Here is the LION, tail in hand, to enquire about (of all things) a soldering iron.
Him has a row of cheap irons hanging on a post by the door. All of them burnt up, (not burnt out). LION tries to replace the tip while it is hot, it is jambed tight and him breaks it off. Another iron joins the bunch.
Well the Tip of cheap LION irons seems to loose its point within hours or maybe a day or two. Is ok if wiring cables to binding posts, but what happens when LION wants to do some craft soldering. Him kneads to change the point, right? Break the old one of and anogher iron hangs by its tail in the doorway.
LION wants to bite the bullet and buy a proper soldering station, but him has never used one of these contraptions before? Do the have better tips to begin with? Maybe they do not get so hot as to burn themselves up. What suggestions and recommendations do you have for a LION. What brand to look at. What tips to get.
LION do like to leave the iron on when him is in the train room, that way he can pick up the iron and solder something and then put it down again. LIONS do not like waiting for tips to heat up, and when changing them, he apparently does not like to wait for them to cool down again.
What in the world is a LION to do.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
The Weller line of irons are my choice for 40 years. I still have one that old. The "ststions" are temp controlled and you can leave them on all day if you don't care about the electric bill. The ststion tips are plated so they will not erode with use. I choose 700 degree tips for general use and pick a physical size to suit the application.
73
Bruce in the Peg
BroadwayLionLION wants to bite the bullet and buy a proper soldering station, but him has never used one of these contraptions before? Do the have better tips to begin with? Maybe they do not get so hot as to burn themselves up. What suggestions and recommendations do you have for a LION. What brand to look at. What tips to get.
i have an old soldering iron from 30 years ago and a Weller soldering station from work.
the tip on my old iron is soft and is often loose. i've reshaped it a few times with a file. It's just an inch or so long and screws in. i tighten it when i notice that it's loose. If it had broken, i assume i could remove it with an eazy-out and replace it.
i just looked a the prices for Weller and didn't realize they are so expensive. I believe Weller soldering stations are temperature controlled. Mine doesn't have an adjustment, but i've seen some that so.
The weller tips don't screw in, they are held in place with a cap that slide over them and screws onto the end of the soldering iron. I don't know what the tips are made of, but I've never had any probelms with any.
maybe you should consider a soldering iron/station that has tips similar to Weller, or at least can use weller tips
greg - Philadelphia & Reading / Reading
My soldering iron is at least 35 years old and still going strong. I have never replaced the tip, though I have filed it a few times to repair the shape. I wipe it clean on a wet sponge after each use.
Your description seems to be that you have broken several while trying to change the tips. Simple and cost effective solution is to have more than one, each with a different tip. That, or review your tip changing procedure.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
Hi LION
My very dependable Weller HE-35 is still going strong after 20 years. I don't believe it is currently available but there is probably an equivalent model out there. There was an occasion that I had left it plugged in for several days (me=dummy) but no harm done!
You will want to get a soldering stand with the spring holder and sponge pan. I found the cord to be too short so I had a light gauge, very flexible cord from an old vacuum cleaner that was about fifteen feet long and replaced the stock cord with it. The original cord length the plug would ALWAYS hang up on the edge of the layout.
I still use the Weller for layout work but I recently purchased a Hakko FX-888 that I'm completely satisfied with. It is a soldering station with variable temperature control and a super fast warm up time.
I'm sure you will get lots of recommendations here but this is just my 2¢ worth.
A dab of anti-sieze compound on the threads of the tip (or tip collar) will help keep it from getting locked up.
Hope this helps... Ed
If the cheap soldering irons otherwise work for you, why don't you just buy another one and install the special tip you need for fine work in it? That would be no different then the people who have a couple pin vices so that they don't have to bother changing the bit.
I have to agree with Maxman, That's what I do. I have some Weller 25 and 40 pencil tips, have to be at least 45 yrs old and still going strong. Five min. tops to heat up.
Either that or get some '' tumbs'' on your paws, so you can grip things better.
Striped
DO NOT get the low cost Weller 'soldering station' where the iron plugs in to the side of the base with a normal 3-prong cord. That is NOT a temperature controlled unit at all and will have the same problem eventually.
Instead try the one I have, the Xytronics 389. The current model now has a digital readout and is the LF-389D. I puchased it here: http://www.howardelectronics.com/xytronic/lf369D.html
(no connection, just a satisfied customer).
