Looking for a good soldering gun/iron

[homebuilt burner]

Like the title says: I am looking for a good soldering gun or iron. I do very little soldering but just recently my piece of **** soldering gun showed how poor it is.

 

[joseywales]

What type of soldering?

Do you need adjustable temp?

If you're just banging around, the cordless units might be worth a try.

 

[homebuilt burner]

Light electrical work. Yesterday, it was a resistor on a relay. If it could solder 14 ga wire I’d be happy.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006MQD7M4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I have this Hakko and have been very happy with it.

EDIT: FX600 model.

 

[Zewnten]

Hakko but there are some chinese clones that do ok for light use

 

[jayemm]

I had a few cheap Weller soldering pencil/irons and the 20-25 watt size was marginal for the 14ga. joints at hand. I got a 40 watt iron with a broader shovel type tip with more surface area to provide better heat transfer for bigger joints. A conical tip can only transfer so much heat. The 40 watt iron's broad tip was also better for scraping off large solder blobs.

 

[Robinson1]

Ive got a Weller D550 thats done a good job for me thus far. I dont use it alot but the 1 or 2 times a year I need it I'm always satisfied with the results

 

[gte718p]

Hakko, I like Weller also but they are over priced IHO. Hakko is 95% of what a Nice Weller is at half the price.

I have had a 936 for -15 years. Pulled it out today to fix my laser and remember

Like most things both Hakko and Weller have different lines and levels. The cheap stuff is disposable. Spend the $100 bucks and get a good station and you will be set for life.

Of course if you really never solder the $25 Weller pen will be fine. Expect to replace it every few years.

 

[Steve_P]

Get a Weller or Hakko soldering station. Not sure about the above post saying Weller is 2X as expensive, but Weller is priced comparably to Hakko on the unit I bought. The Weller 70W digital station, that I guess replaced the WES51, is about the same price (~$100) as the 70W Hakko.
Great or not, the comparable Hakko looks like a Fisher Price toy and I just couldn't stand that

 

[scooby074]

I have a Weller WLC100CUL. Its been fine.

 

[gte718p]

Great or not, the comparable Hakko looks like a Fisher Price toy and I just couldn't stand that

This is true. I can’t stand the blue yellow color scheme of new hakko. My 936 is all black.

I went back and looked, the price difference is not as bad as it used to be. You can find good stations for $100 for each. When you dive into the details the Hakko has better features then the comparable Weller.

 

[dnschmidt]

Winner, winner chicken dinner.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006MQD7M4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I have this Hakko and have been very happy with it.

EDIT: FX600 model.

 

[Steve_P]

So, how is the $100 Hakko better than the comparable Weller? They're both digitial, FWIW, and 70W.... I'm not saying the Hakko isn't better, but what am I missing? Besides the Hakko looks like a toy for a 4 year old

 

[Snapped-off]

Just bought this for some bench work. I first saw the comparable Hakko but the temp controls looked like garbage(reviews backed that up)

For other general soldering I'd use just a pencil type or a larger gun style iron. Match the tip to the job you're doing. It makes quite a difference.

 

[Bert_]

I really like the professional Weller irons. I've never felt the need for a station. A 35w iron is great for general electronics and there are larger irons for heavier work.

I have a 35W but wouldn't mind having a 100w also. That would really cover all the bases

 

[Steve_P]

The stations are really nice as it obviously allows you to vary the heat output. This can be critical for electronics repair- not that I do a lot of that, but unfortunately sometimes you need to touch up a circuit board, etc. I have the Weller station pictured 2 posts above. The temp readout is not very accurate on mine, it reads higher than it actually is, but I otherwise like it.

 

[Bert_]

I used to think I needed a station back when I had a cheap iron. Got a good Weller iron and can honestly say I have no desire for a station. It's perfect for any through hole circuit board. If you're doing surface mount stuff then I could see having a full temperature controlled station but that's beyond what most guys are doing.