Weller WLC100 40-Watt Soldering Station

by Weller

• On/off switch with power-on indicator light
• Variable power control produces 5 to 40 watts
• Quality, lightweight pencil iron
• Cushioned foam grip with replaceable heating element
• Includes iron-plated copper tip, safety guard iron holder, and natural sponge tip cleaning pad

Product Description

Amazon.com

The Weller WLC100 Soldering Station includes everything you need to start using solder to join metals and create efficient, electrical connections. Designed with the hobbyist and the do-it-yourself enthusiast in mind, this kit features a high-quality, lightweight pencil iron with variable power control, a cushioned foam grip with a replaceable heating element, and a safety guard iron holder. And it’s from Weller, the world leader in soldering since 1945.

The Weller WLC100 Soldering Station offers: A lightweight pencil iron Power adjustment from 5 to 40 watts An ST3 iron-plated 1/8-inch screwdriver tip A built-in iron stand

Weller offers a variety of compatible soldering iron tips. View larger.

A built-in holder keep your soldering iron ready to use. View larger.

A lightweight pencil iron is the heart of this system. View larger.

Durable, Easy-to-Control Pencil Iron
At the heart of the WLC100 Soldering Station is a high-quality lightweight pencil iron with an ST3 iron-plated copper tip. To ensure that you can work comfortably for long stretches of time, the iron has a cushioned foam grip that sits comfortably in your hand as you work. It has a replaceable heating element, so you can continue using the same iron for a long time to come.

Easy-to-Adjust Variable Power Controls
Unlike many basic soldering kits, which can be difficult to adjust, the WLC100 features a variable power control that lets you adjust the power level from five to 40 watts with a simple turn of the knob on the base unit. This lets you choose the precise setting for each unique job that you tackle. The base also includes a "power-on" indicator light and on/off switch to help keep you from leaving a hot iron on accidentally.

The workstation also provides a built-in iron stand to keep your workspace organized and a natural sponge tip cleaning pad to keep your tip ready to go at all times.

High-Quality Accessories for Dependable Performance
The WLC100 includes an ST3 iron-plated 1/8-inch screwdriver tip. Weller also offers a wide array of compatible ST series tips to perform a variety of applications (additional tips are sold separately).

All Weller tips are constructed of solid copper and plated with iron, as well as nickel and chromium to protect against corrosion and solder creep, helping to ensure that your tools perform reliably over time. Additionally, Weller tips are pre-tinned with tin/lead solder.

This WLC100 Soldering Station is UL-listed, which means it has been tested and meets independent safety standards. It is backed by a one year warranty against manufacturer’s defects in material and workmanship.

What's in the Box
Soldering iron, ST3 tip, and base unit with built-in iron stand.

From the Manufacturer

This 40-Watt soldering station features a quality lightweight pencil iron and a cushioned foam grip with replaceable heating element. This product is ideal for hobbyist, do-it-yourself'ers and students.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

67 of 68 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great iron if used carefully. Here are some tips (pun intended) August 11, 2011

By Science Boy

I've had this iron for ten years now. The level of use it's seen has varied up and down, depending on how much time I had available to spend on my electronics hobby. The iron itself is absolutely fine for, you guessed it, hobby and DIY use (no problems with it not being ESD safe, and I've soldered a lot of semiconductors). If I ever need to do a higher volume of work I will upgrade to a WES-51 temp controlled station, but for now this continues to fit the bill quite nicely. The tips are long-lived if you take care of them (keep it tinned even while sitting in the holder, try not to bash it on the holder when you put it in, don't leave it switched on if it won't be used for a while). The standard tip is too big for electronics use and must be replaced with something smaller. For a long time I had a medium-size tip on there and it seemed to function well between 3 and 4 on the heat control, depending on the size of the work. With this station you need to pay quite careful attention to the way the solder flows when you heat the joint, if you want to produce high quality solder joints. The solder should become fully liquid and flow into and around the joint area on its own, without needing to be spread around the sides and back. If not, the temperature isn't high enough. On the other hand, don't set the temp higher than it needs to be or you will shorten the life of the tip and may damage the component you are working on. Remember this and you will quickly learn where the 'normal' setting is and when to turn the iron up or down a bit in response to larger or smaller work....

