Help with upgrading my soldering iron

[blkadder]

Greetings All,

I am hoping you can help me make a decision.  I have been using my Radio Shack 25w soldering iron for a few years now, and it is time to upgrade.  I have been scouring boards and other Interwebz sites, and I think I have narrowed it down to two.

Here are the ones I am looking at:

Hakko FX888D digital soldering station

Aoyue 968A SMD Digital Rework Station

I have been looking at the Hakko for a while now, but then I found the Aoyue setup for not a lot more money than the Hakko.  I am curious if anyone out there has any experience with either of these, and maybe give me a bit of insight.  If you have suggestions for something else, that would be okay too.

Thanks for any insight you guys might be able to provide.

Ron

...Semper Fidelis...

[Per Jensen]

On 16/02/2014, at 19.12, blkadder wrote:

Greetings All,

I am hoping you can help me make a decision.  I have been using my Radio Shack 25w soldering iron for a few years now, and it is time to upgrade.  I have been scouring boards and other Interwebz sites, and I think I have narrowed it down to two.

Here are the ones I am looking at:

Hakko FX888D digital soldering station

Aoyue 968A SMD Digital Rework Station

I'd take the Hakko over the Aoyue _anytime_. I own the Aoyue, and the soldering iron is /shit/. I only use the machine for it's not-so-good hot-air-rework, but it's good enough for heat shrink and the occasional rework.

// Per.

[Tony]

For that kind of money you could probably pick up a used Metcal and a
couple of tips.

Tony.

[Spencer W]

I have the gq 5200
http://bit.ly/1dXhMr7

And I absolutely love mine.

Sent from my iPhone

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[NeonJohn]

On 02/16/2014 01:12 PM, blkadder wrote:
> Greetings All,
>
> I am hoping you can help me make a decision. I have been using my Radio
> Shack 25w soldering iron for a few years now, and it is time to upgrade. I
> have been scouring boards and other Interwebz sites, and I think I have
> narrowed it down to two.

> Aoyue 968A SMD Digital Rework Station<http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006FA481G/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3VUV96XRTQWGX&coliid=I348QKU3RA8ENW>

I've been using the Aoyue station for 4 or 5 years now. It's pretty
decent. The hot air part is great with one small exception. The
controller loses its setpoint on any power glitch. The soldering iron
is OK. It's a bit unwieldy with that smoke sucker tube, even after the
tube is removed. I Dremeled the tube boss off the handle and then it
was fine.

The vacuum pickup is totally worthless. Just toss it in the garbage and
get a dedicated one if you need that functionality.

We buy our stuff here:

http://sra-solder.com/

He stocks plenty of spare parts. I've had to replace the iron once
after the temperature sensor went bad. Quick service and as cheap as
Amazon.

John


--
John DeArmond
Tellico Plains, Occupied TN
http://www.fluxeon.com <-- THE source for induction heaters
http://www.neon-john.com <-- email from here
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PGP key: wwwkeys.pgp.net: BCB68D77

[chuck richards]

I recommend http://www.mpja.com
Look at their little inexpensive soldering stations.

I have one. It cost about $19. Tips cost a few
bucks each. It is temperature-controlled.

Works very slick, very nice. I've used it for hundreds
of hours and the original tip has not even been worn
not even a little.

Check it out. It's about the best bang for your buck
you're going to get on a temperature controlled soldering
station, in my humble opinion.

Chuck

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[blkadder]

I live near these guys, so I might have to stop by.  There is lots of cool stuff on their site, but it looks like most of the soldering station are out of stock.  Thanks for pointing them out to me.

[Matthew Smith]

Hi

> Hakko FX888D digital soldering station

I swear by (rather than at) my FX888 - I have the analogue version.

Tend to use it for all my fine stuff, in conjunction with a Leica GZ6
binocular microscope that I got for a real song on eBay. (I'm 99% SMD,
unless doing high voltage stuff, or prototyping.)

