Choosing a soldering iron: Weller W61 or Antex CS18?

[Christopher Tidy]

Hi all,

I need a soldering iron. I've already got one of the large Antex HP
series irons, which is great for things like motor repairs, but it's too
big for PCB work. I'll probably use the iron a few times a year. I'll
need to solder DIL packages but shouldn't need to tackle any surface
mount components. I'm looking at the Weller W61 and the Antex CS18,
which comes in a kit with a stand, extra tips, pliers and side cutters,
all of which I need. My budget is about £50. As far as I can see, the
W61 has the advantage of temperature control and looks pretty robust,
but it's larger and I've heard a few bad things said about Weller since
they were taken over by Cooper Tools. The Antex on the other hand is
smaller and comes with the extra tools, but is unregulated and doesn't
look so robust. Incidentally, I'm thinking of the Weller W61 as opposed
to the TCP because I don't see the need for the step down transformer
which costs extra and uses bench space. Does anyone have strong opinions
on the two options? Durability and availability of spares is key to me:
if I have to replace the iron in the next 20 years I won't be happy :-D.

Best wishes,

Chris

 

[g. beat]

Hi all,

I need a soldering iron. I've already got one of the large Antex HP series
irons, which is great for things like motor repairs, but it's too big for
PCB work. I'll probably use the iron a few times a year. I'll need to
solder DIL packages but shouldn't need to tackle any surface mount
components. I'm looking at the Weller W61 and the Antex CS18, which comes
in a kit with a stand, extra tips, pliers and side cutters, all of which I
need. My budget is about £50. As far as I can see, the W61 has the
advantage of temperature control and looks pretty robust, but it's larger
and I've heard a few bad things said about Weller since they were taken
over by Cooper Tools.

Well that happen in 1970 (Weller Electric sold to CooperTools)
Moved plant from Easton, PA to Apex, North Carlonia shortly after this.
2002 announce they are going to Mexico.
Mexico plants open 2003 - rough start with change - and then retooling for
No Lead initaitves.
They have had their ups and downs - Cooper Tools was trying to sell Weller
after 2000 ...
seems like they changed their mind lately

European Weller products are being made in Germany.
http://www.cooperhandtools.com/europe/electronics_products/weller/index.htm

The Weller TCP series (Magnistat) have been around forever (over 40 years
now) -
EU design (handle, etc.) a bit different from NA - but the switch (SW60)
part is identical
http://www.cooperhandtools.com/europe/spare_parts/weller/index.htm

I can't speak for Antex - very small presence in North America. Haako and
Oki(MetCal) are 2 big Far East suppliers plus Solomon for low cost OEM
products (Taiwan)

 

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I need a soldering iron. I've already got one of the large Antex HP
series irons, which is great for things like motor repairs, but it's too
big for PCB work. I'll probably use the iron a few times a year. I'll
need to solder DIL packages but shouldn't need to tackle any surface
mount components. I'm looking at the Weller W61 and the Antex CS18,
which comes in a kit with a stand, extra tips, pliers and side cutters,
all of which I need. My budget is about £50. As far as I can see, the
W61 has the advantage of temperature control and looks pretty robust,
but it's larger and I've heard a few bad things said about Weller since
they were taken over by Cooper Tools. The Antex on the other hand is
smaller and comes with the extra tools, but is unregulated and doesn't
look so robust. Incidentally, I'm thinking of the Weller W61 as opposed
to the TCP because I don't see the need for the step down transformer
which costs extra and uses bench space. Does anyone have strong opinions
on the two options? Durability and availability of spares is key to me:
if I have to replace the iron in the next 20 years I won't be happy :-D.

I've used Antex for many a year and they may look fragile but certainly
aren't.

I'd go for the TCS model (if you really don't want a low voltage TC one
due to the transformer) - 50 watt 230 volt - and temperature controlled
without being any bulkier. About 40 GBP. Plenty of power for any
electronic work with a wide range of bits.

