This is the one I use, mainly for SMD I really like it. MADELL TECHNOLOGY CORP.: Digital Soldering Station
The Weller TCP series is FWIW ancient technology, even if it's still made.
Most of our labs are set up with the newer WSD (?) series, and I've had mine (previous model 80W) on the bench for about 8yrs now, without failure. Works like a charm and very good with SMD - 80W even better for ground planes!
There were indeed some issues with the EC series ( at least the black model) in the early 90s, but we only had a few of those.
Weller may look overpriced in the US, but over here they are much the same - almost double price anyway
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Hi T in AZ,
That's a cool looking station. I like it, depending on how the actual iron looks.
Hi AuroraB,
They may be old technology, but they are still out there and paint a picture of just how Weller treats their customers. When I look back on how much I spent on these pieces of junk, I could have easily bought another 100 MHz analog scope with cursors. That's $2,500 or more back then. Analog of course, digital wasn't usable for analog work yet.
Even at the money they are currently charging, the markup they obviously employ is sickening. If you want to shoot them that much $$, go for it. The station I have now outperforms the Weller models of the time (WTCPN) at a significantly lower price with reliability they couldn't even imagine. If you are familiar with my views on things, you'll typically see me supporting Agilent / HP and similar equipment of similar standards.
Nope, Weller has such a bad history that they won't see anything from me in the future. They would have to really redeem themselves in a big way before I will ever even consider a recommendation.
-Chris
That's a cool looking station. I like it, depending on how the actual iron looks.
Hi AuroraB,
They may be old technology, but they are still out there and paint a picture of just how Weller treats their customers. When I look back on how much I spent on these pieces of junk, I could have easily bought another 100 MHz analog scope with cursors. That's $2,500 or more back then. Analog of course, digital wasn't usable for analog work yet.
Even at the money they are currently charging, the markup they obviously employ is sickening. If you want to shoot them that much $$, go for it. The station I have now outperforms the Weller models of the time (WTCPN) at a significantly lower price with reliability they couldn't even imagine. If you are familiar with my views on things, you'll typically see me supporting Agilent / HP and similar equipment of similar standards.
Nope, Weller has such a bad history that they won't see anything from me in the future. They would have to really redeem themselves in a big way before I will ever even consider a recommendation.
-Chris
That's certainly a statement I 'do' support!
I "grew up" with HP in college in the early 70s, and just stayed on with them......
Mind you , - there were some trigger "trickies" in the 70s scopes...remember the long "buses"..?
As for the soldering gear, - when you get to this side of the pond, the markup for other brands are just as bad.....
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Hi AuroraB,
I guess that's true. Price-wise I mean. Still, maintaining 12 soldering stations showed up on the ledger. No denying that the upkeep was just too much, and I can't forgive unreliable equipment.
As for HP stuff, almost my entire bench is made up of that stuff, and it's a real pleasure to use every day. After using lesser equipment, you can really appreciate stuff you can trust to give you the right answer. Now, if I could afford the current crop of happiness ... , but there is no way for that to be. Have you seen their new audio analyzer? U8903 I think it is. I was born into the wrong social class, it's as simple as that.
I'm not familiar with the 70's HP 'scopes, but I have heard about triggering issues. Anything you can tell me would be helpful. I have an HP 1722A I'm going to attempt to restore to working condition. I have always found the arrangement of controls to make a lot of sense to me with HP products, so I am looking forward to using the 1722A. I also have a Tek 465 to restore. I hear that is a really nice 'scope too. My current 'scope is a Philips PM3070. It was one of the few analog 'scopes available at the time that wasn't junk. Too bad it's not a reliable instrument, and it emits some HF noise that makes it impossible to align an FM receiver (which is something I do).
-Chris
I guess that's true. Price-wise I mean. Still, maintaining 12 soldering stations showed up on the ledger. No denying that the upkeep was just too much, and I can't forgive unreliable equipment.
As for HP stuff, almost my entire bench is made up of that stuff, and it's a real pleasure to use every day. After using lesser equipment, you can really appreciate stuff you can trust to give you the right answer. Now, if I could afford the current crop of happiness ... , but there is no way for that to be. Have you seen their new audio analyzer? U8903 I think it is. I was born into the wrong social class, it's as simple as that.
I'm not familiar with the 70's HP 'scopes, but I have heard about triggering issues. Anything you can tell me would be helpful. I have an HP 1722A I'm going to attempt to restore to working condition. I have always found the arrangement of controls to make a lot of sense to me with HP products, so I am looking forward to using the 1722A. I also have a Tek 465 to restore. I hear that is a really nice 'scope too. My current 'scope is a Philips PM3070. It was one of the few analog 'scopes available at the time that wasn't junk. Too bad it's not a reliable instrument, and it emits some HF noise that makes it impossible to align an FM receiver (which is something I do).
-Chris
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