Before I purchased this station I tried using a generic soldering iron to connect ~119 of the NeoPixel LEDs into a large matrix. Needless to say that my generic el-cheapo iron was completely useless for the task that added to my growing frustration. As soon as I got my hands on this Hakko station I couldn't tear myself away. I got a few different tips and experimented on a few LEDs to find out what method would work best before continuing. Here are some quick highlights from my experience...

• Replacement of tip is super easy!
• Once you press the On button, the iron will heat to about 750F (399C) in approximately 15 seconds.
• I generally didn't play with the temperature (the settings need more experienced users)
• Tinning the tip with a leaded 60/40 worked as expected
• The standard wedge tip works great even on small components, but there are ~100 different tips available from Hakko including very fine tips
• The weight of the iron is very comfortable (much more maneuverable then my el-cheapo)
• This station made it straightforward to solder 22AWG stranded wire to the NeoPixel. For best results: tin the front side of the NeoPixel connector with plenty of flux, then solder the wire to the back... allowing the back side solder and the tinned front to 'fuse' together around both sides of the tiny connector

I had a cheap iron, but the tip never really got hot. This iron is amazing. It heats up very fast (15 seconds?) and the tip stays hot, making soldering so much faster and enjoyable.

I used to schedule my soldering to make sure I gave my iron time to heat up, now I just flip the Hakko on and I am ready to go in seconds.

I only own one soldering station that maybe better. But price ver price great station

This is a solid, well-built iron but the two-button, three-LED-digit user interface on this model is a real letdown. It's harder to use than I expected and essentially doesn't deliver any of the claimed benefits of a digital UI. I think they should have used a click-in rotary encoder knob or a three-button interface at the minimum. Moreover the LED display for example only distinguishes between the set-point and calibration mode (which you don't want to be in by accident!) by the location of a tiny unlabeled dot. The UI is just too poor to be taken seriously, so set it to one temperature and leave it there.

The iron and iron holder are exceptionally well-built, nicely designed and carefully thought out too. Photos just don't do them justice. When you use the product, these are the parts you interact with and on this model they're simply excellent.

Sparkfun ships this with the T18-D16 tip which is probably great for beginners. Experts will need finer or specialized tips but luckily Hakko-compatible tips are readily available and very cheap.

Coming from a $30 (in 1989 prices!!) RS iron to this Hakko that is 3X the price, it is a dream come true.

The iron is much lighter than my old iron and the stand is actually USEFUL since it's made of metal and can really hold the iron without falling over. As mentioned by other reviews, the iron heats up SUPER fast. With my old iron, I had to wait several minutes to get up to temp and after 10-20 minutes, it was too hot to hold comfortably.

This iron is comfortable to hold even after on for an extended period of time.

Changing the temp is easy to do and you can watch the digital display show you the actual temp. Once it reaches your target temp, though, the display is rather boring because your temp never strays. :D

First time out, I used this to solder together some large (16 or 14 gauge) wires in my engine bay. This iron heated them up quickly and easily, something that my old $30 iron struggled with. No more worrying about cold solder joints with this puppy!

The chisel tip actually isn't as large as it "sounds" But I did pick up the other two tips available from Sparkfun just in case.

Is it worth a little more than 3X the price of a "hobby" iron?

If you're buying stuff from Sparkfun, the answer is probably YES.

I am just getting into electronics and had been soldering for the last year with a less expensive iron. Deciding to invest in the Hakko FX888D was the best decision I could've made. Soldering is now a breeze. The unit seems very durable as well. If you solder regularly, I would highly recommend!

Bought this to replace a an older iron that I'd been limping along with, and my joint quality instantly went up a notch. Quick to reach temp (I use 600F), and everything is included to keep the tip clean. The iron has a nice grip on it.

My only complaint with this is the documentation on presets, which could be clearer. It suggests that there are 5 presets. Mine came with 1. That made for a confusing first experience, resolved quickly by manually setting the temp down from 750F.

I opened my Hakko FX888D plugged everything in and it worked great. Comes to temperature very fast. I have only used it a few times and so far I'm a happy customer.

This solder station has not seen much use yet as I really need to invest in a wider assortment of tips to really use it well. also many reading this may not be aware that Hakko makes a pair of hot tweezers that work with this station. I intend to buy these and I'll then have both hot tweezers AND a good soldering pencil/iron. The temperature control works well and this is generally a high quality station and a good value. I'd recommend it for what it is and does. Just wish that sparkfun would carry the hot tweezers and a wider tip selection so I could have ordered everything all at once from sparkfun. also a side note as to iron temperature. Heat and temperature are NOT the same thing. some items require more heat to get to the desired temperature due to their increased thermal mass. this DOES NOT mean one needs to or even should increas the iron temperature. If one has the iron set at a temp high enough to flow molten solder of the type being used but not much higher that's enough. using a higer temp than is needed to flow the solder in a liquid state simply adds to the thermal stress on the component due to higher temp. The correct solution is to match the thermal mass of the tip with the thermal mass of what is being soldered. by doing so the tip will appropriately hold it's temperature through the soldering process.

