MEGA POWER MSD-086, USB POWERED Soldering pen - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: MT
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 12:09:29 am
content: MEGA POWER MSD-086Are these crap? Or usable? Experience?http://uk.farnell.com/mega-power/msd-086/soldering-iron-5w-usb-480-deg/dp/2308559?ost=2308559&selectedCategoryId=&categoryName=All+Categories&categoryNameResp=All+Categories

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 12:33:12 am
content: I would suspect total crap. A 15W Antex iron is annoyingly under-powered for anything except light PCB work. Back in the 80's I used to have a 10W 12V iron and it was more trouble than it was worth. A 5W iron is likely to be virtually unusable. Also, few host USB ports will reliably supply more than 500mA. Finally, its not temperature controlled, and with a max tip temperature claimed to be 480°C , will burn up its tip very quickly.

author: GreyWoolfe
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 12:38:21 am
content: Mega power name and USB powered=.

author: MT
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 12:40:14 am
content: Yes crap it seams,i was pussled by how they would get out some power from one USB port! I once had a 12 volt car battery iron and it wasuseable as long as it was light on copper and no wind blowing! I didnt do much soldering inside the car even less outside!

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 11:27:19 am
content: AAgh!!! I've found it at Newark and Jameco. Jameco had Video!LOL.Stocking that proves that the buyers at those three distributors don't give a s--t about product quality. The giveaway that they *KNOW* its a P.O.S. is no-one has spare bits for it.How long before we see it repackaged in the craft shops for wood burning - which for detail work it might actually be some good at? I''l be ROTFLMAO if it shows up in the dollar stores next year.If you want a pocket iron, get aPortasol Technicgas iron, Adjustable from 10W to 60W, refills in seconds, and good enough that you can use it all day in place of an ordinary non-TC iron. In fact I prefer it for fine work because its length from handle to tip is so much shorter than electric irons so I have better control.

author: wblock
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 03:21:14 pm
content: When I first saw this, it seemed obvious that a USB port could not supply the amperage, and certainly not a 9V battery. So surely there would be a rechargeable battery in the iron, to be able to deliver the power when needed. But nope.The tip looks something like the one on the Hakko FX-901 (T11-B), which has similar power ratings. But the Hakko uses batteries, so might actually be able to produce heat when needed.

author: janoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 03:33:04 pm
content: Like on cue, Mike has posted this video:He also mentions the USB irons - unusable crap, there is simply no way to get an usable amount of power from 5V USB socket. A decent iron has at least 40W - that means 8A at 5V. Good luck finding a USB port capable of that. Even totally crappy irons that are unusable for anything beyond soldering few thin wires together have at least 20W -> 4A at 5V. Still no-go for USB. Regular USB is 0.5A max, that gives you 2.5W of power. Good luck attempting to solder anything with that(No, these aren't USB 3.0 where you can have more current. Yes, some non-standard USB ports can deliver more than 0.5A per port or you can parallel multiple ports in some case, but that is beyond the point).Why anyone would even consider a USB-powered iron to be useful is really beyond me.

author: janoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 05:03:19 pm
content: Quote from: Ian.M on December 07, 2015, 11:27:19 am"It took only 17 seconds to melt the solder wire!" (switch to a normal iron that is obviously set to very low temp) "It took 1 minute 30s to melt the soldering wire!!!"I think that speaks volumes about what to think about these people and the product. Obviously trying to sell to people who have never used a soldering iron before because no sane person will buy an iron that needs 17 seconds to melt solder.

author: djQUAN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 05:27:02 pm
content: This reminds me of those USB powered vacuum cleaners.They suck a lot more figuratively than literally.

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 05:38:27 pm
content: There is this soldering iron which uses a NiCd battery and a tip with very low resistance (draws around 20A at 2.2v from battery when heating up) and apparently it works quite well for soldering small things:^ Clive above also hacked the charger to work with 5v from usb instead of the classic transformer in the base of the charger. Of course, you're not using usb directly to power the iron, the battery does the work.I was reminded of it because another person I subscribed to reviewed it last month :

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 07, 2015, 05:41:31 pm
content: Many many years ago, there used to be a cold 'solder' glue, actually a one part aluminium powder loaded plastic glue that cured by solvent evaporation that was sold as a DIY alternative to waiting for a tinker to come round to fix your pots, buckets and pails. As a child with an interest in all things electrical, it didn't take me long to discover it was worse than useless for electrical connections, and was no substitute for sticking Granpa's iron in the coal fire to do a proper soldered joint.