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Author Topic: New Toys!  (Read 1198 times)

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Offline Vercify

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New Toys!
« on: April 15, 2014, 02:16:55 PM »
After my Ascend PCv3 build I came to 2 stark realizations.

1.) I love the building aspect of this hobby and I want to start building more.

2.) If I am going to start building more, I need some new tools!

After talking to MH for a long time about it, I decided to pick up a new soldering station!He recommended a few options, and I ended up deciding on this 50W Iron from Sparkfun: Soldering Iron Variable Temperature 50W



I also picked up a few other goodies from Sparkfun, which you can see in the second image. Overall I am extremely happy with the purchase and the performance of the iron. It heats up in under 30 seconds and is small enough for me to keep on my desk. I do all of my building in my small colelge apartment, so I truly appreciate the compact aspect of the iron.

Oh, and it is compatible with Hakko tips, such as this lovely assortment for $8 prime shipped on amazon!

Anyone looking for an effective and affordable iron should definitely consider this one from Sparkfun. Its $45 and you get free shipping if you spend $60+. Otherwise shipping is $12 from Sparkfun, so essentially you can just add $15 worth of "free" stuff to your cart and then get free shipping. Its truly a critical investment that all budding sabersmiths should make if they are serious about getting into building sabers; it really makes a huge difference in the quality and ease of your builds.

I hope this was helpful, and I welcome any questions people may have!
« Last Edit: April 15, 2014, 02:21:49 PM by Vercify »





Offline Wildcard

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Re: New Toys!
« Reply #1 on: April 15, 2014, 03:51:28 PM »
Very helpful for me, thank you!

I've been delving through the various soldering station review threads and trying to decide what to upgrade to myself. (From my ~$15 *claims to be ESD* cheapo.) I've been debating the Radio Shack digital, Hakko FX888/D, Aoyue, etc., but haven't been able to decide on anything yet. Most of my other recent tool purchases has been pretty straight-forward, but the soldering iron recommendations seem to be all over the map. :)

Offline erv

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Re: New Toys!
« Reply #2 on: April 15, 2014, 09:32:36 PM »
excellent purchase and advice from MH. I've been recommending that station a lot myself, ESD safe, easy to source and can't really beat the price.

 

retrousse