Out of the box, zero issues, heats wonderfully and easily. Included stand and cleaning material are great, greatly amplifies my ability to produce clean, strong solder joints. I'd greatly recommend this to anyone looking to solder on embedded systems projects (arduino, etc...) on a regular basis. It's a real world-changer from the old $20 iron you got for free in that old diy radio kit.

Well worth the money. I bought this to assembly about 350 PCBs with through hole parts and this chugged along no problem. The settings can be a little hard to change so be sure to keep the manual!

Works very well like a professional soldering station.

I highly recommend this soldering station.for anyone who does electronics soldering on a regular basis. I have used handheld soldering irons in the past and have had a lot of trouble with cold solder joints while still burning out components. This gets very hot very quickly and has a very wide temperature range so you have the right amount of heat for the task at hand. I recommend keeping the manual handy as changing temps can be a bit of a process, but once dialed in I rarely need to change it. I chose to upgrade to a larger chisel tip which works better for me; the tip was fairly priced and very easy to change out. The station and iron seem very well designed and constructed; I do not expect to need to buy another soldering station for a very long time. When I do, I will replace it with another Hakko - no question. If it were stolen I would buy another in a heartbeat.

I was spoiled by a Weller at work and had an older iron at home with a dimmer control. Temperature regulated is the way to go!

I'm quite happy with this, and I don't know of a better iron for the price. I've used it quite a bit so far to solder stranded wire joints, including some fatter gage landscape wire, which is probably pushing the intended use of a small iron like this. But it handled it like a champ, more pleasant than my handheld soldering gun (which is admittedly ancient). Have not used it for PCB assembly yet, but I'm sure it'll be great for that.

Some things that could be improved would be a heavier base on the iron holder, better fit for the plug connecting iron to power unit. And I'm not sure what the finest tip SFE offers for this but I tried to buy one of each of the main ones I noticed in the catalog, and I find that the finest one I received is not nearly as fine as the finest one I had for my old weller. Matters a little when you're trying to hand-solder very fine pitch SMD stuff.

This station makes all the other soldering irons I've owned seem like a toy. Absolutely increased my confidence and skill with small components and tight boards!

This is probably one of the most expensive pieces of equipment I've purchased for my electronics projects by about a factor of two, but it is much,much easier to work with than my previous $20 soldering iron. I can also easily use lead-free solder. Yay!

Certainly, the best I've seen or used. The password feature is a bit over the top but the functionality and build quality are top notch. It also goes from zero to full temp in mere seconds.

Heats up fast, seems like good temp control. The sponge it strange, why I shorted a star--time will tell. Feels much better than the Weller it replaced.

I previously had a Propane Portasol. While cheap and a start, it burned numerous boards, had no way to keep a stable temp, and shot fire out the side. This is a solid, beautiful, easy to get going with product. I also bought the conical tip for more precise work.

I am using this for products like Soldering Sunday's Buzz, Adafruit's flickering lamp, and some odd radio shack alarms. With this, soldering is so much simpler. I looked up videos rather than reading the instructions for setup and changing out the tip.

This pairs wonderfully with the Third Hand by Hobby Creek. I purchased a fume extractor with it and the blue and yellow match perfectly with this Hakko Soldering Iron.

I have owned 2 previous cheap Chinese soldering stations in the past. They both eventually failed me. I almost ordered a third one, but decided to splurge and try this Hakko one. It is obvious right from when I opened this Hakko that it is much higher quality and I don't expect to have to replace it like I have the other 2. I am sure this one will last a very long time. This heats up WAY faster than my last ones, and the overall quality just seems so much better. Also, the thing is heavier than you would think, and this helps keep it in place when using it (small thing that makes a bigger difference than I would have guessed). My last 2 stations had hot air guns for rework, but honestly, I only used it maybe 2 times the whole time I had it (and it wasn't for rework). I would much rather pick up a cheap heat gun to use the few times I need it, and have this high quality soldering station that I use all the time. I would definitely recommend this product to anyone on the fence about it, it's great.

I have wanting an upgrade for my decade old Radio Shack cheapie with its two temperature options, thick tip which was hard to find a replacement for..

The Hakko is great, feels positive in the hand, reaches the program temperature quickly, sturdy on the bench.

The Hakko soldering iron works as advertised. I like the easily interchangeable tips, and the preset temperatures are handy.

I am so glad I bought the Hakko FX888D it has made soldering fun again. I have been using Radio Shack cheapys for a few years now and just doing the three PC boards and an Xbox gamepad repair was 10 times faster. The temp control is easy to use and it heats up quickly so I can get to work right away. I highly recommend this unit to anyone looking for an affordable unit.

I don't know why, but I have never invested in a bench-type soldering iron. BOY WAS I WRONG. I keep kicking myself for not doing this 30 years earlier! It's flexible cord is great on preventing tangles, the temperature accuracy and tip selection is good. But, I would have to say the best thing I like about the FX888D is the SPEED at which the desired temperature is reached, (from cold to 750 about 15 seconds). That is incredible. You not working in the "blind". That along with the $100 hot air gun, you are all set for about $200!

I love the fact that it gets up to soldering temperature in less than a minute. I've been using it quite a bit and very glad that I bought it.

