why is there no :soldering_iron: emoji
apparently people are much less opposed to cheap hardware store irons than i'd expected
-F
@patchwork we've used them before and generally just *hate* the experience
maybe we never got enough practice to get good at it, but after trying an FX-888D we've never used anything without temperature control
-F
@Felthry that's valid as hell. once we get our hands on a good iron (thanks again for the suggestions :3), we'll probably feel the same
@Felthry I'm only opposed to *repeated use* of cheap hardware store soldering irons. One-off use when you've got nothing else to work with? That's fine.
@LexYeen i mean if it's your only option and you need to solder something by all means, but do get a proper one as soon as you can
you don't even have to go with a $100 one (which is still a fairly cheap iron, these get expensive if you want the highest quality); hakko sells the FX-901 for $30, though it's a battery-operated iron with all that that entails, and there are only two tips available for it. it is temperature controlled though
-F
@Felthry Yup, that's exactly my stance on it too! If you need to solder something Now and you have no other tools, do your best with what you have and get better tools ASAP.
@LexYeen actually, i'd amend that to get better tools as soon as you can if you anticipate needing to do more soldering in the future
-F
@Felthry I'd be operating on the assumption that, if one has a sudden urgent need to solder things and lacks the proper tools, there's likely going to be a need to do more soldering under better conditions in the future. ;)
@Felthry i marked it as one of my answers because i've used them extensively in the past, so i know i can make it work for simple stuff, but the cheapo irons are by no means preferred. just prolly the first thing most folks pick up.