ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Bought this station in December, today I had opportunity to try it out, on tinning several wire ends and caps in a crossover. It heats up very fast, 2 min., it keeps the temp even on bigger solder points, reacts very fast when increasing temp. Recommendable. I used a Steren for the last 2-3 years, but now I know how bad it is
Bought at Parts Exporess, USD 39.00, and worth it.
Collecting Vintage B&O is not a hobby, its a lifestyle.
nice. i am using the smaller model.. http://www.makershed.com/5_40_watt_Variable_Temperature_Soldering_Station_p/mkpe1.htm
Nice, I've got a Weller, a good soldering station is invaluable.
Jeff
I'm afraid I'm recovering from the BeoVirus.
Jeff: Nice, I've got a Weller, a good soldering station is invaluable.
Weller is the preferred brand I think, I was looking for a station with different size tips to attach, Weller gets expensive if you want "extras", I bought this one because it was on sale, had good reviews and I had to buy for USD 100.00 to get free shipping.
I only started soldering seriously 3 years ago, Using the Steren station was a nightmare, but I thought it was because of me not having the experience or sufficient knowledge, not so, with this one it goes like a dream, faster and a lot easier to work with, heating up fast and keeping the temp.
I´m gearing up to make a big job on my BM 4400
A bad soldering iron will make you seriously doubt that you will ever get the skill to do it right. With a good iron it becomes relatively easy, good tools are worth the money.
I had some other brand, can't recall, that I actually liked better than my Weller, but I went Intomy old microwave years ago to fix a bad solder joint and forgot to unplug the microwave. Huge pop, iron stopped working. I figured I'd damaged some components in the grounding circuit for the iron so I pulled it apart, I indeed had. About three, but you know it's hard to repair when you've completely vaporized the components and can't even tell what they were let alone what values the components were!
You can kill your soldering iron or yourself with a microwave even if it is unplugged - the high voltage cap can hold its charge for a long time. It is supposed to have a bleeder resistor, but those often fail, and in any case it may take minutes for the charge to drop down to safe levels.
At home, I use an old Weller TCP I bought in the early '80s (the kind where you adjust the temp by replacing the tip). The cord has been chewed on by at least three different cats and taped together, the plastic handle has become brittle and has been taped together, but the darn thing just works as well as ever. I haven't even bought new tips in 20 years or so - the trick is to never scrape them to clean. That can damage the hard coating, and the bare core of the tip will be eaten in a matter of days in continuous use.
--mika
Had several irons/stations over the years.
Since some time ago I have a new one, a lot cheaper than the Weller versions.
It is an Ersa RDS 80.
Weller for most things.Metcal ESD for the finer and/or more exotic jobs and some SMD.Hot air, statically discharged, for most SMD work.Wonderful tools.
Martin
2 minutes Soren? 12 seconds for my metcal to reach full temperature and the tips are just pulled out to replace for different size / temperature. Truly amazing piece of kit. You have to remember to switch off otherwise the tips don't last as long as traditional soldering irons. They are about £12 each so not too bad though... I was using an XSD for many years but it is night and day. When you have a good iron you realise you don't need adjustable temperature either!I also have an SMD rework station that comes in useful as a source of warm air for temperature sensitive faults :-)
Olly
I bought a Metcal SP200, on Olly's "recommendation". Only cost me £72 on eBay and it is like "new". Bargain or what?
What a revelation! It makes soldering easy. When I think of all the years I have struggled with cheap rubbish soldering irons, I wish I had splashed out years ago.
Thanks Olly.
Regards Graham
joeyboygolf: I bought a Metcal SP200, on Olly's "recommendation". Only cost me £72 on eBay and it is like "new". Bargain or what? What a revelation! It makes soldering easy. When I think of all the years I have struggled with cheap rubbish soldering irons, I wish I had splashed out years ago. Thanks Olly.
I´m impressed with this cheap Stahl, considering that I maybe use the station one or two hours a week I didn´t want to go into expenses.
I am so happy, now I know I can solder like a pro, With the old iron I thought it was me who was stupid, I had to feeble with the temp every time I went from one point to another, with only minor differences in size or diff. component, and always afraid of overheating components, now it goes like a dream.
Yes I would like to buy an expensive station with all the bells and whistles, I will quietly and discreet suggest the FS that it is something for my birthday , but considering the low use hours I will get on it, I think it will be overkill.
Step1:2 minutes Soren? 12 seconds for my metcal
It may be less, I didn´t time it, but I turned it on, found my tin and pliers, and there it was. The old one I turned on went to fill up my coffee cup, speak a little with the FS, got the tools ready and then had to wait a little before it reached temp.
two or three hours a week? I thought you were a Beo repair addict :-P Yes I agree it wouldn't be worth going down the pro route but just to be clear there are no bells and whistles with the metcals. Just type in SP200 you will see it is simple as it gets, a power supply, on / off switch and an LED. However they are just built to last. Graham really did get a smashing deal there as well - He could have easily spent more at maplins on one of their chinese pro range and it would be junk in a couple years time!My tip has lasted a long time too, but I solder what I need to solder and if I think I will not need to do so again in the next 5 minutes I will switch it off :-)I am sure your station will serve you well, and nothing beats a new toy that you really enjoy using :-)
Søren Mexico: Step1:2 minutes Soren? 12 seconds for my metcal It may be less, I didn´t time it, but I turned it on, found my tin and pliers, and there it was. The old one I turned on went to fill up my coffee cup, speak a little with the FS, got the tools ready and then had to wait a little before it reached temp.
Yes a coffee break iron would be the end of me I would always be boiling the kettle lol... I still have my grandfathers soldering iron - a big iron bar you had to rest in the fire place for 1/2 hour then you probably got a few minutes of variable heat out the thing lol...Still got a tin of 'Coraline' flux that looks like he used with it lol... VERY good stuff in fact I suspect it is probably too good!
I had a Weller for many years, and thought that changing tips to change the temperature was just the way things are done.
Then about 7 years ago, I bought this Japanese Hakko 936 which changes temp with a simple dial, and I realized that Weller has their priorities backwards regarding user-friendliness.
Anyway, the Hakko is so stable and easy to use, it's super. I have a kit of different sized tips, for differing jobs.
Certainly there are a lot of good machines out there - makes the work a real pleasure.
Menahem Yachad: I had a Weller for many years, and thought that changing tips to change the temperature was just the way things are done. Then about 7 years ago, I bought this Japanese Hakko 936 which changes temp with a simple dial, and I realized that Weller has their priorities backwards regarding user-friendliness. Anyway, the Hakko is so stable and easy to use, it's super. I have a kit of different sized tips, for differing jobs. Certainly there are a lot of good machines out there - makes the work a real pleasure.
I also like the Hakko 936 and the Hakko 808 de-soldering gun. At first I thought the 808 was kind of pricey but two years later now, it has been worth the price.
-sonavor
Hakko here too. Rouhg jobs like powerwires I have 16€ cheap station...
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