How do I know the temperature of my XY-258?

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anahata
 
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How do I know the temperature of my XY-258?

Post by anahata »

Hello!

I'm very new to hardware hacking, soldering, and everything like that, and I have no idea what I'm doing with a soldering iron. I purchased the electronics toolkit based on the suggestion in the Adafruit Guide to Excellent Soldering. The guide says to plug in the iron and set its temperature. The XY-258 (included in the kit) is temperature adjustable using a screw on the iron, but how do I know what temperature it's set at? How do I know when it's reached my desired temperature? There's no dial on the iron and there's no display, either. I looked for a manual, or at least a spec sheet, for the iron on the XYtronic site and on the internet more broadly, but didn't find anything. I feel like I must be missing something extremely obvious, since I can't find any posts in the forum about this, but I'm totally at a loss.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: How do I know the temperature of my XY-258?

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The XY-258 is a better-than-average entry level iron. Most basic irons have no temperature adjustment at all. The XY-258 does allow you to adjust the temperature - but it lacks the fancy digital displays of the higher-end soldering stations. So you will have to practice with it a bit to find the sweet-spot for the solder you are using.

To start with, if you are using 60/40(Lead/Tin) solder, I'd turn the knob fully clockwise, then back off by about 1/3. If using Lead-Free, back off about 1/4. When soldering a typical through-hole joint such as a header pin, you should be able to heat the joint enough for the solder to start flowing within 2-3 seconds. If not, increase the heat a bit by turning the knob clockwise. Make sure that you keep the tip clean and tinned. A dirty or oxidized tip will take longer to transfer heat to the joint.

The LEDs indicate when the tip temperature drops too much from the setpoint. When heating large joints or working fast, the iron may need some time to recover.

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anahata
 
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Re: How do I know the temperature of my XY-258?

Post by anahata »

Hi!

Thank you for the very quick response! I have the solder in the toolkit, which is lead rosin-core, so it sounds like I'll need the 1/3 turn. I'll try to keep everything else you've mentioned in mind. The point about the LED will be especially helpful given my wariness about the temperature. Really looking forward to trying this in the morning!

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