I'm trying to pick out a desoldering station. I was hoping you guys might have recommendations for a good unit. I already have and use solder braid and a solder sucker. I will be shopping for a used unit. Whats the best bang for the buck? Your personal fav? Right now I'm looking at the Hakko 472, and eBay is ripe with surplus units of multiple varieties... can't make up my mind.
Thanks,
Sean
Thanks,
Sean
I have this one for 5 years or so and it works very well. Good selection of soldering tips too, and they last forever.
Aoyue 2702A+ SMD Profesional Repair & Rework Station - Soldering Stations - Amazon.com
Aoyue 2702A+ SMD Profesional Repair & Rework Station - Soldering Stations - Amazon.com
Such and similar is old school tools devoted to serve point to point components over single layer PCB.
You may still get such a tool if your repair electronics made in 1990, but not newer.
I have a used PACE desoldering station (similar to hakko) and love it. it does for thruhole, of course, but I still DO thruhole and even multilayer pcb's still have some TH on it.
hot air station is the other thing to get. for that, I do have a hakko (didn't like the unsafe crappy china clones so I went with real brands. on tools, it matters.)
hot air station is the other thing to get. for that, I do have a hakko (didn't like the unsafe crappy china clones so I went with real brands. on tools, it matters.)
Even real brands use made in China parts in 2015.
And also they stop spare-parts distribution when ever they like so.
DEN-ON (Japan) SC-5000A desoldering gun officially EOL (End Of Life) since 2011
Kiriakos, what do you suggest for a good desoldering station. I don't want to spend a ton of money, but if Ihave to, I will. Mostly what I'm repairing is car amplifiers. The majority of the amplifiers I have been dealing with are from 1990- current.
it not about china, per se, but its about responsible brands and knockoffs.
a knockoff won't care if you get a fire or if the performance sucks or the unit breaks down. they have your one sale and that's all they ever cared about.
hakko, pace, and the rest of the first tier brands DO care and they DO watch their manuf 'partners' to make sure no funny stuff goes on.
when there's heat and power involved, I really do try to avoid knockoff brands.
and when you buy used, you do want to look for spare parts, or a donor unit to be used AS spare parts.
a knockoff won't care if you get a fire or if the performance sucks or the unit breaks down. they have your one sale and that's all they ever cared about.
hakko, pace, and the rest of the first tier brands DO care and they DO watch their manuf 'partners' to make sure no funny stuff goes on.
when there's heat and power involved, I really do try to avoid knockoff brands.
and when you buy used, you do want to look for spare parts, or a donor unit to be used AS spare parts.
My reasoning was that a lot of soldering and desoldering is going on in China, so they must know how to make a decent tool.
its never about 'knowing how to make it'. when left alone, no-name companies will cut costs to the point of DANGER. that's why most of us run the other way when it comes to serious tools and no-names in china.
again, actual brand names that care about their long-term reputation (and ones in your country that could be sued; the no-names in china cannot be sued so they don't care) will ensure that the china makers of their gear don't cheap-out and cut corners.
and yes, a lot of 'soldering' goes on in china, but have you SEEN it? I have. its a nightmare, at best. I would not expect quality from a race-to-the-bottom no-name vendor.
just stick with brand names and who cares where its made. the company matters much more than geography.
again, actual brand names that care about their long-term reputation (and ones in your country that could be sued; the no-names in china cannot be sued so they don't care) will ensure that the china makers of their gear don't cheap-out and cut corners.
and yes, a lot of 'soldering' goes on in china, but have you SEEN it? I have. its a nightmare, at best. I would not expect quality from a race-to-the-bottom no-name vendor.
just stick with brand names and who cares where its made. the company matters much more than geography.
So if I just stick to the names I posted, I'll probably be happy with whatever I get. That seems easy enough.
conditions matters! try to avoid heavy manfacturing or rework stations since they may be at the end of their life or in abused condition.
photos will be helpful. ask lots of questions. if the person does not know much about the gear, walk away (they are a 'flipper' and are to be avoided since they could care less what the unit does or what its history was).
personal-use stations are the best as they are well treated but harder to find.
I looked around and found a pace kit that has all the fiber filters, spares, tips, hoses (etc) included. huge deal and was rare to find, but those are out there if you are not in a hurry.
I'll repeat, its often false economy to buy a 'cheap tool' as it won't last and it could cause you more work and wasted time.
I'd rather spend a little more on a used pace (etc) than a 'great deal' on a brand new no-name knockoff. go over to eevblog and look around at how dangerous and poorly built the knockoff test gear is. its really THAT bad and I'm not at all kidding. you really don't want to buy, own or use that crap if you can avoid it.
most craftsmen/builders/makers take pride in their tools and so, spending a bit more for brand name used gear (in good condition) is advice you either take now or later; cheaper and safer to take it now rather than re-buy what you should have bought in the first place 😉 each time I take a chance and say 'how bad can it be?' I am educated in how truly bad it CAN be. don't waste time and money on cheap tools that you plan to use for a long time.
photos will be helpful. ask lots of questions. if the person does not know much about the gear, walk away (they are a 'flipper' and are to be avoided since they could care less what the unit does or what its history was).
personal-use stations are the best as they are well treated but harder to find.
