Recommended soldering irons and tools

[DJ711]

What would you guys reccommend as far as soldering irons,dremel and other tools?

[nevermind1534]

I like the Dremel brand dremels. I haven't used my soldering irons for enough hours to tell you what a good brand would be from personal experience. I have a 15 watt radio shack, a 30 watt Kronus, and a 45 watt Craftsman.

[XCVG]

Don't buy a cheapy iron. They suck. I've had too, both work but the tips are bent and loose. Get a decent Weller, Hakko, etc. The WP25 from Weller seems to be good.

[nevermind1534]

You can buy new tips and tighten them with the screw.

[XCVG]

You can buy new tips and tighten them with the screw.

The screw gets corroded or something- after a while it simply refuses to tighten up.

[nevermind1534]

You can buy new tips and tighten them with the screw.

The screw gets corroded or something- after a while it simply refuses to tighten up.

Could you buy a new one?

[XCVG]

Nope. It's the threads that get messed up too.

[nevermind1534]

Nope. It's the threads that get messed up too.

Oh. Too bad.

[Rekarp]

Once you use a nice soldering iron you never look back. Most of the time you never have to cause good ones last for so long. I ate threw cheap soldering irons at about 4-6 months. Having to throw down $30 a year on a soldering iron sucks so I bought a WP25. Had it for 2 years so far with zero issues. So I have already saved $30. I ended up getting a new WES51 over the winter break. Has more power, adjustable, lots of tips, and has an auto turn off feature (if you don't use it for 99 minutes it auto shuts down). Best investment in terms of soldering gear I have made.

Now I am looking into a nice desoldering iron. Been thinking about getting a Hakko 808 but they tend to be pricey.

[eurddrue]

I use a rat shack cheapie

[XCVG]

I use a rat shack cheapie

I've had two and both work but not well.

[DJ711]

Thanks for the info, I think I will save up all my money and my work money over the summer and buy some high quality grade irons so I dont have to worry about replacing them ever year or so.

[Tibia]

Don't pay more than $20-$25 for the WP25. I've also got one, and I love it. Weller's a great brand with sturdy stuff.

[XCVG]

Weller's a great brand with sturdy stuff.

Agreed. At the school I go to we have an electronics/robotics room. In this room are some Weller WTCPT stations. Really great stations, but some of them have trashed tips. Also, the insulation on the cords is somewhat damaged from idiots who think hot soldering irons are fun to play with.

[Triton]

a good, cheaper alternative to the hakko stations is a chinese company called aoyue (reviewed on hackaday here) i want to get one of their stations eventually!

for now i have a weller WM120 for the small stuff and a xytronic 200gx for everything else