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Blog METCAL GT120 Update: The USB Interface
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Author: wolfgangfriedrich
Date Created: 26 Jan 2022 1:05 AM
Views: 317
Likes: 7
Comments: 4
  • metcal
  • usb
  • GT120
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METCAL GT120 Update: The USB Interface

wolfgangfriedrich
wolfgangfriedrich
26 Jan 2022

As a lucky roadtester of the METCAL GT120, I noticed that the USB interface got mostly ignored in all the reviews (myself included). With the port at the back of the unit, the discoverability is not great and that is probably the main reason for it to be forgotten. Access on the side or even the top of the housing might improve that. With my latest tool ( a cheap DL24 150 W electronics load ), I decided to give both items a quick test.

While connecting the USB cable to the METCAL, The first thing I noticed is, that the USB port at the back of the unit is upside-down. This is rather annoying as you now need to turn the USB cable 4 times Upside down to make it slide in. USB power does still work when the unit is in sleep mode, which is nice when you are charging a mobile device. Here is a picture of the test setup.

Without any knowledge of the internal power supply, I decided to test current draw only up to 1.0 A, to not damage any internal components. Here are the results in 100mA steps.

Voltage [V] Current [A] Power [W]
4.93 0.0 0.00
4.90 0.1 0.49
4.86 0.2 0.97
4.82 0.3 1.45
4.79 0.4 1.92
4.75 0.5 2.38
4.72 0.6 2.83
4.68 0.7 3.28
4.64 0.8 3.71
4.60 0.9 4.14
4.57 1.0 4.57

As measured, the voltage stays inside USB specifications up to 1 A and I have never seen the iron draw more than 100 W when heating up, there should be enough overhead to maintain the power draw on the USB port. A quick visual test confirms a stable 1.0 A draw when the unit is waking up from sleep mode and heating the tip to operational temperature. It also charges my iPhone SE, which is sometimes picky about being charged by generic chargers.

In conclusion, the USB port on the METCAL GT series soldering iron is a useful addition to power or charge devices on the workbench. Leaving a USB cable plugged in, is going to help remembering to using this feature.

Anonymous
  • shabaz
    shabaz 3 months ago

    Hi Wolfgang,

    Good use-case! Also, nice review, I still have to read it fully but it looks great so far.

    I imagine many people will find that useful, to charge their mobile phones while working, that's a convenient feature in itself : ) 
    A lot of network installers use the USB connections on switches/routers for the same thing : ) Free charging while you work : )

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  • DAB
    DAB 3 months ago

    Nice test.

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  • wolfgangfriedrich
    wolfgangfriedrich 3 months ago in reply to colporteur

    Your assumption is correct. I think I remember one fellow roadtester (was it you?) re-programmed their unit with the identical FW that was already on the iron. That was rev 0.00.96, which is available on the Metcal website. 

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  • colporteur
    colporteur 3 months ago

    I will assume since you didn't comment, you didn't find any details on using the USB port for what it was intended, access for updating firmware?

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