Soldering pencil advice

I am looking at getting a decent soldering iron, and this looks like it should do the job for me:
http://www.amazon.com/Weller-SP40NKUS-Medium-Soldering-Black/dp/B00B3SG7F0/ref=pd_cp_hi_1
My question is, is 40W the right power level for general purpose flashlight soldering? Should I get more? Less?
Thanks in advance!

I have a 40 watt Goot.

Fine for small bits of wire but absolutely f#%^n useless for soldering drivers to pills. Even struggles removing leads from emitters still affixed to the drop in.

Very disappointed in it. I'd advise you to get more wattage than you think you will need. I'll be interested in responses from some of the more experienced modders.

Well shoot. I guess I’ll have to keep looking. I’m also hoping one of the modding heavyweights will chime in. 0:)

This might work?
http://www.amazon.com/Weller-SP80NUS-Heavy-Soldering-Black/dp/B00B3SG796/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1393901086&sr=8-11&keywords=weller+soldering+iron
I’m just afraid 80W will be too much. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good inexpensive 60W?

This would do, Linky
Have one myself (240v) despite a lot of abuse still works well.

A better option is an adjustable temp iron with different tips for each purpose. I used a 20w Weller for years but for $50 you get all you need for fine work and heavy work. Apparently hot air reflow is the cats meow for some things but it costs more though some set ups combine the two. Cheaper units can be less reliable and more luck of the draw. Mine only had a minor issue that was correctable. If you plan on doing much then go with a good one and don’t look back. You on regret it.

Any recommendations? I certainly don’t want to spend more than $50.

Looks good, but I was hoping to buy from somewhere in the US.

They do have a US based warehouse

I know, but the US one is out of stock and I need a new iron fairly quickly (I’m building a flashlight for someone else).

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/power-probe-butane-soldering-kit-pprppsk/22982830-P

advanced auto pars has some and they have discounts from coupons, I like the butane ones myself since they get hot extremely fast if you need them to

Search “937D” on eBay and you will find exactly the one I got tips and all for $44.95. I know there are other possibilities but that will give you a start.

i use weller 25w, it is like 15bucks at radio shack

http://www.amazon.com/Lutron-TT-300NLH-WH-Credenza-Dimmer-White/dp/B0000DI241

I used one of those with a cheap 55W pencil iron for years, works nice. $10 is kinda steep, you can get essentially the same thing for less at Lowe's/HD/Walmart.

Yo I love your taste in dimmer switches but I’m not sure what it has to do with soldering :wink:

Because... you can take a big 80W iron, plug it into the dimmer, and turn it down with the little slider so you can solder small delicate stuff like tiny SMD resistors with low power, and then turn it up with the slider and solder stuff like copper lugs onto the ends of battery cables, using the same cheap iron?