Soldering Stations in Canada

[Rednaxela]

Recently I've been looking at upgrading from a cheap pencil iron, to a proper soldering station. However I live in Canada, which means the options to purchase it are more limited, at least without risking unexpected customs charges.

After including shipping costs (ranging from $0 to $50), my options for Hakko or Weller soldering stations in Canada appear to be:

$100 for a Hakko FX-888 (Solarbotics), BUT have to wait 3-ish weeks for it to come back into stock
$110 for a Weller WES51 (Digikey)
$125 for a Hakko 936-12 (Active123)
$130 for a Hakko FX-888 (Various US sellers), BUT with the possibility of being hit with customs charges
$155 for a Hakko FX-888 (Active123)
$160 for a Weller WESD51 (Digikey)

Now... I'm curious, does anyone have thoughts on how these (or other?) options stack up? Right now I'm leaning towards the WES51, however the FX-888 can't help but be appealing with it's smaller footprint and holder for brass shavings.

[adafruit_support_bill]

Hakko and Weller are both excellent brands. My two primary irons are a WES51 and a WESD51. The digital display of the WESD51 is nice when switching between leaded & leadless, but it is not a 'must-have'. The automatic shutoff of the Wellers was a requirement for me because these irons are sometimes used by the kids on my robot team and they don't always remember to turn it off when they are done.

[mazatta]

Where in Canada do you live? I was able to buy my WES51 locally in Regina (and I love it!), but there are some online retailers based in Canada. The only one that comes to mind is E-sonic, but I know there are a few more...looks like they have a $20 off coupon good for the WES51 and WESD51 right now.

http://www.e-sonic.com/whatsnew/Weller_Rebate_Offer.htm
http://www.e-sonic.com/acc/products.asp ... tIDExt=553

[Rednaxela]

I'm currently in the low-population-density outskirts of the Greater Toronto Area, and I also rely on public transit. What's reasonably local given that context, doesn't seem to include anywhere that sells Hakko or Weller soldering stations.

Thanks for the e-sonic link, though even with that $20 off coupon, their WES51 is more expensive than from digikey after adding shipping costs.

After some more searching I found another US supplier that I can get the FX-888 from for about same as the WES51 from digikey after shipping, and can ship via postal so there shouldn't be customs charges (just taxes I'd be paying anyway). Hmm...

[mazatta]

http://www.be-electronics.com is where I got my iron from (in store). It looks like you might be able to get it a little bit cheaper here, depending on what they charge you for shipping from western Canada. $108.95 plus they have the same $20 coupon as e-sonic and you should only have to pay the GST.

[richms]

I dont know if you can get the atten clones of the old hakko design, but I have used them at a couple of places and they seemed alright. At the prices the hakkos are in the US (cheap) I dont think it would be worth it, but for us here in 230v land they are a considerable amount cheaper than the hakkos sold here.

[franklin97355]

http://www.a1parts.com/solomon/index.html Don't know if this is an option for you.

[Marche]

I'm not sure about the customs "duty taxes" when shipping from the US to Canada, but from what I hear from family in Ontario it isn't bad. SRA Solder is a US company that sells Ayoue stations and tips, as well as MG Chemicals solders and etching supplies. I absolutely love my Ayoue 937+, and for $50 on amazon, you really can't go wrong. It's been used quite heavily for the past 5 months and hasn't needed any maintenance other than typical tip deoxidizing and a sponge replacement. Supposedly it's part compatible with Hakko irons, but with a US based supplier that's reasonably priced, it becomes a non-issue.

Hope that helps!

[mazatta]

Usually it depends what shipping method you end up using. If it comes in through the post office, then you usually pay a $5 customs surcharge plus GST (5%) + PST (varies province to province) or the HST on the full declared value of the package.

If it comes in through FedEx or UPS ground, then all bets are off as they can (and do) charge outrageous rates for brokerage.

[jftheoret]

As an owner of the FX-888, I strongly recommend it. (even though I did not like the "toy" look at the beginning). I just make sure I turn it off when not in use for a while to prolong the life of the tip. It heats up really quick, and holds it temperature quite well.

Why not get it from our friendly hosts (http://www.adafruit.com/products/303)? @$95 bucks, and with great customer service, it's hard to beat.

Taxes and duties are usually limited to GST (I am in Quebec) when shipping with USPS/Canada Post. Sometimes they charge you an extra $5 for expedited customs service if you request expedited USPS.

I've had bad experiences with UPS & duty charges, though, so I wouldn't go that way. I've had good luck with FedEX.

[franklin97355]

http://www.hakkousa.com/buy.asp?Partner=&TID=19A