Hakko FX888D - What's a decent "general purpose" fine tip soldering tip?

[salil]

I've had a Hakko FX888D for a year now and I've essentially been using just the included chisel tip (T18-D16 1.6mm chisel tip) which has worked well for much what I've needed to solder, but for soldering 26awg+ wires to fairly small connectors can be problematic, so I'm in the market for a finer tip soldering tip.

Is there anything out there that folks might consider a "general purpose" fine tip for the FX888D?  I'm planning to do precision SMD work with it, mostly soldering thin wires to connectors (i.e.: micro usb) where the chisel tip may be a little bigger than than the pad to be soldered to.  I don't do enough soldering to warrant purchasing the perfect tip for every job, but I'd like to have something a little smaller as another option when trying to fix stuff.  Hope you understand, any suggestions are greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

[Psi]

I use a T18-C1 for soldering fine pitch TQFP and various small  SMD stuff on my FX888

My other iron has a 2.8mm chisel tip for soldering through hole and big wires.

[GreyWoolfe]

I have an SMD conical tip, .8, 1.2, 1.6 and 2.4 mm tips and use them all.  I don't know that there is a 'generalized' tip.  Multiple tips for various jobs is the way to go.

[katzohki]

I use a fine conical tip for small stuff, couldn't find the number though. If you're dealing with magnet wire you might find it easier to tin the wire with your bigger chisel. I also use a T18-C3 tip for drag soldering. It's useful for fine pitch many-leaded parts. Hook shape tips can be useful for hard to reach spots, or if you have a certain posture for soldering.

[salil]

Hmm, thank you for all the suggestions folks, would the T18-C1 be appropriate for soldering micro usb and other moderately small connectors you think?  Any other ideas?  Here's an example of a 5 pin micro usb connector I'd probably solder quite a few of...



The 1.6mm chisel tip is a bit wide so it can be a bit tough keeping the soldering iron clear of the plastic between pins and holding the tip close to vertical and parallel to the pins is tricky to hold stable at the right spot.

I have a bunch of bevel tips I had bought for drag soldering but never used them, I don't recall the part # at the moment.

[katzohki]

That's the kind of thing you might want a hook-shaped tip for.

http://www.amazon.com/Hakko-T18-BR02-Soldering-FX-8801-Conical/dp/B00762AGYU

[nanofrog]

Is there anything out there that folks might consider a "general purpose" fine tip for the FX888D?

No such thing as a one-size-fits-all general purpose tip. You'll end up needing different sizes in different profiles, regardless of what you do.

That said, you don't need to go out and buy everything they make either. Not by a long shot actually.

• A good selection of chisels can do a huge number of different joints (say ~ .8, 1.2, 1.6, 2.4, and perhaps a couple larger for big stuff, such as tinning larger gauge wire).
• Bent chisels can allow you to get into tight spots, and also make some jobs more comfortable to use, such as working with a connector that uses solder cups. Just one or two, and no need to get these until last.
• Good fine point is excellent for tacking corners on IC's.
• One bent fine point.
• Hoof, knife, or ideally, a specialty tip designed for drag soldering is extremely useful IMHO, if it's available in your market (seems Hakko's drag tip isn't over an IP issue IIRC).

Perhaps Hakko's Tip Selection Page will be of some use.  Pay particular attention to the cross-over (tips that can do multiple types of jobs), as it will show you what's possible without having to buy a massive number of tips.

That's the kind of thing you might want a hook-shaped tip for.

Hope this helps. 

http://www.amazon.com/Hakko-T18-BR02-Soldering-FX-8801-Conical/dp/B00762AGYU

That shape is quite handy for SMD work IMHO, particularly for pulling out bridges between pins (may not even need to break out any wick).