Cordless Solder Iron

When I first saw this thing, it looked like a light saber. It’s kind of like one too. When you have it in blow torch mode, it’s got a steady blue flame. A nice little accessory for Star Wars conventions.

I have a corded solder iron that was a hassle to pull out and set up when I had to solder a couple of joints or tin some wires. My desk area has enough wires already and I could only solder where there’s an outlet. I was on a hunt to find a cordless iron.

I looked into the ColdHeat solder iron that was “as seen on tv”. From the reviews I read, it sucked so I stayed away.

Next was battery powered ones like the Hakko FX-901. It looked like it would do the job and the reviews were good. However the 6W rating might limit what I can do.

So I’m left with just butane (lighter fluid) powered ones. They ranged in price from $25-$100. My requirements was that it had heat blower to heat-shrink some of my connections and a built-in push button starter.

I was at the local electronics set on buying a $80 one but this cheaper $50 version caught my eye. It looked like Yoda’s light saber. It was basically a cheaper clone of the more expensive Weller/Vulkan. I decided to get it instead and save myself $30.

It is really easy to use. First thing is you turn on the gas, then you hit the ON button to ignite the fuel and that’s it. It uses a piezoelectric ignition system so it takes one hand to start it up. This is much better than using a flint sparker or lighter. The piezo setup is much more “hi-tech”. It takes about 20-30 seconds to heat up.

My first mistake was having the flow setting too high. I was soldering a wire to a battery box and it melted the plastic around the connection. I figured out you need to have the gas release on medium to start it up and once it’s hot, turn it down to low.

I’ve only used it a couple of times but it seems that this iron was money well spent.

Other uses for this solder iron:

heat-shrink
blow torch
plastic cutting knife
cigarette lighter
accessory for your Luke Skywalker costume