Cheap Chinese Soldering Station - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: techiemoore
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 02:11:36 am
content: After first watching BigClive's video on Youtube (youtube.com/watch?v=aSweeoah-5s) and then seeing EEVBlog's, I thought I would make a post here to see what others thought of my encounter with a cheap soldering iron bought on Amazon.After I grew irritated enough with my existing soldering iron seeming to do absolutely nothing to existing solder on boards, I decided to spend a little extra and purchased this Yescom Soldering Stationhttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QIGJSF8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. Appearing almost identical to the YIHUA (not sure if that matters), I grew extremely irritated when I went to tighten the cheap plastic collar on the iron lightly with simple needle nose plyers – the collar crumbled to bits in my hands (https://s32.postimg.org/j5np8opr9/WP_20160630_20_23_14_Pro.jpg).I’ve cooled off a little since then and I'm interested to hear other opinions on the matter. I was also wondering if anyone knew of a metal replacement collar that might fit that I could use instead of the stock garbage.

author: ez24
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 02:33:40 am
content: is techiemoore really chris moore of Amazon fame? Chris does not like thishttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QIGJSF8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&p;sc=1See what others buy after viewing thishttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AMC0L2M/ref=pd_cp_0_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=DJ3M0M0BFP2J38186XX5I do not know - 51 somewhat positive ratingsLooks like this oneI will go out on a limb - You get what you pay for. And for the money it seems ok

author: techiemoore
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 02:42:34 am
content: Um, Yeah- that's me.What tipped you off; the same name, the fact that I said I bought it on amazon, or the fact that our reviews are the same? I think you may have missed your calling as a private detective!Thanks for mentioning the price - I was wondering if this was a reasonable price for what I got, as I honestly don't know. I noticed that other one with the great reviews yesterday, and even though they are shipping out a replacement part, I am considering returning the device and exchanging it for the one with better reviews. I wonder how I missed this one - maybe the price has dropped since I bought the one from Yescom....Weird.Anyway, I'm interested to hear other opinions on the matter. I was also wondering if anyone knew of a metal replacement collar that might fit that I could use instead of the stock garbage.

author: sleemanj
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 02:57:16 am
content: Quote from: techiemoore on July 02, 2016, 02:11:36 amWHY?! Why would you use pliers to tighten the plastic collar? Just use your fingers, screw it on, that's it. The meal nut, sure , pliers for that if you are doing a hot-swap, but you're not building an engine here, you don't need to put any torque on it, finger tight, if you can't undo it with your fingers, why on earth... I don't know.As for "not melting solder". 1) existing boards are likely using lead-free, higher temperature required. 2) Pads connected to large planes planes are not easy to desolder unless you have a high thermal MASS iron, think of thermal mass like a capacitor, store heat in the iron tip and dump it quickly into the joint before the plane can wick it away. 3) Add solder to a joint you are trying to desolder, it helps with both 1 and 2.

author: ez24
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 03:06:57 am
content: Quote from: techiemoore on July 02, 2016, 02:11:36 amFYI not all plastic collars are bad. My Calico M-100 rifle has a plastic collar (that came loose). I just used my hand to tighten it and went on shooting. Hand tighten this and go on soldering ha ha haBut seriously I would like to hear what others say because I am looking at buying one of these also. For hobby use.

author: techiemoore
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 03:02:25 pm
content: Hmmm...The more I look into this, the more it seems I have over reacted. I always have this weird need for my things to be like...Apocalypse proof. From my boots to my hard drives to my soldering irons.sleemanj: I would love to learn more from you! Ihaveultimately used a little solder in the manner you suggested in the past and that usually does the trick.So, as I have looked into this further, it seems that a lot of people are suspecting "counterfeit" Hakko soldering irons are going around. (I guess Hakko is a good name?) A lot of people, amongst other short comings that seem to match the soldering iron I have, have mentioned that the collar in question is made from chincy, light weight plastic.Still wondering if there is a metal collar that might fit, I was also wondering what temperature you guys usually use your irons at. Though I feel that the parts used on the device should be able to handle the temperature it is capable of producing, perhaps that is part of the problem. As explained, I've grown tired of my irons doing nothing, so I immediately cranked this thing all the way to 500c as soon as I got it. Perhaps that's part of the problem.......Jeeze, in a minute you guys are going to think I'm either a troll or one of those terrible "jack of all trades" fools.

author: GEuser
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 03:30:01 pm
content: Quote from: techiemoore on July 02, 2016, 03:02:25 pmNope , steroids and weight lifting (insert smiley)

author: imidis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2016, 08:39:19 pm
content: Temp depends on what I'm doing, smaller things I will go at lower temp, larger things a little higher, also keep in mind, things that will take the heat away, I like to used a larger tip for more heat transfer. Heat temp is more of a feel thing, than and unless you have a way to measure, the temp could be off a bit on calibration.I would just replace it with a replacement iron, and for what its worth, my HAKKO has a plastic collar as well.The fine tip left on the Yihua was just for a small trace repair on a phone, I don't normally use that tip.

