Soldering irons: made in America but designed in Russia?

[Rich Grise]

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 14:23:09 -0700, John Larkin wrote:

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 21:08:32 +0100, Allus Smith <allus_smith@com.com

Don't start me on the looks of cars!

Mini. Citroën. Vauxhall. Volvo. Rolls. Porsche. Fiat.

http://philip.greenspun.com/images/pcd3815/dublin-deux-chevaux-20.4.jpg

I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:51:20 -0700, John Larkin wrote:

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 22:41:56 +0100, Allus Smith <allus_smith@com.com

One distinctive feature of US car design is a look I call: "I've just
rammed a wall"

If you want to stuff a huge V8 with 200 tons of air conditioning and
power-everything under the hood, you need a lot of hood.

But Cadillac and most things Chrysler are admittedly over the top. They
corner the ugly-car-lover market.

My second-favorite car actually was car-shaped:

http://image.hotrod.com/f/8929747/113_0310_12z+1978_ford_fairmont_futura+front_side_view.jpg
but mine was green.

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Richard The Dreaded Liber]

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 20:48:58 -0700, Jeff Liebermann wrote:

Of course, the government derives substantial revenue from taxing what are
now economy and mid size cars, so don't expect the situation to change in
the foreseeable future.

Until we all storm Washington, DC with our pitchforks and torches. >:->

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Richard The Dreaded Liber]

On Mon, 20 Apr 2009 21:54:46 -0700, John Larkin wrote:

If the politicoes had any guts+sense, they'd just up the taxes on
gasoline, and let the market take care of the rest.

I could live with arbitrarily high gasonline taxes, since I only have a

bike. ;-)

(admittedly, bus fares might go up a bit.)

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

On Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:17:37 +0100, Steve Firth wrote:

Joerg <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote:

the little Jeep looks quite cool.

Jeep reliability and build quality is, however, a bad joke. I've had the
opportunity to compare ten year old Jeeps (Cherokee and Grand Cherokee)
with my ten year old Ford - the Jeeps have all been in poor condition at
lower mileage. I've also found the Dodge/GMC trucks to be better built
than Jeeps, which seems odd. I conly guess that the old AMC spirit of
building rubbish that falls apart still prevails at Jeep.

I once saw a "tractor pull" where one of the events was a mud "race". With
all of the monster trucks, 6' tires, noise, and noise, the only vehicle
that actually made it to the end of the mud run was a dolled up WWII
Willys Jeep. (well, most likely a replica, but it was shaped just like
the jeeps on MASH and such.)

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Rich Grise]

On Tue, 21 Apr 2009 09:00:45 -0700, Joerg wrote:

Tim S Kemp wrote:

Neither of the above match the fuel economy of my proper sized passenger
car.

Have you ever driven a Corvette? What was the gas mileage?

I once had a neighbor who was a car guy; he once said, "There's nothin'
doggier than a stock 'vette."

Cheers!
Rich

 

[Clive George]

"Rich Grise" <rich@example.net> wrote in message
newsan.2009.04.21.21.19.42.47126@example.net...

But Cadillac and most things Chrysler are admittedly over the top. They
corner the ugly-car-lover market.

My second-favorite car actually was car-shaped:
http://image.hotrod.com/f/8929747/113_0310_12z+1978_ford_fairmont_futura+front_side_view.jpg
but mine was green.

I'm quite impressed at how ugly they've made that. It's the combination of
the little back back window and that huge pillar which seals it. Lose the
back seats, and glass, chop the roof back to the pillar, turn it into a ute
and it'd be a lot less wrong.

 

[Rich Grise]

On Tue, 21 Apr 2009 02:23:15 +0100, Allus Smith wrote:

You may be misunderstanding me if you think I said ALL basic American
soldering irons look Russian. I meant to say there was a lot more of this
sort of poor design in the US than in western Europe. A single item
doesn't really prove or disprove it.

Now, you ARE trolling.

See ya!
Rich

 

[William Sommerwerck]

I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

The design is reminiscent of the Chrysler Airstream, which was a major flop
70+ years ago.

 

[Joerg]

William Sommerwerck wrote:

I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

The design is reminiscent of the Chrysler Airstream, which was a major flop
70+ years ago.

AFAIK the Airstream was not a major flop. The Airflow was, but mostly
due to really bad manufacturing defects.

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.

 

[Clint Sharp]

In message <JNidnVoVTtlasHPUnZ2dnUVZ8jWdnZ2d@posted.plusnet>, Clive
George <clive@xxxx-x.fsnet.co.uk> writes

I'm quite impressed at how ugly they've made that. It's the combination of
the little back back window and that huge pillar which seals it. Lose the
back seats, and glass, chop the roof back to the pillar, turn it into a ute
and it'd be a lot less wrong.
It actually looks as though someone got the basic idea for a pick up

truck and then found out they were meant to be designing a passenger
car.
--
Clint Sharp

 

[William Sommerwerck]

I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

The design is reminiscent of the Chrysler Airstream, which was
a major flop 70+ years ago.

AFAIK the Airstream was not a major flop. The Airflow was, but
mostly due to really bad manufacturing defects.

