Hah. That's great. Soldering is easy. And, a soldering iron is almost as versatile as a Swiss Army knife[1]. You can use it for soldering, wood burning, spot re

Hah. That's great. Soldering is easy. And, a soldering iron is almost as versatile as a Swiss Army knife[1]. You can use it for soldering, wood burning, spot retouching a hot-glue job, boiling water, opening those pesky Costco clamshell packages without slicing an artery, shaping open or closed-cell foam, giving toy soldiers horrific battle wounds, rosin-based aromatherapy, a(u)nt punishment, and general hole-melting. It's the lightsaber of our millennium. And finally, to make this comment more useful, so I don't hemorrhage my 33 points of karma: If you've ever wanted to gracefully rework SOICs, QFPs, etc., invest in a good hot air system with appropriately-shaped spreading tips. Amazon has a basic kit for $139: http://www.amazon.com/X-TRONIC-Digital-Rework-Soldering-Station/dp/B003TC8EQS/ http://www.amazon.com/X-TRONIC-Digital-Rework-Soldering-Stat... Do not use ChipQuik. It's expensive, unnecessary, and messy. [1] Metcal enthusiasts, before you have a heart attack, recall that Radio Shack sells disposable lightsabers for $7.99.