Weller soldering stations

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somniferum
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Weller soldering stations

Post by somniferum » Tue Dec 06, 2005 12:19 pm

I'm interested in making my own interconnect (and mic) cables, building a guitar pedal or two from kit, and eventually moving up to building a preamp from kit (probably the Hamptone JFet kit) and was wondering what soldering station would be best for me to get. I am looking at both the Weller WES51 (about $100) and
Weller WLC100 (about $40)

Obviously, the WES51 is a lot nicer, but for someone who doesn't anticipate (yeah, I know) doing a lot of DIY projects, would the WLC100 do a good enough job?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

(I'll try to post some links on here but both can be found at www.hmcelectronics.com or at www.all-spec.com

WES51 at: www.all-spec.com/cgi-bin/fccgi.exe?w3ex ... S51+weller

WLC100 at: www.hmcelectronics.com/cgi-bin/scripts/ ... /1980-0373
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Post by The Scum » Tue Dec 06, 2005 1:20 pm

The WES51 is temperature regulated, which helps make better solder joints. When you touch the tip to a cold workpiece (for example, a large chunk of 12 guage Romex), the workpiece tries to draw the temperature down. A regulated iron will sense this and send more current to the tip, to maintain the temperature.

I think the WLC100 just has a power selection, but no regulation.

A regulated iron will give you more consistent results.

I've got a WCC100...it's shaped like the WLC100, but it is temperature regulated. I've had it for maybe 10 years, and should easily get another 10 out of it. A friend of mine just got a Hakko station, under $100, which also works well. All-spec has a Hakko 936 for $75, which looks like his.

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Post by Scodiddly » Tue Dec 06, 2005 4:59 pm

I've got the WES51, and (like a lot of my major tools) now wish I'd bought it 10 years ago. It's very consistent with the temperatures, so you can dial in what you want and not worry about it. With my old 40-watt iron and a lamp dimmer I got pretty good at tweaking the heat level, but really the iron should be doing that for you.

lightning_electronics

Post by lightning_electronics » Wed Dec 07, 2005 12:07 am

i prefer hakko irons; they feel better to my hands, they heat up quickly, and they're tanks as far as reliability. do a search for the hakko 936-12; it includes the medium sized soldering iron (the 907) and is ESD safe. you can find them for less than $80 brand new. the tips are decently cheap, wide in variety, and the performance simply cannot be beat. weller is no match for hakko when it comes to decent workbench irons.

i've cashed in my two cents...

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Post by brianroth » Wed Dec 07, 2005 1:33 am

I've used a Weller W60 for over 25 years (although on my second one after TOO many years on the road). It has odd-ball tips that work on an even odder principal to maintain a quasi-constant temp.

I like the W60 since it doesn't require a boat-anchor "power base", and hence takes up little space in my tool kit.

For blow-torching things like banana plugs, I also have a 200W Weller soldering gun <g>.

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Post by RodC » Wed Dec 07, 2005 10:12 am

Check out the xytronic 168 I have used and recommened this station since around '86. (I have 3 that old still going strong, one of them I used for about 2+ years for 8+ hours a day doing audio repair work.) The station has remained pretty much the same but the pencil/wand hads changed. These things heat up fast and stay constant. You can find them for about $40-$50

http://www.xytronic-usa.com/168_index.htm

2nd on the - Get yourself a weller "Gun" for the big stuff.

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Post by Brian Brock » Wed Dec 07, 2005 10:20 am

What am I missing with just a Weller pencil iron? 15 bucks and it seems to work better than the Radio Shack ones I was using. Fine for making cables and doesn't seem to impede diy projects.

b

lightning_electronics

Post by lightning_electronics » Wed Dec 07, 2005 10:55 am

Brian Brock wrote:What am I missing with just a Weller pencil iron? 15 bucks and it seems to work better than the Radio Shack ones I was using. Fine for making cables and doesn't seem to impede diy projects.

b
pencil irons are fine for small stuff; the problem is that they are lower wattage, so heating anything up that's large, say the back of a potentiometer inside a guitar, is pretty much impossible. It always turns out nasty, you can't make a good joint if the wattage is low...i say wattage because some pencil irons are just the size of the iron's grip, like in the hakko series. you can get any size of "wand" that you like, but the stays the same from the supply.

just be aware of the necessity of decently high wattage when dealing with large solder joints, the backs of potentiometers, speakers...that sort of thing.

