I’m looking into upgrading my simple pen style iron to a station. After reading a bit on the forum, I’ve found the following two which seem to fit the bill. The two is at similar price point but one is 35W and the other is 60W. Which one would you recommend?
Aoyue 469 Variable Power 60 Watt Soldering Station with Removable Tip Design-ESD Safe Amazon.ca
Aoyue 936 Soldering Station Amazon.ca
Difficult decision, the Aouye website doesn’t tell you everything about them.
The 469 on their website is $30, the 936 is $45. So on Amazon the 469 is overpriced.
It’s nice having temperatures to aduster to rather than number’s on the 469, although you can find out what they correspond to.
They’ll both be suitable for soldering work on flashlights, if you need to solder thick cables on other jobs it will be handy having the 469 which is 60 watts.
I bought the 936a a few week’s ago, it’s rated at 60 Watts. It has a silicone cable which is much better than pvc as it doesn’t stiffen up in cold weather. The 469 may be silicone as well, I just don’t know.
If you damage the iron cable beyond repair you can just unplug it on the 936 and plug in another, the one on the 469 is wired inside the base unit. I’m not sure if they’re as readily available or are they just the same cable as the one on 936 without a plug on the end.
Personally I would get the 936.
Thanks for your advice. The price is in Canadian dollar, so the price for the 469 is about right. Seems the 936 is at a bargain. But would the 35W iron enough for lead-free solder? Also, the hakko tip is compatible right?
I’ve had the 936 for a couple of years, it’s a great unit. I had to replace the heating element after a year or so, not a big deal because it came with a spare. The problem is it’s soldered in and I had given away my small iron, I ended up doing it with a 140 watt Weller. Not easy but the 936 has been fine ever since.
I meant comparing the price of both as there should be more of a difference.
The Hakko tips do fit, Plato are supposed to make good quality bit’s and they make Hakko compatible one’s.
There’s a lot of unbranded tips for sale, it’s more of a problem knowin what the quality will be like
35W will be fine,but from what I’ve read most people tend to use the 60/40 or 63/37 tin/lead solder as they find it performs better. It appears to be okay for hobby use as long as you don’t breathe too much in.
I bought the following set:
Needed some work and some housing.
Or you could buy this assembled version: http://www.banggood.com/search/bakon.html
There is significant difference in performance, T12 tips (cartridges) are more efficient and powerfull.
I had Aoyue 936 (some of old variations) - it had nichrome heater, was rather slow and not powerfull enough, then I changed PCB and heater to
http://www.banggood.com/For-HAKKO-936-Soldering-Iron-Station-Control-Board-Controller-Thermostat-A1321-p-1014469.html
A1321 24V 50W Keramikheizelement für 936 937 907 AOYUE 968 Station Sale - Banggood Deutschland-arrival notice-arrival notice
and it became more usefull. And when I moved to T12 tips - I forgotten Aoyue.
You can find all stuff I mentionned at ebay or aliexpress as well.
What I would not recommend - nichrome heater (hakko A1322), better use ceramic heater(hakko A1321) - difference is really big.
Good luck!
The Bakon unit seems quite interesting. The cost is cheaper than the Aoyue, but then it doesn’t comes with a knift type tip, so I may need to get a more pointy one. It may also be good to add a better solder iron holder, so the cost for both are similar.
I don’t mind doing some assembly, but the biggest question is, would the Aoyue be more reliable and simple to use, like an appliance, and does the Bakon require more fidgeting? A review also said that the temperature display is not accurate.
As a hobbyist, I don’t need a really high performance unit, I’d rather get a more reliable and stable unit. Would I be better off getting the Bakon or the Aoyue?
I’ve receive this PM from Boaz. I think this is considered cyber bullying, and legal action can be taken.
On the other hand, it amazes me how people can get trapped in their own mind, and failed to see other people’s reason for acquiring certain products. For some people, they can be doing soldering for their kid’s science project, thus lead-free solder may make some sense.
You’re not serious, are you?
I thought it was funny.
I’m sure the lead free solders and fluxes are much better than they used to be
I recently got this, and couldn’t be happier. (I have about 50 years of soldering experience with electronics.)
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idproduct=19240
While I agree with the idea of getting lead out of the environment, lead on circuit boards is pretty benign. Unless junior is chewing on them, or running their fingers over the joints, it isn’t getting into their systems. Even the fumes emitted during soldering is more toxic due to the flux than the lead. As I understand it, the problem with lead only comes into play at the very end of the life of the product. On the other hand, lead free solder is (used to be anyway) much more difficult to work with. Requiring more precise control of temperature and time.
I look forward to hearing your results. I hope that the chemistry has improved and current technology has made it better.
Yep good unit and a great price. Mine is a couple years old now and still going strong. Like others I did eventually have to get a new heating element but it was cheap too. I used to use a Weller setup but the tips were very expensive and I seemed to go through them really fast.
These 936 hakko clones are really pretty good and because there a millions of people who use them, parts and tips are cheap.
Well my original intention was to ask for a soldering iron that is compatible for lead free soldering. That doesn’t mean I’m going to use lead free solder for everything. In fact I would use lead tin solder for flashlight modding. I’ve had trouble desoldering the dead capacitors on various electronics in the past,which I believe were lead free solder… If I’m buying a new soldering iron, wouldn’t it be a good idea to get a product that is more versatile? Let’s say even if I choose to use lead free solder for all projects, what sin is that?
A piece of clear plastic bent into an arch over the work area will capture more of the fumes.
Combine activated carbon with HEPA filters, and/or vent to the outside.
I’m 99.999 per cent sure he’s kidding, roadie. Looks hilarious to me 
Well, I hope so, it would have been more convincing if he have said it in public, rather than saying it in a PM. A lot of harassment are disguised in jokes, which doesn’t necessarily make it less of an offence.
Anyways, thanks for those who provided genuine help. There are more important things for me to do than arguing over what solder to use.