Weller soldering stations

honkyjonk · Post by **honkyjonk** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 11:19 am

Wow,

The more I look at it, the SR-976N looks like the bomb.
Auto temperature controlled. Tips are about $5.00 a piece. It's only $40.

RodC · Post by **RodC** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 11:29 am

Tips do seem to last longer, my current tip is about 1 year old. And I spent this weekend modding 2 old preamps and recapping a '74 SVT. There were some large dirty connections in there!

Plus my sons used the same station to rewire 2 guitars, replacing the vol pots. (You know what the grounds are like on those)

If a tip gets really bad try this

Clean it up with steel wool while its hot.
Let it cool completly
Use very fine sand paper to remove the dirt and factory tin job
Clean it with rosin if you have any.
This seems like the important step, as your iron is heating up re-tin the tip with good rosin core solder.

This trick works on Weller tips real well.

Many ppl who go through tips this fast are using too small of a tip. Smaller tips are for real small work. If you use too small of a tip you also have less space to transfer the heat to the work. Buy a few different sizes and try them out. This can actulay cause you to over heat the work. The faster you can transfer the heat to the portion of the work that needs soldered the better off you are.

Most componets are not runied because the Iron was too hot, but the work piece was heated too long resulting in more heat transfer to the parts that were not intened to be heated.

A common mistake ppl make is to turn down the heat on sensitive components, this can prolong the work as well.

Clean tip, Well tined, allow the tin job to transfer the heat. The tip will not transfer heat, liquid solder will. Just get a hot pan out of the oven with a wet mit and you will discover the seceret to soldering.

The Scum · Post by **The Scum** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 1:18 pm

I run through tips pretty quickly, (yes I keep them very clean) so i'm wondering if the tips last longer on these soldering stations or something? How often do you guys change a tip?

I'm still using the tip my Weller station came with. 10 years old and still ticking. With a damp sponge, it cleans up to be like new. I bought a spare tip with the station that's still in the package.

Byron Jacquot

honkyjonk · Post by **honkyjonk** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 5:07 pm

Anybody look at that link I posted?

Anybody use one of those things?

It's real tempting.

somniferum · Post by **somniferum** » Thu Dec 08, 2005 7:48 pm

Wow, thanks for all the input everyone

(and sorry for the belated response, I'm in the midst of finals here). I guess I have a lot to think over before I settle on a station to get. I'll have to look over the options some more. Thanks

thearnicasync · Post by **thearnicasync** » Fri Dec 09, 2005 7:19 am

Re: Hakko tips

I've built a years worth of kits and cables, and tip is still well shaped and clean.

Here's the one I got...couldn't be happier.

http://www.all-spec.com/1/viewitem/936- ... o?sp=Hakko

kb

honkyjonk · Post by **honkyjonk** » Sat Dec 10, 2005 10:35 am

I guess I should probably just pony up the bucks for a hakko unit since they've been endorsed by the Diy'ers.

But those circuitspecialist units "look" like exactly the same thing as a hakko but half the price.

Plus, that website sells Protek oscilloscopes, 1 of which I have. It's a really nice, rock solid scope, but I don't know. That doesn't necessarily say anything about their soldering stations.

Boy oh boy. That site makes it seem like these guys are just one of those really cool small internet businesses that sells stuff at good prices, ala Redco or something. But again, I've never dealt with them.

Brett Siler · Post by **Brett Siler** » Sat Dec 10, 2005 11:29 am

I like this topic. Time to up grade from my Radio Shack solidering iron

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Weller soldering stations

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