Soldering iron for 7 year old. - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: gildasd
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 13, 2019, 12:11:00 pm
content: My daughter attended a week long electronic camp a few weeks back...She learned how to solder and wants to so more.My “full size” irons are a bit difficult to use, mostly due to the somewhat heavy/stiff cable...The camp had children iron, but I was at sea, so no idea what they used.Anybody have any suggestions/pointers/success stories with soldering kids?Thanks!(Did a search and did not find answers in the first few pages)

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 13, 2019, 12:34:41 pm
content: I had an Antex CS18 when I was 8. Very light weight, not too large. If you get one with a silicone cable it's pretty good for basic work.

author: KrudyZ
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 13, 2019, 01:05:09 pm
content: Whatever you get, make sure you get a stand for the iron.Without one, blisters and melted plastic are pretty much guaranteed...

author: Another crazy Aussie
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 13, 2019, 01:17:05 pm
content: When I was about that age, all I had was one of those no-name tricky Dick fun sticks (aren't they all?) actually, it might have been from Tandy, hands up anyone who remembers them... I feel old nowHaven't tried it myself, but the Mini TS80 seems to be a pretty small and lightweight iron with enough grunt to handle most jobs, Mr EEVBlog himself seemed to be ok with itIf you're real cashed up, at work we've got a bunch of JBC irons, the base stations are big and heavy, but the irons are pretty small and light and have real shmick silicone leads. There was someone who built an affordable controller for JBC ironshttps://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/good-jbc-clone/I think it would be best to get something with temperature control, I've seen some of those "self regulating" irons get up to 550'C, I mean250'C is enough for most beginner stuff, besides, a lot of the big brand name temp controlled irons are generally more robust, have auto-off (so they turn them selves off when you put them back in the holder, good for people who might be easily distracted...), they have leads that don't melt (especially important if it's a mains powered heating element), have better quality tips that the solder actually sticks to and most importantly heat up fast, the thing that frustrated my 7 year old self the most was waiting for my "self regulating" iron to come up to temperature, the more bored I got waiting, the more likely I was to stick it into something I shouldn't have to see if it was hot enough to use

author: gildasd
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2019, 06:54:01 am
content: Thanks for all the answers, i’m analysing the options.

author: soldar
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 14, 2019, 10:34:44 am
content: Quote from: gildasd on April 13, 2019, 12:11:00 pmI have several irons that have a heavy/stiff cord and I hate them when I am trying to do precision work in awkward places.The cheap irons sold in dollar stores have flimsy cords and can be handled easier. OTOH it may be that they are not as safe as they don't have earth protection.It is not only the cord and size but what kind of work you are trying to do. The user is the ultimate judge of what is most convenient.

author: Bassman59
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 06:02:13 pm
content: When he was about 7, son saw me building up a board so he asked if he could solder too. I pulled out an extra board and he soldered some 0805 resistors and capacitors, and then we build up a LED flashlight on a round perfboard, with a switch, series resistor and battery connector.We used my Metcal SP200. Just because he’s a kid doesn’t mean he shouldn’t use real tools.

author: rstofer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 15, 2019, 08:08:06 pm
content: There is a very wide price range for soldering stations. I bought the Hakko FX888D for my grandson but he's a good deal older than 7. Still, it seemed like a good place to start and generally gets good reviews.There are problems with fakes. It is recommended to verify that the actual seller (where Amazon works as a 'front') is a legitimate dealer. Read the comments section...https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ANZRT4M

author: Ysjoelfir
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2019, 09:37:49 am
content: When I was 8 I started soldering with one of the well known (and pretty cheap) Weller Magnastat irons. I still own the good old Weller TCP in the grey plastic case and let everyone work with it if they are interested. Great, reliable tool, nearly indestructible and you can still get spares.

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 16, 2019, 06:22:08 pm
content: UK made Antex is very tiny.My first iron was a kit and I got it when I was 7.

author: amyk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 01:41:21 am
content: A 936/clone style iron wouldn't be a bad choice, and is already a step above the huge unregulated mains irons.

author: Nusa
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 01:51:24 am
content: Or you could find a not-so-stiff cord to update one of the irons you already have.

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 07:49:19 am
content: Is that for soldering the dick onto gnats?

author: Ysjoelfir
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 08:36:23 am
content: The NT105 is indeed a very nice iron! And you can build a controller pretty easy yourself. For my big hands that thing is way to small, but I have it in the lab for very precise, small stuff.

