What kind of soldering iron do i need

The TFLY features an intelligent sleep mode that turns off the iron after anywhere from five to 30 minutes. You don't get the wealth of extras some kits have, but you do get five tips included.

Plenty of the soldering on this list will last you well into your electronics hobby. Even as your skill progresses, you still may never need to buy another soldering iron. A few accessories and maybe a handful of alternate tips, and you'll be good for a long time.

If you're just getting started with electronics, then you may want to check out our list of beginner's electronics skills you should know. We hope you like the items we recommend and discuss! MUO has affiliate and sponsored partnerships, so we receive a share of the revenue from some of your purchases.

Don't know how to clean Windows 10? Here's a clear step-by-step guide to getting your Windows PC nice and tidy again. Kris Wouk is a musician, writer, and whatever it's called when someone makes videos for the web. A tech enthusiast for as long as he can remember, he definitely has favorite operating systems and devices, but uses as many others as he can anyway, just to stay caught up. Share Share Tweet Email. Kris Wouk Articles Published. Subscribe to our newsletter Join our newsletter for tech tips, reviews, free ebooks, and exclusive deals!

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Saudi Arabia. Sierra Leone. Sint Maarten Dutch part. Solomon Islands. South Africa. South Georgia and the Southern Sandwich Islands. South Korea. Sri Lanka. Pierre and Miquelon. Vincent and the Grenadines. For an easy, convenient and highly versatile tool for many situations, consider the Weller WE soldering station. This station comes equipped with the WEP70 soldering iron, an excellent tool for a variety of different purposes, and one suitable for professional, prosumer and educational settings alike.

Because this iron is so versatile and can accommodate so many situations, it is the only tool available for this station. The WT Line is Weller's mid-range soldering station, and it comes with 12 compatible tools to choose from. The WT and the entire WT line of products all pack some serious power, meaning these are great tools to help you get the job done. They're extremely flexible, making them suitable for a wide array of different applications.

One of this soldering iron's greatest strengths comes from the small and compact nature that lets it fit neatly onto any workbench or table top. Best of all, this particular soldering station is compatible with all tools in the entire WD and WSD families, making it versatile and usable in multiple applications. WX Line is Weller's performance line, and the WX boasts 15 compatible tools, a motion sensor, micro tools with ultra-precise performance and extremely accurate tip temperature. Retraceable process reliability, otherwise known as traceability, is extremely important in particular sectors of industry such as automotive and electronics.

If this is a goal that's important to you and your work, you might be interested in the WX These are far from the only options out there, and we encourage you to do more browsing as you explore the other models available today. Between these three models here, however, we can get a good idea of some of the major different types of models you'll find for sale.

So let's look at how these three models stack up against one another. You'll find that the WE is by far the most inexpensive option of the three. Compare these prices against the budget you created earlier, and see where you stand. Wondering what type of soldering iron you should use for electronics?

Not sure how to choose a soldering iron for stained glass, cords or automotive parts? Look at the intended uses of each of these three models. The WE is a very versatile model that can perform a lot of great work without having one specific area that it specializes in, whether you're a professional, prosumer or educator. The WT has a handy ability to perform micro-soldering tasks, making it convenient in areas that larger tools might not be able to accommodate.

A soldering iron is an essential tool for creating, modifying, or repairing electronics. By applying heat and solder, you can fuse together conductive metal elements such as wires to create durable, permanent connections. Hobbyist soldering iron users might be interested in building a keyboard, repairing their headphones, or assembling an electronics kit designed to teach how devices are put together, for example. Soldering is easy enough that you can learn the basics in a few minutes.

You also need a pair of wire cutters—we suggest the Hakko CHP —to snip solder or wire leads. And you need some solder: Beginners should look for tin-lead solder with a rosin core in a spool or a tube. We found the tube easier to hold during testing. You can choose to solder with lead-free solder instead, but it needs to be heated to higher temperatures and is a bit more difficult to use. Be aware that you should take safety precautions anytime you work with solder.

Keep children and pets away from the area where you solder. The included directions are thorough and clear, and the battery, microcontroller, and LEDs provide a satisfying range of components to solder. People also use soldering irons for jewelry metalwork, though this guide focuses on electronics use. Our research shows that jewelry makers often prefer using butane-based soldering torches to achieve the heat necessary for the higher melting points of silver, gold, and other metals. That control comes in handy when you need a higher temperature for heating thicker materials or when you need lower temperatures for working with delicate components.

Soldering stations come in two parts: a base typically with a holster, a temperature dial, and a sponge and an iron that plugs into the base. Some include a separate stand that takes up less space in your immediate work area.

These systems tend to have precise temperature control, quick-heating irons, and rugged designs. However, you should invest in one that is made well enough to last and has the features to be useful for years.

We evaluated 10 finalists on the following features:. We searched popular retailers such as Adafruit and Amazon for soldering irons that met our criteria, and we asked our experts to name their favorites. In , we tested eight soldering irons at the Nordeast Makers makerspace in Minneapolis, which has a dedicated soldering table and good ventilation. Our testing took place at an apartment with a window open and a fan on for ventilation; it was 10 degrees outside, which likely increased heat-up times compared with the hot makerspace, so we tested the new models against our picks and collected new data for all of them.

We measured how long we took to set up each soldering iron. Whereas some required zero assembly and some had simple pieces to snap together, other models had poorly cut components that made setup take much longer than we expected. To test the temperature range of each iron, we used a Hakko FG tester.

We also used the Hakko tester to measure how long each iron took to reach degrees Fahrenheit, which is hot enough for electronics work. We measured the temperature at each marker on their control knobs, as well. This through-hole kit includes a microcontroller, a battery holder, and nine LEDs that you must solder to a circuit board. We also considered how comfortable each iron was to hold, including how thin and padded the handle was and whether the handle felt hot.

We evaluated the sturdiness of all the stands, as well; we found that stands that were too light and prone to sliding around on the work surface felt less safe to use.

Finally, we looked for longer cords and useful accessories. Plus, the iron felt easy and comfortable for us to use, and its included station is sturdy, with a place for every accessory.

A faster heat-up time means you get to start soldering faster, and it also means that the tip will return to its working temperature more quickly between each joint. Its lowest temperature was also average, though a lower temperature is necessary only for more delicate electronics. Like all of the irons we tested except for the Vastar, the X-Tronic soldering iron came with only a single conical tip, but it was thin enough to work well with the Larson Scanner Kit.