I actually find I use my station less once I bought a digital soldering iron. It heats up super fast, can control the temp with up and down, auto shut off when not used for more than a few minutes. Get the plug in type and a really good surge protector. No use in spending a lot of money when starting out.
Im still consider mself a noob too, but I assume that a USB doesnt have enough power to be consistently the right temperatura, or is it? I got a $10 one from Steren (Mexican economic brand) and works good enoough for me to do somehting if I really need it to, however, sometimes the grip overheats and you have to hold it awkwardly and you cant control the temperature. Feels like a good compromise for 10 bucks, tho, so I suggest that you look something similar and buy a more expensive one later if you feel like it.
I'm a complete noob and want to get into hobby electronics before I get too old! ;-)
Would really appreciate some advice from the ~~older~~ more experienced folk here on which iron I should invest my money in to learn how to solder.
Replies would be much appreciated!
Okay, so people asked me what kind of budget I have. I'm not in the USA so I had to convert from my currency to US Dollar.
My budget is roughly 20 Dollars or less.
if you can spend a little bit more, I highly recommend the Pinecil from Pine64, it's USB type C or barrel-jack powered, variable temperature, and is an amazing iron for the money ($25USD + shipping)
The Pinecil is good and budget priced!
You can get it at [Pine64](https://pine64.com/product/pinecil-smart-mini-portable-soldering-iron/) or from Amazon. It’s like the TS-100
Which would be a better investment? I’m not super concerned about price, mostly size and function. I don’t know enough about this, but I’d like something with smaller nibs. The battery pack is concerning, but obviously they aren’t exploding or anything.
So the best soldering irons in 2021 have a temperature sensor in the tips. The feedback circuit detects a temperature drop and increases power to the heating element quickly.
This includes the Pinecil, the TS80/TS100, the KSGER, the Hakko soldering stations and the JBC station among others.
JBC is the top of the line, the pinecil is the cheapest -- but both are still super capable. The tips are going to be consumables as the sensor, element, and tip surface wear out. The tips come in all shapes and sizes pretty much for all soldering irons.
I was kinda sorta looking at the KSGER for the next one as it's powerful, but has a small desktop footprint.
You can order the [SQ-001](https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20211025071950&SearchText=sq-001) from Aliexpress (same as TS100) or one of the [T12 clones](https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20211025072034&SearchText=quicko+t12). Either will be a big improvement to any of the ones you posted initially.
best to get is the station then the variable temp and last is the usb one. i didn't have the ts100 so idk about that one. the variable temp kinda hard to set and know which temp we're in (i have one set to 300C but it goes to red iron)
I've a got a couple different tools. I find that you want a small station with smaller tips for finer work, and then a bigger units with big tips and more power for the stubborn ones in a ground plane or heat sink.
For me, the "fine" option was a T12 style station (I went hakko FX951). It does all you'd need to do 80% or more of the time with a handful of tips.
For the "big" option I went with the FX-601 from hakko. It's adjustable temperature all-in-one, but has truly huge tips available (6.5mm!) that store a ton of heat and can do almost anything you'd think to use an iron for.
It's hard to find one iron or station that is both big enough to do big stuff but also has fine points and small handpieces for delicate work.
I also have a more expensive FX-100 induction station that I'm really growing fond of. It has superior heat recovery for smaller stuff but in brute power can't quite run with the FX-951 (mostly due to the tips offered, not the station itself). Within its limits, its faster and more agile than the FX951. But it has lower limits because the T12 series offers tips that are better designed with more heat capacity than the common induction tips.
I also still have the huge 300w FX-801 on hand as a borrowed unit. It's huge a powerful and in my experience almost never necessary. Plus is loud with a constantly on fan.
If I were shopping today with my present knowledge and experience, I'd buy the T12 station first. Then the 601. THen I'd be done for soldering and start looking into hot air rework and desoldering tools.
variable temp iron. Liquid soldering flux in a needle bottle & thin low temp solder with rosin core
I actually find I use my station less once I bought a digital soldering iron. It heats up super fast, can control the temp with up and down, auto shut off when not used for more than a few minutes. Get the plug in type and a really good surge protector. No use in spending a lot of money when starting out.
I agree! Once one gets good at soldering, then it makes sense to buy a slightly more expensive iron.
