Looking to step up from my Weller soldering set...

I'm using one of these for basic soldering and it seems to work well.  But I haven't tried to solder a brass kit with it yet.

What are you planning to solder?

For assembling LED boards for passenger car lighting, I used what WS Joe pictured.

For soldering drops for Gargraves track, I used a Weller 100/140 gun.

Both have been very effective for their purposes.

Both (actually, he recommended the Weller ES550 adjustable temp iron; not the one pictured above) were recommended years ago by Jim Barret in a soldering article.  I saved it and will post a link, if I can.

EDIT:  Can't post the link, but its title is:  Soldering Made Easy, and appeared in Run 263 April/May 2013 issue.

Nothing wrong with that set except you could likely use more power. I am guessing thats about 25 watts. A 45 watt pencil iron would cover most of the bigger wiring projects. One thing is look for tips that are held on with a set screw or have female threads. The ones you have can get stuck in the iron over time due to corrosion. If you can still remove them coat the threads with nickle Never Seize.

I have a fancy temperature controlled iron but continue to use my 50 year old Ungar iron. Various heaters 25-45 watt and tips can still be had for it.

Pete

Jeff, I have to recommend my go-to soldering station, the Hakko FX-888D, I'm very pleased with mine.    This is a tool that is widely used in industry, and it's for a good reason.  Precise temperature control and up to 70 watts of heat available make this a great all around soldering iron.

Joe - I don't see any brass in my future,

Carl - Mostly small wires and such, I also have the Weller 110/140 for bigger stuff.

Pete - I just checked, it's the 25 watt variety. Probably the biggest issue.

GRJ - That's what I thought you had.

Thanks guys!

2nd the Hakko

Nice station, thinking I need to replace my Weller.

I have a Hakko too but haven’t taken it out of the box. I used them at work and they are a fine tool.

Pete

Have had great success with this Weller model.

Hakko only way to go.  I use them at work, I have one at home.

+1 on the Hakko.

hakko  best one

I change my Weller for this one:

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/...AWCX62OR7U&psc=1

All digital, very good for very small stuff.

I forth or fifth the Hakko.  I bought the FX888 after GRJ had recommended it.  It replaced a bunch of soldering irons that were too hot, too cold or too unwieldy.

Hakko.. everything else is fifth place or lower.

It is sweet.

Another one for Haako; but, to calibrate it, I also bought the Haako something that reads the temp of the iron.

I have 2 of the Hakko's as well. They work great. I used to use Weller but I prefer Hakko.

Thanks;

idea-thinker

I’m a Hakko fan too!!!

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

Jeff, I have to recommend my go-to soldering station, the Hakko FX-888D, I'm very pleased with mine.    This is a tool that is widely used in industry, and it's for a good reason.  Precise temperature control and up to 70 watts of heat available make this a great all around soldering iron.

I’ve tried to find out where it is made, but I’m having trouble with that. I’ve generally found that when the country of origin is obscured it usually means “made in China “.
I would like to avoid that.
Maybe someone could look at a recent model and post it.
Thanks,

Alan

Mine was made in Malaysia, it's maybe 3-4 years old.

I am Hakko fan as well.  Mine is over 15 years old with a lot of use, no issues.  The soldering wand itself is light and slender like a larger marker.  My favorite part is that it heats up in seconds and you are ready to go instantly.

Hakko, I have the 951 model.  And get some good Kester solder.

@ajzend posted:

I’ve tried to find out where it is made, but I’m having trouble with that. I’ve generally found that when the country of origin is obscured it usually means “made in China “.
I would like to avoid that.
Maybe someone could look at a recent model and post it.
Thanks,

Alan

I have soldered for a long time, and could not believe that a tool could make such a big difference. Hakko for me and mine is about 20 years old now. Thanks to forum member, Michael, there was a 2-for-1 close-out and together we split the order for a great deal.

I ended up picking up a few extra tips that I rarely use, but I have them just in case.

Charlie

Thanks for the information.  Malaysia is OK.

Thanks again,

Alan

I appreciate this thread as I've been planning on purchasing a Soldering Station for a while now, and now is the time. Keep the tips and recommendations coming.

Here is what I currently use for delicate work (No, not really). This was my Grandfather's and I would guess it to be at least 75 years old, probably older. Works great - I've even used it to repair a leaking car radiator neck when I was concerned about using a torch in that confined area. I placed a 12 inch ruler next to it so that you can see how hefty it is. The neck is about 1/2 inch in diameter.

