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

I love this soldering iron, it heats in less than 15 secs and the quality is very good. Im not a professional but I using the soldering station very often and this one is the best you can get for the money. Hakko is one of the best brands on the market.

It was fine but I ended up replacing it with a pinecil, which is less bulky, way more controllable, and has all sorts of cheap tips available.

Great iron. Durable and dependable.

Ive used this product extensively at my previous electronics company, and it was always beyond dependable and the temperature accuracy was usually very good. We still had to calibrate it every year, but it was never too far off. Pros: Will melt any solder that I worked with. Its temperature range is more than adequate. If you need any hotter, youll surely damage a component. Comfortable grip, and never had an issue with its holder. It displays the temperature as it is reaching your desired temperature, which is nice to see how long you have until its ready for you. Nice to have a brash mesh to clean the tip, albeit I seldom used it. Changing tips is quite easy, as long as you dont accidentally weld it on (keeping it on max temperature for an extended period of time will do it), but parts are relatively cheap if you do, as you will surely break it (if you weld it). I would say its irons leash is a perfect length, measuring around 4 ft. Power switch is on the right side of the unit. Cons: Now, I am nitpicking here. It does have a digital input and it takes a little bit to change the temperature. I do prefer an analog knob for my soldering station so I can easily change temperature rapidly. However, some people may find a digital display is more professional. Its non-square sponge holder means a basic yellow square sponge will not fit without some modification. Tips can be expensive, but can easily last a year or two of heavy use, if you take care of them. All that said, I would still definitely recommend this product. It is much better than just a plug-in iron. Very well priced as it is definitely a professional grade station, but more than welcoming to the amateur hobbyist.

Ill begin by saying that I dont have very much experience when it comes to soldering. I have owned a butane Weller for a while that I use for soldering wires and large components, but I recently started working with circuit boards both at work and as a hobby. I decided that a decent, temperature-controlled soldering station was a good investment, and went with the Hakko on my fathers recommendation. I took the FX-888 to work to compare it side-by-side with their Weller WES51 stations and was blown away at the difference. To be fair, the Wes51 had a used tip vs. the FX-888s brand new one, but neither was oxidized. The Hakko heated up slightly faster, tinned slightly easier, and was generally a pleasure to work with. The Hakkos cord between the iron and station is also lighter and more flexible - a small detail that I noticed right away. The inclusion of the brass sponge and rubber tip cleaners in addition to the standard sponge is very welcome, and having them all right there in the stand means that you wont have extra items cluttering your desk. I do wish it came with a smaller tip, either a conical tip or a smaller spade. It is also impossible to find tips for the Hakko locally - a problem I wouldnt have with a Weller, since theres a supplier in the area - but I knew both of these issues before I bought it, and they arent major. Overall, Im loving this iron. Its within the budget of a serious hobbyist, but I feel certain it could be used every day at work with no problems.

This Hakko FX888D is so AMAZING . It performs on a level no other soldering iron Ive ever used performs at . I wondered how an item could get so many 5 star reviews, well all you got to do is try it and you will know. This soldering station is truly out of this world incredible .

I purchased this because I had to solder a new USB port to my Yeti Pro microphone and also to solder a custom build keyboard. I have little to no experience soldering onto PCBs but with the few videos that I saw online, I was able to create beautiful and consistent solders in both uses. The temperature ramped up very fast, and the digital interface shows the temperature as its climbing. I thought it was a bit weird that it only had one up arrow, but for a hobbyist, the temperature control is very easy to work with, although I imagine an electrical engineer that needs to change temperatures often would find it to be a pain. I used the brass cleaning foil after each switch I soldered, and the tip stayed clean throughout the process with no oxidation. Im not quite sure what the sponge is used for, but good to know that its there incase I find a use for it!