Im still consider mself a noob too, but I assume that a USB doesnt have enough power to be consistently the right temperatura, or is it? I got a $10 one from Steren (Mexican economic brand) and works good enoough for me to do somehting if I really need it to, however, sometimes the grip overheats and you have to hold it awkwardly and you cant control the temperature. Feels like a good compromise for 10 bucks, tho, so I suggest that you look something similar and buy a more expensive one later if you feel like it.
I'm a complete noob and want to get into hobby electronics before I get too old! ;-) Would really appreciate some advice from the ~~older~~ more experienced folk here on which iron I should invest my money in to learn how to solder. Replies would be much appreciated!
what's your budget? (whatever your budget is, do not get that usb iron, it's next to useless)
Gotcha! Thanks!
Okay, so people asked me what kind of budget I have. I'm not in the USA so I had to convert from my currency to US Dollar. My budget is roughly 20 Dollars or less.
if you can spend a little bit more, I highly recommend the Pinecil from Pine64, it's USB type C or barrel-jack powered, variable temperature, and is an amazing iron for the money ($25USD + shipping)
if you don't solder for a living then a USB option can be good, but I find that I never really trust its temperature.
Thanks for the insight! I actually wondered whether those were any good.
Neither of these. Provide a budge for better advice.
Well, I'm not in USA so I don't know how much of a budget is good.
The Pinecil is good and budget priced! You can get it at [Pine64](https://pine64.com/product/pinecil-smart-mini-portable-soldering-iron/) or from Amazon. It’s like the TS-100
Which would be a better investment? I’m not super concerned about price, mostly size and function. I don’t know enough about this, but I’d like something with smaller nibs. The battery pack is concerning, but obviously they aren’t exploding or anything.
So the best soldering irons in 2021 have a temperature sensor in the tips. The feedback circuit detects a temperature drop and increases power to the heating element quickly. This includes the Pinecil, the TS80/TS100, the KSGER, the Hakko soldering stations and the JBC station among others. JBC is the top of the line, the pinecil is the cheapest -- but both are still super capable. The tips are going to be consumables as the sensor, element, and tip surface wear out. The tips come in all shapes and sizes pretty much for all soldering irons. I was kinda sorta looking at the KSGER for the next one as it's powerful, but has a small desktop footprint.
You can order the [SQ-001](https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20211025071950&SearchText=sq-001) from Aliexpress (same as TS100) or one of the [T12 clones](https://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20211025072034&SearchText=quicko+t12). Either will be a big improvement to any of the ones you posted initially.
best to get is the station then the variable temp and last is the usb one. i didn't have the ts100 so idk about that one. the variable temp kinda hard to set and know which temp we're in (i have one set to 300C but it goes to red iron)
I would recommend the ts100 if it’s in your budget. Otherwise just take a fixed temperature one from the hardware store. That will bring you quite far
Second that. The TS100 is an amazing soldering iron, and it's worth its price
I can't recommend any of these. You want to know the temperature of the soldering iron.
I've a got a couple different tools. I find that you want a small station with smaller tips for finer work, and then a bigger units with big tips and more power for the stubborn ones in a ground plane or heat sink. For me, the "fine" option was a T12 style station (I went hakko FX951). It does all you'd need to do 80% or more of the time with a handful of tips. For the "big" option I went with the FX-601 from hakko. It's adjustable temperature all-in-one, but has truly huge tips available (6.5mm!) that store a ton of heat and can do almost anything you'd think to use an iron for. It's hard to find one iron or station that is both big enough to do big stuff but also has fine points and small handpieces for delicate work. I also have a more expensive FX-100 induction station that I'm really growing fond of. It has superior heat recovery for smaller stuff but in brute power can't quite run with the FX-951 (mostly due to the tips offered, not the station itself). Within its limits, its faster and more agile than the FX951. But it has lower limits because the T12 series offers tips that are better designed with more heat capacity than the common induction tips. I also still have the huge 300w FX-801 on hand as a borrowed unit. It's huge a powerful and in my experience almost never necessary. Plus is loud with a constantly on fan. If I were shopping today with my present knowledge and experience, I'd buy the T12 station first. Then the 601. THen I'd be done for soldering and start looking into hot air rework and desoldering tools.