[sdiy] Soldering station decision

[Magnus Danielson]

From: "Trevor Page" <t at introspectiv.org>
Subject: [sdiy] Soldering station decision
Date: Fri, 1 Nov 2002 20:13:37 -0000

> Hi all,

Hi Trevor,

> The time has come for me to get myself a decent soldering iron station!

> I'm very familiar with the Weller station because I use one at work, and
> I know that I cannot go wrong with this station. The Xytronic, however,
> would probably do exactly what I want but for half the amount of money.
> I've never used a Xytronic, however, and I have no idea how the quality
> compares with the Weller. I know that the method of swapping between
> bits is the same, which is good. The station will probably see fairly
> moderate use, mainly SMD, and I want this thing to last for ages. It's
> important to me that the quality of the iron itself is similar to that
> of the Weller.
> 
> Any opinions on this? Any user reports on the Xytronic products? 
> 
> Regards and many thanks in advance for any advice offered. 

Well, I am not sure what I am going to recommend is in the league you are
looking at, but I want to point you to a good choice for both through-hole and
SMD components, namely the Metcal stuff. A Metcal station with a few different
tips and then a suitable stereomicroscope, and you can do alot. The Metcal has
the benefit that it only pumps out the energy when the tip is cooled, it works
extremely well.

I don't have one at home, but at work we have a pair of stations and they are
used with great satisfaction on a daily basis in our development/repair shop.
I'd like to have one at home thought... ;O)

Cheers,
Magnus