Best soldering irons and solder to get?

[InsaneDavid]

Because if he had a particular budget in mind, then instead of blowing it all on a soldering iron he could spend less and get a get a de-soldering iron as well. Given what he said he'd be using it for this sounded like the best way to go to me.

I've used $200+ soldering stations before that were amazing to use but I would never recommend them to someone just doing occasional repairs.

Exactly. If you're just doing a little repair work here and there, tossing in a region switch, building a couple JAMMA converter boards, etc. then a moderate quality iron is fine. If I still had my shop and bench area like at my previous residence and was still doing 4-6 mods a week as well as other repairs, I would invest in a nice soldering station. I was leaning toward that before moving. If at a later time I go full bore into the arcade scene then I'll probably make the jump for a nicer setup since repair is the order of the day on that side of the hobby.

[maxpacker]

Here is what I have:
http://www.amazon.com/Weller-WES51-A...3500110&sr=8-1

Used to use a cheap radio shack one like most of you, the difference is night and day.

Anyway, great iron. The price has gone up since a year ago mine cost me 80.00 from amazon, totally worth it if you plan to do lots of soldering.

[Jaruff]

I have one of those Radioshack de-soldering irons and I personally feel it's a piece of shit. I prefer wick instead.

With that being said, I have a Weller station and a few loose irons that I use. I still have the Radioshack brand I received as a teenager and there's a Weller meant for Plumbing but I've found it to be great for quick circuit board work.

Like InsaneDavid, I'm in the 60/40 camp and I also agree that lead-free solder is terrible.

[FABombjoy]

I use a Hakko 808 for desoldering. If I had to go back to a soldapult, rubber bulb-based tools, or solder wick I'd probably switch to collecting pogs or my little ponys.

The Hakko FX-888 is the solder station that I just bought (as I mentioned above). So far, no complaints. It takes up a little less bench space than the Weller it replaces, too.

[jb143]

Yeah, after using a powered desoldering iron you'll never want to go back to a bulb or wick again. The secret to using desoldering irons though is to keep them clean and sometimes you need to add more solder first for there be enough to suck up.

Also, when did Hakko stuff start looking like toys? They used to have a tough black industrial look, now they're blue and yellow plastic looking.

[BlueBMW]

I use a Hakko FX-888 and love it! Ive never had a job it didnt do well.