Hakko FX888D-23BY Digital Soldering Station FX-888D FX-888 (blue & yellow)

This unit works perfect for my need. Heats up quickly and I never have a problem with it.

Paul Carlson of “Mr. Carlson’s Lab” uses one. Mark from “Blueglow Electronics” uses one. 90% of every EE video I see has an FX888D in the background. That’s enough of an endorsement. I bought one and love it. Temperature control is not as bad as everyone claims. It heats up quickly and adjusts the newly-set temperature quickly. The grip is wonderful. It’s such an improvement over any Weller. I *do* wish the iron stand/holder had more heft to it but that’s about it.

Ive had the same old Ungar iron for over 20 years, but Id been wanting a multi-temp unit for a while. I waffled between the Hakko and analog Weller and eventually settled on the Hakko. Once you get past the Fisher Price colors, youll find that the unit is pretty nice. Like everyones said, it gets to temp insanely fast, and I really like the integrated sponge/wire cleaner. The footprint is pretty small, and the iron cable is flexible. Ive had the chance to use the iron in a few different scenarios like normal soldering for components on my 3D printer to some thicker R/C motor wires that my previous iron couldnt get through. The menu process can be a little counter-intuitive. Out of the box my unit had no presets configured. And it took a while to figure out oh, I need to enable presets and then go in and put temps in. Once the presets are in then its simple to quickly go between them. But then I wanted to change a preset temp and had to go back and look up how to do it. Im sure its a matter of just getting used to the unit, but this was a good example where I wished Id got the analog Weller so Id just have to turn a knob.

The price on this unit was more than I usually like to pay, which is why Ive struggled most of my life with inadequate soldering irons. But one day, while trying to take some capacitors off a circuit board, holding the iron on there endlessly in frustration, I decided enough was enough. I scoured the reviews in Amazon, initially looking at a Weller unit, but someone pointed to the Hakko unit and I was impressed by the number of positive reviews. So I plunked down my hard-earned cash, and waited. One week later, I unboxed the unit, noticing the solid construction. And after trying it, I knew I had reached soldering iron nirvana! Here are the features I really appreciate: 1. Hot in seconds flat. Theres a little red LED on the front that tells when the iron is heating. When it goes off, the tip is ready. I didnt time it but turning the heat dial up half-way only takes about 5 to 10 seconds before the tip is ready. Wow! so different from what I was used to. 2. Performance. Most soldering can be done at about half temp. A few times Ive cranked it up all the way, to melt some stubborn joint, and it really works! 3. The brass tip cleaner. I really like the little brass wool that you can rub the tip on. It works very nicely and is much more convenient than water/sponge (although you can use that too). 4. Good stand. Its solid and doesnt fall over easily. Same with the transformer-temp control unit...its really heavy. 5. Flexible cord. Dont you just hate it when you get a tool that has a stiff plastic cord that never seems to straighten out? Well this one doesnt have that. The cord from the iron to the controller is nice and flexible. 6. The heating takes place so quickly that as soon as Im done a joint and have a break, Ill just dial the temp down and leave it on low, knowing that I can get it back up in less than 10 seconds. Im sure that helps the tip last longer. Theres really nothing not to like about this unit. Well, the tips are a bit expensive (about $10), but they look like they will last a while. Ive also seen some sets of tips on eBay for less...not sure about the quality of these though. Im in my early 50s now, and am a bit ashamed that Ive been doing occasional electronics work for about 30 years without such a good tool. Im pretty sure, unless my unit suffers from a defect, that this will be the last soldering iron I buy for the rest of my life. Should have bought it a long time ago...

