[Elecraft] Keeping the Hakko 808 Clean

[Tom Hammond NØSS]

Hi Roy:

>In a previous listing someone referred to some steel wool in the plastic
>cylinder of the Hakko 808 presumably to catch the solder.

That was Don Brown, and I believe he was actually referring more 
specifically to his 700-series stand-alone desoldering station, than to the 
808, which doesn't use the steel wool.

>Solder is presently building up on the metal disc in the back near the 
>round paper filter.  I am going to try to remove the solder buildup from 
>the disc before replacing it.  If placing steel wool in the cylinder is 
>the way to go to avoid having to replace the discs and paper filters, I 
>would like to know.

You can just pop the accumulated solder off the aluminum pre-filter and 
replace the filter. There is no need to literally "replace" this filter 
with a new one.

Note that when replacing the aluminum pre-filter into the rubber gasket, if 
you find that the fit is too tight and tries to cause problems slipping the 
gasket back into the catch tube, use a fine file and take only a couple 
(light) passes across each of the four 'legs'. this will allow the 
pre-filter to fit back in much more easily and without possible damage to 
the 'skirt' of the gasket.

Using steel wool probably won't stop having to periodically replace the 
ceramic paper filters. They'll last a good long time anyway. And they can 
be 'washed' in wood alcohol.

Tom  N0SS