This is the second blog post in support of the RoadTest that does a comparison between the
METCAL GT120-HP-T6 Soldering Station
and
Weller WT1012N Soldering Station
One of the joys that I gain from a RoadTest Review is the opportunity to learn. Exploring a product, finding how it works and actually using it, all contribute to me gaining more knowledge. This RoadTest was no different.
I discovered the technology behind a working soldering iron is different. Long gone are my days of working for companies that employ elaborate soldering station. The bliss of retirement removes me from that opportunity. Before the Weller review I had a pencil iron for all my simple soldering tasks that I thought worked quit well until I discovered Weller soldering stations.
Soldering is a process of bonding two or more metal surfaces by melting a filler metal. The filler metal has a lower melting point than the joining metals. Heating the metal surface with a soldering iron and melting solder on the joint creates an electrical bond between the surfaces. Let us gain a little knowledge on how this product solders.
There are two main types of hand soldering systems on the market, the Adjustable-temperature resistive systems (far left) and the Fixed-temperature inductive systems (middle).
These are details that I culled from the vendors document. I have attached the resource if anyone would like more detail.
Adjustable-temperature resistive systems: (Weller WT1012N Soldering Station) Resistive soldering refers to a technology that heat and melt solder by passing an electrical current through an electrically resistive material. When electrical current passes through a material resistant to the flow of electrons, heat is generated. The amount of heat produced is dependent upon the amount of current and the resistance of the material that the current encounters.
The main components of typical adjustable temperature resistive soldering systems include the heating element, temperature sensor, microprocessor-controlled power supply, and soldering tip (Figure 1).
Fixed-temperature inductive systems: Induction soldering refers to a technology used to heat and melt solder by passing an alternating current through a coil to generate an alternating magnetic field around an object made of ferromagnetic material. Current passing through the conductive coil creates the magnetic field around the ferromagnetic alloy heater.
When a ferromagnetic object is placed in a magnetic field, two types of energy losses occur in the form of heat: Hysteresis losses, and Eddy current losses.
The main components of typical fixed temperature inductive soldering systems include the conductive coil, alloy heater, micro-controlled power supply, and soldering tip (Figure 4).
The micro-controlled power supply in fixed-temperature inductive soldering systems provides power to the system to be self-regulated. Temperature monitoring by the operator is not required.
Metcal design is an Adjustable-Temperature Inductive Soldering Systems (METCAL GT120-HP-T6 Soldering Station) The technology is the basis of METCAL TM brand patented GT series hand soldering solutions that combine the advantages of adjustable temperature with inductive heating technology.
The main components of METCAL
GT systems include the conductive coil, alloy heater, temperature sensor, micro-controlled PID feedback to controller, and soldering tip (Figure 5).