ColdHeat....any good as a soldering iron?

[DigitalCancer]

I recenlty had the need for a new soldering iron so, instead of spending $10 on a soldering iron and using it for 2-4weeks and then it breaking....should i spend the $20 for one of those 'ColdHeat' soldering irons?? Anyone used one and know if they're really as good as they say they are?

 

[Maximus96]

i heard it sucks but never used it myself

buy from costco and return if it does suck.

 

[Pacfanweb]

That is the sorriest piece of crap I've ever bought.

 

[DigitalCancer]

so should i stick w/ my $10 walmart soldering iron over it?

 

[henryay]

Yea, this thing is horrible, you cannot properly solder anything! I actually broke the tip somehow, now there is no one I can replace it without paying a lot for a new tip.

 

[Nik]

Nothing beats a proper soldering iron.

 

[EarthwormJim]

They make great paper weights.

 

[aphex]

yep, bought one here too... POS.

 

[AkumaX]

great if you want frustration and anger in your life

 

[slackwarelinux]

It is unsuitable for soldering electronics, because IIRC it works by sending high voltages, which fry intergrated circuts. So, if this is for an arts and crafts project, it might work, but not for electrical stuff.

 

[vital]

wow surprised at how many people here who actually bought one, they must have made a lot of money on that crap

 

[DigitalCancer]

Yea, i didn't believe it whenever i saw'em on TV. But, i thought i might try an alternative to a traditional soldering iron, but...guess i'll stick w/ my $10 cheapie. ^_^ They work well, they just break quickly, and turn all black...=/

 

[0roo0roo]

only for small jobs

 

[Tobolo]

Wow i thought it looked awesome. Glad I looked here.

 

[lozina]

I stuck to the golden rule and refused to buy it just because it looked great on TV. Most of these infomercial type TV advertisements are pure criminal and I can't believe they are allowed to deceive people like that. Why isn't that against the law? I can't go around accepting advanced deposits for a roofing job that I never complete without getting into trouble but I can sell you a product which doesn't do what it's supposed to? Odd that.

 

[PottedMeat]

Originally posted by: DigitalCancer
Yea, i didn't believe it whenever i saw'em on TV. But, i thought i might try an alternative to a traditional soldering iron, but...guess i'll stick w/ my $10 cheapie. ^_^ They work well, they just break quickly, and turn all black...=/

Sounds like your're not taking care of it properly - should be able to use a wire brush to remove the crap on the end - It'll last a lot longer. My $10 Hakko's been working for years.

 

[shilala]

Originally posted by: lozina
I stuck to the golden rule and refused to buy it just because it looked great on TV. Most of these infomercial type TV advertisements are pure criminal and I can't believe they are allowed to deceive people like that. Why isn't that against the law? I can't go around accepting advanced deposits for a roofing job that I never complete without getting into trouble but I can sell you a product which doesn't do what it's supposed to? Odd that.

Use sandpaper to clean the tip.
Then heat it and dip it in flux. Then tin the tip.
Clean it frequently with flux and by wiping on a wet sponge.
And resand and reflux when you need to.

I used to use an iron all day long when I built hearing aids just out of high school.
I had to solder under a great big lit up magnifying glass. If the tip wasn't sharp, straight, clean and tinned, I couldn't do nuthin.

It was normal operating procedure that whenever Randy Anderson left his desk, someone would walk over and tap his tip on his glass desktop. Then he'd spend a half hour anally filing, sanding and tinning his tip.
He was a true master because he had to rework his tip 10 times a day.

 

[Lorax]

in related news, people are saying the Auto Cool (solar powered fan for your parked car on those hot summer days) is also a huge POS.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Short answer:
No.

Longer answer:
Fvck no.

 

[Hough NutZ]

A News station tested it out...

Cold Heat - Does It Work (with video)

 

[lokiju]

I've heard that it'll fry electronics since it puts a current through the tip to heat it up.

Don't know first hand though.

 

[lightpants]

See for yourself!
I'll sell you one
$10 shipped

 

[promposive]

Well, It is ok ONLY if you need to solder a very small bead, in a remote location with no power within 200ft.

try soldering some LED,s and see the LED turn bright, then black, then melt inside... Yummy.

 

[mcvickj]

Spend some cash and invest in a quality iron. You don't have to get this fancy but here is a link to the one we just purchased for our department. Very nice unit.

http://www.howardelectronics.com/edsyn/951sx.html

 

[GasX]

Those who bought one:

A soldering iron works because it gets REALLY EFFING HOT! When you bought a soldering iron that markets itself on the fact that it does not get hot, what did you expect?