Any thoughts on this soldering iron?

[trever22]

hey, well recently i was looking for a soldering iron because soon i will be working on a 445 build and maybe some other projects down the road. But how is this for a REALLY!!! cheap soldering iron. Pencil Welding Solder Soldering Iron 40 Watt 40W 110V - eBay (item 180590894961 end time Dec-22-10 03:07:26 PST) I wont be using it for the rest of my life of course:crackup: But how is it for just occasional soldering?

Thanks,
Trever

 

[Toaster]

"Its not the about the size, it's how you use it"

It really doesn't matter man, I have learned soldering is more about technique and finesse. You will want a stand to put it on though. Should work fine. Soldering irons just need to get hot. All they are is a controlled short circuit

 

[cd520]

40 watts is a bit much for building lasers. Dont get me wrong I actually use a 40 watt iron myself building lasers but also have 21 years of soldering experience. I would probably recommend a 25 watt iron for someone learning.

 

[Toaster]

The first laser I made was with a 40Watt. Gotta be steady but quick. I get perfect solders and I can use Itty bitty solder blobs on drivers which is good.

 

[Eudaimonium]

Nah, stay away from those Firesticks.

Temperature controlled station, as much as one would think otherwise, is a GOOD investment. I bought one , and I'm cheap as hell

And I'd buy it again if I went back that time.

I got myself Aoyue 936. Pretty much epic for it's very low price.

 

[IsaacT]

What is a very low price to you?

 

[Eudaimonium]

What is a very low price to you?

I got it for around $57 shipped from Germany to Croatia.

Which is pretty damn good, since all other sellers had around $40 shipping alone, bringing the cost up to $80 almost always.

 

[IsaacT]

Does the tip get nice and hot? I have noticed with mine that the tip doesn't do much, only the sides, and I have to get creative.... i.e.- any connections take FFE to do, cuz I have to angle it, and heating the parts up take longer, and the heat is over more area, so I have to be careful what I touch.

 

[Eudaimonium]

Does the tip get nice and hot? I have noticed with mine that the tip doesn't do much, only the sides, and I have to get creative.... i.e.- any connections take FFE to do, cuz I have to angle it, and heating the parts up take longer, and the heat is over more area, so I have to be careful what I touch.

What do you think?

That's TL-B tip, very long one, I love it, also here's the normal one, click the link since it's a 10MPIX picture, you can see the handpiece and everything:
http://i690.photobucket.com/albums/vv263/Eudaimonium/P6210023.jpg

You need to clean your tip. Only if it's shiny and covered in solder completely, it's good. Any burn spots and you need to do some maintenance. Or online ordering, which every you prefer

 

[Rafa]

I recomend you a JBC 30W iron. They just kick ass. Mine is about 30 years old ands work hell fine.

 

[Eudaimonium]

I find that having the ability to use real high quality tips is essential.

How many times did I just want to keep the new shiny tip on the firestick, since within first 5 minutes of it working it immediately goes into dark gray burnt metal which easily deforms and bends... Ahh good old times! No moar!

And yes, that's SO-08 package of opamp.