View Full Version : Which Soldering iron
Guys I need some advice.
I am not to new to soldering - however in the learing process.
Ive got
2 electrical soldering irons but i feel like i need some thing else to do the job with.
Basicaly i am looking for a gas soldering iron, that heats up solder quickly -
so iam able to remove 4 legged / 6 legged ICs from motherboards.
However i am not sure which one to buy.
Please advise me
thanks
littleowl
03-12-2006, 11:28 PM
I can tell you one I like that works good!! got to radio shack if you have one close by!! they have a nice radio shack brand butane soldering iron!!
jumanji969
03-17-2006, 11:00 AM
I just use one of these (http://www.hmcelectronics.com/cgi-bin/scripts/product/5635-0191) to remove IC's :p:.
Personally though I'm partial to the weller soldering irons. We use them at work and they seem to be quite nice. On ebay I noticed they aren't that expensive either. The Metcal soldering station we have is probably the best but I looked at prices of that and it's upwards of $200+.
fatty
03-17-2006, 12:39 PM
I think mine is like a 15 or 25w one from maplins dont get a huge wattage one also maybe get a solder sucker and do one pin at a time :)
adamwinn
04-08-2006, 07:19 PM
i saw instructions somewhere for making a hot-air soldering iron for surface mount soldering . they basically modified a desoldering iron from radioshack.
im pretty sure you can find it on this forum or google if you search for it. sorry i don't have the link handy :(
my dad swears by gas soldering irons, but i myself have an electric draper iron, think its a 35w and i have an assortment of interchangeable thin to thick tips
NickS
04-14-2006, 12:57 PM
my dad swears by gas soldering irons, but i myself have an electric draper iron, think its a 35w and i have an assortment of interchangeable thin to thick tips
I have a cheap Radio Shack 15/30w w/a thick tip and a thin tip :)
Nick
@_dud
04-19-2006, 02:59 PM
I have a cheap Radio Shack 15/30w w/a thick tip and a thin tip :)
Nick
About how much are those? I'm looking to get a starting soldering iron tomorrow.
Haltech
04-19-2006, 03:15 PM
I own one of these...
http://www.hmcelectronics.com/cgi-bin/scripts/product/0460-0004
VERY nice station for the money!
jakedeez
04-25-2006, 08:10 PM
I use to have one of those cold heat things, the tip literaly just fell apart one day. :(
nn_step
04-25-2006, 09:21 PM
I own one of these...
http://www.hmcelectronics.com/cgi-bin/scripts/product/0460-0004
VERY nice station for the money!
nice pick man..
viper650
05-03-2006, 10:12 AM
I use to have one of those cold heat things, the tip literaly just fell apart one day. :(
cold heats are a no no for electric soldering :nono:
Butcher_
05-07-2006, 05:44 AM
I have a cheap 25W iron with a couple of tips.
Firechicken
05-11-2006, 08:10 AM
I have a weller pro soldering with acurate temp control and I never pull it out all that much, I have three different radioshack irons one is a 15w which is really good for smalll pins and then a 45 watt iron which seems to get way too hot and will un-solder almost anything and one 5-60 watt iron with an adjustable pot to control the wattage (not the fancy temp control like the 3 hundred dollar CAD weller) but I really like it and has a fairly large tip on atm but I have just finished the total rework of two dead tv's that I had and find I can remove all of the small IC's no trouble at all with this one. If you want pn's shoot me a pm and I'll get them to you. As with any iron heating up the whole side of the ic to pull it out can cause trouble with the chip if you are not carfull, most pro's that are only removing one or a few ic's here and there usually rather use a sloder sucker for the inital removal ov the solder around the pin's then go in with a fine braid (dont forget to flux it) and finish it up that way. even though you may feel it is the best thing to go in a use alot of quick heat and pull it out a normal iron will do it just as easy with a long tip where you can lay it across the whole side of the IC or somthing that has alot of pins. Just take care I dont like doing it that way ,but anyways those are the irons I have ,the irons I like and use on a daily basis( I do a ton of soldering), and my self would only really use a gas iron for field work outside or somthing,but my two cents. Use what ever you feel the most comfortable with and you should get good results anyway you look at it. MD.
Nosfer@tu
05-12-2006, 08:29 AM
I bougth this one 1½ year ago.
http://www.vellemanusa.com/us/enu/product/view/?id=522806
Im very satisfied with it :)
xenium
05-26-2006, 02:59 PM
buy the dual wattage 15/30 Watt sodlering iron from radio shack plus some lead-free rosin core solder allong with it, and a thinner tip for an easier time soldering. It shouldnt ring you up more than 10-15 bux, and its a very nice soldering bundle for beginners or even experts IMO.
Asazman
05-28-2006, 02:57 PM
i have a weller..it is AWESOME, not so good at precision stuff but it will last you a lifetime
NickS
05-28-2006, 02:59 PM
buy the dual wattage 15/30 Watt sodlering iron from radio shack plus some lead-free rosin core solder allong with it, and a thinner tip for an easier time soldering. It shouldnt ring you up more than 10-15 bux, and its a very nice soldering bundle for beginners or even experts IMO.
Whoops, I use Silver-Bearing solder from radio shack. Contains lead. :rolleyes:
Mmm lead fumes when soldering *whee* lol
Nick
Sloppy
05-28-2006, 03:23 PM
buy the dual wattage 15/30 Watt sodlering iron from radio shack plus some lead-free rosin core solder allong with it, and a thinner tip for an easier time soldering. It shouldnt ring you up more than 10-15 bux, and its a very nice soldering bundle for beginners or even experts IMO.
Yep, it's decent enough to work just fine. You can even pick up an extra tip cheap and sand it down for really tight soldering.