 

[Arfa Daily]

Hi all,

I need a soldering iron. I've already got one of the large Antex HP series
irons, which is great for things like motor repairs, but it's too big for
PCB work. I'll probably use the iron a few times a year. I'll need to
solder DIL packages but shouldn't need to tackle any surface mount
components. I'm looking at the Weller W61 and the Antex CS18, which comes
in a kit with a stand, extra tips, pliers and side cutters, all of which I
need. My budget is about £50. As far as I can see, the W61 has the
advantage of temperature control and looks pretty robust, but it's larger
and I've heard a few bad things said about Weller since they were taken
over by Cooper Tools. The Antex on the other hand is smaller and comes
with the extra tools, but is unregulated and doesn't look so robust.
Incidentally, I'm thinking of the Weller W61 as opposed to the TCP because
I don't see the need for the step down transformer which costs extra and
uses bench space. Does anyone have strong opinions on the two options?
Durability and availability of spares is key to me: if I have to replace
the iron in the next 20 years I won't be happy :-D.

Best wishes,

Chris

If this is to be your iron for some years to come, I would strongly suggest
a temperature controlled one, preferably with a temperature readout. The
reason that I say this is that for the last two years or so, manufacturers
have been changing over to using the hateful new lead-free solder, in
readiness for compliance with the new directive regarding this, and other
lead-bearing components, which comes in next month.

This dreadful stuff has a higher melting point, and poorer 'workability'
than traditional Pb/Sn solder, and you need a hotter iron to work with it.
If your interest is purely amateur, then this will not affect you directly,
as there is no legal requirement for you to change over, if you are not
selling stuff on. Likewise, you should not have too much trouble continuing
to obtain leaded solder, as there are many commercial exemptions to the new
rules.

However, if you are likely to be working on commercial equipment from the
last couple of years, and from now on, it will almost certainly have been
manufactured using lead-free, and from July, will definitely have been. You
must then use lead-free to stay within the law, if your repair is for
commercial purposes. It is actually recommended by most authorities on the
subject, that equipment manufactured in either technology, should be
repaired using the same technology, to avoid possible alloy-mixing problems
in the future, from a reworked joint.

All that said, I have used both Weller and Antex irons for many years, and
both are fine companies, producing good equipment well up to the rigours of
daily workshop use. You may also like to look at Pace, who also produce a
good range of hand soldering equipment.

Arfa

 

[Christopher Tidy]

Hi,

Thanks for all the useful advice. I think I'm leaning towards the Antex
unregulated iron at the moment, mainly because it's slimmer than either
the Weller TCP or Antex TCS. I don't plan on using lead-free solder so
that shouldn't be a problem.

Best wishes,

Chris

 

[Arfa Daily]

Hi,

Thanks for all the useful advice. I think I'm leaning towards the Antex
unregulated iron at the moment, mainly because it's slimmer than either
the Weller TCP or Antex TCS. I don't plan on using lead-free solder so
that shouldn't be a problem.

Best wishes,

Chris

Whether or not you use lead-free solder, is your choice, provided that you
are not doing any repair work commercially, but bear in mind that any gear
you buy, or have bought in the last couple of years, will be made in
lead-free, so if you have to repair it later on, you might struggle a bit to
remove solder from the component that you want to replace. If you are just
building stuff, and intend using only leaded solder for that, then the
unregulated iron will be fine. I don't think you will be disappointed in an
Antex.

Arfa

 

[Chris Jones]

Hi all,

I need a soldering iron. I've already got one of the large Antex HP
series irons, which is great for things like motor repairs, but it's too
big for PCB work. I'll probably use the iron a few times a year. I'll
need to solder DIL packages but shouldn't need to tackle any surface
mount components. I'm looking at the Weller W61 and the Antex CS18,
which comes in a kit with a stand, extra tips, pliers and side cutters,
all of which I need. My budget is about £50. As far as I can see, the
W61 has the advantage of temperature control and looks pretty robust,
but it's larger and I've heard a few bad things said about Weller since
they were taken over by Cooper Tools. The Antex on the other hand is
smaller and comes with the extra tools, but is unregulated and doesn't
look so robust. Incidentally, I'm thinking of the Weller W61 as opposed
to the TCP because I don't see the need for the step down transformer
which costs extra and uses bench space. Does anyone have strong opinions
on the two options? Durability and availability of spares is key to me:
if I have to replace the iron in the next 20 years I won't be happy :-D.

Best wishes,

Chris

I would get an Antex temperature controlled iron. One of the reasons I
would choose the temperature controlled one is that the bits will last much
longer. An un-temperature-controlled iron will actually run much hotter
than necessary when it is sitting in its stand, and that will damage the
bits fairly quickly.

