Soldering Iron suggestions

[ElbE121]

Unfortunately my old iron is dead so now I am in the market for a new one. Since pretty much everyone here has a soldering iron or station I was wanting to get some opinions on what would be a decent replacement.

[cardcollector]

Well Three things I look for in a soldering iron...

Does it come with a stand? (I know it sounds silly, but if you are going to do a lot of soldering, you don't want to have to worry about it rolling anywhere.)

How expensive are tips? (You will go through quite a few of these..)

Is it adjustable. (fot soldering on stars, wire, batteries, etc...)

That being said, I use this soldering Iron.
http://www.mpja.com/productsdirect.asp?dept=480&main=79&item1=15860+TL&item2=15845+TL&item3=15140+TL&item4=15141+TL&item5=17204+TL
the ZD 99 mini solder station. I love it because...
- It is dirt cheap
- warms up in about 45 seconds to a minute
- nice tip variety (I only use the 1/16" or 1/32")
- super fast shipping (and cheap)
- Has lasted me for 23 sabers so far

hope this helps.

You will also want some tip tinner for these...

[$tarkiller]

NOOOOOO!!!! You dont want tip tinner! That will corrode the tip of the iron.

[Darth Biff]

Greetings ElbE121,

Well, I'm a Weller man myself. I've always used them, and have found them to hold up well. We use the WES51 and WESD51 soldering stations at work. The tips are quite easy to find, and the temperature control is a nice feature that can help extend the useful life of the tips. You can see these at:

http://www.cooperhandtools.com/brands/weller/index.cfm?model_list=1&att_id=WEL003%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20&att1=Soldering%20Stations%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20% 20%20%20%20&att2=Industrial%20Soldering%20Stations%20

I don't know how much you know about soldering, and I don't think I feel like posting a tutorial just yet, but $tarkiller has a point about tip tinner. It is an acid, and if you know how to care for your soldering iron and its tips (like always tinning your tips), you shouldn't need tip tinner (also called tip cleaner). Also, I would make sure that you don't get anything under 40 Watts. Personally, I use a 60 Watt iron. I also stay away from soldering pencils. Some people prefer them for their smaller size and finer point tips, but you can get 1/64" conical tips for the WES series of irons, and I can do most naked-eye soldering (right down to SOIC surface mount components) with it. I find the pencils too under-powered, especially for soldering anything with a large ground plane, or anything mechanical. Unless you live in Europe, stick with leaded, flux core solder. The RoHS stuff doesn't flow as well, and it is tougher for beginners to get good wetting.

Anyway, this is starting to get preachy. Sorry about that. :rolleyes:

Good luck.

[cardcollector]

NOOOOOO!!!! You dont want tip tinner! That will corrode the tip of the iron.

Really? I have to disagree, Because I've used it with the same tip for three months and haven't had any problems...

before I used it I was replacing tips after every saber...

[Thaxos]

Really? I have to disagree, Because I've used it with the same tip for three months and haven't had any problems...

before I used it I was replacing tips after every saber...

The simple trick is to leave excess solder on the tip to prevent oxidation.
No buying new tips all the times, no using tip tinner.
Nice and simple solution.

[Sunrider]

Metcal http://www.metcal.com/products/mx5010 There is no equal.;)

[$tarkiller]

Really? I have to disagree, Because I've used it with the same tip for three months and haven't had any problems...

before I used it I was replacing tips after every saber...

Really? I'm very curious as to what you use. If you have something I haven't seen I'd live to see what it can do. After all, I don't do MUCH soldering but I corroded a too using tip tinner... But maybe it was something else I did or didn't do that caused it? Please share your experiences! Thanks in advance.

[Darth Biff]

The only time I have ever had tips corrode on me is when some of the rackin-frack engineers I work with (who have never had any real fabrication training) leave the irons sitting out without tinning the tips. That's when I need to use tip cleaner, because there is so much corrosion on the tips, they'd need to be rasped with a file to get it all off.

I have my own personal soldering iron, a low-end Weller, that I've had for 12-13 years now, and I still have the original tips. Admittedly, I only use it 2-3 times a year, but still...

Like with anything else, good general maintenance goes a long way towards the longevity of the item.

[cardcollector]

Really? I'm very curious as to what you use. If you have something I haven't seen I'd live to see what it can do. After all, I don't do MUCH soldering but I corroded a too using tip tinner... But maybe it was something else I did or didn't do that caused it? Please share your experiences! Thanks in advance.

I use this tip tinner...
http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/MG-Chemicals/4910-28G/?qs=sGAEpiMZZMtyU1cDF2RqUOpQCthXk3yovj6L8XU1XNc%3d

I make sure the iron is clear of all solder, dip it in the tinner and set it in the stand. it makes a funny smelling smoke when it adheres to the tip, but that's good.

It also serves as a great insulator, with the tin on the tip you get Immediate solder flow.

[Simmo]

This may sound weird, but whenever I try to tin my tip, the solder just beads off and wont stick to it, even on a brand new tip. What's up with that?

[cardcollector]

This may sound weird, but whenever I try to tin my tip, the solder just beads off and wont stick to it, even on a brand new tip. What's up with that?

Because the solder won't mix with tip tinner unless they are both the same temperature. You just haveto make sure that all your solder is off the tip

[Simmo]

Oh no I don't use tip tinner I just want to tin my tip with solder at the end of a job but it just doesn't stick at all it's weird.

[Sunrider]

Are you using rosin core?

[Simmo]

Well it doesn't say so on the reel but looking at it it looks like it does have a core of some sort, probably resin..

[Novastar]

The simple trick is to leave excess solder on the tip to prevent oxidation.
No buying new tips all the times, no using tip tinner.
Nice and simple solution.This seems to work for me, to a point.

Although, NO... there is no tip that would last "forever". Granted, your mileage may vary. Sometimes, I've found my iron tips to last a year or more. But sometimes--they... magically(?) get ruined and act all strange. Replacing them seems to do the trick.

DEFINITELY:

* Do not leave your tip "untinned", sitting in the holder for... uh... like >=10 minutes

* Do not sand/grind/"rough up" your tip

* Do not get excess materials on the tip (if you can avoid it)... such as getting too close to heatshrink or wire jackets, etc.

* Do not "quench" your iron with a wet sponge (I learned this AFTER making the CF wiring tutorial, btw)

* DO wipe your iron with a soft cotton cloth--using strokes down & away from you--after every 2-3 solders... or maybe more, your pref. But don't "rub"! :) Just WIPE.

That's all I have learned from folks like Erv... Eandori... Judge... etc.

[Enolmano]

I don't really know that much about all this tip-stuff. But I haven't hade any problems so far...

But I do recommend a Weller or likewise. The main thing the do better (except for being made to work like 1000 years in industri^^) is the cable from the station to the "pen".
They are lot more flexible.