Mine works very well with a Type C PD power bank 20Ah with QC 3.0. Also the included USB C cable has a nice flexibility which adds to the usability . The ejecting collar allows for hot swapping tips with ease provided you remember not to eject into your lap!
I've used the TS100, the "bigger brother", now for over a year as the main SMD soldering iron (also for work, prototyping), and have all the tips for it (I think there are 9 different ones, including 3 sizes of 45 degree flat, a blunt and a fine tip, that cover most SMD use cases for me). It's noteworthy that these tips have heater, tip and thermistor all in one (like JBC and other high-end), so the heat transfer and responsiveness is much better than with old-style replaceable tips. The TS100 has 60W at 24V, and I've had no problem soldering large ground planes with it. It's not quite on JBC level, but it eats a lot of simpler solder stations for breakfast, much better than some older Weller or ERSA stations I had. And it's a fraction of the price. I also really like having the temp adjust buttons right on the grip for quick adjustments without putting it down. And it takes up less bench space. Good note on the grounding though - I wish the bundles they sell would come with a grounded PSU. Having an extra wire dangling off for the grounding is annoying. Connecting the negative power lead to earth is sufficient though, so it's an easy fix for a bench setup (or use a laptop supply with earth).
I've had my TS80P for a few weeks now and absolutely loving it for day-to-day workbench use. Buying the kit that includes the really flexible silicone USB-C lead is essential. Mine came with just the fine pointed tip, so the same day it arrived I ordered the TS-BC02 tip (2:58), which is the tip style I usually deploy. New tip hasn't arrived yet, but after seeing your review I'm pretty confident my TS-BC02 tip choice (for my primary use) was correct. :)
Really surprised how well it worked for you, great review. I got so frustrated with 'cheap' irons yonks ago I just bit the bullet and bought a weller81. I have never had any issues soldering anything since lol.
I have used and own both Metcal and Weller irons but now pretty much exclusively use as TS100, unfortunately Wellers customer service and quality has gone down hill in recent years IMO they seem to rely on their name alone to sell stuff.
I'm using a Metcal mx-500p-21 as my main soldering iron. It was so good it has been redesigned and copied as DIY. The main tips I use often (STTC-037 and STTC-022) are still working perfect - 10 years down the line, and they have seen *a lot* of usage. Last week I soldered 3 solid copper cantennas for 5.8GHz using STTC-114 and my QUICK 861DW hotair - solder reflowed perfectly around the SMA connector which wasn't damaged at all. You can buy tools you regret buying, and you can buy tools that you love using. I also got a KSGER T12 as a back-up, though I'm not impressed at all - but it works, and that counts as a back-up.
I would have liked to have seen that power supply opened and given a quick once over, distance between the high and low voltage areas especially at the optoisolator, the transformer pulled out and unwound to see if it has a double insulated winding. Those 2 pin units often come with a dangerous adaptor to fit UK sockets, I demonstrated one at work last week and had people in hysterics :)
The biggest issues I have with it is the cost of tips, at about $30ea! They clearly try to force you to buy another tip as theres not an option for which one it comes with when purchasing, the conical sucks unless you NEED the tiny pointed tip.
mine is capacitively coupled to the negative contact on the barrel jack. its connected to the screw on the back where you can attach a seperate grounding cable.
I've had the original TS100 (the 12-24v DC barrel PSU version) since they first came out. It's worked amazingly for me. The tip mine came with sounds like it's the size you want, it's a slightly flat point, about 2mm in width. TS-BC2 I think it's called. I use that and the TS-B2 (a blunt point tip). I love it, plenty of power for soldering huge heat sucking things like big ground planes and huge screw eyelets. I made up a 3m silicone wire with with a DC barrel plug on one end, the other goes to a variable voltage Lion battery pack which can give me 20v, so I'm completely mobile. At the bench I use an old laptop PSU (which also recharges the battery pack).
@SDG Electronics I see @5:52 the solder mound reveals that you appear to be using your awesome high brightness ring light design (the 4 reflected lights are the clue). I'm eagerly awaiting the final evolved outcome of your Ring Light journey, and how I can fire up my 3D printer and obtain the final boards to be able to make one for my own new Trinocular (for which the bundled 37MP camera absolutely needs more light!). Keep up the great work! All you videos are awesome! :)
Nice addition of the note that the voltage of an AC source can kill electronics. I actually had this in a project once where I was soldering a new FET on a PCB and for 4 times died immediately. It ended op being voltage coming from a cheap notebook laptop psp that was coupled with a USB scope (ground) to my project. So the whole project was @ 110AC because of the ac adapter of the notebook and my soldering iron was grounded to a real ground. It drove me absolutely nuts because the components where known goods.
