What do you guys think? I’m looking for a new soldering iron. Anyone have experience with this? It’s size/portability and features are really growing on me.
Another cheaper model here:
Anyone?
Looks cool I’d be interested in hearing about it too. But from what I’ve read in general cordless soldering irons that do the instant cool thing are pretty bad. But if this is better I’d get one too.
I’ve heard bad things about the coldheat irons, they are inconsistent, and rely on pressure to signal the way they work to actually start working and make heat.
These kind of soldering tools are really only good for the occasional solder needing to be done when you are away from a wall outlet. The main problem with them is that they just don’t solder very consistently and they can potentially fry electronics since they have a live voltage on the tip. If you are serious about soldering then you might want to invest in a variable temperature soldering station with a built-in holder to safely place the iron in between soldering.
crazy shitty. dont do it mark
i had the cheaper version and it totally sucked
i took a hatchet to it in my backyard
I have one of those and it sucks, i wanted it to hack pads but its way too big and it didnt work at all.
Nope, dont get it. Unwieldy, difficult to use, and useless for fine work.
no
they are teh suxxorz
AVOID LIKE PLAUGE.
Buy a normal $7 one from ACE
No no and no. Had it. Was useless, but luckily it broke down before I could waste too much time trying to make it the great soldering tool it was advertised to be.
Thanks for the heads up ya’ll.
SRK saves the day 
cold heat gives you shitty joints. i used one for a couple joints then put it back in the package.
this is the way to go for new irons
http://www.hakkousa.com/products.asp?CID=49,112 <— analog display
http://www.hakkousa.com/products.asp?CID=49,113 <— digital display
its the same iron just digital to analog heat controls. btw you can get them for alot cheaper on ebay or other stores. my local frys has the 936 ESD for $80.
I wouldn’t be able to justify spending over $50 for a soldering iron unless it was for business purposes.
I have a $19 soldering iron and it does the job fine (after lots of practice lol).
This is the one I have:
I only have one complaint. Since it is made out of plastic, the top part of the plastic gets quite warm.
Same here, and same thoughts. Don’t buy it, it’s a piece of crap.
Most of the soldering you’ll do in hacking pads doesn’t really require the kind of precision you’ll get with the fancy soldering irons. I bought one for like $9, and it’s worked great for a couple years now.
you like tips that oxidize after a few uses? a $20 soldering iron just wont cut it for any real circuit work. also the heat of a $20 iron isn’t controllable so you would have to have different irons depending on what you are soldering.(ie 15watt for pcb 30 watt for quick metal joints 80 watt for super strong joints)
never buy a cheap iron, its always worth it to step up and buying a hakko or weller.( i own a weller but i prefer hakko a lot more because of the soldering iron handle size; they make them as small as a big sharpie)
To me, $19 is not cheap. $10 is cheap and $40 is expensive. $40+ is excessive. I think that because I’m a 19 year old college student who wants to do some simple soldering on an arcade stick. The soldering iron I use is fine, and one of my older college friends has used it and thinks its fine a well. Even UltraDavid bought his for $9 and has had it for years lol.
If I had a business that consisted of soldering joints frequently for customers, then $80-$120 would seem justifiable. But for personal use, I think that $15-$30 is a good amount to spend on a piece of metal with a sharp tip on it that heats up.
I know im off topic but your avatar is fuckin pure win.
My first and only iron. I don’t do anything but PCB work atm, so it’s perfect =). Bought the needle tip too =)
My little bro is a skilled bike mechanic and he’s been using one since this past Christmas. He says it’s great for the stuff he does but he expects that it would absolutely devour fine electrical circuits.
a $50 soldering iron is considered low quality, but buying a $50 iron is great because it is a cheap way to get an iron that can change its wattage.
Weller is a great brand for a $50 soldering iron.