Pretty useless soldering iron

[AK]

I bought this thing.

It has setting to adjust but it does NOT maintain anything like a set temperature.

I left it on one night at the 300 setting.

When I woke up the next day and say that it was on, I noticed that the tip was slightly glowing.

https://i.imgur.com/qhM1Ymo.jpg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Electric-Soldering-Iron-Gun-Adjustable-Temperature-60W-Welding-Set-Tool-Kit-110V/372172941590?epid=18028313401&hash=item56a73c6916:g:XS0AAOSw2NhcnXZY

I now use it to melt holes in plastic, pvc, melt a hole thru fabric, etc.

Andy

 

[Banders]

On 06/17/2019 07:34 AM, AK wrote:

I bought this thing.

It has setting to adjust but it does NOT maintain anything like a set temperature.

I left it on one night at the 300 setting.

300 Celsius, that's 572 Fahrenheit.

> When I woke up the next day and say that it was on, I noticed that the tip was slightly glowing.

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

https://i.imgur.com/qhM1Ymo.jpg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Electric-Soldering-Iron-Gun-Adjustable-Temperature-60W-Welding-Set-Tool-Kit-110V/372172941590?epid=18028313401&hash=item56a73c6916:g:XS0AAOSw2NhcnXZY

I now use it to melt holes in plastic, pvc, melt a hole thru fabric, etc.

60 watts is sort of, too much.

> Andy

 

[Cursitor Doom]

On Mon, 17 Jun 2019 08:28:53 -0700, Banders wrote:

On 06/17/2019 07:34 AM, AK wrote:
I bought this thing.

It has setting to adjust but it does NOT maintain anything like a set
temperature.

I left it on one night at the 300 setting.

300 Celsius, that's 572 Fahrenheit.

When I woke up the next day and say that it was on, I noticed that the
tip was slightly glowing.

You're not supposed to leave them on overnight!

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

https://i.imgur.com/qhM1Ymo.jpg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Electric-Soldering-Iron-Gun-Adjustable-

Temperature-60W-Welding-Set-Tool-Kit-110V/372172941590?
epid=18028313401&hash=item56a73c6916:g:XS0AAOSw2NhcnXZY

I now use it to melt holes in plastic, pvc, melt a hole thru fabric,
etc.

60 watts is sort of, too much.

Yes, more than double. 15W to 25W is ideal for electronics.




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[default]

On Mon, 17 Jun 2019 08:28:53 -0700, Banders <snap@mailchute.com>
wrote:

On 06/17/2019 07:34 AM, AK wrote:
I bought this thing.

It has setting to adjust but it does NOT maintain anything like a set temperature.

I left it on one night at the 300 setting.

300 Celsius, that's 572 Fahrenheit.

When I woke up the next day and say that it was on, I noticed that the tip was slightly glowing.

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

https://i.imgur.com/qhM1Ymo.jpg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Electric-Soldering-Iron-Gun-Adjustable-Temperature-60W-Welding-Set-Tool-Kit-110V/372172941590?epid=18028313401&hash=item56a73c6916:g:XS0AAOSw2NhcnXZY

I now use it to melt holes in plastic, pvc, melt a hole thru fabric, etc.

60 watts is sort of, too much.

Andy

I ain't no x-spurt, but 300 Celsius is 573 Kelvin and that is light at
a wavelength of ~5,000+ nanometers and human vision is generally
accepted to be 400-750 so 5,000 is outside the range of humans.

The electric oven has relatively small volume heating elements that
are expected to heat a large area quickly so have to get into the
visible range to do it.

 

[Rodney Pont]

On Mon, 17 Jun 2019 07:34:27 -0700 (PDT), AK wrote:

I bought this thing.

It has setting to adjust but it does NOT maintain anything like a set temperature.

I left it on one night at the 300 setting.

When I woke up the next day and say that it was on, I noticed that the tip was slightly glowing.

https://i.imgur.com/qhM1Ymo.jpg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Electric-Soldering-Iron-Gun-Adjustable-Temperature-60W-Welding-Set-Tool-Kit-110V/372172941590?epid=18028313401&hash=item56a73c6916:g:XS0AAOSw2NhcnXZY

I now use it to melt holes in plastic, pvc, melt a hole thru fabric, etc.

It may be that it isn't actually temperature controlled but the dial
simply adjusts the power level. If you have a mains power meter you can
check quite easily as the control will just vary the current but it
will never shut off at temperature.

