Soldering iron tips.



As soon as the chinese find out; they will tenfold their prices too... just imagine if the demand of these was higher as in the eighties. Then they would ask $100 each.

 

What website are you looking at?

 

At $7.30 and $5.00 each that's not too expensive, considering that they will last a very long time if they are used properly.

 

At $7.30 and $5.00 each that's not too expensive, considering that they will last a very long time if they are used properly.

Exactly. With the proper iron, 3 of those tips will last decades with proper clean and tinning.
https://www.grainger.com/category/w...Manufacturer+Model+Number|PES51&filters=attrs

 

Speaking of cleaning… how do you prefer to clean the tip, with a wet sponge or with a brass braid?
Me? I prefer the wet sponge. The braid I only use if the tip has a cooked flux buildup.
I ignore whether this is optimal or not.

 

I use both depending on the buildup on the tip. I've found the brass braid gentler on fine tips.

 

Brass braid only.

 

Speaking of cleaning… how do you prefer to clean the tip, with a wet sponge or with a brass braid?
Me? I prefer the wet sponge. The braid I only use if the tip has a cooked flux buildup.
I ignore whether this is optimal or not.

I use thick high quality paper napkins used in the bar of waves-piercing ferries built in Tasmania still crossing from Bs .As - Montevideo. Current bunch expected to last a long time.

 

AT;
Do you have to wet the towels or do you use them dry?

 

Always dry, on the bench near the iron holder.

 

Just a nit…

s/brass braid/bronze wool/

(that’s regex notation, s/x/y/—substitute x with y, for those not familiar)

 

The Hakko 599B Tip Cleaner is the ideal cleaning alternative to the traditional wet sponge. The non-abrasive brass shavings is tough enough to scrub residual solder from your soldering tools without your soldering iron becoming cool.
https://hakkousa.com/catalog/product/view/id/5960/s/599b-tip-cleaner/category/2/

MSDS: https://hakkousa.com/amfile/file/download/file/908/product/5960/

 

View attachment 345323
The Hakko 599B Tip Cleaner is the ideal cleaning alternative to the traditional wet sponge. The non-abrasive brass shavings is tough enough to scrub residual solder from your soldering tools without your soldering iron becoming cool.
https://hakkousa.com/catalog/product/view/id/5960/s/599b-tip-cleaner/category/2/

MSDS: https://hakkousa.com/amfile/file/download/file/908/product/5960/

View attachment 345328

I… sit... corrected. The alloy of brass being used seems a lot harder than other brass I encounter. I still reserve “wool” as the corrected nomenclature, so “brass wool” it is.

They call it “shavings” which I suppose it is, but it is made into metallic wool and it is certainly not “braid” in any case.

Thanks for point that out.

 

The non-abrasive brass shavings…

As an aside, do you find—as I do—the use of “non-abrasive” to label anything that is less hard than the thing it is meant to be used on, annoying?

It’s less hard but it is certainly abrasive.

I need to find better things to spend my time on.

 

I used to clean my iron's tips using a wet sponge. But then I discovered that I could clean it much more efficiently (and effectively) by simply grabbing a thick, dry napkin and squeezing and wiping the iron's tip with my hand. It's a quick operation, so the napkin never burns and barely browns on its surface ... It's good that I don't have a safety inspector looking over my shoulder when I'm working on one of my circuits ...

 

I… sit... corrected. The alloy of brass being used seems a lot harder than other brass I encounter. I still reserve “wool” as the corrected nomenclature, so “brass wool” it is.

They call it “shavings” which I suppose it is, but it is made into metallic wool and it is certainly not “braid” in any case.

Thanks for point that out.

They likely buy (or once did) the shavings in bulk as waste from some type of brass machining process.

 

I… sit... corrected. The alloy of brass being used seems a lot harder than other brass I encounter. I still reserve “wool” as the corrected nomenclature, so “brass wool” it is.

They call it “shavings” which I suppose it is, but it is made into metallic wool and it is certainly not “braid” in any case.

Thanks for point that out.

The only why I would know such details is that the work safety dept. requested MSDS data and heavy metal sampling for the repair and rework stations. They wanted to make us use lead-free solder for repairs but the EE dept. said, hell no, we have internal use and high reliability exceptions from RoHS (Restriction of Use of Hazardous Substances) regulations.