First, let me describe how I use this, for reference. Im not even a hobbyist, but simply needed to quite getting bogged down in the middle of making the simplest of home electronics repairs and having piles of unfinished projects build up all over the place. The height of my technical skill is custom-building HTPCs (Home Theater PCs), which I wouldnt sell if Id soldered any electronics components in them, BTW. Also, Ive done a bunch of fun stuff like adding fans to home wi-fi routers, installing my headset into my XBox 360 controller (yes, so I dont lose it--Im THAT BAD), and routine laptop DC jack repairs (that one, for paying clients, with 100% cust. satisfaction in over 5 yrs.). So, my perspective on this unit comes from a 100% utility viewpoint--to the true hobbyist (like many reviews Ive read on this item), that makes me not much better than the grandma who goes out to Lowes to buy a hammer to hang some family photos. Overall, I like the unit--yup, sure wish wed gotten a better color combo for the U.S. production unit than something that looks like a toy, but how many people are using a soldering station made in the same colors as their high school colors? I mean, its not like were asking for red, white and blue here, Hakko--maybe something like, ohhh, basic-black? (GAH!) Past that...who cares? Really? It works as good as everybody agrees it does; I couldve used less hype than some reviewers give it for its speedy warm-up times, though. My last soldering iron was/is a Black & Decker WPS18MP that heated up much faster, even to lower temps. So, why did I even buy this one? Thank you for asking! The B&D used a ridiculous tip system that plugged in with 1/8 mini stereo-type-plugs which were both difficult to find online, AND >$10 apiece. Mine had needed replacing for more than a year, and when the single original tip for it died recently, Id had no luck in finding any local or online source that made it realistic to continue using it. This unit has tips that are easy to find anywhere, including some pretty good looking generic-ish ones--heck, they even threw in a little sheet telling me what other model tips would work with this one, adding to the collection comfortingly, I might add. THIS SECTION REVISED AFTER MONTHS OF USE (revisions in CAPS--sorry) Regarding the warm-up times and temps of the Hakko FX-888, I found them to be entirely quick enough, yet rather routine, considering its size. Aside from the rubber lip in the wand-base, I also like the build of the thing--pretty solid, the wand base solid metal powder-coat. WHUUUUT? WHAT WAS I THINKING?! IT HEATS UP TO 900°F IN UNDER A MINUTE, TRUTHFULLY; SORRY, NO IDEA WHAT POSSESSED ME...MAYBE I WAS BLACKING OUT MYSELF. The controls are very easy to use--just dial up your temp, and basically, if thats not hot enough...turn it to eleven...it makes that next temp in a minute or so...mine reached the highest temp setting in around two minutes. Oddly, my very first job required 750°F, nearly 80% of its highest temp...and this was for a personal shaver repair, so I wonder how truly useful this thing will be on hi-temp stuff Ive been wanting to do, like motherboard cap replacements and more crucial stuff. IN MORE THAN 10 SEPARATE HI-TEMP JOBS, ALL REQUIRING 900°F, EASY...ITS NEVER FAILED TO PRODUCE THAT TEMP IN WELL UNDER A MINUTE, AND IM CONFIDENT EVERY JOB TURNED OUT BETTER--THE BEST I COULD DO, FOR HAVING THIS STATION. I LOVE THIS THING--IF I WERENT (SEMI) NORMAL, AND HAPPILY ATTACHED TO MY GIRLFRIEND, ID GO ON DOWNTOWN AND MAKE THINGS FINAL BETWEEN MYSELF AND MY LIL HAKKO UNIT HERE. One final Yeesh on the color...I kept expecting Rainbow Brite to walk in and start barking orders for me to finish my job on time. IM NOT NOTICING THE COLOR ANY MORE--IT NEVER REALLY MATTERS ANYWAY, RIGHT? MY PARENTS WOULD GET USED TO MY MARRYING A PURPLE/GOLD, JAPANESE-MADE LIL HOTTIE LIKE THIS, SO WHY WAS I SO WORRIED?

This is very affordable and high quality! Dont hesitate to buy this, its very quick! Very happy with this purchase, my only regret is I didnt buy this years ago. Live and learn yeah?

Since getting back in to RC, I quickly realized my 15/30W stick from Radio Shack had lived a hard life in my toolbox, and was never very good in the first place. I needed a real soldering iron. For weeks, Ive agonized over the