Soldering Station Died, Again!

[p2pAmps]

Ok guys,

I just had another Weller WES51 station die.  This one was only 5 months old too!  Did I just get a bad one or should I be looking for a different brand? 

Scaggs

[Ed_Chambley]

I have always used Weller and never had the station die. I have never bought anything else.

[p2pAmps]

I have always used Weller and never had the station die. I have never bought anything else.

This is my second Weller to fail.  First one was a WESD51 and now this WES51 which I bought in July 2015...  I just ordered another one but if this one fails I'm done.  Plus, I do not solder 8 hours a day so this is a big surprise to me.  I run them about 700 degrees too.

[sluckey]

I just ordered another one

Why? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Just kidding. Weller is good stuff. Never used their stuff with electronic temp controller though. I have been using the Weller WTCPT for 40 years. My personal WTCPT is over 30 years old. I like the simplicity of no electronic controls. Temperature is magically regulated by a magnet in the tip. Need a different temp? Change tips.


Weller WTCPT... Read about it.

http://www.amazon.com/WTCPT-Temperature-Controlled-Soldering-Station/dp/B00004W463/ref=pd_sim_sbs_469_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=41Lj0%2BUrL1L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0B6S6ZFFRYPSWGJRHZK1

[John]

This is what I use, around $25 at Lowes/ Home Depot. Replacement tips are $10. I've been using it for a while now and really like it. Not temp controlled or anything fancy like that. I've been using the conical tip, going to try out the 1/16" 1/8" chisel tip I just got. About 45 secs. to heat up.



http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WPS18MP-High-Performance-Soldering-Iron/dp/B0013U9R1E

[DummyLoad]

Ok guys,

I just had another Weller WES51 station die.  This one was only 5 months old too!  Did I just get a bad one or should I be looking for a different brand? 

Scaggs

where are you buying them from? maybe they're cheap asian knock-offs?

usually it's the iron that craps out, not the base unit. try a replacement iron before buying a new station. buy from an authorized dealer.

i have had a WES51 since 2006 and it works great. before that i used a WSD80: the iron died on that one.

new iron for WES51

--pete

[p2pAmps]

Ok guys,

I just had another Weller WES51 station die.  This one was only 5 months old too!  Did I just get a bad one or should I be looking for a different brand? 

Scaggs

where are you buying them from? maybe they're cheap asian knock-offs?

usually it's the iron that craps out, not the base unit. try a replacement iron before buying a new station. buy from an authorized dealer.

i have had a WES51 since 2006 and it works great. before that i used a WSD80: the iron died on that one.

new iron for WES51

--pete

I don't have time to test an iron first or I would.  I figure when the new one comes in I will see which part gave out, replace it and have a backup...  Which I should have anyway

[Ed_Chambley]

I use the model Sluckey mentioned, but I do have another.  WES51 which is a temp control unit and when I sent in the registration card they sent me a new iron with a note saying the one that came with my unit was a recall. 

I used it and it worked fine so I kept the new one they sent.  Still have it.  Prefer the WCTCP as it is 60 watts and has just enough horsepower to solder to a Fender chassis using a chisel tip.  I have had both for well over 15 years.

[Ed_Chambley]

Ok guys,

I just had another Weller WES51 station die.  This one was only 5 months old too!  Did I just get a bad one or should I be looking for a different brand? 

Scaggs

where are you buying them from? maybe they're cheap asian knock-offs?

usually it's the iron that craps out, not the base unit. try a replacement iron before buying a new station. buy from an authorized dealer.

i have had a WES51 since 2006 and it works great. before that i used a WSD80: the iron died on that one.

new iron for WES51

--pete

I don't have time to test an iron first or I would.  I figure when the new one comes in I will see which part gave out, replace it and have a backup...  Which I should have anyway

Got a DMM

[eleventeen]

I have a Weller WTCPT as well. I had one for 20+ years and beat it up a lot. It was moved around in cardboard boxes, it didn't just sit on a bench for its whole life. Eventually (on about the 4th time I broke something) I broke it so I could not fix it. (Any of them can of course be fixed, but the handle, for example, is about 2/3rds the price of a new unit, so it's easier just to toss in for a new one. In the interim, I bot two other good used condition Wellers, but more recent models. A WCC-100 (low end) and an EC1002. Both of those were used so maybe I got lemons but IMO they both sucked. The Weller WTCPT is definitely an old school item, but I like it. I just bought a rebuilt one at a hamfest for $70 and I was glad I found it.


That absolutely does not mean that some of the nice Hakko models are not very good, I have not owned one but the reviews are generally very good.

[PRR]

> I just had another Weller WES51 station die.

This may be older than most of us and is still working fine:

[DummyLoad]

> I just had another Weller WES51 station die.

This may be older than most of us and is still working fine:

american beauty? good stuff if it is...


--pete

[shooter]

+1 for weller, over 20yrs same iron.  PRR, got one just about like yours, but mine doesn't use a battery 

[John]

I can't believe there's no love for my Lowe's special. 

[PRR]

> american beauty?

ABs usually have a heat-break between element and handle.

This is a
http://www.stevenjohnson.com/soldering/data/vulcan-brochure.pdf
The brochure smells like 1940s. The tool was probably in production essentially unchanged for decades.

I did not know the handle slid along the shaft.

The warranty against manufacturing fault is still in effect, AND the company is still in business!! Founded 1927. Moved from Lynn Mass to Porter Maine. No longer lists irons; they brag about selling temperature sensors into semiconductor plants, but also make water, air, and specialty heat elements. Little mill-town halfway from Portland to White Mountains, on Endfield St, which is clearly the end of an old field.

[shooter]

Thanks, mine appears pretty close to the American beauty on the page

I used mine on my last build to solder the copper sheeting I overlaid on my chassis

 

[p2pAmps]

Got my new unit it was the pencil...  I will order another and have a spare from now on...

[Ed_Chambley]

Got my new unit it was the pencil...  I will order another and have a spare from now on...

Figures, I wonder if you got one of those they recalled?  They sent me a free one and I am still using the "bad" one.  Probably because I use that station a lot less.

So now you can finish building my amp.  Get on it, I will be by your place in the morning to get it.

[pompeiisneaks]

I got myself a hakko, japanese made stuff, and its been great so far :)  My 2c worth.

[bnwitt]

I have a Xytronic 988 soldering/desoldering station I use for PCB amp (and other electronics) repairs but for amp building I've been using a now discontinued Radio Shack digital pro soldering station.  It has been a real workhorse.  My first one died and if I'm not mistaken, PR gave me one he had which I've been using for several years now.  At least I think it was PR.  I'm getting old.