Works like a charm, the included tip is decent for most "normal" tasks, though some bigger tabs/pins may take awhile to heat up. Thankfully, other tips are readily available, in both OEM and cheaper third party flavors. I read some other reviews stating that the temperature adjustment mechanism didn't seem intuitive, which I very much disagree with. The temperature is easier to set than the time on most alarm clocks. It heats up fairly quickly to boot. I don't have a laser thermometer to confirm the temperature with but based on the work I've done with it, I'd say it's accurate enough at the very least. I never did much soldering in the past, but I believe that this unit makes the process much easier, gives you more control, and makes learning easier by letting you focus on the piece rather than your equipment interfering with the process. The unit feels very solid and looks better in person than it does online. It has a full metal construction for the holder and the power supply as well. After about 3 hours of soldering at 750 degrees the grip still seemed comfortable and the power supply was just barely warm. I'll update this review if anything breaks in the future, but I honestly doubt that will happen.

This thing is amazing. It heats up SO fast, somewhere around 10 seconds, is solidly built, and has all the features I want in a soldering station. The tips are incredibly easy to replace and Hakko has an assortment of tip designs to fit any project. We will be outfitting our entire department with these.

It just works

This is an amazing soldering station! Good quality, heats up in 15 sec, nice preset feature. The two button interface is a little confusing at first, but is fine once you get the hang of it. A wide variety of tips are available from Hakko, and their hot tweezers or N2 system will work with the controller. After using this, you will never want to use $20 irons again!

This iron is by far my favorite I've used. I've used it for hours continuously, without it overheating. It's very sturdy, and has plenty of power.

Consistency, consistently

I had a small problem with my unit that could be easily fixed. It is a very nice station and I'm satisfied so far.

However, I contacted sparkfun customer service, which gave me an unhelpful and arrogant answer after answer. I'm not willing to buy from this company after this experience.

Seems to work well although I am a newbie at soldering so my opinion is of limited value....

I have always used cheapo soldering irons. I never paid more than $25 for one.

As I got older I've been upgrading my equipment. If you want tools that just work and work well, this soldering iron is that. You turn it on and it just works....like others have said, in under a minute.

This has elevated my soldering to a whole new level. Heats up super fast and maintains temp. So much easier. I should have just spent the extra $50 long ago on this one.

I must be honest, this is my first soldering anything, so I don’t have anything to compare it with or the experience to say how well it works. What I can say is that it came highly recommended by a very knowledgeable friend and I can see why. I’ve only used it a few times but I am very impressed so far.

I owned a $60 Tenma 60W soldering station for 2 years before the element fried out that was a pain in the a$$ to replace. but it was really easy to use, rose to temp quickly had 3 easy presets. one touch easy. The Hakko...... literally 8 steps with two buttons to program each or 5 presets, 4 button presses to change the temp for different wires on drone. hard to interpret written directions. youtube was better. medium size chisel tip has trouble melting solder on fluxed/wet stranded 12 gauge at 800F and slow. I purchased but have not used the larger chisel (never a problem with old POS Tenma) wish I had bought the Weller 75W station.

I've used Hakko irons before at work, glad to finally have one of my own. Excellent iron.

Best soldering station I have ever had. I was tired of burning components and damaging PCBs. It warms up super-fast and is very precise. I love it.

I've never used a better iron. Very high quality. No complaints. Heats up quick and it only takes a quick touch to solder a pin. <3

This unit heats up crazy-fast - probably about 10 seconds to reach 500°F! The tip it comes with is a bit large, but servicable.

I really like this soldering iron. It heats up fast and does a great job. I'm sorry I waited so long to purchase it.

This is by far the best solderer I've ever owned. It kicks the crap out of the $12 Radio Shack model I upgraded from. I've had a slew of those.

My only complaint about this one is that the jack on the base that connects to the iron is a little bit loose. I don't think it will fail but it makes it feel a little cheap.

It's amazing to finally have a real soldering station. I've only had B.S. "irons" from radioshack until now.

My one complaint is with the documentation and default settings; the docs tell you how to use the preset mode, but not how to switch to the preset mode. You've got to go online to find out what the parameter options mean. By default, it's set to manual temperature control, which is ungainly without a knob. I'd prefer it set to program by default, and for the manual to show how to switch.

I've been doing a lot of lead-free work with this iron and haven't had any problems. A big step up from the $25 plug-in iron I had before.

My old Ungar iron finally died, and I chose this one as a replacement. Heats up incredibly fast, and seems to maintain the set temperature well. The only thing I miss from the Ungar is the slightly finer chisel tip it had. None of the T18 tips offered for this iron have a similar shape, but I guess the various small conical tips for SMT work make up for that.

This is by far the best soldering station i have used for the price. I love how it heats up quick and temp can be quickly adjusted with presets.

Wish Sparkfun caried hollow tips for the iron as seen: https://youtu.be/J5Sb21qbpEQ?list=PLQ7F9MwmHpvIuegd8HNtF1wTKdg12Q7Yi&t=1205 Hollow Shape BCM/CM tips help with SMD soldering. https://www.hakko.com/english/tip_selection/work_drag.html