I picked up one of these and the hand-held Hakko desoldering gun. I struggled to justify the expense over the cheaper import products out there. In the end, it was one of the things Im really glad I splurged on, both items are just a delight to use. Yes, the Hakko soldering station looks like a Fischer Price kids toy, but in the end I got over that annoyance and ordered the thing. The criticism on the interface and challenges of shifting temperature setting are not that big a deal, because Im not changing temperature all the time. Just keep read the instructions. Why do I love this thing? It heats up super fast, and then locks on to temperature. I have not verified the accuracy of the temperature, but Im assuming there is a circuit that monitors it. It takes just a few seconds, perhaps 15 to go from stone cold to 700 degrees and ready to go. The stand works well, the cord is soft so its easy to work with, and the tip that came with it is just about right for most things I need to do, though it would be a bit wide for micro sized things. This is one of those things that seems expensive until you use it. Its a power tool, and good power tools are really nice to have! Overlook the kiddie industrial design and you will appreciate this thing for how well it works.

one of the best

I didnt know soldering could be this much fun. If you have never used a nice soldering iron before (like me), this thing is genuinely amazing. Soldering is hard, even with a good soldering iron like this, but the last thing that you want is for some cheap soldering iron to be adding to the inherent difficulty of soldering. This thing does the opposite of that. It makes soldering a lot easier and more fun. That might sound kinda crazy if you havent used one, but this really makes soldering a lot more pleasant. It heats up very quickly, and maintains its temperature very exactly. It maintains its temperature so well that even when I spend a bit too long heating something up, it doesnt damage anything. Thanks to the awesome temperature stability, it melts solder amazingly well without oxidizing it too quickly, I didnt know I could make solder joints this nice. I cant properly explain just how nice this thing is. You have to try one. Its just a joy to use. A nice soldering iron like this makes a huge difference, its night and day versus a cheap soldering iron. The base is very sturdy, the soldering iron itself is comfortable, it comes with a wedge shaped tip standard (which is much better than those needle point tips). I also like how small the whole thing is. It takes up a very minimal amount of desk space which is good if (like me) you dont have much desk space to spare. I personally enjoy the unique colors and design, but Im sure not everyone will like them. They actually look nicer in person than they do in the pictures. I also enjoy that the soldering iron holder is separate, and it feels like its made out of metal and some kind of ceramic stuff, its great. I really cant say enough good things about this. Soldering is still hard, but this thing makes it a lot better. I enjoy using it so much that I actually find myself getting sad when Im done with something and have nothing else to solder, which never used to happen before. Of course, if youve read anything about these, then you probably know the user interface leaves a bit to be desired. Its even stranger in person than the instructions make it out to be. But thats a minor flaw overall. Once you set it the way you want it, you pretty much dont have to pay attention to that anymore. Still, itd be nice if in a future version they made a better user interface for this thing. The user interface is its only real flaw.

After decades of using fixed wattage Radio Shack and Weller plug-in soldering irons I finally decided to splurge on a full blown soldering station. I hemmed. I hawed. I obsessed over reviews.I wondered if it would really be worth it or if I should buy a decent Chinese station for half the price instead. But in the end I pressed the little “submit order” button and hoped I made a good call. Oh. My. Lord. I had NO IDEA what I’d been missing. The control, the ease of use, the QUALITY of the tool is amazing. This thing goes from room temp to 750 degrees In about as much time as it probably took you to read down this far. Quality tips that don’t oxidize, fine control over heat ranges, easy-to-use cleaning setup, compact package that doesn’t take up space, the list goes on. Just know that if all you’ve used are pencil type irons, you are in for a BIG treat using this little unit!

ive always just used a walmart soldering iron, and they always work great for very generic use cases (e.g. soldering automotive wire). bought this for the heat control and finer-tip to work on soldering up proffie/arduino boards. the user interface isnt the greatest, but its not too difficult to understand. heats up crazy fast and solders like a freaking champ. 10/10 would recommend.

So I’ve used many soldering irons over the years, but never had a “nice” one. This thing is insane! Reaches 899f in under a minute, roughly 45 seconds. And the temperature hasn’t dipped one time over the time I’ve used it. The interface is super simple to set, it’s almost dummy-proof. Would highly recommend, this will be the last soldering iron you’ll ever purchase. It’s just so good.