Decent soldering iron? (1 Viewer)

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chupacabra
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Can anyone recommend a decent soldering iron for occasional car/truck repairs, that actually works? Tired of my 3-4 Radio Shack irons that either take forever to heat up, will barely melt solder after holding it on the connection for minutes, or that fade and won't heat if you leave it on for more than 10 minutes to do multiple joints.
 
if you mostly do largish 12V wires on vehicles rather than circuit boards and the like, I would use one of those "instant heat" pistol/drill-looking affairs with 2 thick solid wires coming out of the body ending in a little loop. Rated at something like 250W or so, so quite a bit more than the pencil ones. Should be plenty of heat even for 12ga. They go for $50 or so from memory but are often seen at garage sales for peanuts. And an odd bonus is that you can use them as a demagnetizer since the heating is AC. It's just a transformer basically. I have a couple and happy with them.
 
if you mostly do largish 12V wires on vehicles rather than circuit boards and the like, I would use one of those "instant heat" pistol/drill-looking affairs with 2 thick solid wires coming out of the body ending in a little loop. Rated at something like 250W or so, so quite a bit more than the pencil ones. Should be plenty of heat even for 12ga. They go for $50 or so from memory but are often seen at garage sales for peanuts. And an odd bonus is that you can use them as a demagnetizer since the heating is AC. It's just a transformer basically. I have a couple and happy with them.

OK thanks. 99.5% of all the soldering I ever do is car/truck wiring. I will look into those. The collection of pencil-type soldering irons I have now (some up to 60 watts) can barely work with the 22 gauge wire I am currently repairing, and not even that when they have been on for a while.
 
On a side note, and I'm sure you know better, so not directed at you, but for some folks less familiar with soldering and reading this, I have seen folks struggling with soldering thicker wires because of poor technique (lack of flux, dirty iron or wire, heating the solder rather than the wire etc). And, perhaps counterintuitively, a more powerful iron will actually help limiting damage to insulation over a less powerful one if you use it correctly.

If you're wondering, this is the sort of iron I'm talking about (but don't know about this particular one):
Amazon product ASIN B00002N7S1
 
Butane soldering iron. Larger ones can put out a lot of heat. I always have one in the vehicle when out bush. Can also remove the tip and put on a hot air tip for heatshrink stuff.

For a nice powered soldering iron, there's Metcal, but may give some sticker shock depending on model :)

cheers,
george.
 
well, I have to say that it's likely easier to start a campfire with a butane iron than with an electric one in the bush, so that's a nice benefit. Unfortunately, for the clumsier ones among us, it is also perhaps easier to start the truck on fire while butane soldering under the hood... :)
 
Can anyone recommend a decent soldering iron for occasional car/truck repairs, that actually works? Tired of my 3-4 Radio Shack irons that either take forever to heat up, will barely melt solder after holding it on the connection for minutes, or that fade and won't heat if you leave it on for more than 10 minutes to do multiple joints.
Hey brother,
I have three Weller soldering tools.
I have a Weller pistol style that works decent.
I have a pencil (butane) that also works very good on 18-22 ga.
The third is my favorite. A Weller soldering station with temperature control. This is hands down the best I have found for quick controlled heat.
Mine is an older model like this one:
The new ones are all digital control.
 
Hey brother,
I have three Weller soldering tools.
I have a Weller pistol style that works decent.
I have a pencil (butane) that also works very good on 18-22 ga.
The third is my favorite. A Weller soldering station with temperature control. This is hands down the best I have found for quick controlled heat.
Mine is an older model like this one:
The new ones are all digital control.

Gracias Paco, I appreciate that!
 
For typical soldering of wires/connectors, I use my trusty weller soldering gun, model 8200. I've had it forever. For more precise soldering, I use a japanese fine point soldering iron, CXR-41.
 
I picked up a Hakko about 5 years ago and really like it.
 
I ended up buying a Chinese one on Amazon that went to 11. :) Plenty hot enough to do what I needed; how long it will last is another question - but for not much money, I got both of the wife's cars back up and running. Will definitely bookmark the better options mentioned , for the future.
 

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