Questions from a beginner

[Kerkana]

Hello,

I have several questions I would like to have your help and your opinions

- I have an FX-888D which I love, but recently came across the analog version on sale, do you think it's worth replacing? Or possibly switch to the FX-951 for standby mode? Or will the money spent not be worth the difference? I use the presets to lower the temperature when I put the soldering iron back in its place

- I live in Europe, I used blue Kaina soldering which I found interesting, but today it is no longer possible to find delivery in Europe, difficult to know if it is 60/40 or 63/37 because the two values ​​are written on the label but I think it's 63/37 because it dries quite quickly, I am looking for a replacement and therefore the Kester cannot be found in Europe, I found this do you think this is good? The problem is that it's 60/40 so I'm afraid of having problems when soldering, reading your comments the 63/37 is recommended but hard to find here https://www.ebay.fr/itm/185440258028

- I spotted a UTP-1310 lab power supply, do you recommend it?

Thanks

[pcprogrammer]

Hi Kerkana, welcome to the forum.

About the soldering station, I guess it depends on what type of soldering work you do and how frequent. With this I mean through hole, SMD, wires, etc. A station with standby temperature is better for the tip, but if you only use it once in a while I would not bother to switch.

About the solder, yes in Europe it will be difficult to get leaded solder. I bought what I'm using from Aliexpress, but there it is a gamble what you get.

Don't know the lab power supply so can't advise there.

[Zenith]

As to the solder, I can't say I've noticed much difference between 60/40 and 63/37 or between brands, provided it's not been kept for a long time so it's tarnished, and it's for general purpose electronic use, not with some unusual flux. Some solder contains about 2% copper to reduce the wear on copper bits, but I've never noticed anything odd about that when using it.

Lead free solder is definitely to be avoided.

I thought that it was still possible to obtain leaded solder in France from the large electronics suppliers.

https://fr.rs-online.com/web/c/outils-electriques-soudage-et-brasage/soudage/fil-a-souder/?pn=1&sortBy=Num%C3%A9ro%20du%20mod%C3%A8le&sortType=DESC

It looks cheaper than the ebay item you found. That would be sent from the UK and so you might have to pay VAT plus a collection charge on it.

I can't help with the soldering station or the power supply.

[Vince]

Hello Kerkana !

Welcome to this place ! 

There aren't many Frogs over here somehow (I guess because most Frogs couldn't speak English to save their life !  )

IRON

it's simple... you said you love the one you've got, so... that means... why on earth would you want to change something that you like 
Just keep using it... if one day you feel it does not perform as well as you would like for some jobs, well you can alwyas look for a replacement then... but I don't see the need to replace something for the sake of it ! You like what you have, so keep using it. It's a decent iron, there is nothing fundamentally wrong with it !

Main reason you would want to replace an iron is power output, as it decides whether you can or can not do a particular job !
I see your iron is about 70 Watts... my iron is an old "Magnastat" iron is only 50W and handles most jobs in the 30 years I have had it. So your at 70W is definitely good enough for a beginner iron.
50W for mine is a bit low I will admit and sometimes it's having a bit of trouble, but I always got the job done anyway, using a big tip for increased thermal mass, as well as using lots of flux to help get every bit of available heat, into the solder joint. It can take you out of trouble, helps you extract the last bit of performance from your iron...

So I say your iron is just fine ! What will make it useful is a few different tips, and flux... and practice.


POWER SUPPLY

The one you linked is single channel high-current (10A !!), and given how tiny it is, most likely switch mode, hence very noisy. This could be a useful secondary PSU for particular jobs that need high currents and are not sensitive to noise but... if you only have one PSU in your lab, then at the very least you must at least one  general purpose LINEAR power supply. It's teh basics... everyone need one of these. Low noise, highly versatile, simple to fix if it goes wrong... you need at least one of those before anything else. Then one day if you happen to be working on a project that requires something out of the ordinary, you can buy a small dedicated PSU to cater for that particular need, like high-voltage low current, or low voltage high current, or whatever.