Chris

 

[Arfa Daily]

I would get an Antex temperature controlled iron. One of the reasons I
would choose the temperature controlled one is that the bits will last
much
longer. An un-temperature-controlled iron will actually run much hotter
than necessary when it is sitting in its stand, and that will damage the
bits fairly quickly.

Chris

You are right in that this certainly was the case a few years back, when
soldering iron bits were predominantly pure copper. I'm not so sure that it
is still so, since they have been iron or nickel plated. My workshops are at
the place I live, so my benches are on from 9 in the morning until 2 the
next morning, six days a week. The non-temperature controlled 15 watt Antex
that I have, is on all that time, and sits in its stand for the most part,
but it only needs a new bit perhaps once in 8 or 9 months. My Weller
magnastat-controlled iron, needs a new tip about every 3-4 months, but this
iron is the workhorse, that is used for most general soldering jobs. My
Weller desoldering station's magnastat-controlled iron, also spends a lot of
its time in its stand, but there is little sign of the nozzle tip burning
away, normally. This one gets a new nozzle every couple of months because no
matter what you do with nozzle clean-out tools, they still clog, and the
whole station becomes ineffective.

I would agree with you on getting the temperature controlled iron, just for
the increased versatility of being able to jack the temperature up for
soldering big connectors etc, and back it off for delicate work with fine
gauge solder. The Antex temperature controlled station that I also have, is
excellent in this regard.

Arfa

 

[Dave Plowman (News)]

My Weller desoldering station's magnastat-controlled iron, also spends
a lot of its time in its stand, but there is little sign of the nozzle
tip burning away, normally. This one gets a new nozzle every couple of
months because no matter what you do with nozzle clean-out tools, they
still clog, and the whole station becomes ineffective.

I've got a home built one based around a Pace SX80 hand piece and keep a
pin drill standing by to clear it. Wonder if a larger hole would help as
the old Royal I had rarely blocked, and was more easily cleaned?

 

[Arfa Daily]

I've got a home built one based around a Pace SX80 hand piece and keep a
pin drill standing by to clear it. Wonder if a larger hole would help as
the old Royal I had rarely blocked, and was more easily cleaned?

--
*Atheism is a non-prophet organization.

Dave Plowman [email protected] London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Hi Dave

Mine gets used in anger, a couple of days most weeks. I repair some
commercial boards for a company, and part of the repair involves a
modification where three resistors and three TO220 transistors are removed.
In normal operation, these devices run so hot, that the resistors have a
tendency to burn out, and the soldering on all 15 legs becomes very 'aged'.
In order to stand any chance at all of removing the solder cleanly, it is
necessary to first add some fresh solder. This seems however, to have a
slightly detrimental effect on the overall consistency of the molten solder,
and by the time I've repaired 400 or so boards over a couple of months the
nozzle has begun to get blocked. I have the proper clean out tool, and use
it every few boards, when the vacuum gauge on the base station starts to
indicate that it needs it, but over a couple of months, the tool gets
tighter and tighter in the nozzle as flux residues and such, slowly build
up. At that point, a new nozzle goes on, and everything is hunky dory again.

I have experimented enlessly with different nozzle profiles and hole sizes,
but the one that I use, which is just slightly larger than the TO220 device
legs, seems the best compromise between reliably removing them, the
resistors, and occasional other components that have to be removed to repair
the boards. A new nozzle is only a few quid from Farnell, and as I'm making
good money from the repairs, I figure that this small extra expense every
couple of months, is not going to hurt any. :- )

Arfa

 

[Mark Fortune]

Whether or not you use lead-free solder, is your choice, provided that you
are not doing any repair work commercially, but bear in mind that any gear
you buy, or have bought in the last couple of years, will be made in
lead-free, so if you have to repair it later on, you might struggle a bit to
remove solder from the component that you want to replace. If you are just
building stuff, and intend using only leaded solder for that, then the
unregulated iron will be fine. I don't think you will be disappointed in an
Antex.

Arfa

I have an Antex XS25 and a CS18, both are good little irons and I use
both with lead free solder without problems, both good at unsoldering as
well. The CS18 I use for small components where thermal overload is an
issue, and the XS25 for the heavier duty work. I think I paid less than
£20 for the CS18 from maplin, but it was just for the iron as I already
had the stand from the XS25 and plenty of side tools. I cant really say
if its better than brand x as I only have these two to go by in recent
years, but i'd say they've both been good value for money.