For day-to-day, heavier-duty stuff, I'm still using my ancient Antex CS.

M


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[Tidak Ada]

Be aware to keep away of soldering irons that fix their tips with a screw. They will be stuck!

Best is the system with a sleeve that has to be fixed near the relatively cool end at the handle, like Weller does.

 

The tip hasn't to be earthed directly (short circuit danger!), but via an 1M Ohm resistor. This to minimalize ESD problems. Test this with an multi meter.

 

Look at the cost of the tip. An Iron plated tip is the best guarantee for long life.

 

An other point of attention is the swam for cleaning If that is mounted on top of the transformer, it is drying out very quickly.

By the way, best is to use distilled or demineralized water, like one uses for steam irons.

 

eric

---

From: neoni...@googlegroups.com [mailto:neoni...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of blkadder
Sent: zondag 16 februari 2014 20:43
To: neoni...@googlegroups.com
Cc: j...@neon-john.com; chu...@all2easy.net

Subject: Re: [neonixie-l] Help with upgrading my soldering iron

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[John Rehwinkel]

> Be aware to keep away of soldering irons that fix their tips with a screw. They will be stuck!

However, if you have one (I did, for many years), put some anti-seize lubricant on it. That does wonders for making it less stuck. Mind you, it'll still be stuck, but can be removed with gentle persuasion and no damage.

- John

[Nicholas Stock]

Ron,

For regular soldering I've been using an Edsyn 951SX for the last ten years or so and it's been flawless. You can buy various different tips for it (they're held in place by the collar on the iron and not a screw (a good point brought up by Eric). I also have the Aoyue and use it for hot air rework on SMD stuff. The hot air is also very useful for shrink wrap tubing too...for the price, it's a nice piece of kit and has worked well for the last three years for me with pretty regular use...the soldering iron on it is a bit cumbersome as others have mentioned.

Cheers,

Nick

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[Oscilloclock]

A few years back I invested in a Hozan HS-51. I've never used any other soldering station before so can't offer a comparison, but there are two things I LOVE about this unit, and absolutely nothing I dislike!

1. You can change the tips on the fly - quite literally hot-swappable! There is a pusher thingy that slides the tip out, and you can then pop the other tip in. Incredibly useful when you're soldering SMDs and then need to solder larger components to the board or do some cabling work.
2. The tips never die... I've used the same tips on all my projects since the "Model 1" in 2009 and they just don't wear down. I leave the thing on for hours at a time. It sleeps at 200 degrees and wakes instantly when needed. And even the lead-free soldering I trialed in the Model 1, with 420-450 degree temperatures, didn't wreck the tips in the least.

http://www.hozan.co.jp/E/catalog/Soldering/HS51.html

But I don't know if Hozan is very common outside Japan, where it sells for around US$230.

Aaron

[David Forbes]

I used to use a Hakko 936ESD until last year, when I got a used Metcal
from ebay. The 936 has a knob instead of those dumb buttons. but it's
discontinued.

The Hakko is fine, unless you need to change tips frequently.

The Metcal is the best soldering iron you can get.

On 2/16/14 11:12 AM, blkadder wrote:
> Greetings All,
>
> I am hoping you can help me make a decision. I have been using my Radio
> Shack 25w soldering iron for a few years now, and it is time to upgrade. I
> have been scouring boards and other Interwebz sites, and I think I have
> narrowed it down to two.
>
> Here are the ones I am looking at:
>

> Hakko FX888D digital soldering station<http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AWUFVY8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3VUV96XRTQWGX&coliid=I1NQBCOEOQSSAF>
>
> Aoyue 968A SMD Digital Rework Station<http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006FA481G/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3VUV96XRTQWGX&coliid=I348QKU3RA8ENW>

>
> I have been looking at the Hakko for a while now, but then I found the
> Aoyue setup for not a lot more money than the Hakko. I am curious if
> anyone out there has any experience with either of these, and maybe give me
> a bit of insight. If you have suggestions for something else, that would
> be okay too.
>
> Thanks for any insight you guys might be able to provide.
>
> Ron
>
> ...Semper Fidelis...
>

--
David Forbes, Tucson AZ

[Dan Hollis]

For the price, a hakko is an excellent value, and lightyears better than a
radio shack iron.

