Soldering station with thin iron

[ShadowReaper]

Hello,

i am looking for a soldering station. I have seen some expensive stations and I liked the thin soldering iron(-pencil), that they had. Are there any cheaper stations for hobbists with such an iron?

Thank you

[IanB]

The iron that comes with the Hakko FX888 is not the thinnest out there, but it is quite light and comfortable to hold.

[madires]

Or maybe ERSA i-CON pico (€140) or nano (€230).

[nanofrog]

Budget?
Location?
Would you be willing to buy used (might even be able to get a better station this way for the same funds)?

[ShadowReaper]

Budget:about 150€ (200$)
Location: Europe, but I don't mind getting from US, as long as there is a 220v version

[nanofrog]

Budget:about 150€ (200$)
Location: Europe, but I don't mind getting from US, as long as there is a 220v version

Can you give the actual country (would help with eBay)?
And does that figure have to cover postage & VAT?

For used, you could look for brands such as Weller, Ersa, JBC, OKi/Metcal (these aren't temp adjustable; temp is set by the tip), Pace, and Hakko. Just make sure they have all the parts (power + iron at a minimum, and that tips are still available). Some of the old Weller or Ungar could be a problem for example, as the parts & tips have been discontinued for some models.

IF you buy a station from the US, it's almost certainly going to be 120V. Possible to use in 220V countries, but would either need to be modified with a 220V transformer, or use a step-down transformer. Not horribly expensive, but it does add a little additional cost and consumes space.

[amyk]

And just how thin do you want the iron to be?

[quarros]

The thinnest hand pieces for soldering are either Weller or Metcal products, but unfortunately neither of them is fitting the criteria of your budget goal.
http://www.weller.de/products/product.php?pid=4772
http://www.okinternational.com/Hand_Soldering_Systems/id-MX-H1-AV/Metcal_Advanced_Soldering_and_Rework_Hand-piece_

The only one that comes close in price is the:
http://www.okinternational.com/Hand_Soldering_Systems/id-MFR-H1-SC2/MFR_Soldering_Cartridge_Hand-piece
It is compatible with the cheaper MFR series but still waaay out of your goal.

[M. András]

that weller thingy is 270euro ffs he said 200. and you didnt even get a station for it. but its a nice pen design but you cant press it hard onto a solder wick the tip itself is a flimsy metal tube which bends 55w max power but with a big tip only. for that 200 you could check for a jbc all in one station too those are thin too

[willb]

The Pace HW100 is fairly thin, but is certainly not cheap if buying new. However, with some patience, these can be found on ebay for well under 200$.

[quarros]

that weller thingy is 270euro ffs he said 200. and you didnt even get a station for it.

Well I stated that it is out of the intended budget... Sorry if I emphasized more on thinness than price.

Anyways the most viable option (in my personal opinion) for getting a relative cheap usable pencil type soldering station that is close to the intended budget is either a used MX500 (I got mine for 150 EUR, with holder, handpiece, and 1 tip), or a new Thermaltronics TMT-2000. The drawback with this is the price of additional tips and the fixed temperature. Well you can't have your cake and eat it.

[John Coloccia]

Nothing wrong with a used Hakko...FP-102, FM-202, FX-951, etc.  They all have comfortable, thin irons.