Re: WHICH ONE IS IT?
Sorry, forgot to say what it was. Yes, it is the Welleman VTSC-20.
A soldering pen only, so no TC. Its 20W and there are tips down to 0.3mm for it. This one is quite different from Vellemans other
ones, which are thicker and look more like any other brand. As
I said, I don't know much about it except for the tech. specs. but
it looks ergonomically nice. I am tempted to buy it just because
it seems to feel good in the hand - not the least important
aspect of a soldering pen. The price is 237SEK (about $25).
BTW it has ceramic heater. Did anybody know what this means?
fdegrove said:Hi Christer,
Is this the Velleman?
It looks like a decent iron to me.
Cheers,
Sorry, forgot to say what it was. Yes, it is the Welleman VTSC-20.
A soldering pen only, so no TC. Its 20W and there are tips down to 0.3mm for it. This one is quite different from Vellemans other
ones, which are thicker and look more like any other brand. As
I said, I don't know much about it except for the tech. specs. but
it looks ergonomically nice. I am tempted to buy it just because
it seems to feel good in the hand - not the least important
aspect of a soldering pen. The price is 237SEK (about $25).
BTW it has ceramic heater. Did anybody know what this means?
UrSv said:
For instance at
www.bhiab.se
shop.netrix.se/vib
www.svebry.se
www.labbkomponenter.nu
www.kjelloco.se
None of them have all things, so you have to look at several
of these if looking for a specific model.
Christer said:
The Hakko is made in Japan, and I have seen adds for the 936 in UK publications, so it shouldn't be too difficult for you to find. The Hakko is a better quality iron than the Weller (in my opinion) and is very inexpensive here ($80 US).
http://www.wassco.com/9360wsolstat.html
They are worth tracking down.
Phil
Attachments
Christer said:
I know nothing of wellers or velleman. I have seen Velleman meters, but have never used them.
A few words of wisdom.
Smaller head/heater is nice. Sometimes you can end up burnng insulation on wires, ect. Temp Controlled is the only way to go, and add high power heater if possible. Sometimes you may have to make a solder on a large ground plane, in that case the TC combined with high wattage heater is nice. Ever have a pencil stick while trying to solder a large surface? Won't happen with a TC heater and lots of power. Also, a flexible cord makes a big difference.
Myself, I like PACE. I have had nothing but good luck with them. One thing I like is the way tips are held in place. Just one set screw on the heater. It means you can swap them out quickly. Lots of tips are avalible...
In any case, if you can find a dealer with a show room, it's always nice to get a feel before you buy.
For what it's worth.
-Dan
Phil,
The Hakkos look very nice. The pens seem to have that slim
design like the Velleman i posted a pic of. Unfortunately, they
seem next to impossible to track down within Europe. I have
searched the webb, and I found one company in UK selling them,
with no info on models, prices or how to order. If they are that
hard to find here there will be problems with spare tips etc.
A nice thing with the Hakko, for those living in the right areas,
is that one can order spares for any part of the station/iron.
I found an Australian site with a webbshop where one
could order even the tiniest screws in the station.
The Hakkos look very nice. The pens seem to have that slim
design like the Velleman i posted a pic of. Unfortunately, they
seem next to impossible to track down within Europe. I have
searched the webb, and I found one company in UK selling them,
with no info on models, prices or how to order. If they are that
hard to find here there will be problems with spare tips etc.
A nice thing with the Hakko, for those living in the right areas,
is that one can order spares for any part of the station/iron.
I found an Australian site with a webbshop where one
could order even the tiniest screws in the station.
So, since noobody seemed to know anything about the Velleman
soldering equipment, I decided to make myself a self-appointed
test pilot. Talking to one of the companies selling Velleman here
in Sweden confirmed what i suspected, that Velleman buys these
tools from various suppliers in Asia. They also claimed that the
more expensive versions (expensive for Velleman, that is) are
of quite good quality. I decided to try a station that looks
professional and has a slim-type pen. Actually, the pen looks
suspiciously similar to the Hakko ones, so perhaps it is a
disguised Hakko station (or am I just dreaming) . Anyway, it
is 48W TC station with ceramic heater and looks like this.
Sells for 725SEK (about $80).
soldering equipment, I decided to make myself a self-appointed
test pilot. Talking to one of the companies selling Velleman here
in Sweden confirmed what i suspected, that Velleman buys these
tools from various suppliers in Asia. They also claimed that the
more expensive versions (expensive for Velleman, that is) are
of quite good quality. I decided to try a station that looks
professional and has a slim-type pen. Actually, the pen looks
suspiciously similar to the Hakko ones, so perhaps it is a
disguised Hakko station (or am I just dreaming) . Anyway, it
is 48W TC station with ceramic heater and looks like this.
Sells for 725SEK (about $80).
Attachments
Christer,
I've used both the Metcal and Weller stations.
The Weller's had good performance in my experience, and seem to be generally regarded as a workhorse. I have an EC2002 that I use sometimes.
The Metcal's are probably the best that can be purchased for a reasonable price. Metcal uses a completely different approach to tips and heating than any of the other manufacturers. Metcal's approach uses RF to power the heating element, which upon reaching Curie point, stops heating. The tips are fixed temperature. For each tip that they make, there are 4 different heat grades. The pro to this is that the tips get hot very quickly and stay hot. The con is that they are expensive and you may have to purchase a variety depending on what you do. The MX500 is a very nice workstation albeit a little pricey ( ~ $500-600 USD)
I've used both the Metcal and Weller stations.