Metcal are extremely expensive, I was never able to justify the cost when
the hakko does so well.

-Dan

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[Adam Jacobs]

It really depends on what you're doing as far as if a metcal would be
worth it or not... but I'm thinking that if you have to ask for
recommendations then you don't need one.
I'm a real fan of Weller soldering irons. I've had a blue handled
Weller for nearly my whole life and it never steered me wrong.

-Adam

[Tidak Ada]

What I am missing so much in this discussion are the soldering stations from
Weller (Not the red ones) and Pace.

eric

-----Original Message-----
From: neoni...@googlegroups.com [mailto:neoni...@googlegroups.com] On
Behalf Of Adam Jacobs
Sent: maandag 17 februari 2014 19:54
To: neoni...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [neonixie-l] Help with upgrading my soldering iron

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/53025ACE.1000007%40gmail.com.

[Dan Harboe Burer]

OK, I can contribute with some Weller experience..

If you have enough money I can recommend the Weller WX2 station.. it is a
heavy brute with two outputs..
It can power a 200W iron when only using one output.. or a nice allround
iron or two (or a SMT tweezer) ;)
The tips are not cheap though... because when you swap the tip the heating
element is a part of the tip!
IMHO it is a very versatile station.. it can solder anything from SMT to
busbars..

And yes I actually have one here at home! (Also the 200W iron.. )

The WD1 predecessor I also can recommend.. the same tips are used as for
the WX2. I sold mine to a friend who makes model ships (he solders anything
from electronics to brass fittings for his ship) and he loves it..

Not cheap stations but I like them..

Oh, and they also switch off when not used and heat up (almost if not
quite ) as fast as a Metcal...

I once had a Metcal too - and can also recommend those..
..
Pace.. I have a MBT desoldering station with built-in vacuumm pump.. it is a
great tool too :) A bit annoying with the screw to replace tip but OK it
works.

Dan


-----Oprindelig meddelelse-----
From: Tidak Ada
Sent: Monday, February 17, 2014 9:28 PM
To: neoni...@googlegroups.com
Subject: RE: [neonixie-l] Help with upgrading my soldering iron

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/!%26!AAAAAAAAAAAYAAAAAAAAAPDddShx705MuX20yCpp0vvCgAAAEAAAAFY6tRk5vWNOvtkuTAej350BAAAAAA%3D%3D%40zeelandnet.nl.

[Alex]

I have settled (mainly by what I ended up with but with a little persuasion from my wallet) with a weller tcp for day to day as it is fairly bulletproof (my ec1201 temp adjustable version shuffled) and a metal mx500 rig for most else. Metcal mx series (inductive irons) are wonderful when they work - tiny handles that are very convinient, but mine tend to shutoff fairly regularly (I have 2) I dont know if this is a tip issue or base issue. The bbase unit on these is a large 50w rf generator mind you, hence the cost. I also have a cheapy hot air station from the place as above which works well... pace tends to be popular in industry only, has features for locking temps etc. Hakko is mainly american iirc.
-Alex

[Nick]

On Monday, 17 February 2014 17:20:58 UTC, nixiebunny wrote:

The Metcal is the best soldering iron you can get.

Yup - I have a couple of MX-500P workstations - they are wonderful, though not enormously powerful - about 50W max.

For fine work, there is nothing better... the newer MX-5010 series are lovely too - much the same - slightly more power and with a digital display...

...however, they are VERY expensive - typically close to USD 1000 by the time you add in the pencils & other bits.

Nice thing about the MX-500s is that they are "user serviceable", i.e. the schematics are available and they use pretty standard parts - bearing in mind that they are RF-based, that's really useful...

Nick