Soldering irons

[Ian Price]

Hello all. Can anyone recommend a good soldering iron for general tinkering with guitars and effects. I'm not looking at spending huge amounts of money - probably up to £30.00ish.

Cheers in advance!

[Philly Q]

It's a fair bit more pricey, but this is the one I have.  I find the adjustable temperature very useful.

http://www.antex.co.uk/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=180&P_ID=828

[Dreichlift]

I agree the TCS is nice, currently I use this one http://www.antex.co.uk/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=180&P_ID=823, it's about £15 from rapid electronics I believe, good to get started with.

[MDV]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Decker-Ci500-Soldering-Station/dp/B000QI329M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=diy&qid=1255978279&sr=8-1

I get by OK with that.

[jibidy]

I have an antex x25 or something like that.

I wouldn't worry to much they all do their job if you look after them.

[Ian Price]

Cheers guys - the B&D one looks like it might be the right one for me.

[JDC]

I find the adjustable temperature very useful.

useful for what? mine's some cheapo thing from B&Q, although now I'm thinking it was a rip off compared to MDVs swiss army soldering iron

[Philly Q]

I find the adjustable temperature very useful.

useful for what?

I put it on a high temperature for quickly soldering grounds, and a lower temperature for soldering connections to switches etc.  So you don't end up frying any parts or melting insulation all over the place.

[ToneMonkey]

I think there's a nice gas one for sale in Aldi this week  :D

[MDV]

i wouldnt get too excited about the 'swiss army' aspect of my soldering iron. The only things from it I use are the long needle-like iron tip and the stand. The arms broke off it almost instantly (but I have a proper metal set of extra hand croc clip things - very, very handy). Its a decent iron though.

I have a dremel gas soldering iron/blowtorch as well - its a psychopath; the heat from the vents on minimum setting wll strip cladding off any wire within an inch off them. Very good tool, but overkill for guitar electronics.

[Ian Price]

The arms broke off it almost instantly (but I have a proper metal set of extra hand croc clip things - very, very handy).

I did wonder about those arms. I've got my eyes on a little gadget that has strong arms, heavy base and a big magnifying glass. Probably a good idea.

[MDV]

The arms broke off it almost instantly (but I have a proper metal set of extra hand croc clip things - very, very handy).

I did wonder about those arms. I've got my eyes on a little gadget that has strong arms, heavy base and a big magnifying glass. Probably a good idea.

I imagine its near identical to mine. They are very usefull.

[Ian Price]

It's one of these:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000T9UCHI/ref=s9_sima_gw_s0_p60_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-4&pf_rd_r=1R8HEBJ6G740R4N19SG6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128133&pf_rd_i=468294

[MDV]

Yeah, same thing.

[jpfamps]

Being able to control the temperature is useful if you are working with both leaded and non-leaded solder (RoHS compliant).

Non-leaded solder melts at a higher temperature than leaded solder.

If you can push the boat out I would go for a 25W iron minimum for soldering, especially if you intend to solder to pot cases. The 25W Antex looks a good buy. If you do a lot of soldering you will eventually wear out the tip so it is worth looking at the price of replacement tips too (if you can get them).

I would not recommend a gas solder iron.

The old adage "buy cheap, buy twice" is very true when buying tools......