[spedmetal]

I first want to thank CGL for offering up his hard earned money to purchase this product for the sack of this forum and offering the info learned from it to us all. Also for sending a sample to us for testing.

Upon my opening the box my first evaluations of this iron were visual. The iron is kind of bulky in size when I compare it to the irons I like to use which are very small and much like holding a pen or pensile. The cold heat iron is nothing like a pensile. But then again this iron wasn't necessarily made for precision soldering work. Upon further visual examination I noticed it had a little switch to turn it on with. I wondered from day one when I say this thing on TV what they where using to power it with, so I then opened the thing up and to my surprise found that it gets its power from 4 AA batteries. The batteries are what make this thing so bulky because I'm sure you all know what I did next.... that’s right I ripped the guts out of the damn thing to see what made it tick!

There is nothing to this thing, other then a few wires a switch and 2 LED's and one very small PCB with one IC chip on it and its all plastic housing for the batteries. This thing is dependent upon the current that the batteries drain between the two tips of the iron. That’s right I said two tips, like CGL has already stated this thing simply has a split tip and when the two are electrical joined current starts to flow through the two tips and what ever is making them join.

This would like CGL said be very unsafe for any precision electrons work such as doing mod installs or anything involving IC circuitry of any kind. But like I said I doubt that’s what this thing was really made for.

So I put it all back together and gave it a test drive. I put in the batteries and flipped on the switch..... Wow it’s got a light so you can see what you’re doing...cool. I then looked at the tip a little closer and noticed that it was all black! My first thought was CGL was using it to smoke his crack again....errr no just kidding.... my first thought was CGL had used it already and it was simply dirty like a well used iron gets over time. No I was wrong the irons tip isn't made of metal like a normal irons tip would be. From the best I can tell it’s a carbon material (graphite). The tips are kind of soft and I would imagine if used too roughly or dropped they would brake very easily.

Ok so here I went for the first run. I cut two pieces of 22AWG stranded wire and butted them together, I then touched the irons tip to the joint..... Ooohhh that’s what the other LED is for! When there is an electrical contact made the LED on top lights red to let you know it’s ready for soldering. I assuming this is what the small PCB with the IC is for.... turning on the red LED.

The wire heated very quickly and when I put the solder on it soldered quit well in fact. I took the iron off and touched it and it was still worm but could be touched with out harm.

One other thing I would like to point out is that this iron is not ESD safe and was never meant to be used with precision electronics. ESD safe...LOL the damn thing is designed to emit electricity through its tip! I also like my iron hot and at the ready and like a tip that can actually be tinned. Carbon won’t tin.

Anyway, all in all this would make a great little iron to have around for the one or two wires that might need to be soldered here and there over a year. But if you plan on doing a lot of soldering this is not the iron for you.

If you are in the need of a portable soldering iron like this one and plan on doing a lot of soldering I would recommend a butane iron over this one. But if you want something for the kid to learn with or the wife to not burn the house down with this is the toy for you!

Thanks CGL... you da man!

Ok officially my longest post ever!