Hi guys
Need a new soldering iron
is the weller sp40 lk good for train work
larry
Yes, it should work fine.
LILarry,
I don’t know of Weller’s quality now-a-days, but I have one heavy duty and one light duty, which were my dad’s when he repaired phonographs, radios and televisions, that he bought back in the early 1950’s.
Just like Lionel trains of that period and before, they still keep on working.
I don’t know if Nassau Hobbies, or Trainland has Weller Soldering Guns, probably call them to find out.
Good Luck,
Ralph
You will want one with high and low heat settings, a stand and replacable tips.
Jim
I agree w/ Jim. Variable wattage and a stand is nice. I use a Weller WLC100 soldering station which comes w/ a SPG40 iron. Many different sized tips are available and relatively inexpensive. They run around $40 - 50 new. I’ve used it for 6 years or more working on old tube radios and model trains.
Bob
My father used a blow torch to do all the soldering on my American Flyer train when I was young. The soldering was accomplished by heating a poker in the flame of the blow torch until it was red hot and using the poker to heat the part and melt the solder. The soldering was accompanied by much cursing, but eventially the job was completed. I really appreciate the efforts of my father to keep my train running.
Be thankful for electric solder irons and resin core solder. They were either non-existent when I was young or not available to my father.
Earl
Unless your dad was using a home-made tool, the “poker” is called a soldering copper. The business end of a soldering copper was made from copper, and required an external heat source. I 've soldered with one, heated over an old gas stove in our workshop.
My father also, used those soldering coppers, untill the Weller soldering guns, with two light bulbs, came on the market.
Ralph