[Elecraft] K2

[Edward R Cole]

I upgraded to the Hakko FX-951 a couple years ago because I needed a 
more reliable solder iron for the sm production I was 
doing.  Probably 60-70% of my work was doing sm vs thru-hole 
soldering.  I bought several different sized tips for handling 
different work.  I've found 670F degrees works well and I use the 
"sleep" feature of the Hakko which automatically lowers temp to 400F 
after a short period of no use which extends life of the tips.  The 
iron warms back to 670F in about 3-4 seconds which is announced by an 
audible beep so you do not need to look away from your work.

In 2015 I built eleven transverters, five mmic preamps, and seven 2m 
amplifiers; another five amplifiers in 2016.  All this was for 
customers so does not reflect working on my personal "stuff".

Tips:
T15-D08 is what I use most of the time as its 0.8 mm small chisel tip 
works well with sm down to 0402
T15-D12 was my original choice 1.2 mm chisel but found it too large 
for smaller sm (OK above 0805); I also use this for thru-hole or 
where the thermal mass is a bit more.
T15-DL52 is a big tip (about 1/4-inch chisel) for soldering PL-259's 
and sheet metal shields, large leads on power transistors, etc. that 
require a lot of heat transfer that you want done quickly to avoid 
overheating component.
T15-ILS conical tip has not gotten much use but handy for desoldering 
pcb holes with use of solder sucker on back side of the board.

I just installed a 44-pin header and socket on a pcb (thru hole) and 
each lead took about 1-2 seconds (leads .025 inch square so little 
mass).  Took me less than 10-min. to install the header and sockets 
in their respective pcb.

I particularly like the wire tip cleaner vs wet sponge method of old 
Weller irons as it does not cool the tip.  Also very handy to clean 
the tip before making every contact.

I have replaced the T15-D08 tip once since buying the iron (shows how 
much work I am doing).  Tip actually failed.

I still have a 20-year old Weller that I keep in the garage for 
convenience soldering, and I use it for desoldering sm chips where 
use of two irons works better at preserving the component.  At 700F 
it runs too hot for sm and too cold for big work.  OK for occasional 
wire connection but mostly gathers dust.

Ditto on having a good set of hand tools and illuminated optical 
enlarger.  High light level required to do good work.

73, Ed - KL7UW
http://www.kl7uw.com
     "Kits made by KL7UW"
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