I got a https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/273879662615 which is temperature
controlled and I'm very pleased with it. Have a look at soldering
stations (or rework stations) because you can get them with a bench
power supply built in, both voltage and max current adjustable, which
might be useful to you in your journey into the land of electronics
(although a separate bench psu can be had)


--
Regards - Rodney Pont
The from address exists but is mostly dumped,
please send any emails to the address below
e-mail rpont (at) gmail (dot) com

 

[Rodney Pont]

On Mon, 17 Jun 2019 08:28:53 -0700, Banders wrote:

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

I bet they don't. The oven is set at a lower temperature but the
heating elements get much hotter than that otherwise they would never
be able to get the volume of air up to 572.

--
Regards - Rodney Pont
The from address exists but is mostly dumped,
please send any emails to the address below
e-mail rpont (at) gmail (dot) com

 

[Ralph Mowery]

In article <qe8jag$amj$1@dont-email.me>, curd@notformail.com says...

60 watts is sort of, too much.

Yes, more than double. 15W to 25W is ideal for electronics.

It depends on the iron. For the simple ones probably. They just depend
on heat loss in air to the amount of power they draw to hold the
temperature close to what you want.

For a good temperature controled iron 60 watts is fine. You set it for
the temperature you want. The small tips for the printed circuit and
especially the SMD work loose heat very fast, so they need more power to
bring it back up when the tip is touched to the work.

 

[Banders]

On 06/17/2019 07:34 AM, AK wrote:

I bought this thing.

When I woke up the next day and say that it was on, I noticed that the tip was slightly glowing.

I now use it to melt holes in plastic, pvc, melt a hole thru fabric, etc.

Install indoor fire sprinklers immediately. You can use the iron to
solder the copper pipe.

 

Well that'll learnya. What do you think you get for ten bucks ? The knob, do you REALLY think there is a thermostat under there connected to a thermal sensor near the tip ? NOOO, that is a rheostat. Those temperatures were calculated by someone who may know math but not all the variables.

They always said to use a low wattage iron on circuit boards. Well I used a Weller 8200 gun, 100/140 watts. As I soldered I turned it on and off with the trigger, maintaining the temperature I wanted.

Now my iron is about 60 watts I think but it is thermostatically controlled.. Your iron can be five million watts if the temperature is properly regulated. Of course if you're a real idiot you could burn through a board faster with a temperature controlled higher power iron, but I doubt that's in the warranty.

[just noticed my iron was still on, hmmm]

So I thik I paid like $60 for mine which is pretty good I think. Friend of mine paid a hundred and change for a Hakko which is a VERY good brand. I got an elcheapo but it is a good elcheapo. When it hits the dust I guess I'll have to go with the Hakko because I want it to work right. I need to effectively solder these boards without damage and I need what I need.

Tell you what, rather than that piece of shit, just get the absolute cheapest thing Hakko has and it will be orders of magnitude better. You'll love it. I've used them.

 

[default]

On Mon, 17 Jun 2019 23:09:51 -0700 (PDT), jurb6006@gmail.com wrote:

>Well that'll learnya. What do you think you get for ten bucks ? The knob, do you REALLY think there is a thermostat under there connected to a thermal sensor near the tip ? NOOO, that is a rheostat. Those temperatures were calculated by someone who may know math but not all the variables.

Yeah they don't invest a lot of money on those things. But, if
el-cheapo hot-melt glue guns can incorporate a thermostat, it is
conceivable that a cheap soldering iron may.

Snap-action (bi-metallic) thermostats have come a long way since they
were first introduced. My $10 coffee maker has one that manages to do
a pretty damn good job of brewing and heating coffee.

They always said to use a low wattage iron on circuit boards. Well I used a Weller 8200 gun, 100/140 watts. As I soldered I turned it on and off with the trigger, maintaining the temperature I wanted.

I used those in the old days when I wired to tube sockets and terminal
strips. They are worse than useless today IMO.

Now my iron is about 60 watts I think but it is thermostatically controlled. Your iron can be five million watts if the temperature is properly regulated. Of course if you're a real idiot you could burn through a board faster with a temperature controlled higher power iron, but I doubt that's in the warranty.

60W is what I use for stained glass soldering. 40 Watts is over-kill
for electronics except for some HD stuff.