The characteristics for the "universal" lab power supply are :

- Linear
- analog controls usually for the cheaper ones, which is 99% of what you will find around
- independent digital read out for current and voltage
- two channels
- floating output
- output voltage can be adjusted from 0 to 30V or so.
- output current is about 3A
- output current is adjustable, so you can use it as a current source, and it's protected against permanent short-circuits when things go wrong

With two outputs, floating, you can put them in series or parallel as you need, to get more voltage (60V) or more current (5/6A).
You can make a symmetrical power supply to feed op-amp circuits or any analog circuitry, especially since it's linear so low noise.

There are lots and lots of these power supplies, under all sorts of brand old a new... it's a classic, tehv ery first supply one needs tyo buy before anything else, the most versatile.

Since you are in France, the ones you will probably find most easily are from Metrix. There wre loads of them in schools....
The typical one you will find is the AX322 :

https://www.leboncoin.fr/outillage_materiaux_2nd_oeuvre/2187194405.htm

That's the exact one I have. The guy in the abovze ad wants 250 Euros for it but of course he smoke crack !
I think I got mine on Ebay France for 60 Euros IIRC. Depending on condition I would say up to 100 Euros is a decent price. It's worth every penny.

Over the years it's been restyled, like this model with a beige enclosure rather than blue :

https://www.leboncoin.fr/bricolage/2201822285.htm

Still too expensive though !

However I prefer the older blue model, because it's has proper binding posts for the outputs, so you can stick wires through the hole in them, or connect "fork" style terminal... it's much more versatile / practical than the other models which has security/isolated jacks instead, as you can see.
Well I guess if really the colour is an issue, you could always replace the isolated jacks and fit binding posts instead... but that's more work, and good quality binding posts are expensive... so it's easier and cheaper to just buy the older blue model ! 




SOLDER

The 63/37 Kester (or other brands) is readily available and in stock,  I see, from Farnell (that's where I buy most of my stuff) :

Here is the search result on their site for "leaded" solder... 20 items or so. I see the 63/37 Kester in there :

https://fr.farnell.com/c/outils-fournitures-de-production/stations-de-soudage-accessoires/fils-de-soudure?avec-plomb-sans-plomb=leaded

[Neomys Sapiens]

63/37 presented by ebay.fr when calling up the one you posted:
https://www.ebay.fr/itm/175294255539

[Kerkana]

Thank you all for your very interesting answers,

@pcprogrammer, I enjoy soldering so I use it often, but I'm worried that having no sleep mode will quickly damage my iron, do you think replacement parts from Aliexpress (tips and pens, screens etc) can damage my FX-888D block if one day I need to replace parts?

@Zenith Indeed I bought lead-free because it was the easiest to find and it's absolutely not interesting I threw the reel without having finished it, further down there are Farnell links thank you for taking the time to research

@Vince, So I'm very happy with the FX-888D, I love this item and it looks great too, but I was thinking about longevity because of the FX-951's sleep mode, and possibly the potentiometer which would be easier on the analog version

Thank you for taking the time to do some research for the power supplies, I would watch the sales on leboncoin, there the prices are really high compared to the one you could buy, I think it was the same type of PSU from when i was in college

Regarding Farnell do I need a company number to order? The last time I put items in the cart I got a message telling me I was professional so I gave up

[pcprogrammer]

Long back when I still worked in electronics we had weller soldering stations with long life tips, and they lasted fairly long even when they were left on some high temperature.

With stuff from Aliexpress it is always a bit of a gamble for the really cheap stuff, but the money back support is good, so if something is crap you can start a dispute and you might win it. Delivery to France is much improved since the VAT has been added. Even though I'm Dutch, I live in France and have ordered quite a bit from Aliexpress. I don't think the replacement tips they sell there will harm your FX-888D block. Just make sure they are suited for it.

