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Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

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Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#211

Post by ewoodrich »

moffkalast wrote: post #140
anamexis wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't need a "large heavy box," just a standard USB-C PD power brick. e.g. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C1FZWT8M/

On one hand I agree that if everything you have uses PD, your laptop, your phone, your powerbank and a charger like that and it's powerful enough to handle it all then it probably makes sense to also have an iron that works with it and it's all interchangeable. On the other hand we already have a standard power thing, it's called an outlet. And in practice you need to charge/use things in parallel so you'd need to ca…

I charge any combination of my Macbook Pro, Thinkpad, Chromebook, phone, tablet etc at the same time almost exclusively with high wattage GaN multiport chargers. I keep one in my backpack with 2 or 3 100W cables so charging in parallel is never a problem away from home from a single outlet/charger.

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#212

Post by jalk »

w4rh4wk5 wrote: post #93
mrandish wrote: post #81

After a quick look at the specs: Plus * 5 secs to temp. * Heat resistant, vented cap. * User can change auto idle and sleep times. Minus * Need iFixit power station or computer to change temp and other settings. * No temp indicator on the iron. No mention if the LED indicates it's reached set temp. I'd love to keep a small, lightweight, high-quality portable iron in my tool bag ready for quick repairs. It needs to he…

I do have a TS100 which I use either with a battery pack or a wall charger. For storing it, I am using a metal casing that is used for a single cigar. There's also room for a tiny metal cleaning brush which protects the tip during storage. Given that all of this is metal and that the soldering iron doesn't have that much thermal capacity, I can pack it up while the tip is still hot and the casing will only get mildly…

/me going to the store, to buy a cigar

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#213

Post by Kirby64 »

kube-system wrote: post #209
Kirby64 wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're using full power for longer than 40 seconds, you're almost certainly doing something wrong (or, need to switch to a chunkier soldering iron). At a certain point, the limiting factor becomes how quickly you can transfer heat from the iron into the solder, and you won't pull 100W anymore. I have a JBC iron capable of 130W. It never pulls 130W, even on extremely chunky power planes, besides when initially heat…

Yeah, I didn't mean to suggest that someone would do that whole 40s all in one go... maybe a handful of seconds of full-power here and there... but heat accumulates and people probably want to put the iron down well before the battery in the handle hits its thermal limits. It just seems to me like it would be a good candidate to get hot quickly and suffer in both performance and comfort due to it. I'm sure it would p…

I’d think for the vast majority of uses it’d be just fine. The duty cycle of a soldering iron is extremely low. Most of the time it’s sitting there topping up the heat on the iron, barely sipping power. If you’re truly cranking heat into some ground plane, a wireless iron is unlikely to be the correct tool for the job. Also, you could set the threshold for backing off the iron to be lower than “too hot to hold” if that’s a concern.

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#214

Post by themoonisachees »

My experience in soldering is a hobby one, but I've done hard enough things like install a Nintendo switch modchip without a microscope. I want to love this product, but I really think you're hitting the worst of both worlds in what you're trying to achieve.

On one hand, you're competing with "you're in the middle of a field and there exist no power outlets nearby" optimized irons, and you're offering some nicer features like 100W usb-c, but I don't think this is a field where one cares very much about the quality of their iron. I've fixed drones with the shittiest of usb-c irons, and I've done it with a pinecil, and when you're hunched over in a field, it frankly does not matter.

On the other hand, it seems you're also trying to compete in at-a-workbench soldering, a class in which your price point is simply never going to work for what you offer. You're being outclassed by half as expensive stationary stations, even more so when you consider that they don't use proprietary tips. My 40€ AliExpress special station came with 3 tips, heats up in 2 seconds, and offers about the same experience as your several hundred dollars one, at the supposed cost of repairability (I haven't come across an iron that doesn't work ever. I suspect it would be a comparable fix.)

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#215

Post by wvenable »

kwiens wrote: post #70
syntaxing wrote: post #60

Overall a great idea, though not a fan that you can’t directly change the temperature on the soldering iron without the power station.

You can set the temperature on the iron with our web console, which uses Web Serial: https://www.ifixit.com/fixhub/console Once you set the temperature, the iron remembers it and you can use any power source. We've spent a lot of time talking to engineers and makers who solder all day, and it turns out that most people rarely change the temperature. Pick a temperature you like and leave it there. Our heating algorith…

> Pick a temperature you like and leave it there.

It's hard to argue because that's mostly what I do. But it feel really odd for a soldering iron not to have a temperature control right on it. Especially given competitor irons have screens and buttons. Going to a web interface seems insane in comparison to pressing some buttons.

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#216

Post by themoonisachees »

Mattwmaster58 wrote: post #144
omgtehlion wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pinecil can not deliver actual 100w, and most chinese type-c handles can neither. This one uses real buck converter which can help with this problem.

Is the reason a buck converter is required so that it can increase I? I = V/R, by increasing V we can increase I?

I suspect the usb-PD standard doesn't allow for raising the voltage any more than they already do

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#217

Post by mhb »

kurthr wrote: post #198
0x1ch wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You seen knowledgeable. I've used leaded solder in my bedroom / apartments since community college, usually with a fan in the room or a window open. What damage could have or has happened?

I'm no doctor, but if you've only done a few hours of this and you're 20+ it's probably no big deal. However, you are breathing lead vapor and it's not good for you (if you're at 100s of hours and 12yo that's really not good). If it gets on things you eat, it's also bad. The effects are permanent. We had leaded (Ethyl) gasoline in cars which was banned 25 years ago and that had noticeable statistical effects on IQ an…

You're not breathing lead vapor. You're breathing flux vapor, which is probably not optimal either.

https://www.quora.com/Can-I-get-lead-poisoning-from-inhaling...

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#218

Post by kwiens »

Animats wrote: post #203

Nice. The soldering iron is only US$80, but the battery is US$250.[1] Not shipping yet, still in pre-order. Does iFixit have enough manufacturing capacity to satisfy demand? This should be on DigiKey. [1] https://www.ifixit.com/products/fixhub-power-series-portable...

We're talking with Digikey! Stay tuned.

Preorders start today and will ship on October 15.

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#219

Post by themoonisachees »

anamexis wrote: post #33
dlevine wrote: post #28

I paid ~$100 for my Hakko FX888D, and have had had that for almost 10 years. Looking on the Internet, the price hasn't gone up much. Not sure whether this (for $250 including the power supply) is a class above that. The repairability is a definite plus (assuming parts continue to be available for many years), and all the nerdy features are also cool, but not sure how useful they will be in the real world.

Only $80 for the iron itself though, compatible with any USB-C PD power supply.

The pinecil is $25.

Re: Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

#220

Post by mysteria »

jsheard wrote: post #32
dlevine wrote: post #28

I paid ~$100 for my Hakko FX888D, and have had had that for almost 10 years. Looking on the Internet, the price hasn't gone up much. Not sure whether this (for $250 including the power supply) is a class above that. The repairability is a definite plus (assuming parts continue to be available for many years), and all the nerdy features are also cool, but not sure how useful they will be in the real world.

The FX888 is an older style iron where the tip and heating element are separate components, the newer generation (such as this iFixit one) have the tip, heater and temperature sensor integrated as a single component which allows them to regulate the tip temperature much faster and more accurately. Hakko does make irons of that type now but they're very expensive, up in the $500 range. Another benefit of the newer sty…

It's worth noting that with some practice you can unscrew the hot metal tip holder with pilers, flip the tip out into a tray, drop the new cold tip in, and screw it all back using the pliers in 30 seconds or so.
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