Soldering Station Buy - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 02:46:49 pm
content: Hello yesterday while soldering i found out that the crappy soldering iron that i bought from ebay (for 3 $ ..... that right believe it 3 USD ) wont do what i need.So i began searching ebay , deals extreme and i came up with many choices that are in my preferable range or price.For example this is one of the soldering stations i came up with.http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mini-Soldering-Station-BK-938-Welding-Equipment-Soldering-iron-tool-Station-/330877079497?_trksid=p2045573.m2042&_trkparms=aid%3D111000%26algo%3DREC.CURRENT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D27%26meid%3D6169498812383089165%26pid%3D100033%26prg%3D1011%26rk%3D1%26sd%3D330877079497%26http://dx.com/p/kada-936d-digital-soldering-station-with-english-manual-60w-24v-ac-1874http://dx.com/p/60w-soldering-iron-with-variable-temperature-control-110v-ac-58371I know that the last one is plugged directly to the wall socket and i dont know if i should chose it.PLEASE i need your opinion for all the above products and i would thank you if you suggested me other products in a certain price range (0 - 50 usd)i know that the price range is very small but its all i can do i am just a High school student who has electronics as a hobby (i hope electronics wont be my hobby anymore after next year )

author: Telstar
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 04:01:47 pm
content: The Hakko clones like the 936D (second of your links) are decent.A search in this forum will help too.

author: Amarbir[Lynx-India]
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 05:44:34 pm
content: Sir ,Check This ->https://www.eevblog.com/forum/beginners/soldering-station-advice/.

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 07:26:46 pm
content: Quote from: Telstar on March 11, 2013, 04:01:47 pmThank you i will consider buying it .

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 07:33:43 pm
content: Quote from: Amarbir[Lynx-India] on March 11, 2013, 05:44:34 pmThank you for your suggestion but they are kind of expensive but that fixpoint soldering iron seemed pretty good to me !!!I will read the whole post and i will reply to you.

author: img
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 10:08:16 pm
content: If you are a beginner, i suggest Hakko FX888. It's not a good idea to start off with Chinese copies when a stable product is available at a reasonable price. If you buy a Hakko and hate it, you can always sell it and make someone very happy.

author: Telstar
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 11, 2013, 10:37:53 pm
content: He has a 50€ budget, and in Greece the hakko is over 3 times that price. There are really no alternatives to the Chinese clones in this range. An used Weller maybe.

author: img
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 07:49:34 am
content: Quote from: Telstar on March 11, 2013, 10:37:53 pmOK, then a used Weller. In my experience, it's much better to have a good iron used than a Chinese clone new. Actually, I might have an either new or almost new Chinese 936 sitting somewhere and not being used, even with a couple of extra tips if I remember correctly. Not sure what postage charges woud be from UK to Greece, but if the OP wants to find out and cover the postage, i'll send the pseudo-936 and tips with my complements.But still, OP, think more than twice before getting involved with a Chinese soldering iron.

author: amyk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 07:54:14 am
content: Any of those (except maybe the last one) will be much better than a $3 (probably unregulated) iron.

author: kodai
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 10:54:11 am
content: The Kada unit on DX should work for you. Skip the cheap $3.00 iron and run, screaming () from that ebay BK station. If you get the Kada unit on DX, then get some spare tips on ebay when you can afford them. The clone tips for Hakko 936 will fit the Kada unit.

author: metalphreak
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 01:16:49 pm
content: http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__19241__Soldering_Station_with_Adjustable_Heat_Range_with_EU_plug.htmlHobby King = Volume = Cheaper Cheap Things

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 08:48:16 pm
content: Quote from: Telstar on March 11, 2013, 10:37:53 pmRight thanks for that but i can always buy it online if i find a good deal.

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 08:50:43 pm
content: Quote from: amyk on March 12, 2013, 07:54:14 amOf course it will be (and it is unregulated)

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 08:51:42 pm
content: Quote from: metalphreak on March 12, 2013, 01:16:49 pmFREAKING LOVED IT I WILL CHECK OUT THE FINAL PRICE WITH THE SHIPPING FEES AND I WILL REPLY TO YOU THANKS

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 08:58:23 pm
content: Quote from: metalphreak on March 12, 2013, 01:16:49 pmMAN I FREAKING LOVE YOU ABOUT THE PRODUCT BUT IT HAS 29.79 usd Shipping Charges.....But i can use a discount code ... can i find any code?