[rooppoorali]

The ultimate decision is up to you, but I think you'd better stick to FX-888D. Fx-991's price is almost twice. But its features are not very much better than 888D.

[strawberry]

sleep mode is BS waiting when that thing will wake up. fast manual temperature setting is must for professional
low thermal resistance and some 100W and 50W for small/general components

[Old Printer]

I have a 951 head that I am looking for an iron for, so I have not used it yet. My main unit is an 888D I bought new and I do like it, hence I am in no rush to spend another $125 or so for a new iron for the 951. That said, I think I would prefer the analog version of the 888. If I ever saw a deal on a analog 888 I would grab it, but honestly it’s not a priority.

[pcprogrammer]

sleep mode is BS waiting when that thing will wake up. fast manual temperature setting is must for professional
low thermal resistance and some 100W and 50W for small/general components

Not when you have a good station like JBC or a cheaper version like the JABE UD-1200 (Was something like 170 euro when I bought it). Heats up in no time. When I reach for it and by the time I have it on the PCB it is on the needed 320 degrees I have set. Standby temperature is 200 degrees celsius. Takes 3 seconds or so. Easy to swap the tip and works great with both through hole and smd.

Before I used a weller station, and only for really heavy duty stuff I get that back on the bench.

[tooki]

sleep mode is BS waiting when that thing will wake up. fast manual temperature setting is must for professional
low thermal resistance and some 100W and 50W for small/general components

Not when you have a good station like JBC or a cheaper version like the JABE UD-1200 (Was something like 170 euro when I bought it). Heats up in no time. When I reach for it and by the time I have it on the PCB it is on the needed 320 degrees I have set. Standby temperature is 200 degrees celsius. Takes 3 seconds or so. Easy to swap the tip and works great with both through hole and smd.

Indeed. My Ersa takes 10 seconds to heat from completely cold, and maybe 3-4 seconds from its 200C standby. Absolutely no need to keep it fully on all the time. (At my previous job I had JBC and it’s even faster, as you say.)

[Zenith]

Regarding Farnell do I need a company number to order? The last time I put items in the cart I got a message telling me I was professional so I gave up

I don't know. Certainly in the UK companies like RS could be difficult to deal with for private individuals, rather than companies. Maybe someone who lives in France would know.

Certainly in the UK there are companies like this set up to supply hobbyists.

https://www.esr.co.uk/electronics/products/frame_tools-soldering.htm

There may well be similar companies in France, if Farnell prove difficult.

[pcprogrammer]

When I first moved to France I had an account with Farnell in the Netherlands. At some point I needed some parts and tried to order them from them, but was redirected by them to Farnell in France. Problem there was that I had to provide credit card information, which I did not have anymore. Our Dutch bank did not allow us having a credit card anymore after the move to France. A friend then told me about Banggood and Aliexpress so I started to order stuff there.

Never looked at companies like Farnell or RS again, so no idea if a private person can order from them.

[Vince]

@Vince, So I'm very happy with the FX-888D, I love this item and it looks great too, but I was thinking about longevity because of the FX-951's sleep mode, and possibly the potentiometer which would be easier on the analog version

Don't overthink it ! If you like your iron, just keep it ! There is nothing wrong with your iron.... don't waste your money to "fix" something that's perfectly fine ! 

Regarding Farnell do I need a company number to order? The last time I put items in the cart I got a message telling me I was professional so I gave up

I am not a professionnal, just a hobbyist like you, but I had no problem registering with Farnell. However I registered 15 years ago ! So maybe they have changed their policy since then.... if they have, at least all I can say is that they have not kicked me out just yet ! 