I think I had this discussion with SDG before. My belief is that a soldering iron tip should be grounded just like an ESD strap - 1M to earth. It allows you to work on live circuits without shorting them out, provides improved ESD, and no charge buildup.
Great review. I picked one of these about a year ago as I wanted to learn some soldering skills. I am total beginner and was practicing today with it. Which tip would you recommend for changing out capacitors in CRTs or old gaming consoles and modding such as soldering wires on pads, pin headers, bridging pins etc? Is it the BC02? Also where can we get good 60/40 leaded solder from within the EU. Is only option to import from Amazon US?
You can get nice regular soldering stations for around $40-$75 so I don't know why anyone would use this other than as an occasional backup if you needed to travel with an iron or something.
Thank you for a wonderful "real world user" critique. I can agree this iron (and its' "Big Brother", the TS100) are not really suited for "full-time" workbench use. However, as a "semi-portable" (i.e., it needs an "electric umbilical" for power) iron, it's certainly valuable for the Field Repair Tech (or similar "Hardware Hacker") to carry, AS LONG AS there's an "available" AC Mains supply OR one carries a Suitably-Configured rechargeable battery pack (Lead-acid, Lithium, NiCad) or Few for those "assignments" where there's no AC Mains available OR even a "car adapter" cord (with a suitable-length cord) so you can use your Auto Cigarette Lighter receptacle.
Nice to see you back. Always wonder how you have time to do these videos with a job and family. Good video although im a JBC addict myself. Good for a newby though. P.s why do you need a soldering iron at other peoples houses? Moonlighting?
Professional stations are always going to be superior, especially at reducing bank balances. These USB irons seem to be really popular though so it was worth testing out. Repairs are always better if I can do them on the spot and don't have to clutter up the lab until the next time they can collect
True. I would always recommend buying a good rather than buying twice if you're serious. Good for certain purposes though like you say. Always get friends and family giving me broken things to fix! Ha ha classic.
No mention of cable drag using USB cables ??? I can't see 25W cutting it outdoors or for more general purpose usage on larger joints. The TS 100 is far more versatile in terms of power supply. Team it up with a surplus 19V laptop supply or 4S lipo for really nice results especially if you use silicon insulated power cable. The TS100 stick out is on par with the older 800 series Hako irons so a bit longer than the TS80.
Conical tips are the worst for smd, I only used conical for some holes or wires... Also, that chisel tip is perfectly fine for smd if you have the space around it to lay it down flat, you just have to put it in a better angle to be able to take advantage of the bigger thermal mass.
Definitely not. These will mess shit up that's difficult to clean up. Buy as good as you can. KSGER T12, genuine Hakko 951, JBC. Get the one that fits in your budget.
The KSGER T12 is cheaper, it is easier to set the temp, it does not get too hot like the TS80/TS100 are infamous for and it can use high-quality Hakko tips just as well as KSGER tips. But for soldering SMT, it is better to get a hot-air soldering station than a soldering iron.
Still to this day the tips are very limited. The iron itself is very good, i love mine, but going back i would look to something else, like the t245 compatible USB C irons I'm seeing around
I use my TS-100 as my daily driver due to the fact that it's much better than many other cheap soldering irons - Pinecil is another cheaper TS-100 rip-off I am thinking about getting (and have the grunt needed to do lower American gauge wire soldering like 8 Ga). I flashed Iron OS custom firmware so it is up to job that I demand of it.
Hello, why you don't do it with 24volt ( 23,8volt ) and with 350grad temperature ? And do the ic again you will be surprised ! Mod Info if you change the mosfet to a 30volt 6A one you can go up to 28- 29 Volt ! And see how good is soldering my preferring is 26-27 volt buy a protected one ! Best regards,
At 100 bucks why would you go with a hakko fx888d if you do not need the portable nature. I have the TS100, sent to me by bang good for review forever ago, great for on the go, but does not come close to the performance of my Hakko
Grounding/earthing is the biggest issue with these chinese irons and stations. They just don't want to put a damn ground on their products. Cheap $3 soldron 230V Indian irons have an earth terminal. Idk why these chinese can't just add a damn earth wire to their awesome soldering products. :(
Very fair review.
