Soldering Iron

Basic electrical and electronics, such as DC/Analog control.
thirdline
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Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2011 4:38 pm

Soldering Iron

Post by thirdline »

Can anyone recommend a good quality soldering iron for around £50 - £60? One that is useful for fine electrical work such as decoder wires. I’ve been buying cheaper ones and you get what you pay for, the damn things either fail or fall to bits.
I’ve noticed that some irons are for lead free solder, not sure what that’s all about either.
Any advice would be most welcome.
Thanks,
Mick.
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End2end
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by End2end »

WELLER all day, everyday. Rock solid piece of kit with many 'bits' available.
Good second hand bargain.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Weller-WTCP- ... SwqTVgL9uq
Mine was roughly £85 second hand and has never let me down.

I don't make brass kits so do not need any temperature control. I've wired not only my model railway but also many recording studios and editing facilities in the West End with this. :)
Thanks
End2end

Edit: Just for completeness, here's the manual - https://www.manualslib.com/manual/11418 ... tml#manual
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Bufferstop
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Bufferstop »

Lead free solder requires a higher temperature. The only place the hobbyist DIYer needs to be involved with it is soldering copper pipes for drinking water. Otherwise you are free to use traditional leaded solder for your own work. Don't let shops/retail depots tell you it's banned.
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Flashbang
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Flashbang »

Always opt to use Lead Content solder = 60/40 and a Antex 25 watt iron will always solder wire to wire or wire to rails correctly. :D
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thirdline
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by thirdline »

Thanks guys for the advice and info, much appreciated.
Regards,
Mick.
Mike Parkes
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Mike Parkes »

Would recommend Antex rather than Weller IME
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Ex-Pat »

Never had a Weller, but perfectly happy with Antex.
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Bufferstop
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Bufferstop »

I'd say Weller for full time heavy use, or should that be abuse. Antex for a little more precision but will last you forever if properly looked after. That's my opinion based on owning and using both, the Weller I used at work out on the patch and it got some stick. Including the heinous crime of cooling it down under the tap when I was pressed to get on to the next job.
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End2end
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by End2end »

Also, no matter what iron you settle on ALWAYS use a soldering iron stand and keep the tip clean with a damp sponge.
Thanks
End2end
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Ironduke
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Ironduke »

thirdline wrote:I’ve noticed that some irons are for lead free solder, not sure what that’s all about either.
You don't need to use lead free solder but manufacterers do use it, so your new iron needs to be able to cope with that. i.e. get a soldering station that says it is suitable for lead-free solder. You can solder to lead-free solder join using leaded solder though.
I would choose a soldering station with a controllable tempurature.

I also have a butane gas soldering iron. Mostly I use the "hot-air" mode for shrinking heat shrink tubing. It's also good for reflowing the solder on surface mount components on PCBs.
Regards
Rob
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by Paul-H »

In this day and age, if looking for a new soldering solution, its worth looking at the T12 type of Iron, much better heat control and regulation, easy tip changing, lots of low cost replacement tips, and each tip comes with its own built in heating element and sensor so they last longer.

There are lots of T12 options available from not much money to expensive professional devices from Hakko and from soldering stations to all in one units.

Paul
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by pete12345 »

At work, I use an inexpensive temperature-controlled soldering station we bought from RS. Temperature control really makes a difference when soldering precisely as you can use one iron for an array of different jobs. Ours came with a German plug but of course you can just cut that off and swap it. Keep the tip clean by wiping it on a damp sponge after every joint, and apply the first bit of solder to the iron which helps to conduct heat into the work piece- thereafter apply additional solder to where it's needed.

Unleaded solder is like soldering with cheese. Get the old 60/40 leaded solder for wiring jobs, but don't breathe in the fumes! You can rig up a little PC fan or something similar to ventilate the area if you're working in a confined space.
HarryJacob
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by HarryJacob »

Hello everyone
I am new to this forum
I personally recommend Weller solder iron as i am using it from long time

But i was not happy with ebay service
anyone else faced the same problem ?
abenn
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by abenn »

My iron is an Antex, which I would recommend to anyone. I use replaceable bits with it ranging from 5mm to 0.1mm, and it has variable temperature settings to suit lead or no-lead solder. Antex service is also very good; mine is so old the gaiter guiding the mains lead into the handle was splitting. After a quick phone call explaining why the on-line replacement part for the current version of the iron didn't look right, they recognised what I needed and sent me one.

I use a damp sponge for cleaning, but I have read elsewhere that this is not good because it cools the tip down. A quick dab seems to make no difference to me, but it's said I should use a copper wire wire-wool type thing instead.
HarryJacob
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Re: Soldering Iron

Post by HarryJacob »

thanks abenn
I found a website, looks like they are authorized reseller of Grainger
Any experience of their service?
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