Iso-Tip #7971 SolderPro 50 Butane Soldering Iron

I worked in and around electronics production for years as an engineer. I had always been spoiled with the best production soldering equipment available and had learned soldering well enough to eventually begin teaching to all new engineers. The basics to good soldering are not that difficult to understand, but hands on experience is by far the best learning system there is. Of course, one needs descent basic tools to perform the task properly. I do a lot of car and motorcycle harness repair jobs which requires patience, knowledge and good unique tools to complete the job. This little butane soldering iron is quite a little gem. It starts easy, you have darn good control over the heat applied to the solder and resultant part. You want to flow the solder, wic the part and get in and out as quickly as possible before damage is caused. This butane tool gives you that kind of control and it does it consistently. There are less expensive alternatives out there, but they either lack the build quality, performance is not predicable or easily controlled and there are few if any accessories or additional tips available. I have used mine to join wires the proper way, add connections to printed circuit boards. replace faulty parts, etc. This little gem has come through each and every time. Some soldering basics all should know prior to jumping in. 1. be sure your tip is clean and tinned every time you complete a job. (meaning, wipe the tip off on a damp sponge and apply just enough new solder to flow over the complete soldering area of the tip and let cool) This seals the tip for the next job. 2. be sure you have tinned (whetted with flowed solder) both sides of what's being soldered prior to soldering them together. This will eliminate any issues you may run into when one of the two items has problem with solder flow. 3. flow the solder to on piece, apply the tinned second piece and the insure wetting has flown over both parts evenly and with a shiny. Allow a few seconds to cool and verify integrity of the joint. 4. if flux (brown syrupy looking past) is visible, it would be best to clean away with a little alcohol after if's cool.

This is an extremely lightweight and portable unit which is very useful for working under the hood of a vehicle or installing car stereo components. I bought one of these wireless Pro50 Irons from Rat Shack about a decade ago and it finally wore out enough that when i came across this one on amazon for such a cheap price, i decided to get a new one and keep the old one for a backup. Obviously, the main benefit of the Pro50 is that it allows you to solder in "off-grid" locations without access to 110v AC power; however, sometimes I even use this iron on my workbench where I would otherwise just use a conventional soldering iron because this unit heats up much quicker than an electric iron. Because it is capable of getting soo hot, (too hot on full blast) it is easier for me to make good, solid, clean, smooth joints. Everyone should have one of these SolderPro 50's in their electronics kit, no garage is replete without one. No more booger welds or cold joints with this iron!

Used to own the Radio Shack branded unit, but I have since lost that one - so buying another. My experience is that the flint wheel is useless - so I keep a lighter around for when I need to use this torch. But that's not enough to knock a star down. Overall, heat on this thing is perfect. Warms right up, lets me solder to what I need to get done, and the torch tip (if you have it) is pretty useful for shrinking HST quickly if I hold it a few inches back. This one will not come with the torch tip, which is fine - unless you need the torch tip. You can still buy it separately, however.

For the money, it's a steal. Heats up very quickly & easy to use. Two small issues with it though: 1. The heat blower can't be turned off (It's where the sparks fly into in order to light it) - was not aware of this, and melted a few electrical cables while working on a PC. 2. It's difficult to spark with the included flint wheel, I recommend grabbing a cheap butane lighter to light it, as my thumb is sore from constantly trying to light it. Overall great product, works perfect for what I need.

Mostly just how I remember them, as I had a Radio Shack branded one. While not enough to knock down a start , the switch itself doesn’t seem as...tight? My previous one took a bit more force to open and close it, you could manage to get the tiniest flame if you just needed a gentle heat source to keep a surface warm. This one, you get it close to the edge, or just flips down. But all in all, amazing product. :-) My only complaint is that the torch tip doesn’t come with it. It’s clearly stated but and entire extra $12 on top of the unit price, it’s a lot. It’s quite universal that the torch tip is included, they do not. Again, it a flaw with the unit but perhaps the seller.

This is not the value it appears. First off, I was a bit disappointed that the design of this although cosmetically similar to another brand's butane soldering torch. However, cosmetically, that is where the similarity ends. The soldering tip is permanently connected to the torch-head, meaning to use it for torch soldering (melting solder around a larger piece) you have to buy a special tip which makes this more expensive than it's name brand look alike. I used it as a iron and it worked ok. But then I noticed twice that when I would return to use it the following day it was empty. So the third day it was empty again and I filled it. Went to the bathroom while the gas settled, and upon my return I thought i heard the sssssssh of gas. (I already was not fond of this item, so i put it in a glass of water and even when switched off gas was flowing out of it) Played with the on off control, and it would occasionally almost turn off, but not quite. This item is now occupying a landfill. I don't want anything to do with a product that leaks butane.