Highly recommended.
Mine works very well with a Type C PD power bank 20Ah with QC 3.0. Also the included USB C cable has a nice flexibility which adds to the usability . The ejecting collar allows for hot swapping tips with ease provided you remember not to eject into your lap!
I've used the TS100, the "bigger brother", now for over a year as the main SMD soldering iron (also for work, prototyping), and have all the tips for it (I think there are 9 different ones, including 3 sizes of 45 degree flat, a blunt and a fine tip, that cover most SMD use cases for me). It's noteworthy that these tips have heater, tip and thermistor all in one (like JBC and other high-end), so the heat transfer and responsiveness is much better than with old-style replaceable tips. The TS100 has 60W at 24V, and I've had no problem soldering large ground planes with it. It's not quite on JBC level, but it eats a lot of simpler solder stations for breakfast, much better than some older Weller or ERSA stations I had. And it's a fraction of the price. I also really like having the temp adjust buttons right on the grip for quick adjustments without putting it down. And it takes up less bench space. Good note on the grounding though - I wish the bundles they sell would come with a grounded PSU. Having an extra wire dangling off for the grounding is annoying. Connecting the negative power lead to earth is sufficient though, so it's an easy fix for a bench setup (or use a laptop supply with earth).
That's so true, grounding or earthing is the biggest issue with these chinese irons and stations.
I've had my TS80P for a few weeks now and absolutely loving it for day-to-day workbench use. Buying the kit that includes the really flexible silicone USB-C lead is essential. Mine came with just the fine pointed tip, so the same day it arrived I ordered the TS-BC02 tip (2:58), which is the tip style I usually deploy. New tip hasn't arrived yet, but after seeing your review I'm pretty confident my TS-BC02 tip choice (for my primary use) was correct. :)
I didn't find anyone with stock at the moment, but I will order the same one. It looked closest to the type I find most useful
Really surprised how well it worked for you, great review. I got so frustrated with 'cheap' irons yonks ago I just bit the bullet and bought a weller81. I have never had any issues soldering anything since lol.
I have used and own both Metcal and Weller irons but now pretty much exclusively use as TS100, unfortunately Wellers customer service and quality has gone down hill in recent years IMO they seem to rely on their name alone to sell stuff.
@@mfx1 I do agree and there pricing does seem rather exuberant these days.
@@mfx1 hi is there a reason you prefer the ts100 over metcal also what voltage are you useing with your ts100
@@dhananjeyannatarajan5366 Because I can use it anywhere cordless. I use 18v DeWaly batteries.
@@mfx1 on hard demand tasks do you find that the ts100 can keep on equivalent temps?
I'm using a Metcal mx-500p-21 as my main soldering iron. It was so good it has been redesigned and copied as DIY.
The main tips I use often (STTC-037 and STTC-022) are still working perfect - 10 years down the line, and they have seen *a lot* of usage.
Last week I soldered 3 solid copper cantennas for 5.8GHz using STTC-114 and my QUICK 861DW hotair - solder reflowed perfectly around the SMA connector which wasn't damaged at all.
You can buy tools you regret buying, and you can buy tools that you love using. I also got a KSGER T12 as a back-up, though I'm not impressed at all - but it works, and that counts as a back-up.
I have one of these with the BC02 and J02 tips, I prefer it over my Hakko FX888D, it heats up quicker and takes up much less bench space.
Just got mine and bought a couple 90° USB-C adapters for the cord. It works great
I would have liked to have seen that power supply opened and given a quick once over, distance between the high and low voltage areas especially at the optoisolator, the transformer pulled out and unwound to see if it has a double insulated winding.
Those 2 pin units often come with a dangerous adaptor to fit UK sockets, I demonstrated one at work last week and had people in hysterics :)
instablaster...
The biggest issues I have with it is the cost of tips, at about $30ea! They clearly try to force you to buy another tip as theres not an option for which one it comes with when purchasing, the conical sucks unless you NEED the tiny pointed tip.
Cracking comment on the floating voltage Steve. I use a TS-100 as an everyday iron as I travel a lot (and its cheaper - lol).