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 12, 2013, 09:31:51 pm
content: See how much it costs in shipping to get a station from Farnell :http://goo.gl/ljwodFor Romania where I an they have decent shipping costs (under 10$)The cheap Tenma ones are rebranded Atten stations and should work with Hakko tips, if not there are tips available on eBay anyway.The Duratool ones are relabeled Zhondi stations (see below) which are also acceptable.Otherwise... take it easy man.Don't rush into buying something just because it's cheap.You just realized the solder irons you plug directly into the socket are crap, now you want to get some crap solder station?No matter what you pick, it will be a bit expensive, because the transformer inside the unit is heavy and full of expensive copper. What's cheap is usually also weaker, for example a solder station like that one from Hobby King is only 30-40 watts. The original Hakko 936 and the new Hakko FX-888 is 60-65 watts.Now, for soldering some small components on a piece of veroboard/stripboard or soldering a wire, 30 watts is enough ... but if you plan to use the soldering station in the future to fix some electronics, such as motherboards or other stuff, you need a solder station with a bit more power.Also, you should focus your search on a soldering station that has tips easily available. The tips of soldering stations have a life, if you use them properly they will last for some time but eventually you will have to replace them.Some soldering stations are clones of that Hakko 936 so they support their tips, which you can easily find on eBay (both original tips or fake ones). Just look at some reviews only and on this forum to see if a particular soldering station has easy to find tips.And as a tip, a lot of soldering stations are made by two or three big companies .. Atten, Aoyue and Zhondi are three of them.Here are Atten's soldering stations:http://www.atten.eu/solder-rework.htmlHere are Aouye's soldering stations:http://www.aoyue.com/en/Product.asp?BigClassName=THROUGH-HOLE%20SOLDERINGHere are Zhondi's soldering stations:http://www.china-zhongdi.com/2013/?cat=3You can look at various companies that sell soldering stations and you realize they simply relabel these stations.For example, Circuit Specialists has some here:http://www.circuitspecialists.eu/soldering/soldering-stationsIf you look at CSI Deluxe 60w, it's just a relabeled ATTEN AT938DSo why not just search ebay.co.uk or ebay.de for an Atten AT938D then? Just pick a european seller if you want faster shipping.But I would say just look at the cheaper soldering stations from the three sellers above, look at the ones that clone the classic Hakko 936, then look on eBay for those models.

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 13, 2013, 06:16:19 am
content: Thank you i saw some stations but i could not ignore that they are pretty expensive (some of them ) i will check them out with more detail later and i will replay thank you.

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 13, 2013, 10:05:00 am
content: A good solder station will cost you around 40-50 euro.The Tenma solder stations on Farnell are actually cheap compared to eBay and other sites that sell the same models. Tenma is Farnell's own brand, and Farnell can buy in volume so the prices are decent and they don't charge a ton on shipping.You should stop thinking you can get something for 20-30$, even if you find something it will be crap. Your budget of 50 euro is actually pretty much the price most decent soldering stations will be at, 40-50 euro.Just spend more money,if you get something decent, it is something that you will use for lots of years, it's not something you'll need to replace with something better next year.The old saying really applies in this case : "you're too poor to buy something cheap" - you'll just buy something cheap, have it break down in a few months and then you'll have to buy a new one so what will you save then?

author: ChrisGreece52
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 13, 2013, 12:15:48 pm
content: Got it .ill search a bit more and then i make a desicion .

author: metalphreak
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 13, 2013, 01:38:12 pm
content: Quote from: ChrisGreece52 on March 12, 2013, 08:58:23 pmAh that sucks. They have an Aussie warehouse where shipping is only $9 so it ends up only being about $25 for us Australians.

author: mikgntl-2013
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 18, 2013, 06:08:52 pm
content: For the ones who are looking for a soldering station, there is a JBC CD-2BB on sale in the Buy/Sell/Wanted section.