The Weller's had good performance in my experience, and seem to be generally regarded as a workhorse. I have an EC2002 that I use sometimes.
The Metcal's are probably the best that can be purchased for a reasonable price. Metcal uses a completely different approach to tips and heating than any of the other manufacturers. Metcal's approach uses RF to power the heating element, which upon reaching Curie point, stops heating. The tips are fixed temperature. For each tip that they make, there are 4 different heat grades. The pro to this is that the tips get hot very quickly and stay hot. The con is that they are expensive and you may have to purchase a variety depending on what you do. The MX500 is a very nice workstation albeit a little pricey ( ~ $500-600 USD)
I had a weller WCPT (??) iron which I used for years and thought it was great until I tried a metcal. The metcal gets hot quick and can dump a lot of heat into a part when needed. It allows me to make faster and better solder joints. Faster = less part damage.
It really has a better ssoldering feel than the weller. I gave my weller to a friend, and he has been loving it. but he receintly borrowed the metcal to solder a crossover together and didn't want to return it.
BTW, I've got the $300 SP-200. It's worth every penny.
However I use a pace iron at work which is a dismal POS, but it has some really handy wide saddle type soldering tips that make surface mount rework a dream.
Sheldon
It really has a better ssoldering feel than the weller. I gave my weller to a friend, and he has been loving it. but he receintly borrowed the metcal to solder a crossover together and didn't want to return it.
BTW, I've got the $300 SP-200. It's worth every penny.
However I use a pace iron at work which is a dismal POS, but it has some really handy wide saddle type soldering tips that make surface mount rework a dream.
Sheldon
im STILL using my radioshack one i got for $19.99. it melts solder well
it takes forever to heat up and it cools down with a good swipe on the sponge, but ive just gotten used to it, and i have done quite a bit with it. i used my friends bit digitally temp controlled one, and i dunno, it was nice, but it was no "better" than mine, both melted solder quickly.
it takes forever to heat up and it cools down with a good swipe on the sponge, but ive just gotten used to it, and i have done quite a bit with it. i used my friends bit digitally temp controlled one, and i dunno, it was nice, but it was no "better" than mine, both melted solder quickly.
I agree with the Hakko recommendations. I'm using a 936 station that I bought for about $85. The station does a good job keeping the temperature of the tip constant, and heats up the iron very quickly. Also, the tip seems to be of very good quality. I've been using mine for almost 2 months now and still no signs of wear on the tip. I should mention that I'm using the Hakko 599 tip cleaner, a big container of gold tinsel-like wire that you stab your tips into.
I see Pace stations/Irons listed as #2 on the orignal list, but that no one had said anything about using them.
Well I have used all of the listed Irons/Stations outside of the Metcal. I use the Pace units daily and, Metcal not withstanding, I can't see using anything else for serious electronic work. I like the Hakko units, but find that they are not as reliable as the Pace units. I/We use these units both for production work and on Our service benches, for both through hole and SMT work.
Tall Shadow
Well I have used all of the listed Irons/Stations outside of the Metcal. I use the Pace units daily and, Metcal not withstanding, I can't see using anything else for serious electronic work. I like the Hakko units, but find that they are not as reliable as the Pace units. I/We use these units both for production work and on Our service benches, for both through hole and SMT work.
Tall Shadow
Christer said:
Look harder dummy
Elfa has Metcal cheapo-model sp-200, only 500 euros
There must be also Hakko's and others availlable because even WE have here at Finland
I rate Hakko higher than Wellers, altought I might be biased (have Hakko 936 and Metcal SP-200 on my table.) For 99% of time I use Metcal, Hakko is collecting dust nowadays.
From exprience what i have from my friends Welleman they are also okish, definetely better than Weller's hobby-line (red piece of ****)
Edit: forgot to mention that keep your eyes open for second-hand ones, i bought my metcal for 60 euros, less than value of 2 soldering tips included. And dont forget cost of tip assortment, Metcal is around 30eur/pcs and Hakko for example about 6 eur.
Metcal and Hakko blades/tips last forewer compared to older Wellers, so you hardly need any replacements for next 10 years.
I just purchased a new Weller WTCPT for $133 from an industrial electronics shop near Georgia Tech in Atlanta. From the looks of it, I spent too much.
I bought it for doing small toy electronics, so I suspect that it may be overkill in some situations. I'm considering buying their 12W iron for $33. Is that too much?
BTW: They have a Hakko (936 I think) for around the same price.
If interested, I can disclose the shop name in a private mail. I'm new here and don't know the forum's rules on disclosing private shops/free advertising.
I bought it for doing small toy electronics, so I suspect that it may be overkill in some situations. I'm considering buying their 12W iron for $33. Is that too much?
BTW: They have a Hakko (936 I think) for around the same price.
If interested, I can disclose the shop name in a private mail.
I'm new here and don't know the forum's rules on disclosing private shops/free advertising.
Like cowanrg I use a cheapo I've had so long I can't remember when or where I got it. I has a little pot on the handle that is at about 2/3rds - I only crank it right up to desolder the "hard" solder on manufactured boards. As cowanrg said it melts solder quickly what else do you need?
I've often looked at stations with temperature control but for my limited hobby use I can't justify to myself why I should change.
David L
I've often looked at stations with temperature control but for my limited hobby use I can't justify to myself why I should change.
David L
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