Leigh,
I found the advice from Jerry below very useful and the solution to my
WTCPT problem.
Jeff
<-----Original Message----->
>From: Jeremiah McCarthy
>Sent: 1/11/2006 11:33:11 AM
>To:
[hidden email]
>Subject: Re: Weller
>
>Jeff:
>
>I use the same 700 degree tips and they last for YEARS!!!...I am an
Elecraft
>builder who has built more than 50 units plus all the side goodies...
>
>It sounds like the tip is getting too hot...The magnetic plunger up
inside the
>heater barrel might be frozen...It should move up and down freely...It
should
>spring back if you insert a small screw driver up inside the barrel and
push
>the plunger in after the tip has been removed...If it is frozen, the
handle can
>be dis-assembled and the plunger can be freed up...It MUST move
freely...You
>should be able to hear the plunger clicking back and forth after the
iron is up
>to temperature...If you need parts, you might try contacting Gregory
Beat, the
>Weller guru who posted to the reflector a couple of days ago...
>
>I use rosin core Kester 44, .020 diameter, but any solder with an RMA
flux
>rating will work...I had some minor problems with deposits when I used
>multicore solder...I surmise that one of the fluxes burned and coated
the
>tip...I do not use multicore anymore...If you are using the wrong
solder, that
>might be a problem...
>
>I personally do not like the pot scrubbers as tip cleaners...We tried
those at
>Grumman years ago and the company felt that they shortened tip life
because of
>the abrasive action that gradually shaves away the coating...Further,
the
>Weller spec sheet that I have here warns against using abrasive tip
>cleaners...I stick with the wet sponge...I find that, while the pot
scrubber
>does clean the tip, it leaves tiny beads of molten solder all around
the tip
>that tend to suddenly wick down into the joint and overload it...This
is a
>problem if one is doing fine SM soldering...The wet sponge wipes the
tip clean
>and does not leave beads of molten solder behind on the tip...If you
want, I
>can try to attach the spec sheet to an e-mail...Depending on your
e-mail
>provider, it does not always work...73
>
>Jerry, wa2dkg
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