# New Solder Iron



## Edrick (Jul 3, 2012)

Just got a new solder iron Weller WESD51 and I've got to say it's one of the best irons ive ever had. Within 40 seconds it goes from a cold nothing to 500 degrees, cool to the touch (as far as where you hold it), lots of tips and good for extended soldering. Anyone else use them or other variants of the Wellers?


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## cpf (Jul 4, 2012)

No touchscreen? Or click wheel? Hmph http://www.all-spec.com/products/wx2021.html

I have a station-less weller AIO unit for repairs on the go, works as well as it did when I got it used however many years ago. Not fancy, but light and effective.


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## Edrick (Jul 4, 2012)

That price actually isn't bad for what I was expecting. But I think it might be slightly out of my needs haha


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## Nelson (Jul 5, 2012)

I'm quite happy with my Weller WTCPT 35(?) watt soldering station. Very simple, reliable. Temperature is controlled by the tip that you use. Also a wide variety of tips available. I've never needed anything more than what it offers.


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## FMEng (Jul 5, 2012)

Edrick, you bought a very good one. A soldering station, like that one, solders better than a standard iron because the temperature is so well regulated. It helps avoid cold joints and can properly heat connections of a wider variety of sizes. When the tip is applied to cold metal, the heater is given more power to quickly make up the loss in temperature. A conventional iron just relies on thermal mass to get the job done. 

A low wattage standard iron can easily be overwhelmed by heating large connections, and a high wattage standard iron can damage things with too much heat. A solder station avoids both problems. Worth every penny if you solder much.


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## JCarroll (Jul 5, 2012)

My Hakko 936 is one of my favorite tool investments so far...


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## Edrick (Jul 6, 2012)

I've noticed it has a temperature lockout, what's that?


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## erosing (Jul 6, 2012)

I've had a Weller WLC100 station for 4-5 years now, it was a great first station, and works just as well as the day I bought it. Mostly I just wanted the ability to use better shaped tips for the work. A good purchase that gets the job done pretty well, but I don't often use it for any work (when I do it's for home-made testers and things usually). I bought it because I liked to play with electronics as a hobby. If I had bought it for work instead of play I would have bought one with better temperature control.


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## FMEng (Jul 6, 2012)

Edrick said:


> I've noticed it has a temperature lockout, what's that?



That's to keep unauthorized people from changing the temp setting. In a factory setting, the line workers may not be allowed to adjust it because doing so might result in heat damaged components.


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## Edrick (Jul 6, 2012)

Interesting so what controls the lockout?


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## 65535 (Jul 6, 2012)

It's controlled by a magnetic switch. The WESD51 comes with a pen like stick with a magnet on the end which activates the lockout as well as changes the display from F/C and C/F.

I've had a WESD51 for about 10 years now (kind of surprised they are still in production.)

The only issue I've ever had with it is the female slots needed a little bit of crimping to keep in contact with the maile pins. Otherwise it's been a phenomenal station.

I keep mine at 666F and it seems to be a very useful temperature, still have the original tip in it, can't find my ETC tip but I have one somewhere, should buy a few one of these days.


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## porkchop (Jul 7, 2012)

I love the older Weller butane pyropens similar to the WSTA3. Cordless for those odd jobs, heats fast, sits nicely by itself without burning things for when you don't have a stand (again good for odd jobs), and they get REALLY hot for when you need to start messing with none standard soldering metals like silver. Also the bow torch option has a ton of uses. Unfortunately I've seen a drop in quality in the newer ones that my company has bought. Hopefully I've just been unlucky because I really like them.


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## ccm1495 (Dec 30, 2012)

JCarroll said:


> My Hakko 936 is one of my favorite tool investments so far...



I just recently acquired a Hakko Fx888 and compared to the crappy irons I have owned before I can't say enough good things about it.


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## TimmyP1955 (Dec 31, 2012)

Hakko Dash454. Cheap, super-reliable, and with a couple of tips you can do anything from (large) SMT to 12 gauge in a Speakon.


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