Soldering tip preference for effects...chisel tip or fine point?

[skiraly017]

Fine point seems the way to go for tight spaces. But then with a chisel point I wouldn't have to lay the iron down so much to cover more area. Your preferences?

[johngreene]

Both.

Seriously, if you are soldering component leads, the fine point works the best. If you are soldering to ground lugs, or unsoldering ICs, the chisel tip is the way to go.

I use a fine point for most everything though because I'm too lazy to change it back and forth.

--john

[phaeton]

I started with a chisel point, but now it's a rounded-off blunt point.  I debate whether I should try attacking it with a file and putting another edge on it or just buy another tip..  I used a fine point once (not my iron) and thought it was awesome for soldering, but for desoldering i couldn't get anything hot enough with it.

[deadsnake]

Well..... I remembered when I bought my soldering iron it came with a sharp tip and now it's becoming a chisel..... I'm starting to think it wears out as you use it.

[rebickguitars]

I almost always have the chisel tip on the iron since you can just turn to use the corner as a fine point!  It is the more useful of the two imho, but there are times when a fine point is a must!  Ideally, I would have a second iron that I could simply plug into the base of the station with the other tip, but alas, I must suffer with only one and switch the tips for now...

[Ben N]

I find that the chisel is too clumsy (or maybe it's me that is too clumsy) for fine pcb work, and the fine is useless for stuff like desoldering the grounding globs on the backs of guitar pots.  So I have a low wattage iron with the point, and a higher one (40w IIRC) with a chisel.  All is good.

Ben

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

I think one man's chisel is another man's fine! Seriously, I have to use a very fine sharp conical for surface mount & other tiny stuff, but I find a smallish chisel is better for anything else. One major thing, is that a chisel being flattish on the side, it is much more efficient at transferrign heat to the joint. Note I'm not meaning a cylinder just sawed off at an angle likeyou would use for plumbing!! I'm talking a reasonably fine cone, but with a flattish tip to it, not a pointy tip.
Right, that's it, gonna have to get a bloody camera so i can save a 1000 words next time..

[twabelljr]

I use a .062 inch "screwdriver" tip. It's just the right size to PCB work (not SMD), and pots and jacks. I have a very small .031 inch tip and a much bigger one but have never had the need to use either one yet. The "screwdriver" tip is shaped just like a straight slot screwdriver tip. Very effective surface area.

[petemoore]

  Both..
  OT/Whaky if you don't like it/Sensible once appreciated, so far I'm the only one...lol.
  My tips are solid core, heavy duty, copper AC wire for wiring hospitals...I used to gut hospitals and got tons of this super useful stuff...excellent for most things like tieing down trunk lids, making quik-handle rope affairs to de-stress my back...thousands of uses...very glad I dragged it all home.
  I just wrap the wire around my...
  I use a honking industrial iron, circa 1950's soldering iron it looks like, quite hot at 'it's tip, so I wrap the stiff enough to be a good tip solid core wire round and round it, then out about 1.4'' the correct length to correct heat for soldering all the small stuff, very 'slim' and precise, it stays sharp and is easy to 'pin' in a crevasse or whatever, tends to 'poke' and hold where I press it if I'm fairly steady handed...
  The main tip, being realy hot and heavy like it is, makes doing potlug or heavy soldering go quickly/surely.
  ...Thing is this whole mess is mounted in a Brickhole, on a pan, in a box, with a fan>tube exhaust system, the smokey part stays under the exhaust tube, never slips/falls or gets wierd stuff like insulation or plastic whatever on it much, my hand has N/P not grabbing a hot iron from the handle, since I rarely grab the iron at all from the handle side of the brick...wierd/better for me...
  'Spock' thinks the reason everyone way too often grabs and maybe drop irons, and use mounting devices that take up lots of time and space [instead of simply, quickly .. manipulating the board into position using hands], is because soldering iron sellers don't want to recommend the whole mess I have going on, the one I opted for after trying third hands, clamps etc. then realizing the 'Just Mount The Stupid Hot Iron' [that burned me] technique is easier and quicker, very precise tip to board [I mean board to tip] approaches/retreats can be consistantly accomplished. Takes more getting used to than anyone seems to want to try, so the 'ol third hands are still a sellin'...L O L...the main reason I opted to try it is I don't like Smoking Solder.
  ALL opinion ... [... admittedly based on my own "Whacky DIY developed techniques", and quite biased opinion] ... and YM*WV.