An inexpensive kit for building a T12 soldering station

I've been asked more than once about an inexpensive, decent option for a basic soldering station. If you want something reasonably good, T12-tip stations are probably the way to go: they're more convenient than the rather old 900 series.
Today I have a very brief review of just such an option.


When ordering, you could choose one of four configurations. They differed only in the number and types of tips. I chose the simplest option, with one tip.
It seems you could also choose the indicator color, but I didn't think about it, so I ended up with the basic kit and a blue indicator.



The advertised specifications are essentially standard for stations like this, since they're determined mainly by the type of tip used.
1. Fast heating
2. Automatic sleep mode
3. Wakes when the handle is moved
4. Increase the temperature by pressing the encoder
5. Power supply: DC 24 V, 3 A
6. Maximum power: 75 W
7. Temperature: 200–450 °C
8. Tin melting time: <8 s

Everything was packed very carefully. The box was also sealed with branded tape bearing the manufacturer's markings.


And here's everything that came in the package.


At first, I thought I'd just order the handle with its cable and tip—that is, only what's shown in the photo—and assemble the rest myself.


But in the end I ordered it with the controller. The package also included:
1. A small piece of solder and some rosin. The rosin was probably the most unusual item in the kit for me, since the last time I used it was about 25 years ago. I usually use liquid flux or flux-core solder, which I started using back in the mid-80s and have gotten very used to.
2. There was also a strange assortment of wires, heat-shrink tubing, and some terminals. I figured out what they were for later.
3, 4. One tip, a hefty T12-K


The soldering iron handle is plastic, of course. It's all very basic, but decent.


A circuit board with a contact assembly. It fits inside the handle, and the cable connects to it.


The cable has a very soft outer insulation, much like silicone, but the wires inside are very stiff, even though they're stranded. So while the cable is soft, it's also springy, which may be a little inconvenient.
The cable is about one meter long.


All the connections are described on the page as a step-by-step guide. It also shows how to solder the cable and, most importantly, how to solder the tilt sensor.
There's a schematic showing the connections to the controller, along with instructions for installing the sensor.


But it's better to follow the instructions showing how to solder the cable directly to the board that goes inside the handle.


This same guide also explained what the extra wires and contacts were for. The manufacturer designed it to use a power supply, and suggests connecting power to it using these contacts instead of a barrel plug :)


There's also an explanation here of how to solder the plug.


In the end, I just followed the pictures. It was genuinely easy and straightforward. One thing to remember: slide the handle and the cable-side plug housing onto the cable first :)


Pay close attention when soldering not only the cable but also the sensor: one lead is gold-colored (yellow), and the other is silver-colored (white).


The handle assembled with the cable and connector.


I specifically wanted this kind of tip, designed for working with large components. There's no marking on the tip itself, just a sticker. and it was on some kind of foil-backed film, since it didn't burn after being switched on.


It turned out that the handle is actually comfortable. The distance from the grip to the tip is about 95 mm. Of course, there are better options, such as the one on my Aoyue station, but that uses different, shorter tips.


The controller came packed in a separate box. It includes a power cable with a connector, and the tilt sensors were in the same box. There are two of them, one as a spare.


The indicator, encoder, and mounting point for the connector are on the front of the board.


All the other components are on the back, along with the connector for hooking it up to the power supply.


There is a description of the controller components and the dimensions of the circuit board.


Since I have an idea for modifying the design a little, I didn't solder the connector in place. Besides, it's designed to be installed in the case first, with the board soldered onto it afterward. In other words, you can't remove the board and leave the connector in the case.


The first test was at 12 V. The station started up without any problems, immediately began heating the tip, and after a while reached the set temperature of 300 degrees.


For the first power-up, I recommend using about 12 V. If you make a mistake and connect something incorrectly, you could end up with this kind of "beauty". With a lower supply voltage, you'll have a little more time to react. When you switch it on, watch the indicator: if the temperature reading doesn't rise while the tip is heating up, then "something is wrong".


The product page had instructions for setting up the station, but I was perfectly happy with how it worked "out of the box".
Here's the Google Translate version—sorry about that. I'll hide it under a spoiler instead.



By the way, about the tip. I like it; it holds solder really well and solders nicely.


Power depends directly on the supply voltage, and the page had the following table.


I tested it with a 24 V supply, but because of the cable length the voltage at the iron was closer to 23 V, so I got 60–62 W of power.
Once it heats up, current consumption drops to 30 mA, with short pulses to maintain the temperature. I think the average power is around 10–15 W.


Now, why didn’t I put all this in some kind of enclosure? The seller suggests using a special case that can house a power supply, making a relatively compact station.


But even that size seems huge to me, because these days I mostly use a much more compact station. I probably won’t be able to replicate this design, of course, but I’d like to make something similar. For now, I’m thinking of a compact power supply with a short-term output of 65–75 W and a continuous output of 20–25 W.


What can I say? I really liked this kit, and it really does let you quickly put together a simple, yet fully functional and inexpensive station. You can use any enclosure, and the power supply can be anything from a laptop adapter to a basic transformer with a bridge rectifier and capacitor. The voltage can be 12–24 V, though 18–24 V is preferable.

The seller is currently out of stock, so the link goes to a listing for a similar kit. I bought mine here.

That’s all for today. I hope you found it useful.