was 10 years old so I've had it over 13 years now.

I've had other soldering irons too from radioshack and various places which have all broken or sucked.

It's this one:

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Temperature-Controlled-Digital-Soldering-Station/dp/B003E0WPRE"]Amazon.com: Tenma Temperature Controlled Digital Soldering Station: Home Improvement@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21IyhVq61uL.@@AMEPARAM@@21IyhVq61uL[/ame]

I didn't even know they still make it I could use a new tip.

edit: half price here http://www.mcmelectronics.com/produc...LAID=445475968

There might be better ones for the price range but it has served me well since childhood and has taken some beatings and keeps going strong. :)

Then again some tools you buy for life and that one has a pretty beastly transformer in it.

yes im kinda looking to invest in one and have it for life basically. Don't need the best, but a decent priced one will serve me well.

If you're going to keep it around, pick one you can get spare tips for. It seems like Weller spares are widely available, so you should be good to go with one of these stations.

I'm not sure how universal the tips are. You may be able to fit other models but they wouldn't work as well or what have you, anyone into electronics and soldering should be able to clarify.

Weller are always a safe bet and tips are indeed easy to find. Cheaper like Circuit Test are also really decent. Mid point you have the Hakko ones.

I have done electronics work and soldering for over thirty years. I have used extremely expensive irons at jobs, including the military. for home use, I prefer the cheap radio shack one that comes as a kit with some crappy tools and solder for around $15. when it wears out I get another one. I never try replacing the tip on the cheap ones.

Weller. Only thing better than radio shack worth paying for

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mostapha

Weller. Only thing better than radio shack worth paying for

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The bigger more expensive wellers are good but the cheap weller soldering stations (like the red one linked above) are no better than radioshacks. I've seen just as many of those die as the radioshack stations and they are just as inconsistent. All it is is the same exact iron that they sell separately that plugs into an outlet on a bass station that is a voltage control- no heat sensors or anything.

Been on the monome forums quite a bit lately, and it seems that tehn (monome creator) along with several other on the forum use and recommend the hakko 936, or at least hakko brand. You figure he solders together hundreds of monomes at a time, so he's probably got a pretty good iron.
Couldn't find it anywhere but ebay, but it's listed as new:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hakko-936-So...ht_1365wt_1139

Also hear great things about the higher quality wellers.

Hakkos are pretty damn good if you can find a nice model at a decent price, I would take one any day over a Weller.

The radioshack ones are hardcore, i had mine about 10 years before it broke.

Now i just buy cheap ones at harbor freight and use them as disposable one-job irons. They get hot fast and have a good size and shape.

I'm gonna look at a few today and just pic up whatever looks decent. Maybe I'll have to order one.

These jobbies are ace:

http://www.antex.co.uk/prodtype.asp?...cordPosition=1

My advice is just use Weller. If you don't have much of a budget, splash out a little bit. Always good in the long run.

Weller or Hakko for brands,
but if you want to solder anything on the latest DJ gear, you have to look for atleast 350C or 700F degrees because of that stupid lead free solder. Plus fast heat is always a plus because you need to heat things up less to get the solder melted.
Or you can use a gas one, which is uncomfortable to use in small rooms because of the heat, but gets hot faster.

I would stay away from gas for any serious soldering. The decent soldering stations all heat up in like 2 minutes and you can watch the temperature readout climb up rapidly.

Yeah I'm not going to be a pro solderer or anything so a few minutes to heat up isn't a big deal to me. If it was my living I would invest in whatever, but its not, its just for hobby stuff so I don't think I need to spend coin like that.

I'm probably going to go with a weller.

Bumping this thread since I need a new soldering iron- the one I posted in this thread that I bough when I was like 10 finally died. I wonder if I can find a decent soldering station for like $70-$80

The good thing about soldering irons is the technology doesn't really change much. Unless you count that battery operated, instant heat thing radio shack was selling. I never could get it to work right.

I wonder how these cheap ebay digital soldering stations are

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATTEN-SOLDER...ht_3775wt_1165

Attachment 9560

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Atten-Digita...ht_3173wt_1398

Attachment 9561

http://www.ebay.com/itm/60W-Solderin...ht_1508wt_1141




http://www.ebay.com/itm/60W-Solderin...ht_3748wt_1398

there's a bunch of cheap ones like this- wonder how they are- I would like to get a weller or hakko with digital control but don't really want to spend $140. I don't solder that much but when I do I want something good.

edit:

hmm it looks like radioshack is branding and selling the same iron as that atten linked above

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LAjm8_HmxY

Ended up ordering this Hakko for $80 from amazon with 2 day shipping from amazon prime

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...L._AA1500_.jpg

The new hakkos kind of look like colorful toys but you can't beat the quality and I guess a digital temp readout isn't that important and I would rather have a better quality iron.

I was gonna say just to get Weller and never think about it again, but…apparently I chimed in a bit late.

Hakko > Weller but yeah.

Enh…I've never had a weller fail on me. I've also never paid for one myself.

Holy crap this Hakko FX-888 is amazing. Easily one of the best soldering iron I've ever used. I remembered the old Hakkos were good but this is even better- it's definitely a noticeable step up from the wellers. Incredibly precise temperature control (accurate within 1 degree vs. 10 degrees on the wellers), great build quality, and really well designed. The funky colored base that looks plastic is actually some solid high tech ceramic- very well engineered.

This thing heats u so fast I thought it was off- heats up to 700 degrees it literally 10-15 seconds. You can see when the heater turns on and off from the LED and the temperature control is very stable. Highly recommended for $80 and you can't beat it considering it beats wellers and other brands priced double. I need to get some other tips for it.

http://i.imgur.com/2rxMD.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/XJB2f.jpg


http://i.imgur.com/fVoEx.jpg

yeah I solder in my kitchen, what?