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 08:54:21 am
content: Quote from: blueskull on April 17, 2019, 08:07:53 amThat's pretty impressive actually!

author: Electro Detective
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 09:11:28 am
content: A good basic soldering iron station with temperature control, chisel tip, VERY flexible cable,plugged into an RCD/GFCI power strip,and bucket of sand, fire blanket, smoke detector and fire extinguisher nearbyrun daughter/son/wifey/visiting ET/?! through the drill with a written list of temperature/s for what purpose,then get them to repeat and explain the entire routine (as many times as necessary)Apologies if I sound like a pride and safety fanaticbut that's how I rollespecially if I know I may not be there to bail anyone out of a drama, which may/may not/can/can't/might/will/?! happenEDIT: newb and pros alike should check out how to solder Youtube videos such as the PACE series and of course the EEVblog vids

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 10:02:40 am
content: Quote from: tkamiya on April 16, 2019, 06:22:08 pmI started with a 15W Antex too when I was young. Nice and light to handle. The one downside of a small unregulated iron is the difficulty in keeping the tip nicely tinned when it's standing idle (i.e. more than a few minutes). Crud and oxide build up very quickly.

author: gildasd
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 07:12:51 pm
content: Quote from: Gyro on April 17, 2019, 10:02:40 amThanks for all the answers!I am thinking the best combination of features for my daughter / price I can justify is finding an Antex 660a second hand and getting a few new tips.https://www.antex.co.uk/products/soldering-stations/660a/It is made for the UK education sector, so if it can survive pyromaniac teens, good enough.

author: edavid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 07:43:50 pm
content: As a child, I was given a "Wahl Iso-Tip" battery powered soldering iron, and that worked out pretty well. No cord to get caught in things, and when you let go of the button it cools down pretty quickly. Soldering performance was good enough for most things.https://iso-tip.com/

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 17, 2019, 11:05:38 pm
content: Quote from: Gyro on April 17, 2019, 10:02:40 amQuite so but before we each splashed out on the proper temp controlled station for $$ an ordinary wall switch/light dimmer was a simple mod to use with any unregulated iron.I inherited an Antex X25 and it's now the first iron I grab for jobs away from the bench

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2019, 06:41:35 pm
content: ^ The other common cheap trick was an inline series switch with a diode (usually a 1N4007) across its contacts. When the switch was open, the half-wave rectified mains would keep the iron hot enough (but crud free) for fast recovery to soldering temperature when the switch was closed.It was important that the uninitiated got told that the switch wasn't an on-off one though.

author: stj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2019, 09:08:08 pm
content: get a T12 based station, they are light.stay away from antex.2 problems:1: it's mains and you can damage the cable.2: it has no thermal control and gets VERY hot after an hour or so - i know because i owned a CS(18w) for too long!!

author: Totalsolutions
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: April 19, 2019, 10:03:22 am
content: FEATURES1. A choice of PVC or burn-proof silicone cabling.2. Low voltage power supply (24V) available.3. Resilient, high-impact polycarbonate handle.4. Fume extraction kits to reduce exposure to flux fume.5. Manufactured to international Quality standard ISO 9001:20156. Fully compliant with all European directives on electrical safety and electromagnetic compatibility.It’s an Antex

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 19, 2019, 10:17:40 am
content: Quote from: stj on April 18, 2019, 09:08:08 pmMy T12 blew up. Twice. Now resides on my neighbour’s garage roof. Never had an antex do that.If you use an antex, you tend to learn to clean the tip just before you do a joint. That gats the temperature just right. Also use a stand with it. That does the job too.I used a really cheap fire stick when I did my amateur radio stuff and that was the worst. It had oxidised between cleaning it and getting on the joint.Currently use a metcal ps900 and a 12v Weller TCP. Heaven.

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 19, 2019, 10:34:09 am
content: My first 'real' temperature controlled Iron was a little (6W I think) Weller low voltage one. When I got it home and opened it up, I found that it was just a transformer and a series 3W wirewound pot. I felt really let down by that!Weller were making decent industrial TCPs etc at the time, but they made some low end sh*t too.Don't discount the TS100 either. The motion activated standby and sleep modes are nice to have. It's a powerful iron for its size too.... But yes you do need to go to the trouble of getting some nice flexible silicone lead and a laptop PSU.

author: stj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 19, 2019, 01:14:58 pm
content: Quote from: bd139 on April 19, 2019, 10:17:40 amshit, what one was it?the Bakon ones are reliable - only issue i saw reported was poor soldering on the switch - and that was a one-off.