TS-100 "grounds" the tip to the -ve of the supply, so if you're using a good grounded laptop PSU (as I do), your tip is also grounded.
I use it too as my main soldering iron. 10mm2 wire or smd work no problem. The ts-100 is amazing.
@@Todestelzer I've soldered everything from huge ring terminals onto 4mm copper cables to tiny SMD components. Love it!
mine is capacitively coupled to the negative contact on the barrel jack. its connected to the screw on the back where you can attach a seperate grounding cable.
@Marcel Zuidwijk the USB C was the cause of most of the false starts until PD got established. The 5.5mm DC barrel is so much simpler!
I've had the original TS100 (the 12-24v DC barrel PSU version) since they first came out.
It's worked amazingly for me. The tip mine came with sounds like it's the size you want, it's a slightly flat point, about 2mm in width. TS-BC2 I think it's called.
I use that and the TS-B2 (a blunt point tip).
I love it, plenty of power for soldering huge heat sucking things like big ground planes and huge screw eyelets.
I made up a 3m silicone wire with with a DC barrel plug on one end, the other goes to a variable voltage Lion battery pack which can give me 20v, so I'm completely mobile. At the bench I use an old laptop PSU (which also recharges the battery pack).
Sounds like a good solution 👍
I love my ts80p. I use it mostly for repair work or console modding.
Hi and thank you for the review. Two questions, how do you turn it off without unplugging? And where can I find additional tips? Thank you
You can just press the button to take you back to the main menu where it turns off the element. Additional tips are ebay or aliexpress.
@@sdgelectronics thanks so much and happy New Year!
@SDG Electronics I see @5:52 the solder mound reveals that you appear to be using your awesome high brightness ring light design (the 4 reflected lights are the clue). I'm eagerly awaiting the final evolved outcome of your Ring Light journey, and how I can fire up my 3D printer and obtain the final boards to be able to make one for my own new Trinocular (for which the bundled 37MP camera absolutely needs more light!). Keep up the great work! All you videos are awesome! :)
Yes I'll be finishing it ASAP, I have LED PCBs all over the place 😂
PRO WITH THE GUN! NICE & CLEAN!
I think this solder iron works with weller (RT 1 model for example) 3.5 mm iron tips too... I will give it a try
Nice addition of the note that the voltage of an AC source can kill electronics. I actually had this in a project once where I was soldering a new FET on a PCB and for 4 times died immediately. It ended op being voltage coming from a cheap notebook laptop psp that was coupled with a USB scope (ground) to my project. So the whole project was @ 110AC because of the ac adapter of the notebook and my soldering iron was grounded to a real ground. It drove me absolutely nuts because the components where known goods.
I think I had this discussion with SDG before. My belief is that a soldering iron tip should be grounded just like an ESD strap - 1M to earth. It allows you to work on live circuits without shorting them out, provides improved ESD, and no charge buildup.
Can you expalin why the Y rated capacitors are needed for the class 2 AC adaptors? Why not leave the DC output floating?
Great review. I picked one of these about a year ago as I wanted to learn some soldering skills. I am total beginner and was practicing today with it. Which tip would you recommend for changing out capacitors in CRTs or old gaming consoles and modding such as soldering wires on pads, pin headers, bridging pins etc? Is it the BC02?
Also where can we get good 60/40 leaded solder from within the EU. Is only option to import from Amazon US?
Thank you. I certainly hope they make more tips. It's a fantastic iron.
You can get nice regular soldering stations for around $40-$75 so I don't know why anyone would use this other than as an occasional backup if you needed to travel with an iron or something.
Because they take a lot less space. And can be taken anywhere in a small bag. Those regular stations take up half a backpack.
Thank you for a wonderful "real world user" critique. I can agree this iron (and its' "Big Brother", the TS100) are not really suited for "full-time" workbench use. However, as a "semi-portable" (i.e., it needs an "electric umbilical" for power) iron, it's certainly valuable for the Field Repair Tech (or similar "Hardware Hacker") to carry, AS LONG AS there's an "available" AC Mains supply OR one carries a Suitably-Configured rechargeable battery pack (Lead-acid, Lithium, NiCad) or Few for those "assignments" where there's no AC Mains available OR even a "car adapter" cord (with a suitable-length cord) so you can use your Auto Cigarette Lighter receptacle.