@Pingman posted:

What are you planning to solder?

For assembling LED boards for passenger car lighting, I used what WS Joe pictured.

For soldering drops for Gargraves track, I used a Weller 100/140 gun.

Both have been very effective for their purposes.

Both (actually, he recommended the Weller ES550 adjustable temp iron; not the one pictured above) were recommended years ago by Jim Barret in a soldering article.  I saved it and will post a link, if I can.

EDIT:  Can't post the link, but its title is:  Soldering Made Easy, and appeared in Run 263 April/May issue.

I do the very same thing and the same Soldering Iron and Gun.

The Hakko FX-888D heats up fast - it's really nice.

Dale

Where is the best place to buy a Hakko soldering station?

@tncentrr posted:

Where is the best place to buy a Hakko soldering station?

I have gotten a lot of stuff from these folks. Get on their email list for specials. I think I paid about 85 bucks for my 880.

https://www.tequipment.net/hak.../soldering-stations/

Pete

I bought mine on Amazon a few years ago, paid $94 and it was shipped free.

I really like my Hakko FX-888D too! I bought mine at Fry's in Downer's Grove during a work trip. Always popped in there when I had to work in the Chicago area.

I think GRJ and myself bought the Hakko about the same time.  I have used mine a lot and still works fine.  I had to replace the sponge, cut a kitchen sponge into the shape of the original and it's ready to go.

I wanted a resistance soldering station, but with this last project, I think I'm done with anything that would require it.  I have a small torch if I need more heat.

I need to get some more tips for my Hakko.

I'll put in a vote for the much nicer Weller WES51 if you can find one (maybe used) or the newer WE1010.

I've had my WES51 for over 10 years and still love it.  Too bad they discontinued it.

Inquiring minds want to know.  What's so much "nicer" about the WES51?  I had Weller irons for years, and they served me well.  However, I still think the Hakko is a better station.  It's also way less expensive, and given the fact that it's widely used in industry, clearly up to routine soldering jobs like we do with model trains.

I especially like the fact that with a soldering tip calibrator, I can actually know the tip temperature and calibrate it.  I can also do a quick change of the wand for a different sized tip, very useful.

FWIW, I still love my Weller 100/140W gun, it's my track soldering tool and does a bang-up job for that duty.

There is a Haako product, model FG-100B, that measures the temp of the tip; came in handy when calibrating the Haako FX-888D soldering station.  Some are made in China, some in Japan, some in Fahrenheit, some in Centigrade.  Maybe there are better means of testing the tip temperature now with temp sensing guns which I have not tried.

Hakko, no better bang for the buck.  It works like a station costing 2-3 times it's price.  As said, you see it all over in the professional industry being used all day everyday.  I have had mine for 6 years and it never fails.  Great temp control, heats quickly, and available readily on Amazon.  My previous unit was a Hakko as well having been with me for 7 years.  Only reason I don't still use it is because it was lost in a house fire (fire not caused by the Hakko).

If my current Hakko stopped working tomorrow, I would still buy another one.  I have owned multiple Weller irons and won't ever again.  I am sure their more expensive ones are good, but since the Hakko works so well, I see no point.

I haven't been able to find the cheap FG-100 calibrator lately, I bought mine for $20.  I checked it's accuracy against a Fluke temperature probe and it was right on, so that's what I use to calibrate my iron.  I see other similar designed tip calibrators for fairly cheap, it's just a K-type thermocouple and a fairly simple circuit.  You probably do need a simple microprocessor for the processing, I did some K-type thermocouples years ago for aircraft engine instrumentation, and that's how I did it.  The nice part is the neat Hakko sensor that is stretched over the pegs and makes it easy to set the tip on it to measure the temperature.

The model below looks to be pretty much what the $200+ Hakko FG-101B is for a lot less money.  Like I said, measuring temperature with the thermocouple isn't rocket science, and I see no reason this can't be plenty accurate enough to do the job.  They even use the Hakko sensors.

eBay: 162627017691

Am I old school in that if an electrical device isn't UL (Underwriters Laboratories) approved I'm not plugging it into my outlets?  I ask this because I see you all extolling the Hakko but it lacks the UL seal.