Customer Reviews

Weller WESD51 Digital Soldering Station

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The Weller WESD51 is an excellent low cost soldering iron for the lab technician or hobbyist. The key benefit is the ability to accurately control and monitor the tip temperature. This allows using the lowest possible temperature setting (675° - 725°) which prolongs tip life and prevents component damage.

It can handle a wide range of tasks from very small SMD components to large ground connections. The silicone rubber cord resists high temperatures should the tip accidentally come in contact. I have one on my lab bench at work and liked it so much I bought one for my home workbench.

My father always told me how good Weller was, so when I decided to purchase a new iron, I purchased this model. He was right.

Provided you follow appropriate safety procedures, this tool is super to use! All I had to do was dial up the appropriate temperature and the tip heated up in far less time than I expected. It looks very well-made and rugged. The stand is very stout as well.

I dabble in electronics and robotics and I have reason to believe that this is probably the only iron I'll ever need; Weller's good reputation is well-deserved.

This fired up right away and I have not had any problems with it at all. The temperature control is extremely accurate. The unit is very easy to use and maintain. Replacement tips and parts are readily available at places like Fry's (which wanted quite a bit more for this same iron). Although the only thing I have needed to purchase for it outside of solder was a few different style tips for varying electronic soldering applications. I highly recommend this iron for the hobbyist or professional.

I am currently working for a company where I need to do some serious soldering on both through hole and surface mount circuits. We have two soldering stations; both have temperature control and are rated for about the same temperature. Of the two the Weller Digital is the only one I use anymore. It heats up quickly and can handle continuous soldering for over an hour of work. I like the digital display because in my case I work with some sensitive components that can't take much more than 250 degC (480 degF) and others that I need to use high temperature solder that doesn't flow until it hits about 350 degC (660 degF). The tip on it has lasted for a very long time, and comes nice and clean every time tin it. It can be set up to have the stand attached to the base on either side, or to be freestanding. The fact that it iron itself is grounded is nice for any static sensitive applications. It is easy to hold onto, and doesn't burn my hands like my iron at home. I plan on getting one of these soldering stations for myself to use at home ASAP.

If you can't afford this one I would recommend the Weller Analog version, which I used while going to school, and loved as well.

The construction quality of this product is fair at best. The connector for the soldering iron on the front of the base unit isn't anchored in its place, and I can already tell this will be the first thing I ever have to fix on this unit. Operationally... it doesn't seem to get as hot as the display says it is, but I'll have to confirm this with later testing. I had also bought two other Weller soldering guns (140/100W and 260/200W) along with this order and they too are poorly built compared to my older Weller tools. It's a shame.

I was able to use this iron at my workplace before deciding to purchase one for myself. I am an electronics technician by trade and also do repairs and fabrication stuff in my spare time at home. For years I used a weller 25 watt pencil iron that was probably 20 years old and I was quite happy with it however I felt I was ready for something a little better. I really wasnt sure if this iron would be able to do some of my larger tasks like splicing 12-14 gauge wires due to the amount of heat required but once you set the iron to the desired temperature it will remain there no matter what you are soldering. I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of heat transfer I could get with the small tips.

The pencil itself is small and lightweight and very easy to manuever. The cord also wont melt with intermittent contact with the tip. Comes up to temperature very quickly and reponds quickly when you adjust the temp with the control unit.

I have found a temperature around 550 works good for typical 60/40 solder on average jobs as i typically like a hotter iron. I cant imagine what I would need to solder up in the 7-800 degree range. This setup has an adjustable temp from 350-850 degrees F. This iron wont replace a 130 watt gun for the large jobs but overall definetly 5 stars. A pleasure to work with and seems to be made well with a quality feel. I'm glad I invested in getting this vs another standard pencil iron.

If your spending this much on a solderin iron you probably know how to take care of the tip but its very important otherwise it will oxidize and you wont be able to solder anything no matter how high the temperature is set. The manual doesnt go into too much detail about this but basically you want to keep the tip cleaned and tinned before and after each joint.

I've used the same couple of cheap but dependable Radio Shack irons since I was about 12. Now 17 years later, I needed something smaller and more temperature controllable for working with lead-free solder and smaller parts.

I knew Weller had a great reputation, but I was very concerned that the quality of the cheaper products like the WESD51 might not live up to that reputation. I read a few positive reviews and decided to make the purchase.

It's been almost a year and I have used this iron several times for various jobs. I am very pleased with the purchase and would recommend this product to everyone. If you have a plain old iron, it is worth the upgrade to the WESD51. Good temperature control, heats up quickly, reliable, maintains heat when working with large parts/heat sinks/copper pours, and the tips are cheap and plentiful. I love this station and you will too.

I am a long time Radio Amateur with a Broadcast Engineering License and have been building radio projects for over 57 years. In that time I have purchased soldering irons, guns and soldering stations. Today, with modern electronics and parts, soldering stations are a necessity and it needs to be static proof so parts don't get zapped. I found out the hard way, that if you buy a very inexpensive brand X unit, it probably is not static proof. If you buy a modestly priced brand X unit, you will be very disappointed when you need to find replacement tips and elements plus any other parts. I found this out the hard way. I will never make this mistake again.

Doing a lot of electronics as a hobby today, and not doing it commercially anymore prevents one from buying an extremely high end professional soldering station. (Up in the $300 to $400 range, or even higher). The Weller WESD51 is a great compromise. It gives you static protection, controlled heat setting with LED heat setting and actual temperature. All this for just slightly more then a Brand X unit. I love my new Weller WES51. I now have the comfort of knowing when I ever need a new tip, or different type of tip, or if I ever need a new heating element or any other part on this device, I will be able to get it easily either through Weller direct of from one of their huge number of dealers around the country. I got burned the last time buying a unit I liked very much for around $65. It was rebranded by GC (General Cement) who is a fairly big player in electronics. But, they are not a big player in Soldering Stations. When I needed a new tip or anything else on it, I was out of luck because it was a discontinued item. Do yourself a favor, and buy Weller. They are committed to Soldering equipment.

Lee
Houston, TX

I bought this for a small business, we use it to repair cables and build new. It heats up very fast, almost instantly and works very well. Could be the best I have ever used.

Incredibly fast heat up. I love that I can set the knob to 550, wait 45 seconds and start working. readout shows current temp as it climbs to the target temp so you don't have to guess. I would HIGHLY recommend this unit over the similar Weller unit that doesn't have the digital readout. Definitely worth the extra money if you're stepping up to this type of unit.

I have only used hand held 'pencil' type and gun-type products before, and only on basic projects. I bought this unit for building an automotive ECU kit ( DIYautoTune MegaSquirt) and the construction is going perfectly so far. I would never be able to build a precision layout with the cheaper units. I'm sure it could be done, but they're hard to control.

I bought a Weller 1/64", long, conical tip - it's a little more precise than the one that comes with this kit, but the one it comes with is still pretty good.

Only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because one of the rubber 'feet' on the base unit is 1/16" taller than the other 3, so it wobbles a little. I'll fix it with an X-acto knife at some point - doesn't affect the operation of the device.