Members bdecorsey Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 This is probably old news, but I am here to report that I just bought one of the Cold Heat soldering irons that are on sale at Walgreens and I found it to be totally unusable. I am not the worlds greatest solderer, I just started working on my guitars/effects about 8 months ago, but I know how to use it and what works and what doesn't. I was having some problems with a pedal kit and I thought maybe a cordless iron would help. I bought the standard Cold Heat iron and some batteries (it takes 4 AA's). The tip is really finecky and takes a lot of wiggling around to get the heat to activate, which means that you almost always end up heating the component too much. Because the tip is so fragile (its made of magic material that heats up and cools down very quickly, but has the density/hardness of graphite) just the pressure of holding a wire to the component on a PCB was enough to chip the damned thing. I went to Radio Shack to get another tip (the smaller, conical tip for electrical wiring). It was $10, more than I spent on the damned iron itself. I went home to give it another shot, this time with an increased effort not to use too much pressure. I used the lightest touch I could and still managed to chip the tip twice within about 10 minutes of using it. Even when the tip was working the iron sucked. The mechanism for activating the heat is incredibly picky and way too incosistent for effective soldering. I REALLY wish I had searched for it on these boards because there are pleanty of people here who have already made the mistake of buying this hunk of junk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Exdeath Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 Yeah, I had one and it broke down within five minutes. At least I got my money back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bengerm77 Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 Cold heat would work great if instead of using the contact of the solder to heat the tip, there was a button that was on the side that would connect the electrical current so that you - and not the contact on the tip - were in control of the cold heat thing. I had one too. After about five minutes of using (and chipping) it, I decided that I wasn't going to use it again, unless they added the aforementioned suggestion that I came up with myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrbrown49 Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 I can't even us cheap conventional soldering irons. I got a cheap one from radioshack a couple months ago and its terrible. The handle is already falling apart and the screw that holds the crappy tip in is stripping. Radioshack has gone way downhill. I got wire strippers there too, at the same time I got the iron, and it isn't sharp enough to cut through the insulation. Radioshack is crap. Don't waste your time with cheap soldering stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members archer28 Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 Mine died in 5 minutes- no joke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 's mel gibson Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 This is what you need. $29.84http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/weller/solderandheatguns/7200pk.htm Weller Catalog | Weller Price List Weller 7200PK75 Watt Standard Lightweight Soldering Gun Kit * Single-heat soldering gun produces 75 watts * Ready to use in 15 seconds * High efficiency tin-plated copper tip * 2-wire cord * Contains 7200 soldering gun, coil of lead free solder * Also 2 soldering tips and an instruction leaflet * Packed in a clam shell * UL and cUL listed Click here for larger image Ordering InformationModel Description Buy Online Price7200PK Weller 7200PK 75 Watts Standard Lightweight Soldering Gun Kit - Special Price! Buy Now $29.84(Reg. $41.26)Replacement TipsTips Weller Replacement Soldering Tips More Info>>>Soldering SuppliesSoldering Kester Soldering Catalog More Info>>> Weller Catalog | Weller Pricelist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrbrown49 Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 weller = quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leopardstar Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 good to know, and from what I've been hearing around here those big ass weller guns ARE NOT what you should use, you really need something around 40 watts, and a small tip. something like this:http://store.guitarfetish.com/xyniprsost0w.htmla little pricey but well worth it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Norcal_GIT_r Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 Like Leopardstar has posted the Xytronic is the best solder station I've ever used. Mine stays on for 8+ hours each day and I have not needed to replace the tip yet. It's been about 6 months now. It's not a good idea to use a soldering gun with pickups as they can demagnetize the magnets. Always use a 20-40 watt iron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrbrown49 Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 Like Leopardstar has posted the Xytronic is the best solder station I've ever used. Mine stays on for 8+ hours each day and I have not needed to replace the tip yet. It's been about 6 months now.It's not a good idea to use a soldering gun with pickups as they can demagnetize the magnets. Always use a 20-40 watt iron. I find a 25 or 30 watt soldering station with a small chisel tip to be perfect for most guitar/effect related projects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Norcal_GIT_r Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 I find a 25 or 30 watt soldering station with a small chisel tip to be perfect for most guitar/effect related projects. I agree about the tip. I tend to keep my station at 35. I get the best results there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members warriorpoet Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 good to know, and from what I've been hearing around here those big ass weller guns ARE NOT what you should use, you really need something around 40 watts, and a small tip. something like this:http://store.guitarfetish.com/xyniprsost0w.htmla little pricey but well worth itThis one works well for much less, though if I soldered more often I'd hit that top-ender harder and faster than David Ortiz hits a hanging slider in the 9th inning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Pope on a Rope Posted October 11, 2007 Members Share Posted October 11, 2007 Anything that has a bright red graphic saying "As Seen on TV" is almost always a dead give away that the item is a useless piece of {censored}. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Monkeyman Joe Posted October 12, 2007 Members Share Posted October 12, 2007 Isn't that a soldering GUN anyways? you're not supposed to use those on guitars, only soldering IRONS. don't ask me why,m but I believe seymour duncan when he says that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tezmond Posted October 12, 2007 Members Share Posted October 12, 2007 I use the butaine irons, they are f%ckin great, you can adjust the heat easily, they are portable, heat up quick, ect ect ect, just dont buy one of the blue weller self igniting ones, the self igniter craps out after a while, and the iron is basically stuffed, you cant even get it going with a ciggy lighter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mddawso Posted October 12, 2007 Members Share Posted October 12, 2007 ahaha I am amazed that people still buy cold heat soldering irons. The invented a product for a niche of the market that doesn't exist. I worked in car audio for four years and burnt my self on a soldering iron... 0 times! I've never used a good soldering iron that wasn't a weller. The cordless butane ones are amazing. There is a grey one that comes as a set with a torch and some other crap for like $80, but you can find just the iron for like $35 (it's a weller). You want something low wattage or adjustable heat for guitar work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RUExp? Posted October 12, 2007 Members Share Posted October 12, 2007 I bought a Weller WLC100 but I haven't used it yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jokoker Posted October 12, 2007 Members Share Posted October 12, 2007 Good advice here. I have a SD STK-T2 Hot Lead Stack on the way and I'm a bit nervous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted October 12, 2007 Members Share Posted October 12, 2007 I bought one of those Cold Heat POS's a few years ago when I needed a portable soldering iron. Used it 5 minutes, chipped the tip, took it back and wiped it from my memory. Agreed on Weller, they're fantastic, even the cheap ones. The only one I've bought in recent years that I've not loved is the one that lights up when it's plugged in. The clear plastic doesn't like sitting a long time, it tends to sag. And NEVER use a soldering gun on electronics. Those are good for heavy duty applications, but delicate components get fried really fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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