soldering irons - give me an opinion!

[heartben]

alright.

so i want to buy a new soldering iron i think. i have a weller sp40 ( i believe its called). it was cheap, it has done what i needed it to. the tip is trashed though and i cant seem to find a replacement tip for cheap enough... they cost about as much as the iron did so... this tells me... its time to get something else.

im looking to spend.. 55 or less

so wants :
to be able to solder effects and maybe guitar cables or something along those lines.
able to replace tips easy
not totally crap.

i know 55 isnt a lot. the less the better at this point but i thought i should be able to get SOMETHING that works under those

also - what is a modular soldering iron? i saw some wellers i was into that were fairly cheap and the site said they were modular.. like this one for example : http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/welle ... /sl325.htm

i saw someone ask for suggestions on another site and this was suggested
http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/welle ... wlc100.htm

but, idk. something affordable, and something that i can replace the tips on. i dont really want to buy a new iron every time i need to replace the tip (which is what i have been doing for a few irons.)

thanks!

[McSpunckle]

You don't need a station, necessarily. Any good Weller will work (or other brands-- Wellers are just easy to find tips for). Make sure it'll get about 700 degrees... that's about what I solder at, but I think lower wattages are weaker for their temperature.

Weller also makes the oh-so-cheap Marksman series (the orange ones). You can get new tips for them pretty easy, and they work fine. They're kinda like better versions of the Radio Shack irons.

That said, I recently bought a Weller WE51, and it really is worth the extra price if you do any decent amount of soldering.

http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WES51-Anal ... pd_cp_hi_0 (Best price I've seen)

http://www.amazon.com/Weller-SP23LK-Mar ... 395&sr=1-4

And, of course, those ones you posted would work as well.


*edit*

w00ps. The one you had is about the same thing as the cheap ones I mentioned. I had never priced the tips. Lame.

[godofthegrove]

http://www.mpja.com/productsdirect.asp? ... 4=15141+TL

MPJA has a mini soldering station it gets 5-50 watts with a max temp of 800.....it's cheap and you can buy the replacement tips right there too.......

it might be too cheap though I personally haven't used it but I was thinking about picking one up to give it a try at only $14.95 and about 2 bucks for new tips......

[metalmariachi]

The first one (modular) is a very good iron.
The heating elements interchange and the tips are 1/4 inch screw on types.
So you can have one handle and different watt elements.
I have a couple of those made by Unger, very good irons.
Down side is the elements cost more than the complete iron and the tips are hard to find and $5.50 each.

A station keeps every thing nice and neat, and you can adjust the heat, to go from pc boards to tube amps with the same iron.
Bang for the buck, the marksman irons are great and have a built in light, which doesn’t really help in soldering, but you can tell when it’s on.

Weller has been making irons for at least 70 years, and it’s not uncommon to find working irons form the ‘50s and ‘60s at HAMM fests and in thrift shops.

Any way you can’t go wrong with the ones previously posted.

MM

[McSpunckle]

http://www.mpja.com/productsdirect.asp?dept=480&main=79&item1=15860+TL&item2=15845+TL&item3=15140+TL&item4=15141+TL

MPJA has a mini soldering station it gets 5-50 watts with a max temp of 800.....it's cheap and you can buy the replacement tips right there too.......

it might be too cheap though I personally haven't used it but I was thinking about picking one up to give it a try at only $14.95 and about 2 bucks for new tips......

After a bit of comparing, I have this one:

http://www.china-zhongdi.com/zd-931.htm

The only reason I replaced it with the Weller is that I couldn't find tips.

The one on that site: http://www.china-zhongdi.com/zd-929c.htm

Same tips, it would appear. The irons have the same ratings as well.

It's just collecting dust now. I'd sell it pretty cheap.

[cloudscapes]

the wlc100 fits your requirements nicely. I've had mine for years. tips are readily available and are about $5 each

[heartben]

thanks guys! i appreciate it.

i think im still leaning between the ones i posted ( i cant remember the wattage of the modular one, but you get the idea)

but if anyone else has anything to add, please do!

[godofthegrove]

good luck!!!!

[steevdeadman]

I just built my first project with a 8 dollar radio shack iron. I just got cheap stuff to see if I could do it before I went and invested in a better iron. I think I'm ready to move into the minor leauges

[heartben]

i have had quite a few cheap irons so im all about that.

i bought one cheap iron and it literally melted the handle before i could use it. lololol.

this cheaper weller i got for like 14 dollars has been great but the tip is huge and bulky and its expensive to replace (once you add in shipping)

so im just going to get a better one. im thinking of getting the 800 degree modular one.. i think its like 35 bucks and ill order an extra tip... it seems really nice so i think itll do!

i already have a stand for an iron. it doesnt have any plugs but it works!

[heartben]

arg. i forgot to add in shipping prices. i guess ill have to wait! ( i totally posted this and it didnt show up so i decided to try again)

[$.01]

i'm told that you need to melt a GLOB on the end and leave it there as it cools down after use. supposedly it kind of tins the tips and protects them from corrosion better that way... and will help prolong their life. OR so they say, not sure if they know what they are talking about or who they are, but- it's pretty easy to do so I have gotten into the habit . shrug

[duderanimous]

the wlc100 fits your requirements nicely. I've had mine for years. tips are readily available and are about $5 each

this

[futuresailors]

I'm getting this:
http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/produc ... ucts_id=85

because it's free stuff day on thursday!