I've finally decided to quit buying cheap soldering irons and get something that will last a while. I want something with adjustable heat, easy to find replacement tips, and won't cost more than something like this -> http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/welle ... /wes51.htm
Anyone have any recommendations?
Recommend a good soldering station
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Reaperman@home
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for anybody on a budget looking to get more serious with their soldering, and looking at entry level stations, check out this one($50 digital/$35 analog), or for a bit more money, enjoy a some more beef with this one($60).
They may not exactly be metcals, but they also cost a whole lot less. They're pretty much a no-brainer purchase for anybody with space.
the weller mentioned above seems a bit overpriced, unless I'm not reading its features correctly.
if anybody's interested in an inexpensive rework station, consider the CSI825A++. I don't need one, but I can still dream.
They may not exactly be metcals, but they also cost a whole lot less. They're pretty much a no-brainer purchase for anybody with space.
the weller mentioned above seems a bit overpriced, unless I'm not reading its features correctly.
if anybody's interested in an inexpensive rework station, consider the CSI825A++. I don't need one, but I can still dream.
All those look pretty good. I just want to make sure that tips are easily found for whatever iron I wind up with. I had a bad experience with a 20W/40W soldering station that I got from Radio Shack. It used tips that were different from every other iron I've ever had and since its been discontinued I can't get tips for it anymore.
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Reaperman@home
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yeah, I noticed that radioshack doesn't stock replacement parts for their items and sells very obsolete stock. My mistake was the 100W soldering gun--it looks like they have tips for it, but they don't work.
there are never any promises on how long a soldering system will be around, even with a company like weller, but at least at $35 the entire unit is easily enough replaced if it goes out of production.
I first heard about that store in jan06, and they're still selling the same models, if that's any help. link to a thread in another forum where I heard about these. At that link is some more detailed information and reviews of the unit. note that it's a dead, archived forum.
there are never any promises on how long a soldering system will be around, even with a company like weller, but at least at $35 the entire unit is easily enough replaced if it goes out of production.
I first heard about that store in jan06, and they're still selling the same models, if that's any help. link to a thread in another forum where I heard about these. At that link is some more detailed information and reviews of the unit. note that it's a dead, archived forum.