I might have gotten the name wrong, as I was in a rush. Regardless, Chrysler
produced a "streamlined" car that the public didn't warm to.

 

[Joerg]

William Sommerwerck wrote:

I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

The design is reminiscent of the Chrysler Airstream, which was
a major flop 70+ years ago.

AFAIK the Airstream was not a major flop. The Airflow was, but
mostly due to really bad manufacturing defects.

I might have gotten the name wrong, as I was in a rush. Regardless, Chrysler
produced a "streamlined" car that the public didn't warm to.

Reason I mentioned it was that the Airflow doesn't look similar to the
PT Cruiser at all while the Airstream does (with the PT Cruiser being a
whole lot smaller).

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.

 

[ian field]

"Joerg" <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote in message
news:Xr8Hl.5837$Lr6.4045@flpi143.ffdc.sbc.com...

William Sommerwerck wrote:
I don't know which brands you're referring to, but I've owned EDSYN
(Engineering Dedicated To Suit Your Needs!) irons for 20+ years, and they
don't look anything like that.


... and wherever in the world I happened to be, there were always those
Weller stations. Antex? Never seen it, never heard of it. Strange, ain't
it?

The weller irons were once the best money could buy - then they got took
over by cooper tools, since then the bean counters reduced the thickness of
the iron plating so the bit oxidises in the barrel, "freezing" in and
impossible to remove without damaging the element.

Years ago I bought a new weller - the stat lasted nearly 2 weeks before
welding closed, they sent me a replacement FOC which lasted nearly a month
before also welding closed - unfortunately I was away from my bench at the
time and it burned out the element, I've been using Antex irons ever since,
they usually last at least 5 years as long as the bit is replaced at the
proper interval and I can buy at least a 30 year supply of Antex irons for
just the weller (not including transformer base) iron.

I'd only use weller again if it was free (and I was allowed to keep an Antex
on standby for when the weller packs up).

 

[Joerg]

ian field wrote:

"Joerg" <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote in message
news:Xr8Hl.5837$Lr6.4045@flpi143.ffdc.sbc.com...
William Sommerwerck wrote:
I don't know which brands you're referring to, but I've owned EDSYN
(Engineering Dedicated To Suit Your Needs!) irons for 20+ years, and they
don't look anything like that.


... and wherever in the world I happened to be, there were always those
Weller stations. Antex? Never seen it, never heard of it. Strange, ain't
it?


The weller irons were once the best money could buy - then they got took
over by cooper tools, since then the bean counters reduced the thickness of
the iron plating so the bit oxidises in the barrel, "freezing" in and
impossible to remove without damaging the element.

Years ago I bought a new weller - the stat lasted nearly 2 weeks before
welding closed, they sent me a replacement FOC which lasted nearly a month
before also welding closed - unfortunately I was away from my bench at the
time and it burned out the element, I've been using Antex irons ever since,
they usually last at least 5 years as long as the bit is replaced at the
proper interval and I can buy at least a 30 year supply of Antex irons for
just the weller (not including transformer base) iron.

I'd only use weller again if it was free (and I was allowed to keep an Antex
on standby for when the weller packs up).

Strange. I've suggested the Weller WES51 with the PES51 pencil to many
clients and then they bought oodles of those. Never a problem, in years,
and this stuff is cranking at least 10h/day. Ok, they don't light
cigarettes anymore like people use to with the older Wellers because
smoking is no longer allowed in US businesses.

Last year in December I bought a WES51 also here for the lab, to have a
spare. But I started using it a lot because the tiny PES51 pencil lays
much nicer in the hand than the fat LR-20 of the older stations. They
also added a nice feature, not important to me but to companies and the
fire marshall: If the iron isn't moved in an hour or so it automatically
shuts down. Grand total of $92 plus tax, with pencil and one tip, not a
bad deal at all.

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.

 

[T]

In article <XdLHl.56688$cX1.49275@newsfe28.ams2>,
gangprobing.alien@ntlworld.com says...

"Joerg" <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote in message
news:Xr8Hl.5837$Lr6.4045@flpi143.ffdc.sbc.com...
William Sommerwerck wrote:
I don't know which brands you're referring to, but I've owned EDSYN
(Engineering Dedicated To Suit Your Needs!) irons for 20+ years, and they
don't look anything like that.


... and wherever in the world I happened to be, there were always those
Weller stations. Antex? Never seen it, never heard of it. Strange, ain't
it?


The weller irons were once the best money could buy - then they got took
over by cooper tools, since then the bean counters reduced the thickness of
the iron plating so the bit oxidises in the barrel, "freezing" in and
impossible to remove without damaging the element.

Years ago I bought a new weller - the stat lasted nearly 2 weeks before
welding closed, they sent me a replacement FOC which lasted nearly a month
before also welding closed - unfortunately I was away from my bench at the
time and it burned out the element, I've been using Antex irons ever since,
they usually last at least 5 years as long as the bit is replaced at the
proper interval and I can buy at least a 30 year supply of Antex irons for
just the weller (not including transformer base) iron.

I'd only use weller again if it was free (and I was allowed to keep an Antex
on standby for when the weller packs up).

