Suggestions for good general purpose soldering station

[Jean]

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showd...ID=10671&DID=7

How good is this station ?

[planet10]

Originally posted by ThingyNess
http://www.mainelectronics.com/solderstn.htm

This store is local to me and their prices seem excellent

I was just thinking about soldering irons and this is just across the pond. Thanx, but please quit reading my mind :^)

dave

[haldor]

I recommend the Hakko 936 soldering station. Fast heatup, good temperature regulation and good ergonomics for a decent price. I picked up mine a year ago for $100 from a local electronics dealer, but they can be had online now for around $80.

There are lots of different tips available, you can even plug in the Hakko 950 surface mount tweezer handset and have the ability to install/remove surface mount discretes and SO chips.

http://www.hammondelec.com/hako950.html

The 936 doesn't heat up quite as fast or deliver quite as much heat into large expanses of copper as the Metcal does, but the Metcal costs 4 times as much. I like the Hakko SM tweezers better than Metcal's SM tweezers also (I have Metcal at work, Hakko at home).

Phil

[Jean]

I bought my first soldering station today, yay ! Its the weller wlc100 40 watt. It was $45 at Frys.

Now I need to find a $50 or less meter.

[hifiZen]

I highly recommend the Hakko 936 with 907 ESD-safe handpiece. As Haldor mentions, this is a really great iron, with a lot of useful features and a very reasonable price... 50W quick-heatup element for heating those large joints, fully adjustable electronic tip temperature control (<i>very</i> handy), a great iron stand and sponge setup, and a really nice selection of tips for different applications. Not to mention, the build quality of this Japanese-made brand is excellent. I also find it a very comfortable and easy iron to work with.

For many years I was exclusively a Weller user, and I now make extensive use of various Metcal irons at work, but I prefer my Hakko to all of these. Don't get me wrong - the Weller and Metcal units are quite good (although Weller does make some junky low-end products), but I feel that these two brands are overpriced for no other reason than their wide brand recognition and long standing reputations. Check out the Hakko... they're well priced and well designed.

[Mr. Triatic]

...works well for me, really good quality at a affordable price (about 110$)

Cheers