author: techiemoore
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 03, 2016, 10:52:23 pm
content: Quote from: GEuser on July 02, 2016, 03:30:01 pmI dont get it.Quote from: imidis on July 02, 2016, 08:39:19 pmThanks! Great advice all around.Alright - so then lets switch gears;Does anyone have any recommendations on an iron that is compatible with my station?

author: GEuser
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 04, 2016, 03:54:41 am
content: I cant do those quotes properly so i'd mess it up ...Weightlifting , generally means strength and used to chucking heavy weights aroundSteroids , these days it seems very associated with the aboveSo tightening up a plastic nut to 50ft/lbs if one was into weightlifting and wondering why it broke would explain it all , get it now ?

author: imidis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2016, 06:27:19 am
content: I think, not 100% sure that the Yihua 907A replacement on ebay is most likely matched to what you have. (just check feedback on sellers)Yihua makes most of the clones. So most likely.

author: techiemoore
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 05, 2016, 07:37:28 pm
content: Quote from: GEuser on July 04, 2016, 03:54:41 amNo.Quote from: imidis on July 05, 2016, 06:27:19 amThanks! I may try that in the future (lets see how their replacement part treats me) and if I do, post the results here in the event someone has similar complaints.Thanks again to everyone for your time and effort.

author: GEuser
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 07, 2016, 01:58:04 pm
content: QuoteDon't forget to type that if or when someone asks if you do realize why that ferrule/nut "is" plastic and not steel , ok ..

author: Molenaar
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 07, 2016, 05:31:16 pm
content: Quote from: techiemoore on July 02, 2016, 03:02:25 pmIf the iron actually managed to get close to 500c, it might have been possible that you got a small oxide layer on your tip, which will greatly reduce heat transfer. For lead free, ~380 deg C should be plenty.To fix, brush your tip off with something a bit hard (others are probably going to flame me, but I use a steel sponge on my cheap tips) and tin it immediately. If you're not tinning your tip like you have massive OCD, you're doing it wrong (IME).If you already knew this all, my bad and carry on.

author: KL27x
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 07, 2016, 07:49:14 pm
content: QuoteMan just doesn't know his own strength!But seriously, plastic isn't plastic. Anyone can injection mold some plastic bits. To make them high temp, high tensile strength, and to make them in tight tolerances, there's some experience behind that. I don't expect just any generic iron to be consistently durable in that department. Eventually, they all break. You just broke yours, sooner.Get a Hakko. It is as bomb/apocalypse/idiot-proof as they come.And no, you don't want to replace that part with steel. Steel transfers heat. And your hand will come into contact with that part, regularly. Even if you have a strange way of using an iron where you never do.... well, how you gonna do tip changes without three hands and two sets of pliers? You can JBweld it together, add some fiber for strength, and use it until the heating element burns out, I suppose.

author: System Error Message
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 10, 2016, 01:00:28 am
content: The issue with chinese soldering irons or even the clones is safety. Lets not talk about the build quality or how well it works for a second. I bought one of those terrible plug soldering irons which Dave says is terrible but it actually has a wheel you can turn to adjust temperature. It works ofcourse but the issue with it is the insulation where you hold it as that can get hot. Although the soldering iron was £20 as a set of stuff related to soldering. As a soldering iron it was decent, as for the safety i wouldnt vouch for it. I had a plug based soldering iron before that was even worse as it didnt have adjustable temperature. I accidentally melted the insulation on its power cable. Cable management for plug based soldering iron is terrible.In the UK you wont find a hakko for an affordable price like Dave mentioned. The good stuff in the UK are always overpriced, such as black and decker, bosch, ASUS and netgear. If i werent complaining about hiked router prices in the UK (and the price of higher end consumer routers) the ASUS AC5300 would be about £500 on amazon instead of below £400 (retail is $500). You wont find a hakko soldering station like the one dave mentioned for below £100 in the UK and dave said a decent one was around $80. So in the UK you are left with 2 options, either get a crappy chinese one or chinese clone or buy OEM so i bought OEM. Circuit specialists ones are alright as for £100 i got SMD rework station (and free tweezers) and i read that they are actually built by a decent company. So i went with quality rather than cheaping out as safety is something to consider not just build quality and how well the product works.So brand stuff that become famous because of their quality or reliability gets the price hiked in the UK so the middleman is the one taking your money and the supplier gets the same amount regardless, its a very despicable and greedy practice by many sellers in the UK.You can cheap out on soldering iron tips, just as long as you get ones with fine tips.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 10, 2016, 03:08:02 am
content: Quote from: System Error Message on July 10, 2016, 01:00:28 amYou might want to take a look at Batterfly (FX-888D; 98EUR before VAT & free shipping).Oh, and they sell Rigol as well (even do package deals with the two).

author: ebclr
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2016, 11:35:45 am
content: Cheap and nice