mono
1000+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2005
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Quote:
Well you're not talking about just a cheap iron then, you're talking about an OLD cheap iron. While I have no trouble at all using cheap irons (given the appropriate tip of course), but I just throw them away after a a few years and they didn't get much use in that time as they are only for less-often-used places (I have a lot of different interests that require soldering). They do tend to wear out over time, especially those that don't have a replaceable heating element, the contact between it and the tip corrodes and not only conducts worse but gets loose. You can tighten it more but the contact is still not as good.
Originally Posted by cire when you're new, you're more frustrated by lack of technique, than a cheap iron, but as you get better, a point comes where you can start blaming that piece of crap and not your skill. it took me a fair amount of time to get to that point after using the cheap weller iron my father used when he was in college. at that point, i was incredibly frustrated and was about to buy the circuit specialist clone, when my dad came home with a weller WES51. the difference is just phenominal.... does anyone actually use eye protection when soldering? i know i don't, and i've never heard of anyone who did. |
Well you're not talking about just a cheap iron then, you're talking about an OLD cheap iron. While I have no trouble at all using cheap irons (given the appropriate tip of course), but I just throw them away after a a few years and they didn't get much use in that time as they are only for less-often-used places (I have a lot of different interests that require soldering). They do tend to wear out over time, especially those that don't have a replaceable heating element, the contact between it and the tip corrodes and not only conducts worse but gets loose. You can tighten it more but the contact is still not as good.