soldering irons

[jrem]

hey, don't know if this has been hashed out, but I can't find a tip for my 30+ year old Radio Shack cheapie iron that I have a hard time parting with.  Picked up something else but it sux.  Maybe I'm ready to take the plunge on a station . . .    what's the best bang for the buck in the brand new category?  Also, where to buy?

Thanks . . .

[Brymus]

I just ordered an adjustable temp 50 watt station (300-750 IIRC) from All Electronics for 25$
When it gets here I will let you know how good it is.
FWIW I broke my older RS iron when trying to replace the tip,so instead I grind down the existing tip in the one I bought as replacement (RS again) to a usable shape.
This has extended the life of the cheap bugger quite a bit, I have re-shaped the tip 3 times in the last 9 months...
Using my dremel and a small sander/grinder wheel.

[trixdropd]

get the aoyue 937+ off amazon. very nice, and also cheap.

[MoltenVoltage]

Spare yourself a lot of misery and just get a good digitally controlled Weller iron.

I finally threw away my rat shack crap about 2 years ago where I was going through 2 or 3 tips a week at $3 each and bought a Weller and I am still on the first tip, so its already paid for itself, not to mention the time I wasted trying to get my ratty crappy solder stick to heat up metal lugs on 1/4" jacks only to have a cold solder joint.

Throw away the rat crack smoking sack of schlitz and never look back!

[Brymus]

I recieved my 25$ Velleman soldering station from All Electronics yesterday.
I was afraid that for 25$ it would be well a 25$ station.
Not at all, this is way nicer than I even hoped for.
It has a nice soldering iron with soft rubber comfort grip,a metal holder,a heavy base ,the temp adjuster feels solid not cheap.
It even has a binding post/banana plug for a grounding strap(I am guessing IDK what else it would be for) on the back.
The tip changes with a hand twist collar sorta like my dremmel,and the tip itself is very good quality,way better than the others I have owned before.
The tips base goes into the iron about 4 inches and has a very nice conical tip.
I have never owned a Weller but I am guessing this is modeled after the 60$ Weller station,I would have expected this to cost at least 60$
in a store locally.
If you only have 25$ to spend on an iron I would get this one,I am totaly stoked on it.
Bryan

[petemoore]

  PArts Express, the one for 12 that looks like the Velleman I have.
  I prefer nice, 'workable' [tips, heater, etc. all replacable...12 buxx gets the whole rig !] yet inexpensive in the soldering iron department.
  This one's blue, it has new features, is 1/4 the price, looks near identical:
  Bakelite iron rest/holder liner...huge improvement, doesnt take the dern rest and rest of the station every time I want it to release the iron, very smooth and slick release.
  Cord is round.
  Also has a threaded flange instead of the side-screw to tighten the tip, nice, then pliers can adjust as necessary more safely [none of these stay tight with the heat/cooling, IME, YMMV, easy to tighten it a good feature].
  Gets hot enough for my '~heavy' lug-wire needs, the Velleman heated quicker.
  I cut the end of the ice pick off to get a more workable shape on the tip, a different shape tip recommended.

[JKowalski]

This topic sure is coming up alot.

[petemoore]

  It's continued to do so.
 Such topics are responsible for quality and price control.
 You could buy the knowname one, pay the 45 and say "RELEASE DAGGITT" !
  Base, cradle assembly, wires and anything on your bench coming along with the iron which will not release from the cradle...twist, pull gently...takes the cradle again.
  Or, pay attention to the details and current market and quality shifts to spend only 12 on an iron with the bakelite which makes is 100% easy to get the iron to release from the wire cradle.
  These threads keep the business on it's toes.

[Brymus]

The one I got is model# VTSS5 and the holster is perfect ,nice solid,doesnt grab and holds the iron perfectly,the base is heavy and doesnt move when grabing the iron.The staic disharge post wasnt even advertised in the ad,or description.
I really cant believe I got this good of an iron for 25$ 
The temp range is perfect,I guess the big factor will be how long the iron/tips last.
I almost bought the Atreyu(whatever) for 68$ but its base temp was kinda high unless you get the 99$ one.
So the Velleman won out. It was all I could afford and still get the stuff to do etching with.
I was just so impressed I wanted to share with th eforum,not really trying to plug AE or Velleman.
Bryan

[petemoore]

  I don't see your Velleman and raise you 2ct. of:
  http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=374-100
  Gotta stay on top of these things.

[Brymus]

Look here Pete > http://www.allelectronics.com/make-a-store/item/IR-50/TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED-SOLDER-STATION-50W/1.html

I almost bought the one you linked to,but dont need anything else from PE,
I was getting etching stuff at AE and the soldering iron and 9V rechargeables went into the cart too.
I also bought baby spoons for my 9 mo old,and touch screen stylus's for my daughters nintendo DSI for unreal prices along with some other items to cheap to pass up...

[forestcaver]

What are people's thoughts about the Weller temerature controlled (magnastat) irons vs electronic temerature controlled ? (I use an old WTCP iron - have done for years) but never used an electronic one (and I have to give the WTCP one back some day !).

Cheers,
Andy

[petemoore]

  Simple design changes like this ''cradle-release'' make all the difference.
 Drop to 1/4 price helps too.
 It is good to be the design team leader !
  This morning I'm having an IEC/Fuse holder design reviewed so that hopefully,, very soon, the new product will allow safe mains wiring: from a schematic...no more hidden wires and false continuity readings through transformers and fuses, in the meantime, the best you can do is to test and try to draw the hidden traces out for your mains wiring.
  Silly design engineers...they don't know one end of the wire from another sometimes.

[jrem]

ok, for $12 I'll give that a go.  I can even run down to Parts Express and pick it up.  Thanks all . . .

[ulysses]

i have never been disappointed by goot soldering irons-

they are jap made- so may be difficult to source in the usa-

they make awesome tip rejuvenator and desoldering braid also-

cheers, ulysses-