I've got this one. Works perfectly - the only issue I've run into is
having to know the melting point temps. Other than that I love it.

http://www.mpja.com/productsdirect.asp?dept=480&main=79&item1=15860
+TL&item2=15845+TL&item3=15140+TL&item4=15141+TL

 

[ian field]

"Joerg" <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote in message
news:snLHl.30689$ZP4.28252@nlpi067.nbdc.sbc.com...

ian field wrote:
"Joerg" <notthisjoergsch@removethispacbell.net> wrote in message
news:Xr8Hl.5837$Lr6.4045@flpi143.ffdc.sbc.com...
William Sommerwerck wrote:
I don't know which brands you're referring to, but I've owned EDSYN
(Engineering Dedicated To Suit Your Needs!) irons for 20+ years, and
they
don't look anything like that.


... and wherever in the world I happened to be, there were always those
Weller stations. Antex? Never seen it, never heard of it. Strange, ain't
it?


The weller irons were once the best money could buy - then they got took
over by cooper tools, since then the bean counters reduced the thickness
of the iron plating so the bit oxidises in the barrel, "freezing" in and
impossible to remove without damaging the element.

Years ago I bought a new weller - the stat lasted nearly 2 weeks before
welding closed, they sent me a replacement FOC which lasted nearly a
month before also welding closed - unfortunately I was away from my bench
at the time and it burned out the element, I've been using Antex irons
ever since, they usually last at least 5 years as long as the bit is
replaced at the proper interval and I can buy at least a 30 year supply
of Antex irons for just the weller (not including transformer base) iron.

I'd only use weller again if it was free (and I was allowed to keep an
Antex on standby for when the weller packs up).

Strange. I've suggested the Weller WES51 with the PES51 pencil to many
clients and then they bought oodles of those. Never a problem, in years,
and this stuff is cranking at least 10h/day. Ok, they don't light
cigarettes anymore like people use to with the older Wellers because
smoking is no longer allowed in US businesses.

Last year in December I bought a WES51 also here for the lab, to have a
spare. But I started using it a lot because the tiny PES51 pencil lays
much nicer in the hand than the fat LR-20 of the older stations. They also
added a nice feature, not important to me but to companies and the fire
marshall: If the iron isn't moved in an hour or so it automatically shuts
down. Grand total of $92 plus tax, with pencil and one tip, not a bad deal
at all.

Maybe they learned from the mass exodus of customers and fixed the non
existent reliability since the last time I had the misfortune to pay good
money for one of their products, but once bitten twice shy, I'm not giving
them any more of my money.

 

[Phil Hobbs]

Joerg wrote:

William Sommerwerck wrote:
I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

The design is reminiscent of the Chrysler Airstream, which was
a major flop 70+ years ago.

AFAIK the Airstream was not a major flop. The Airflow was, but
mostly due to really bad manufacturing defects.

I might have gotten the name wrong, as I was in a rush. Regardless,
Chrysler
produced a "streamlined" car that the public didn't warm to.


Reason I mentioned it was that the Airflow doesn't look similar to the
PT Cruiser at all while the Airstream does (with the PT Cruiser being a
whole lot smaller).

The Airflow was Ferdinand Porsche's inspiration for the Volkswagen.
That's why most people's immediate reaction on seeing it is "Whoa--a
huge Beetle!"

Cheers,

Phil Hobbs

 

[Joerg]

Phil Hobbs wrote:

Joerg wrote:
William Sommerwerck wrote:
I thought the Miata was ugly, until I saw a PT Cruiser. ;-)

The design is reminiscent of the Chrysler Airstream, which was
a major flop 70+ years ago.

AFAIK the Airstream was not a major flop. The Airflow was, but
mostly due to really bad manufacturing defects.

I might have gotten the name wrong, as I was in a rush. Regardless,
Chrysler
produced a "streamlined" car that the public didn't warm to.


Reason I mentioned it was that the Airflow doesn't look similar to the
PT Cruiser at all while the Airstream does (with the PT Cruiser being
a whole lot smaller).


The Airflow was Ferdinand Porsche's inspiration for the Volkswagen.
That's why most people's immediate reaction on seeing it is "Whoa--a
huge Beetle!"

Not really. AFAIK it was this one that inspired Porsche, he supposedly
had technical discussions with Hans Ledwinka who designed the Tatra car:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tatra_T_77a.jpg

Hard to say though because the Chrysler Airflow came to market at just
about the same time. However, back in those days there was no fast mail,
Internet or even air travel between the US and Europe so information
exchanges would have been slow.

--
Regards, Joerg

http://www.analogconsultants.com/

"gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam.
Use another domain or send PM.

 

[Rich Grise]

On Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:47:14 -0700, Joerg wrote:

Strange. I've suggested the Weller WES51 with the PES51 pencil to many
clients and then they bought oodles of those. Never a problem, in years,
and this stuff is cranking at least 10h/day. Ok, they don't light
cigarettes anymore like people use to with the older Wellers because
smoking is no longer allowed in US businesses.

Unless it's a weld shop and the boss is a smoker. It is private property,
after all. ;-)

Cheers!
Rich