Correct tip for Weller W61 (Magnastat)

[uneksija]

Hi,

I'm thinking of buying a Weller W61 soldering iron - it's one of those where you change the temperature by changing the tip. It comes with a 370C (700F) 2.4mm chisel tip. 370C is the same as the old Magnastat number 7 tip I believe. I would be using the iron for repairing old through-hole stuff with leaded solder (60's-70's electronic organs, 70's-80's analog synths, old pinball machines etc.) and building new through-hole stuff mainly with leaded solder (will get into SMD later and perhaps into lead-free, too, but I'll get another tool for that stuff).

Now my question is: is that tip the correct for my planned work? Or should I buy a tip with a lower temperature? What type of a tip people used with their old Magnastat Weller's for leaded through-hole stuff, tip number 6 or 7?

Thanks in advance for any insight into this!

[David Hess]

For production and general purpose use, the 700F tips are the ones to use.  The 600F tips are only suitable for very new parts and boards which have no tarnishing, and rework where you want to minimize the damage to a printed circuit board.

I like the shorter and fatter tips because they have a greater thermal capacity making soldering faster.

[floobydust]

I have a W60P3 and always used 700°F (370°C) tips with PbSn solder. I tried an 800°F (425°C) tip and thought it was too hot, tip got black fast and tended to cook whatever I was soldering. Smallest CT5A tip I used for years for PCB work but it is a large iron overall. I would get bigger tip e.g. CT5B or CT5C for larger through-hole or point-point work. Either way it has lots of heat.

[uneksija]

Thank you for your replies! Much appreciated I just ordered a W61 with a selection of 700F tips and am really looking forward to getting it