[just noticed my iron was still on, hmmm]

So I thik I paid like $60 for mine which is pretty good I think. Friend of mine paid a hundred and change for a Hakko which is a VERY good brand. I got an elcheapo but it is a good elcheapo. When it hits the dust I guess I'll have to go with the Hakko because I want it to work right. I need to effectively solder these boards without damage and I need what I need.

Tell you what, rather than that piece of shit, just get the absolute cheapest thing Hakko has and it will be orders of magnitude better. You'll love it. I've used them.

Hexacon irons are a little out of my price range these days, but I
built a little iron holder with a modified lamp dimmer to control the
power and it works very well. Low setting barely melts solder so I
can leave it on for hours and have it ready quickly if I need to
solder. On a high setting it can burn the tip in an hour.

 

[Ralph Mowery]

In article <fhkhge1fvmk2jhf4n7g6tm7le7sfm4e3ir@4ax.com>,
default@defaulter.net says...

Snap-action (bi-metallic) thermostats have come a long way since they
were first introduced. My $10 coffee maker has one that manages to do
a pretty damn good job of brewing and heating coffee.

They always said to use a low wattage iron on circuit boards. Well I used a Weller 8200 gun, 100/140 watts. As I soldered I turned it on and off with the trigger, maintaining the temperature I wanted.

I used those in the old days when I wired to tube sockets and terminal
strips. They are worse than useless today IMO.

Now my iron is about 60 watts I think but it is thermostatically controlled. Your iron can be five million watts if the temperature is properly regulated. Of course if you're a real idiot you could burn through a board faster with a temperature controlled higher power iron, but I doubt that's in the warranty.

60W is what I use for stained glass soldering. 40 Watts is over-kill
for electronics except for some HD stuff.

Things have changed for soldering equipment over the years. At one time
the soldering irons for electronic work (especially PC boards) were not
very temperature controlled. You bought a certanin wattage and that
kept the temperature to reasonable levels. It was all about how much
heat vers wattage that would be produced in still air. As things
progressed the irons started having temperature sensors in them. You
could then dial in the temperature you wanted. The larger the wattage,
the better the iron could maintain that temperature when doing the
actual soldering.

A 60 watt iron that is temperature controlled is very useful for PC and
SMD work.

As a hobbiest I bought one of the hot air rework stations off ebay.
They are about $ 60 now and have a hot air wand and soldering iron. They
are temperature controlled. It is ok for home use and works ok. It is
not the quality of the Hakos but it is way less expensive. If I had a
job that used the station very much I would go for the better quality
ones, but the $ 60 one works well for home use.

 

[George Herold]

On Monday, June 17, 2019 at 3:01:04 PM UTC-4, Rodney Pont wrote:

On Mon, 17 Jun 2019 08:28:53 -0700, Banders wrote:

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

I bet they don't. The oven is set at a lower temperature but the
heating elements get much hotter than that otherwise they would never
be able to get the volume of air up to 572.

My soldering iron tip runs at 700 F. It doesn't glow, even with the lights
out.

George H.

--
Regards - Rodney Pont
The from address exists but is mostly dumped,
please send any emails to the address below
e-mail rpont (at) gmail (dot) com

 

[Rodney Pont]

On Tue, 18 Jun 2019 11:27:30 -0700 (PDT), George Herold wrote:

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

I bet they don't. The oven is set at a lower temperature but the
heating elements get much hotter than that otherwise they would never
be able to get the volume of air up to 572.

My soldering iron tip runs at 700 F. It doesn't glow, even with the lights
out.

No, it won't. It needs something of the order of 1,000 - 1,200 degrees
C to glow (I think).

--
Regards - Rodney Pont
The from address exists but is mostly dumped,
please send any emails to the address below
e-mail rpont (at) gmail (dot) com

 

[Jasen Betts]

On 2019-06-18, Rodney Pont <mlist4@infohit.me.uk> wrote:

On Tue, 18 Jun 2019 11:27:30 -0700 (PDT), George Herold wrote:

The elements in our electric oven sure glow at temperatures lower than
572 degrees F.

I bet they don't. The oven is set at a lower temperature but the
heating elements get much hotter than that otherwise they would never
be able to get the volume of air up to 572.

My soldering iron tip runs at 700 F. It doesn't glow, even with the lights
out.

No, it won't. It needs something of the order of 1,000 - 1,200 degrees
C to glow (I think).

glow becomes visible at about 600C / 1100F


--
When I tried casting out nines I made a hash of it.