Which soldering iron is best

[Porkster]

I have a Duratech soldering iron and station however it is not performing. It gets hot and will melt solder but will not solder when applied to the work being done. I have stripped it down and cleaned the tip numerous times but it doesn’t seem to help. I want to solder things like point motors etc but I would also like to solder feeders to rails and points. I would be interested in some advice as to which iron I should purchase

[Potterton]

Sorry, but I have to ask, if it gets hot and melts the solder, in what way is it not working?

[sagaguy]

Several questions here,you say you have cieaned the tip,What with?,once you have removed the coating,it won`t hold solder or transfer heat.What solder are you using?,lead free or tin/lead multicore?.Lead free is pretty useless,i always use a traditional solder.Is the job clean?.Is the iron a big enough wattage?.For most of my work,i use a 60w soldering station from Maplin.I had a problem with steps breaking off the tender of the new spamcans and set about making new ones from nickel silver wire soldered together as below.

[Derek 19B]

I would try cleaning the items to be soldered and using some flux, to help the solder flow. If that does not work buy some good solder as there is some rubbish around.

derek

[The son of Triangman]

If it's getting to temperature and melting solder ok, it's fine. I would be looking at 3 things, the type of solder you are using, flux, and cleaning the areas to be soldered. 60/40 cored solder is the best, it contains flux within the solder which helps the solder to adhere. Lead free solder is pretty rubbish for model railway and rework use. A good flux you can paint on the area to be soldered is a good idea. Preparation of the surfaces to be soldered is recommended.

You can have the best soldering iron in the world, but without the right solder for the job, and preparing the surface you won't get a successful weld.

Antex make the best irons if you really want to spend out.

[Rana Temporia]

You can buy decent (and possibly illegal now, it certainly is if you are selling a new product with it in) lead based solder online on a well known auction site. I bought enough to last me years as the modern lead-free solder is rubbish. I also bought a flux pen, you can put the flux exactly where it’s needed. Don’t buy plumbers flux it will eat all your wiring away.

[96RAF]

At the top of the General Discussion Index page there is a sticky post with FAQs. Have a read of FAQ 3 which tells you how to solder properly.

[Chrissaf]

Antex iron or IMO Weller as a close second. Totally avoid the instant heat trigger type gun. Plus, use the older 60 / 40 Lead / Tin multicore solder which is not illegal to sell or buy, it is just illegal to use on any pipes carrying water particularly drinking water due to the lead content. In principle, manufacturers are not allowed to use lead based products (i.e. lead solder) in manufactured products. They can however obtain a legal excemption for certain products, where there is no technical alternative manufacturing process to using lead.

For soldering novices, lead free solder is chocolate teapot territory. As Rob suggested above, read my soldering tutorial in FAQ3.

[VESPA]

The secret with soldering is the heat and where it's applied and for how long. Care when near plastic such as track beds. As already said many times a good lead based solder and flux. If you can "tin" both surfaces as it makes a good joint. Don't overdo the solder as all that achieves is a blob of wasted solder. Practice on copper wire. Tin both pieces to be soldered and then make the joint. Move on to a piece of flat brass or copper and try a straight attack as such with the heat and solder to wire and metal. If it comes apart it's called a dry joint mainly caused by not enough heat or dirt. It's a bit of a knack that needs practice but you will soon get the hang of it.

[Porkster]

Thank you all for your comments. They are most helpful. The tip of my iron was the point type which I have now changed to a tip with a small flat area. This seems to have made a huge difference. The solder I use is 37/63 (ex China) with no markings to say whether it is lead free or not. It is however now flowing as many of you have described. The iron is 48w fully adjustable but I do have to have it on its max setting at 450 deg C.

[VESPA]

I have just repaired a set of spectacle frames and found in my soldering kit an iron I bought when putting new resistors into my V6 Rover's electronics. I had forgotten all about it and bought a soldering station from Lidl about 2 years back. Both were ideal for my jobs as both had a small flat blade. The solder was bought over 50 years ago along with some flux from the old Government surplus shop. It is one of those large reels with about 500 yds of solder on (or so it seems)