I bought the Xytronic 379, auto temp soldering station with some additional soldering tips B04 and B05. List price for the 379 is USD$59.95. I paid less as part of a group purchase with others in the Do It Yourself (DIY) automotive fuel injection project. It's called "Megasquirt". See <http://www.megasquirt.info/index.html> for more info. I would suggest calling Howard Electronic Instruments at 1-800-394-1984 and request a printed catalog. Tell them you are part of the "Megasquirt DIY" group and ask what is the special pricing on the Xytronic 379. When I bought mine in March the price was USD$ 37.95. A real bargain. Also check their web site: <http://www.howardelectronics.com/>
John "M. P. Dickens" wrote: > > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- > Hash: SHA1 > > DJ Delorie wrote: > | Ah, but which soldering iron? I'm in need of an upgrade at the > | moment... Nothing fancy, but able to safely handle surface mount > | parts. > > Hello DJ, > > Both Metcal and Pace make the best equipment. In addition, Pace and > Metcal equipment heat accurately, come to temperature *very* quickly and > have digital readouts that are dependable. The price points of both > manufacturers are similar. With that said, my company has units made by > both manufacturers and we have found the units manufactured by Pace to > be more reliable than those made by metcal. > > The trade off is that Metcal equipment has a better ergonomic design > regarding the hand piece than what Pace sells, but the Pace equipment is > sturdier. So, I suppose you can say Metcal is easier to use, but pace > equipment lasts longer (Much longer, in our experience...). Some weeks, > our stations run 12 to 15 hours a day. So, in our case reliability is > more important than ergonomics. > > Best regards > > Marvin Dickens Snip