Could you compare the TS80 tip to grip to the T245 / C245 from JBC?
Have this iron for a year now and i really love it. The only downside is the lack of different tips
Nice to see you back. Always wonder how you have time to do these videos with a job and family. Good video although im a JBC addict myself. Good for a newby though.
P.s why do you need a soldering iron at other peoples houses? Moonlighting?
Professional stations are always going to be superior, especially at reducing bank balances. These USB irons seem to be really popular though so it was worth testing out. Repairs are always better if I can do them on the spot and don't have to clutter up the lab until the next time they can collect
True. I would always recommend buying a good rather than buying twice if you're serious. Good for certain purposes though like you say. Always get friends and family giving me broken things to fix! Ha ha classic.
Jbc overpriced asf
hey, is the TS100 compatible with Hakko tips?
How is the progress with GPSDO?
I shelved it temporarily to regroup. It was in danger of getting too complicated. I'll be resuming soon
You can say "too big" to my soldering gun with a 4x3mm tip. SMD is fine. Even drag soldering! Just has a higher requirement on angle.
It’s work to 12 volts ?
Great video as always
No mention of cable drag using USB cables ??? I can't see 25W cutting it outdoors or for more general purpose usage on larger joints. The TS 100 is far more versatile in terms of power supply. Team it up with a surplus 19V laptop supply or 4S lipo for really nice results especially if you use silicon insulated power cable. The TS100 stick out is on par with the older 800 series Hako irons so a bit longer than the TS80.
Old video but just a note that I have had 1 bad tip before.. similar results. It acted like it was much colder than the same tip that it replaced.
I just bought one of these and I'm hoping I got a dud tip as it's way worse than my really cheap iron
You should do the Pinecil soon!
Conical tips are the worst for smd, I only used conical for some holes or wires... Also, that chisel tip is perfectly fine for smd if you have the space around it to lay it down flat, you just have to put it in a better angle to be able to take advantage of the bigger thermal mass.
Would you recommend this for microsoldering? I'm looking for an iron to use for iPhones and other mobile devices but I'm a complete beginner.
Definitely not. These will mess shit up that's difficult to clean up. Buy as good as you can. KSGER T12, genuine Hakko 951, JBC. Get the one that fits in your budget.
@@johnyang799 what about the TS100 there seems to be nicer tips available for that.
@@naheeduddin1672 ksger is amazing for the price. I have not used TS100. But I have used JBC. Ksger is definitely the way to go. IMHO.
TS-100. I soldered quite a bit with it now. 1 year soldering smds. I can recommend it.
The KSGER T12 is cheaper, it is easier to set the temp, it does not get too hot like the TS80/TS100 are infamous for and it can use high-quality Hakko tips just as well as KSGER tips. But for soldering SMT, it is better to get a hot-air soldering station than a soldering iron.
Lack of tips is actually a showstopper...
I use the TS100 as my main iron, prefer it to the TS80 just with they'd make a TS100 with a stronger case.
Still to this day the tips are very limited. The iron itself is very good, i love mine, but going back i would look to something else, like the t245 compatible USB C irons I'm seeing around
I use my TS-100 as my daily driver due to the fact that it's much better than many other cheap soldering irons - Pinecil is another cheaper TS-100 rip-off I am thinking about getting (and have the grunt needed to do lower American gauge wire soldering like 8 Ga). I flashed Iron OS custom firmware so it is up to job that I demand of it.
C'È QUALCUNO CHE SA COME AGGIORNARLO CON ANDROID
Hello, why you don't do it with 24volt ( 23,8volt ) and with 350grad temperature ?
And do the ic again you will be surprised !
Mod Info if you change the mosfet to a 30volt 6A one you can go up to 28- 29 Volt ! And see how good is soldering my preferring is 26-27 volt buy a protected one !
Best regards,
Try Denon SS 8200.
I stick with the t12 quickoo
👍👌
At 100 bucks why would you go with a hakko fx888d if you do not need the portable nature. I have the TS100, sent to me by bang good for review forever ago, great for on the go, but does not come close to the performance of my Hakko
Grounding/earthing is the biggest issue with these chinese irons and stations. They just don't want to put a damn ground on their products.
Cheap $3 soldron 230V Indian irons have an earth terminal. Idk why these chinese can't just add a damn earth wire to their awesome soldering products. :(