Honestly just give them a call and ask them, simple as that ! 


the other big supplier that operates in France, is "RadioSpares". I remember 10 years ago they stopped selling to private customers / hobbyists, but a few years ago they started doing it again. However they set up a dedicated website for hobbyists, which had less choice and higher prices than their main / pro website.  I just checked, they do have lots of leaded solder, have a look :

https://www.rs-particuliers.com/Search.aspx?Terms=soudure%20plomb&Page=0


Another big supplier is " TME ". They do sell to hobbyist no worries. They are based in Poland but they ship fast don't worry. Also Poland is in the Euro zone so it's painless and "secure"... don't hesitate.
They also have leaded solder, no less than 41 different items, both 60/40 and 63/37 :

https://www.tme.eu/fr/katalog/fils-a-souder_100482/?s_order=desc&search=soudure%20au%20plomb&s_field=1000011

I order from Farnell or TME regularly, they are my main suppliers, never had a problem, they are serious companies, they treat you like a pro, no bullshit.

[magic]

TME doesn't sell SnPb to consumers in Poland and most likely in all of the EU.
You will encounter similar problems with other major suppliers because that stuff is banned by EUnuchs.
Look for smaller, hobby-oriented internet shops in your country or auction site vendors.

I've had bad experience with some random no-name Chinese solder, very stinky flux fumes.

[Vince]

TME doesn't sell SnPb to consumers in Poland and most likely in all of the EU.

Strange, why do they list on their website then, when viewed from France ? 

You mean you live in Poland, you ordered, and then what happened ? While checking out you got an error message saying "sorry we can't ship that item to you, we have removed it from your shopping cart " ?!

Too skint to buy expensive solder at the moment, but next month / pay check I might try ordering some from Farnell and TME then, just to see what happens... and to try and get some before it's too late...

[tooki]

What about ordering it from USA, like Digi-Key or Mouser? They’re not the cheapest, but it’s easy to get free shipping and customs pre-cleared.

[magic]

TME doesn't sell SnPb to consumers in Poland and most likely in all of the EU.

Strange, why do they list on their website then, when viewed from France ? 

You mean you live in Poland, you ordered, and then what happened ? While checking out you got an error message saying "sorry we can't ship that item to you, we have removed it from your shopping cart " ?!

Main customers of vendors like TME and Farnell are businesses and selling SnPb to businesses isn't banned yet.

I don't remember exactly, but something of that sort is going to happen. Maybe you won't be able to checkout or maybe they won't even let you put it on the order, unless you have a business account. It's completely automated with no way to circumvent it.


I suppose that Mouser wouldn't give rat's ass about selling lead to consumers in EU, but last time I ordered from them shipping was quite expensive and the minimum order for free shipping was $50 - that's a lot of solder

[tooki]

TME doesn't sell SnPb to consumers in Poland and most likely in all of the EU.

Strange, why do they list on their website then, when viewed from France ? 

You mean you live in Poland, you ordered, and then what happened ? While checking out you got an error message saying "sorry we can't ship that item to you, we have removed it from your shopping cart " ?!

Main customers of vendors like TME and Farnell are businesses and selling SnPb to businesses isn't banned yet.

I don't remember exactly, but something of that sort is going to happen. Maybe you won't be able to checkout or maybe they won't even let you put it on the order, unless you have a business account. It's completely automated with no way to circumvent it.


I suppose that Mouser wouldn't give rat's ass about selling lead to consumers in EU, but last time I ordered from them shipping was quite expensive and the minimum order for free shipping was $50 - that's a lot of solder

That's one big roll and maybe some flux. Or two medium rolls of different sizes and you're already there. And who doesn't have any use for an extra microcontroller board or whatnot? It's easy to find things to pad up to a minimum free shipping order. I just keep wish lists with things I want or need, but don't need urgently, so I can add some onto any order that's too small.

[Vince]

Yep but before doing that,first try Farnell TME and RS, all "local " / within the EU. If they refuse to sell their leaded solder even though they list it on their website, and let you put it in your shopping cart... well too bad, but nothing to lose. So first try that, the obvious, see what that does.... then report back...