🚀 go-pugleaf

In sci.electronics, rcrandall@sc9.intel.com writes:

> In article <92234.103751U09207@uicvm.uic.edu>, U09207@uicvm.uic.edu writes:
> > From: Vahe Caliskan
> > 
> > I am looking for a circuit that can be used to control the current

> > the "handgun" style soldering irons. Anyway, I was looking for a simple
> > 
> > Vahe Caliskan (vahe@uicbert.eecs.uic.edu)

> I would think that a good motor speed controller or variable lamp brightness
> control would work great.  It would not have any temperature feedback, but
> would certainly have some control of the temperature of the tip.  Another
> way of doing it would be to use a ac-dc converter circuit and then use
> a variable current source circuit with thermocouple feedback from the tip
> to get very good control.

> Rob
> rcrandall@sc.intel.com

Soldering "guns" (like the Weller's) have a transformer driven 
heating wire.  You cannot use SCR or TRIAC based lamp dimmers with
transformer driven equipment.

The easiest way to control a soldering gun is to simply use a 
variac on the AC input to the soldering gun.

Rick Karlquist
rkarlqu@scd.hp.com