soldering iron recommendation

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#6
Current production entry-level Wellers are over budget and in my opinion less capable than the old workhorses of the past like the Weller WTCP-S. Those old soldering irons are occasionally available for less than 100 EUR on the second hand market (note that the expensive part is the soldering stylus, not the power supply; check the listings carefully). WTCP-S is still my favourite soldering iron at home. I also have a new soldering iron with the T12 tip system. There are more specialized surface-mount tips available for T12 than for the old Weller, the temperature control is better, and it heats up faster. I paid it less than 50 euro for it with several tips from AliExpress. The ergonomics are worse than the WTCP-S or any professional quality soldering iron, and it is not suitable for working on large parts that require more heat. My home desoldering station is a model 985 from China, readily available from major ecommerce sites. It does not compare with the "real" one I use at work, but it is enough for occasional use.
 
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#7
For soldering you could also consider active tip systems. Do not own one myself, but they are the way to go. As a brand Fnirsi pops up. Staying traditional, Hakko has to be mentioned too, a long-time price performance winner. But over budget a bit.
 
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#9
pcan said:
Current production entry-level Wellers are over budget and in my opinion less capable than the old workhorses of the past like the Weller WTCP-S. Those old soldering irons are occasionally available for less than 100 EUR on the second hand market (note that the expensive part is the soldering stylus, not the power supply; check the listings carefully). WTCP-S is still my favourite soldering iron at home. I also have a new soldering iron with the T12 tip system. There are more specialized surface-mount tips available for T12 than for the old Weller, the temperature control is better, and it heats up faster. I paid it less than 50 euro for it with several tips from AliExpress. The ergonomics are worse than the WTCP-S or any professional quality soldering iron, and it is not suitable for working on large parts that require more heat. My home desoldering station is a model 985 from China, readily available from major ecommerce sites. It does not compare with the "real" one I use at work, but it is enough for occasional use.
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WTCP-S is the one I use over 33 years now, replaced the inside of the soldering iron once, it is rock solid and was an good investment!
 
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#13
pcan said:
Current production entry-level Wellers are over budget and in my opinion less capable than the old workhorses of the past like the Weller WTCP-S. Those old soldering irons are occasionally available for less than 100 EUR on the second hand market (note that the expensive part is the soldering stylus, not the power supply; check the listings carefully). WTCP-S is still my favourite soldering iron at home. I also have a new soldering iron with the T12 tip system. There are more specialized surface-mount tips available for T12 than for the old Weller, the temperature control is better, and it heats up faster. I paid it less than 50 euro for it with several tips from AliExpress. The ergonomics are worse than the WTCP-S or any professional quality soldering iron, and it is not suitable for working on large parts that require more heat. My home desoldering station is a model 985 from China, readily available from major ecommerce sites. It does not compare with the "real" one I use at work, but it is enough for occasional use.
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markbakk said:
For soldering you could also consider active tip systems. Do not own one myself, but they are the way to go. As a brand Fnirsi pops up. Staying traditional, Hakko has to be mentioned too, a long-time price performance winner. But over budget a bit.
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Thanks for your suggestion. I was also looking for WTCP-S for the past few months, but it's very rare to find in full kit. but I will search for it.
 
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