Soldering Station Advice!

[Yngwie]

I am in search for a good soldering Station and who better to ask than you Guys! I was looking at the Weller WES51! Any Soldering tips would be appreciated!

Yngwie

[allynmey]

Hi Yngvie, WEDS51 is the one I have. D is for Digital readout. Cool feature. I use it every day. It has been reliable and Weller tips are sold just about everywhere. It's usually on sale somewhere. Look around.

Allynmey

[markd]

I am in search for a good soldering Station and who better to ask than you Guys! I was looking at the Weller WES51! Any Soldering tips would be appreciated!

Yngwie

http://www.epemag.wimborne.co.uk/solderfaq.htm#howto

[jetson]

yes that is a good rig to have on your bench. i have 5 irons that i use all the time. [no not all at once] but alot of times i have 2 going. i am very picky about my tips. one iron has a 45 deg. bend in the tip that helps to get into tight places. a BIG iron [45 watts] or more is very helpfull when doing star grounds to a chassis, or large buss bars.
as far as keeping your tips clean, this is the most inportant thing you can do for a good solder connection. i use a 6 in. fine mill basterd. i know a lot of people will cringe at that idea but it has worked for me many years. keep your tip properally tined, add just enough heat to get the solder to flow, but not to melt the shielding close to the conection you are working on.when working close to the part on the lead, use a heat sink. mini alligator clips work good for this. one thing i have learned from an old pro. let the just soldered conection sit steady BEFORE you blow on it to cool it down. the reason for this is the crystline structure of the cooling alloy will develope large crystals if cooled to rapidly. this will take us into the science of bullet casting, wich im sure is off topic.

[gk1]

Get the hakko 960, it can be had on fleabay for less that 90 shipped, has nice temp control, and is esd safe just incase you use it for other things. Although i recommend you get the hakko tip cleaner as well, its steel mesh which wont cool the tip like a sponge will. You should be cleaning your tip constantly otherwise you can get garbage in it from melted wires and such. I got mine station, the tip cleaner, and a solder reel for 120 shipped. Just keep on eye on ebay them come up often...

[Jwalker]

I use the WES-51 also. It works like a champ.

[GUITARmole]

I have this one and it works great...you can spend more but I don't know why you would since this has all the features you need (digital display, ESD, etc) and holds up to extreme abuse (I've dropped mine down the stairs and cracked the case but it still works great...and I was able to buy a new tip when I mangled mine by stepping on it):

http://www.circuitspecialists.com/prod.itml/icOid/7508

If you should decide to buy one...add some solder, an extra tip, or something else to your basket to push your order over $50 so you can get the free gift:

http://www.circuitspecialists.com/level.itml/icOid/190

[NitroLiq]

You can also go for the cheaper Weller WLC-100 which will run you about $50 or so. If you're not using it everyday, it may not make sense to spend too much. If you need a daily workhorse, like others have said, the hakko 936 or the weller WES51 or the digital version will do ya right.

[john1056]

I have this one and it works great...you can spend more but I don't know why you would since this has all the features you need (digital display, ESD, etc) and holds up to extreme abuse (I've dropped mine down the stairs and cracked the case but it still works great...and I was able to buy a new tip when I mangled mine by stepping on it):

http://www.circuitspecialists.com/prod.itml/icOid/7508

If you should decide to buy one...add some solder, an extra tip, or something else to your basket to push your order over $50 so you can get the free gift:

http://www.circuitspecialists.com/level.itml/icOid/190

I second this. I've got this one:

http://www.circuitspecialists.com/prod.itml/icOid/7501

It's reliable, and it heats up super fast. I've had mine for about a year and a 1/2 with absolutely no problems whatsoever. Set to it's lowest setting it can do the most delicate PCB work, and about half way up is all you need to solder to the back of pots.

[KT77]

Get the hakko 960, it can be had on fleabay for less that 90 shipped, has nice temp control, and is esd safe just incase you use it for other things. Although i recommend you get the hakko tip cleaner as well, its steel mesh which wont cool the tip like a sponge will. You should be cleaning your tip constantly otherwise you can get garbage in it from melted wires and such. I got mine station, the tip cleaner, and a solder reel for 120 shipped. Just keep on eye on ebay them come up often...

I got my 960 at Fry's back in '94......and it's still working......have 3 different tips to swap as needed
The newer 936's are cheep now, too...around $90 OTS.....
I dig the brillo pad tip cleaner, too

[Gotcrunch]

MetCal's !! Nicest soldering station I've every used.
Every place I have worked uses them. Except they are alot of money ( like anything good). Having nearly instant on is a nice feature that you hate to live without.