I looked around and found a pace kit that has all the fiber filters, spares, tips, hoses (etc) included. huge deal and was rare to find, but those are out there if you are not in a hurry.
I'll repeat, its often false economy to buy a 'cheap tool' as it won't last and it could cause you more work and wasted time.
I'd rather spend a little more on a used pace (etc) than a 'great deal' on a brand new no-name knockoff. go over to eevblog and look around at how dangerous and poorly built the knockoff test gear is. its really THAT bad and I'm not at all kidding. you really don't want to buy, own or use that crap if you can avoid it.
most craftsmen/builders/makers take pride in their tools and so, spending a bit more for brand name used gear (in good condition) is advice you either take now or later; cheaper and safer to take it now rather than re-buy what you should have bought in the first place 😉 each time I take a chance and say 'how bad can it be?' I am educated in how truly bad it CAN be. don't waste time and money on cheap tools that you plan to use for a long time.
Well, I just ordered a Hakko 471 that appears to be in like new condition. I picked it up for $43. Now I need to source the hand piece. Anyone have an idea where to find one?
Aouye appears to be a serious company in it for the long haul.
I don't understand sentences like "and yes, a lot of 'soldering' goes on in china, but have you SEEN it". The reason is that the answer is "Yes, I have SEEN it" because pretty much everything is made in China nowadays, and my conclusion is that some of it is good, and some of it less so.
I don't understand sentences like "and yes, a lot of 'soldering' goes on in china, but have you SEEN it". The reason is that the answer is "Yes, I have SEEN it" because pretty much everything is made in China nowadays, and my conclusion is that some of it is good, and some of it less so.
Aouye is junk. sorry, but its junk. (bought a soldering iron from them a while back and regretted it).
I guess the only way some folks will learn is by direct experience. so go ahead and waste your money and buy crap, then go out and re-spend money on real tools. you will then understand.
I refer to knockoffs as a 'sell and run' mentality. they don't expect repeat business, they don't care and the product quality and assembly quality shows.
that said, I guess if you are buying a tool for a one-time use, might as well buy junk. but most of us here are in the business or hobby for the long-run, and you INVEST in good tools that will last you years, not hours.
we can talk and talk and many of you will still argue for the cheap crap. so, go buy the cheap crap and live with it for a while. perhaps you do need first-hand experience to get what some of us are saying.
I guess the only way some folks will learn is by direct experience. so go ahead and waste your money and buy crap, then go out and re-spend money on real tools. you will then understand.
I refer to knockoffs as a 'sell and run' mentality. they don't expect repeat business, they don't care and the product quality and assembly quality shows.
that said, I guess if you are buying a tool for a one-time use, might as well buy junk. but most of us here are in the business or hobby for the long-run, and you INVEST in good tools that will last you years, not hours.
we can talk and talk and many of you will still argue for the cheap crap. so, go buy the cheap crap and live with it for a while. perhaps you do need first-hand experience to get what some of us are saying.
The smart consumers is wise to make a judgment about product quality down to the model level.
Only an idiot will baptize as crap maker one Vendor/factory and all their products.
Every vendor offer even one series of budget tools, and so what ?
Any one can choose their Top line, if he likes so.
Only an idiot will baptize as crap maker one Vendor/factory and all their products.
Every vendor offer even one series of budget tools, and so what ?
Any one can choose their Top line, if he likes so.
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HAKKO 471 is discontinued, and there are a LOT of the controller/supply boxes available used now, sometimes cheap. So you might find a real bargain, and get a new wand/line/heater/tip and get like-new performance cheap. I never used one, but I understand they are somewhat of an international 'standard unit'. The only problem is that there's just a knob for temp, and I have no idea how much you can trust the printed scale behind the knob?
The new models give digital display of the temp, and of the heat turning on & off, and have digital memory of recallable temp settings. Really handy to know exactly when it's warmed up.
I just ordered a new HAKKO 888D set, hasn't arrived yet. But be warned that there are convincing clones according to YouTube, as well as people putting the digital display front on an older model and labelling it 888D when it's not. I don't know whether the 888D has automatic shut-off, as I've seen conflicting reports.
Some of the older brands better known in the USA have a pencil grip that gets very near the tip, and some people seem to get spoiled by that, and then find a long tip somewhat awkward.
The new models give digital display of the temp, and of the heat turning on & off, and have digital memory of recallable temp settings. Really handy to know exactly when it's warmed up.
I just ordered a new HAKKO 888D set, hasn't arrived yet. But be warned that there are convincing clones according to YouTube, as well as people putting the digital display front on an older model and labelling it 888D when it's not. I don't know whether the 888D has automatic shut-off, as I've seen conflicting reports.
Some of the older brands better known in the USA have a pencil grip that gets very near the tip, and some people seem to get spoiled by that, and then find a long tip somewhat awkward.
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