It's $49.95, and is probably the best electronic tool purchase I ever made. For too long I had an array of standard irons in different wattages for different jobs, now all I have is this station and a 200 watt gun for the big wires under the layout. The difference with a temperature controlled unit are incredible - 6+ years now and I'm still on the original tip! A true temperature controlled station doesn;t keep heating the tip when plugged in, the power cuts when the set temp is reached. Now at $50 it's not super precision, but it keeps the temp within maybe 5-10 degrees of the set point, which is more than good enough for hobby work. They have all sorts of different tips available, I bought a few when I got it, but haven't used any of the extra yet. Still nice and shiny and not pitted, and works quickly and well. I can even turn it down to the lowest setting and shrink heat shrink tube without melting it all over the tip and making a mess.
Also - you shouldn't be removing the tips when hot. Let it cool first.
Not badmouthing Weller, heck the original guy is from my home town, they used to make the things right down the road from the house I grew up in. However, the company was sold to Cooper Industries many years ago, and Cooper started applying the Weller name to anything and everything, from cheap consumer junk tools to high end precision manufacturing equipment. Used to be if it said Weller you knew is was absolutely top notch. Now, it could be anything.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
I am a retired electronics technician. I have two adjustable soldering stations. One is a $125.00 Hakko that I have had for over 20 years for my professional work, and a cheap $29.00 Elenco station that has a 60W iron controlled by a Temp adjustment module / holder that I have had for ten years for my hobby work. (The Elenco Temp adjustment module also doubles as a speed control for my Dremel tool.) The tips on both irons are nickel coated. Both work well.
The key to keeping any adjustable soldering station and iron working and in good shape is using a few tricks that I have learned over the years and have been taught in classes. 1- Don't file the tip. 2- Clean the tip with a wet sponge before soldering with it. 3- When finished and powering down, clean the tip and apply some solder to it. This protects the tip from damage. 4- When starting the station up for the day, turn the temp low, then turn the station on. If it has a temp light, wait for it to go out before turning the temp up. 5- When finished soldering, if you are going to leave it on, turn the temp down some and apply solder to the tip. (This keeps the tip from burning up.) Turn it back up when getting ready to solder. It will only take a minute to come up to temp again. 6- Read the instruction manual that comes with the station because it may have some hints and things in it that you don't know about.
For normal soldering, I find that turning the temp control knob up to 3/4 works just fine. If I have to do some mechanical soldering, I turn it up more, as necessary. Just remember to turn the temp down when not using it.
Elmer.
The above is my opinion, from an active and experienced Model Railroader in N scale and HO since 1961.
(Modeling Freelance, Eastern US, HO scale, in 1962, with NCE DCC for locomotive control and a stand alone LocoNet for block detection and signals.) http://waynes-trains.com/ at home, and N scale at the Club.
I agree with Randy's suggestion that you should not try to change the tips when they are hot. The part that the tip screws onto will expand when heated, thereby reducing or eliminating any clearance between the threads. Grabbing on to the tip with a cold pair of pliers further exacerbates the problem by causing the tip to shrink. The threads are likely to be locked up tight, which is actually desireable for heat transfer when the iron is in use.
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
gmpullman Hi LION My very dependable Weller HE-35 is still going strong after 20 years. I don't believe it is currently available but there is probably an equivalent model out there. There was an occasion that I had left it plugged in for several days (me=dummy) but no harm done! You will want to get a soldering stand with the spring holder and sponge pan. I found the cord to be too short so I had a light gauge, very flexible cord from an old vacuum cleaner that was about fifteen feet long and replaced the stock cord with it. The original cord length the plug would ALWAYS hang up on the edge of the layout. I still use the Weller for layout work but I recently purchased a Hakko FX-888 that I'm completely satisfied with. It is a soldering station with variable temperature control and a super fast warm up time. I'm sure you will get lots of recommendations here but this is just my 2¢ worth. A dab of anti-sieze compound on the threads of the tip (or tip collar) will help heep it from getting locked up. Hope this helps... Ed
A dab of anti-sieze compound on the threads of the tip (or tip collar) will help heep it from getting locked up.
I have the Hakko soldering station and it's miles ahead of any all in one soldering iron. Was going to buy a Weller, but was reading on several sites that they're not manufactured in the same place anymore and are not what they used to be.
Another recommendation for a Hakko, here. Based on a recommendation from my brother, who worked in the electronics industry for two decades, I bought a Hakko station at Fry's for around $120 ten years ago and absolutely love it.
