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Post by jelosno on Sept 19, 2006 19:09:18 GMT
Since my EAR+ and a second shipment of additional 'future project' parts for it are on their way it is time to get a serious solderig station into the house.
I want to go as high as around 50 watts since there is not much of a price difference here in South Africa between those and the 40 watts ones.
NOW, should I get a digital one or a analog one?
Is there usually the whole temp adjustment different or is it only the temp readout on the base unit of the soldering station???
Stefan
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Post by PinkFloyd on Sept 19, 2006 22:16:03 GMT
Since my EAR+ and a second shipment of additional 'future project' parts for it are on their way it is time to get a serious solderig station into the house. I want to go as high as around 50 watts since there is not much of a price difference here in South Africa between those and the 40 watts ones. NOW, should I get a digital one or a analog one? Is there usually the whole temp adjustment different or is it only the temp readout on the base unit of the soldering station??? Stefan Good questions but ones I cannot answer as I solder with my iron on "MAX" all of the time. I don't ever have the need to solder at low temperature and find that the hotter the iron the less time I spend on the joint, of course I may be totally abnormal and running on MAX all the time may be one of the reasons I go through tips quite frequently so don't listen to me ;D Digital, analogue, pink, black, purple or yellow.... it doesn't really matter as long as the temp readout is reasonably accurate, it's not one of these instances where +/- 10 degree of heat is going to do any critical damage to anything. Probably the most important think to look for is "quality" here. You do get cheap soldering stations and they last all of a few hours in the field with either the tips going pear shaped or bits falling off holus bolus... fine if you're going to do the occasional "bout" of soldering but if you're going to be doing a lot, on a regular basis, then go for something that will last. Your best friend is the solder itself and a good damp sponge to keep the tip clean, as long as you "tin" your bit and get into the habit of wiping it over a damp sponge then you're good to go. What soldering irons are you looking at, any links? Mike.
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xerxes
Been here a while!
Posts: 1,115
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Post by xerxes on Sept 19, 2006 23:39:03 GMT
I just use a plain, Antex, fixed temperature 25w mains soldering iron, which cost about £12.00: It melts solder and I've had no prolems with the admitedly fairly limited number of things I've soldered with it. Is there a huge benefit in using a soldering station with variable temperature and a digital readout?
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FritzS
Been here a while!
Sound of Blue Danube
Sound of Blue Danube
Posts: 1,364
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Post by FritzS on Sept 20, 2006 8:39:57 GMT
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Sept 20, 2006 12:32:38 GMT
same here,always have since I stepped up from an old Unger plug in heat module model.I also have a mini-oryx floating around here in Ricksville..........................
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Post by jelosno on Sept 20, 2006 18:40:54 GMT
OK,
seems not to be THAT issue.
One brand they have down here is MAGNUM which is locally made and very expensive. Lotsa different tips available.
The other one is EAGLE which is supposed to be a rebranded ANTEX for 'cheaper' markets.
Will check whether there is a good supply of tips and whether the soldering iron has a good feel to it.
Thx
Stefan
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rickcr42
Fully Modded
Rest in peace my good friend.
Posts: 4,514
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Post by rickcr42 on Sept 20, 2006 23:47:11 GMT
To be honest you can get by with any resonable quality fixed wattage 30-40 watt iron and if you don't do integrated circuits or FETs you don't even need a grounded tip.total cost for a good one ? Under twenty smackers WITH a stand and sponge for tip cleaning
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