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I'm very much a noob at soldering so idk if I'm missing out on anything, but the Pine64 Pinecil[1] has worked great for me so far and is surprisingly cheap. It

by bogwog 2y ago

I'm very much a noob at soldering so idk if I'm missing out on anything, but the Pine64 Pinecil[1] has worked great for me so far and is surprisingly cheap. It also uses a RISC-V chip and even has open source firmware[2] 1: https://pine64.com/product/pinecil-smart-mini-portable-soldering-iron/ https://pine64.com/product/pinecil-smart-mini-portable-solde... 2: https://wiki.pine64.org/wiki/Pinecil_Firmware https://wiki.pine64.org/wiki/Pinecil_Firmware

wildzzz 2y ago
This iron has more power than the Pinecil so it gets hotter faster and will heat up big chunks of metal faster (like ground planes or connector shells). Honestly, I've never been that interested in the Pinecil. It's nice that it's small but you still need a big type C supply. I could give a rats ass that it has open firmware and runs a RISC-V. I only care if it can push a lot of heat accurately and if the tips are affordable and available. Anything else does little to sway me. My solder station at work is an incredibly dumb Metcal that only has a power switch. Heat is controlled by the tips you use. When you pull it from the iron rest, it turns on instantly. Put it back and it turns off. The handle is just a plug for the tip, all the power electronics are in the base unit. It's got two plugs so you can run dual irons for microsoldering or if you just want a big chisel tip at the ready.
- fragmede 2y ago
  > incredibly dumb Metcal The amount of technology in a Metcal to make it work as well as it does, justifying its $1,000 sticker price back when I did that kind of stuff, makes it far from dumb! The rest of the market has caught up, but back when it was released, Metcals were highly sought after! It does this induction heating thing with the Curie point which makes for a very good soldering iron.
snvzz 2y ago
I love my pinecil. Definitely not beatable in value/price.

by bogwog 2y ago

wildzzz 2y ago

This iron has more power than the Pinecil so it gets hotter faster and will heat up big chunks of metal faster (like ground planes or connector shells). Honestly, I've never been that interested in the Pinecil. It's nice that it's small but you still need a big type C supply. I could give a rats ass that it has open firmware and runs a RISC-V. I only care if it can push a lot of heat accurately and if the tips are affordable and available. Anything else does little to sway me. My solder station at work is an incredibly dumb Metcal that only has a power switch. Heat is controlled by the tips you use. When you pull it from the iron rest, it turns on instantly. Put it back and it turns off. The handle is just a plug for the tip, all the power electronics are in the base unit. It's got two plugs so you can run dual irons for microsoldering or if you just want a big chisel tip at the ready.

fragmede 2y ago
> incredibly dumb Metcal The amount of technology in a Metcal to make it work as well as it does, justifying its $1,000 sticker price back when I did that kind of stuff, makes it far from dumb! The rest of the market has caught up, but back when it was released, Metcals were highly sought after! It does this induction heating thing with the Curie point which makes for a very good soldering iron.

snvzz 2y ago

I love my pinecil. Definitely not beatable in value/price.