Hi,

Spent an hour or so reading reviews for a soldering station. Price and Reviews seem acceptable. Found
Hakko FX888D-23BY, KSGER T12a and possibly Weller-WLC100

However then finding a place to supply it for NZ seems impossible. They all seemed 110v. I did look on AlliExpress but nervous about copies.

What do people do?
Go somewhere else? If so where
Choose different brands? If so what
Buy a stepdown transformer (no idea to the downside of these)

Thanks,

 

I generally resort to Element14 when purchasing in NZ. There are local suppliers but for wide range and quick delivery I always end up there. They supply for 240V generally - I've not had a problem with their kit.

FX888D - Hakko - Soldering Station, Digital, 70 W (element14.com)

 

At least in the case of KSGER you don't have to worry about AliExpress, their official store is hosted there.

I have an FX888D and it is a fine iron but the technology of the heater is nowhere near as good as newer integral heater tips like the Haako T12 tips the KSGER uses but the FX888D doesn't. I would recommend the KSGER as a great bang for the buck option.

Be sure to choose a model that doesn't fix the tips in with a nut at the base. The handle you want just accepts the tip and holds it like the Haako. This allows (literal) hot swaps of the tip if you need something bigger, smaller, or of a different shape.

Here is an example.

 

If you get a T12 kit like the one I linked to in a recent soldering station thread, you can run it from a laptop power brick. Most of those are rated for 50/60 Hz, 100 to 240 volts, judging by a thorough survey of the ones I can reach from where I'm sitting. I find that a 19 V Dell brick gives ample wattage.