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Post by RodC » Wed Dec 07, 2005 10:57 am

Brian Brock wrote:What am I missing with just a Weller pencil iron? 15 bucks and it seems to work better than the Radio Shack ones I was using. Fine for making cables and doesn't seem to impede diy projects.

b

A lot, the cheap ones take for ever to heat up (rip-off-shack types), and they keep heating up. the tips usualy suck. When you apply the tip to the work the temp dips.

The weller pencil irons work better becuse they accept good tips, Weller makes some of the best tips.


If you get a chance solder with a heat controled unit you will wonder how you ever got a good joint before.

With a good heat controled iron when the tip hits the work more power is applied (regulated) using a sensor to keep it constant.

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Post by gregnrom » Wed Dec 07, 2005 11:16 am

The WLC100 will be a little more portable which is handy for all sorts of reasons. I have had one for my home studio for about 5 years and the only thing I think sucks about it is the cable connecting the base to the iron. It is stiff and gets in the way. Other, nicer Weller irons have a more flexible cord. I haven't had any problems soldering to hard-to-heat items (pot cases, spade lugs, etc.). If you are just starting out, I would recommend that. If you keep your tips clean, and turn the heat down when you aren't using it, you should be happy for a while. Should you at some point want to get a fancier system to do more intricate work, you will have the WLC100 for odds and ends work in awkward locations. $40 is pretty good.
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Hey RodC

Post by honkyjonk » Wed Dec 07, 2005 7:58 pm

Hey RodC,

Where do you buy tips for those xytronics units?
I have a tough time finding tips at a reasonable price for my weller iron.

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Post by mpedrummer » Wed Dec 07, 2005 8:16 pm

lightning_electronics wrote:i prefer hakko irons; they feel better to my hands, they heat up quickly, and they're tanks as far as reliability. do a search for the hakko 936-12
I second that emotion. I have the temperature-regulated model, and it makes life so much easier. For one thing, I find that I burn myself less, kinda like you have more control with a really sharp knife.

MPEDrummer

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Post by RodC » Wed Dec 07, 2005 8:20 pm

Back in '88 I bought a bunch from MCM electronics. One of mine has a pencil that takes the weller tips, makes it easy to find. I wish the other two were like it.

The last ones I bought from allelectronics.com, not sure if they still have them they seem to be more of a surplus place. Great prices if they have what you want.

I have also ordered them from Jamco, look at the column for 168 stations:
http://www.jameco.com/Jameco/catalogs/c254/P266.pdf

Plato also makes tips to fit, they seem to be around, I havent tried them yet.

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Post by honkyjonk » Thu Dec 08, 2005 10:59 am

Okay,

I've been doing some research as I'm kind of jonesin' for a soldering station too, before I put together a Seventh Circle preamp kit.
I've been using one of the 25 watt Weller pencil dealos too, and I don't feel like I make bad solder joints.

Another thing is tips. I can find a two pack of MT1 tips that fit the Weller for $3.50. The tips for the hakko unit mentioned are about $10 for one.

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?

Right now, $80 plus $10 a tip (changing tips right now, about every 2 weeks or so, depening how much i'm soldering) doesn't sound too apealing.
It might take a little longer to heat up my iron, but I think the quality of my solder joints is pretty good. I mean, how deceiving can a solder joint be? I doubt the gear I build is going to sound a whole lot better if I get a new solder station.

Is it just for convenience's sake?

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Post by honkyjonk » Thu Dec 08, 2005 11:14 am

Hey everybody,

Take a look at these guys:

http://www.circuitspecialists.com/level.itml/icOid/6388

These stations are all pretty cheap. Anybody heard of 'em before?

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