Sigma 60D Soldering Station with 6 tips, desoldering pump, wrist strap, and extra heating element

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sur3fir3

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I found this http://www.amazon.com/Sigma-60D-Lead-Free-Soldering-Real-time/dp/B00MBQ41NS/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1410223228&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=sigma soldering iron
for 39.99, with free 1 week shipping.

I was a bit weary before purchasing this item, so I asked some friends that do a lot of soldering and 2 out of the five people I asked knew what Sigma was, and said it was a decent station. After doing some soldering, bit of tinning, and other things with it I have to say it is a capable station. Th price is what drew me to this station. I have not had time to work on any deans plugs, EC5s, or 10ga or larger wire yet. I will post a small update on how that goes later this week.

The only thing about this station that annoys me is you cannot see the current temp of the tip at all times. you have to move the target temp up or down by a deg, than the current temp will flash for 1-2 seconds. Unlike many other cheap stations the iron fits in the stand very nicely. You would really have to shake your work area to dislodge it. This station does take about 2 minutes to reach anything 400 deg C or higher. Overall I am impressed with this station for the price, and its performance.

If you are looking for something to do basic soldering with, and you don't currently have an iron, or you have a cheap pen iron this may be the station for you. I should get to soldering some Deans, or 4mm bullet connectors this week, and I am also thinking about posting a small video. For now here is a pic of the station and what it came with.

*** EDIT I just did some 10GA wires to 4mm plugs, deans, and EC5s. ad all three soldered in record time, with no melting of the plastic/silicone around the wire, or even making my fingers hot. So far this is the best $40 I have spent in a long time.

soldering-iron.jpg
 
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I'd like to see more reviews of the iron but by the description and one review it doesn't sound like a bad unit. Nice find!
 
I'm tempted to buy this and do a comparison video for my youtube channel against the trakpower tk-950. Id love to find a budget solder station that I wouldnt mind recommend to folks whos budget doesn't allow for more expensive stations.

One question though...is the base plastic or metal?

i lied...two questions...do you know if the replacement tips are compatible with hakko tips?
 
The base is plastic, and the tips are hakko tips, as they are the same model number, and look to be the same size. Here is a quote from the listing.
Iron with quick-change metal heating element and rubber grip. Solid Iron holder with sponge and metal wool. 6x Iron tips (2x 900M-T-I, 1x 900M-T-K, 1x 900M-T-B, 1x 900M-T-2.4D, 1x 900M-T-3C).
 
@Greywolf74 you really should buy one and post one of your detailed reviews. ;)
I've very tempted to...but if I do it will set me back buying that Blade 120sr that I want...plus once I did the video i wouldnt have any need of the station after that...still...I am tempted to do it...I suppose i could resell it on here for a slight discount....hmmmmmmm
 
Well it seemed people wanted to know a bit more about this soldering station so I decided to open it up and take some photos.

With this view you can see the transformer, and get a feel for its size. This is the width The next pic is the length. (From Back)
DSCF4405.jpg


This is the side view you also can see the fuse and size (RIGHT)
DSCF4406.jpg


Another pic of the wiring on the fuse side (RIGHT)
DSCF4408.jpg


A look at the back of the board (From Back)
DSCF4410.jpg


Close up of the board (From Back)
DSCF4414.jpg


Close up of components on the PCB this is the side where the fuse is. (RIGHT)
DSCF4417.jpg



Close up shot of PCB on the side where the fuse is. (RIGHT)
DSCF4418.jpg


View from the top of the pcb and components
DSCF4419.jpg

side where iron plugs in (LEFT)
DSCF4425.jpg


Label on the transformer (LEFT)
Label.jpg


As far as the station goes this is about as detailed as i can get easily. If you have any questions please post. I will be updating this with pics of the iron next.
 
Here is a video of me taking apart the Iron.


Here are detailed photos of the parts from the iron.

DSCF4429.JPG Replacement heating element

DSCF4430.JPG Parts

Thisckness of soldering tip
DSCF4432.JPG


Length of sleeve on soldering tip
DSCF4433.JPG


inside diameter of tip
DSCF4437.JPG


DSCF4438.JPG

Width of heating element
DSCF4440.JPG
 
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Great review! I'm interested to see how it holds up, for that price it's a killer deal.
 
Thanks for the extra pics...one big difference i see between this unit and it more expensive counterparts like the Hakko-888 and the Trakpower TK-950 is the cheaper Sigma unit uses a metal nichrome wire wrapped heating element where the more expensive ones use a ceramic heating element. Which accounts for the much slower heat up time mentioned earlier and its also likely that the Sigma wont have as high of a top end heat range (meaning lower maximum temps) and slower recover time for the iron when solder under heavy load. That being said, its not necessarily a deal breaker for the occasional use hobbyist.

I would like to do a direct comparison video but I kinda dont want to spend 40 bucks on an item I'm never gonna use again after the video lol. If someone else on the site where inclined to buy one maybe we could work out a deal where I could buy the unit just for doing the comparison video and then they could send me the money for the unit and i'd pay for the shipping to send it to them after i was done. It wouldnt take me but a few days. Someone let me know if your interested in buyign one of these irons and letting me use it for about 20 minutes worth of soldering. :) i have plenty of positive seller and buyer feedback on this site and on R/C Tech if anyone has trust issues with this. I will guarantee you the station will be in teh same condition as i received it minus the obvious tip use for the video.

If you want a little more info on the whole ceramic vs. nichrome wound heating elements I found this on the inetrwebs...

The wattage of a soldering iron is the measurement of the "Power Rating" of the soldering iron. Watts is NOT indicative of the soldering iron's temperature capacity nor its performance.


  • WATTS = Energy the soldering iron pulls from the electrical outlet
  • HEATING ELEMENT = The mechanism that converts the Energy into Heat
  • HEATING ELEMENT TECHNOLOGY = Two types: (1) wire-wound (2) ceramic

(1) Wire-wound heating element technology works like your kitchen toaster - electrical resistance heats up the wire. This type of heating element is very inefficient (wastes energy) and to add insult to injury, it REQUIRES A LOT OF ENERGY (example, 100W) to heat up the whole heating element, which in turn heats up the soldering iron tip. Wire-wound heating elements are less expensive to manufacture, thus the soldering iron's performance is equal to its price.


(2) Ceramic heating element technology sends electricity to just the area where the heat is needed (at the soldering iron tip.) This type of heating element is VERY EFFICIENT and REQUIRES LESS ENERGY (example, 63W), produces MORE HEAT, maintains its heat longer, and its thermal recovery (the tip's ability to come back up to soldering temperature when soldering heavy loads) is FASTER than a wire-wound heating element. Ceramic heating elements are more complex heating mechanisms that cost more to manufacture, thus the soldering iron's performance is equal to its price.
 
Thanks for the info GW. I did notice that the reheat time after its under load is a bit slow but like you said for the hobbyist it works. I've used many man pen irons, radio shack irons, and other low priced soldering tools. By far this is the best bang for your buck. I've spent a few hours since I've received it doing some soldering; fixing a few appliances and other electronics I have lying around that just needed some soldering and it worked flawlessly.
 
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