-Fritz Milhaupt, Publications Editor, Pere Marquette Historical Society, Inc.http://www.pmhistsoc.org
I have 3 of them. The first is a small Weller, one of the ones that looks like a handgun and has a trigger. This is my highest wattage unit, and I don't think it's been plugged in for at least 5 years.
Next is a cheap one I got at a local electronics place for about $15. It is a pencil iron, and it has a heat control. I think I've replaced the tip once. It does all my soldering work. I bought one of those coiled wire stands for it, which is a safer and more convenient thing to have on the bench.
A while back I bought a fine-tip pencil iron, again for some princely sum around $15. I haven't been doing decoders lately, but I will bring that one out when I do.
I don't do a lot of soldering, and when I do, it's usually just a small string of lights for a building. So, with just a bit of care, my irons last me a long time even though they're not "professional" models.
And now, Lion, I seem to recall a conversation we had on here some time back. You said that your trainroom (or perhaps workroom?) was set up so that when you came in and flipped on the lights, you also turned on the power strip that fed your soldering iron. This happened whether you planned to solder or not. Was that you, or someone else? If so, it would not be a tactic which would lead to a long life for soldering irons.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
I have been soldering since I was 13 in 1953 using a Weller gun.
Many years ago i bought a small can of soldering iron anti seize paste from Radio Shack, don't remember when but used it on the threads for the screw on tips for soldering pencils and the irons that use a small screw to hold the tip. Many stores sell anti seize compound in a caan, even in a small tube.
I now use the Weller WLC100 soldering station with two different size tips. Obvious Man told me to never remove the tips or screws when the iron is hot. Happened to me once with an older iron and I ruined the screw where the screwdriver tip fits in.
May be obvious but never file a plated tip. Once In a while I read where old timer has done this.
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.
gregcThe weller tips don't screw in, they are held in place with a cap that slide over them and screws onto the end of the soldering iron. I don't know what the tips are made of, but I've never had any probelms with any. maybe you should consider a soldering iron/station that has tips similar to Weller, or at least can use weller tips.
maybe you should consider a soldering iron/station that has tips similar to Weller, or at least can use weller tips.
fmilhaupt Another recommendation for a Hakko, here. Based on a recommendation from my brother, who worked in the electronics industry for two decades, I bought a Hakko station at Fry's for around $120 ten years ago and absolutely love it.
My FX-888 was about $90 but I guess it has since been replaced with the FX-888D with a digital temp. control.
http://www.amazon.com/Digital-FX888D-CHP170-bundle-cutter/dp/B00AWUFVY8/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1393196327&sr=1-1&keywords=hakko
Looks like it is still in the $90. range. These units have temperature feedback so what you set is what you get and they will not overheat.
There's about 2 dozen different T-18 tips available for it but I use the 0.5mm conical 99% of the time. Excellent investment.
Ed
I have a Xytronic adjustable temperature soldering station with ceramic heater that must be close to 30 years old, and I have never had to replace the tip. An extra tip was provided but as things are going now, I may hever need it even though the iron gets a lot of use at the club.
BroadwayLion Here is the LION, tail in hand, to enquire about (of all things) a soldering iron. Him has a row of cheap irons hanging on a post by the door. All of them burnt up, (not burnt out). LION tries to replace the tip while it is hot, it is jambed tight and him breaks it off. Another iron joins the bunch. Well the Tip of cheap LION irons seems to loose its point within hours or maybe a day or two. Is ok if wiring cables to binding posts, but what happens when LION wants to do some craft soldering. Him kneads to change the point, right? Break the old one of and anogher iron hangs by its tail in the doorway. LION wants to bite the bullet and buy a proper soldering station, but him has never used one of these contraptions before? Do the have better tips to begin with? Maybe they do not get so hot as to burn themselves up. What suggestions and recommendations do you have for a LION. What brand to look at. What tips to get. LION do like to leave the iron on when him is in the train room, that way he can pick up the iron and solder something and then put it down again. LIONS do not like waiting for tips to heat up, and when changing them, he apparently does not like to wait for them to cool down again. What in the world is a LION to do. ROAR
Good grief, changing the tip while iron is still hot on any aoldering iron is a recipe for disaster.
Surely you would have learn't after the 2nd one at least.
My micron station heats up to chosen temp in 1 min max. Surely that is not long to wait.
Cheap iions do tqake a little longer to heat up and also are not meant to be left on all day.
Cheers
Ian