Which Weller Soldering Station to Buy? WESD51, WD1001, or WD1002

[JerryG]

I want to buy a soldering station. Fry's has three different Weller stations all for the same price; the WESD51, WD1001, and the WD1002. Can you tell me which one you would prefer and why?

http://www.frys.com/product/4865190?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG"
http://www.frys.com/product/3598004?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG"
http://www.frys.com/product/4711049?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG"

 

[davidrit]

I'd buy the one in stock! I like it because it is simple and has auto shutoff.

Check that you can easily get the tips you may need for the iron you get. You may want different size tips or shapes depending on what type of components you are soldering.

If you're doing really precise things the units with programmable tip offsets may be nice but for most prototyping I don't bother with that.

If you are soldering large components or with high temperature solder the 80 W version may help.

 

[berkeman]

Get an entry-level Metcal RF heated iron if you can. They've come down in price over the past few years. They can't be beat for transitioning between regular soldering and soldering fine SMT devices.

 

[Topher925]

I'd probably go with the first one since its got the highest wattage. The last one is good to tho. What kind of soldering are you going to be doing?

About five years ago I bought a Tenma for about $15 shipped off ebay.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000XMA9W4/?tag=pfamazon01-20

I still use it to this day and have never even replaced the tips I got with it. I have zero problems soldering everything from power connectors to 0.4mm QFP chips with it. Expensive irons are nice if you use them every day, but otherwise its hard to warrant the hefty price tag.