Now for the really important information that I wanted to pass on to users of this iron:

I was so used to using my medium size tip in this heat range that when it finally burned out and I replaced it with a fine point, I just turned the iron on and waited for it to heat up so I could tin the tip and start using it. But there was a problem: solder simply beaded on the tip and I couldn't tin it. I thought I had a bad tip BUT here's the kicker: heat level 3 was too high for the fine tip, so it immediately overheated and oxidized. Luckily, using fine steel wool and _very_ careful use of 600 grit paper I was able to bring the tip back to a metallic color. I then switched on the iron at its lowest heat and waited for it to heat up, regularly trying to melt solder. Eventually it got there (I had to turn it up to about 1.5) and I tinned the tip. Turns out the operating range for a fine tip is about 1.5 to 1.8 on my dial. Any higher and you can burn the tip, especially a new, untinned tip. Operating in the low power range, it takes a while for the tip to come up to temp, and to recover its temperature after soldering a few joints. This is the reason why I would go to a temp controlled station if I had to do a lot of work. If time isn't money and you are prepared to closely monitor what's going on at the tip, there's no reason why you can't make perfect solder joints with this iron.

Another thing: often when soldering to the metal tabs in RCA connectors I had trouble getting solder to flow onto the tab. for a long time I solved this by sanding or filing the area BUT a much easier and just as effective method is simply to clean the shiny tab with a Q-tip dipped in acetone!

Finally, please consider minimizing the lead pollution of your electronics work. Personally I don't much like lead-free solder but I don't want to put lead solder in the trash (ie landfill, ie groundwater). For at least the ten years I've had this iron, I have kept all solder waste and soldered wire clippings in a flip-top container. It takes up next to no space on the bench and I always have somewhere convenient to eject the contents of my solder sucker. At some point I will take this hazardous waste to a local electronics workshop or the municipal recycling depot, but it accumulates so slowly that it really hasn't been an issue yet. Just make sure to mark the container "lead - do not empty in garbage" if there's a chance that someone might do so.

Thanks for reading, and happy soldering! Read more ›

308 of 339 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Bottom of the barrel December 30, 2008

By Reviewer

For the same price one can get a "Professional" series Weller iron (like this one) with constant tip temperature, or a less known brand temperature-controlled station (like this one) that will be much nicer to work with.

PROS:
Weller quality and durability.

CONS:
Price is too high for a simple iron without temperature control, the "power control" knob works like a simple light dimmer - with no feedback from the tip, so the temperature will be jumping up and down while you work.

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Side notes: for pleasant work experience and good quality soldering one needs to keep the proper tip temperature - it can't be too low or too high. Note that in both extremes the solder will visibly melt, but the quality of the connection will suffer. When the iron is too cold: you are likely to get "cold solder" joints that look fine outside but lack internal integrity and often drop the connection soon. These are hard to troubleshoot.

If the iron gets too hot, you may burn the copper traces and they will break off the PCB, you may overheat electronic parts, and (most annoying to me) you burn out the flux before it does its job. Ironically, using too hot iron may also result in "cold solder" connections. This happens because the flux will go in smoke before it reaches the soldered surfaces to clean them and make the solder stick properly and permanently.

The only way to ensure correct soldering temperature is to use controlled iron with feedback from the tip (very important). The WLC100 has only appearance of "control" but you can't set and hold the temperature.... It is as good as the cheapest iron from Sears or Radio Shack that cost five times less. Read more ›

115 of 125 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars THIS IS THE ONE TO GET! February 18, 2005

By FOX

Many years ago when I got this iron, it was only $30, and I see it has almost doubled in price, but STILL FAR BELOW the cost of the other Weller soldering iron stations!

And there is really no other reason to get the other ones, when one of the elements goes bad on the other ones, you have to pay more than the price of this whole station just to replace the element! This one doesn't have any element, you just replace the tip, which you can get at any Radio Shack for a dollar or two tops. And I still have not needed to replace the tip on this one after years of use, since I keep the tip nice and tinned.

This heats up nice and fast, is always reliable, just as good as any of the BLUE ones that cost three and four times the cost that the same company sells, and has never let me down.

Get it now, before they raise the price any more!

Once you get it, it should last a lifetime.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly what it says it is. May 21, 2009

By Lee Uzzell

I use a Weller WES51 Weller WES51 Analog Soldering Station, Power Unit, Soldering Pencil, Stand and Sponge at work doing work on circuit boards. I've got probably 24 hours of use on the WES51 so far. I bought the WLC100 for use at home on hobby and DIY work because it is half the price of the WES51. The biggest differences I have seen being: The WLC100 takes MUCH longer to reach operating temperature(but the WES51 only takes 20-30 seconds) and doesn't have the same ability to hold operating temperature when doing large joints. With that said, it's as solid a unit as I've used besides my WES51 and can get every job done that should be needed by a hobbyist. If you are planning to use this for long periods of professional work, I suggest going stepping up, but for smaller jobs this is the station to get.