Finally, an usecase for USB irons!
this post was submitted on 15 Mar 2025
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I just got one, and it’s so practical with a PD battery bank. Can now solder inside or outside on my car/bike with zero hazzle
I love my Pinecil. I recommend them to kids as a beginner iron cause of the low price and sleep function.
I have one too, I like the idea of it but can't solder with it. For any serious work I use my old transformer iron that has enough power to melt the solder.
Sure, a Weller station will probably last a lifetime even with serious usage, but I do maybe…. 20 total solder joint per year, so I couldn’t justify the price.
I do agree that it’s better at what it’s supposed to do though
Not quite a Weller station, but also will last a lifetime ;)
Edit: I'm aware that USB irons are good and I'm just shit at using them
I really appreciate that you took the time to take a photo to show us your iron. It’s nice to get the more personal touch as I keep forgetting we are real people talking together.
It looks like an old clenodium. I’m sure it has seen its fair share of work. Thanks for sharing!
I've had a similar experience as a child. I live in Germany and found this voltage switch on a hair dryer. My thoughts were like: Switching it to less couldn't possibly hurt, could it? Well it could. It was super efficient though but only for a few seconds before it self destructed.
I hope this is a bs story for clout, you can buy universal power converters at airports.
Universal power adaptors change pin configuration but not voltage.
Don't those just make the plugs fit? Isn't that the point of the story?
Because the plug would fit the outlet, right?
If someone knows how to solder, a different shaped plug isn't a big obstacle to them
There are a bunch of adapters you can buy that don't convert voltage, and it's pretty common for people to buy them by mistake.
and it's pretty common for people to buy them by mistake
Or even on purpose, for the many things that don't care (a lot of electronics, where it has a rectifier, are fine with 110-250V, 50-60Hz)
Hey. If it works, it works.
Any port in a storm right?
Why plug and unplug? Doesn't the wall outlet have a switch?
Afaik it is a safety thing that is handled differently in different countries.
Uk and their colonised countries have this. The reason is that the fuses are in each plug. But no (or almost no) fuses in the power grid of the house. In Europe most countries have a single GFCI and several fuses for power grid sectors in a single place in the house where the power comes in.
I assume the switches on the power outlets are for turning off a switch because there is no GFCI in the house.
I think in the UK at least this view might be a little outdated - every house I've ever lived in has had GFCI sectors across the house, or had to be updated to have it when work was done.
Well I would need to do research on that so I can make actual claims here, but I think the switches on the power outlets are somewhat related to the kind of how fuses are handled.
I think it's mostly due to the the way the "ring mains" are often wired in UK to basically cheapout of copper I think . . .
The consumer unit/fusebox/gfci protects the whole ring mains wire from overheating or ground leakage - up to the socket - but that will likely be more current than any individual appliance would want to see maybe 20A or 32A or something. So it's up to the appliance to protect itself (and its wiring from the plug) from overcurrent scearios per its own tolerances.
I have actually never met a wall outlet with a switch.
Really? Where are you for that? I don't have a wall outlet without a switch, and I've never seen one because why would it just be live all the time?
I'm in Australia for reference.
We're the exception, most places don't have switches on their outlets.
Looks like it's mostly a UK, Australia, and New Zealand thing.
I'm in NZ and I've always hated it. Someone always goes and switches them off, and they're totally unnecessary when every device already has its own switch
I also have switches indoors for balcony/outside outlets. Finland.
India as well!
Wow I never knew this, I just thought it was normal to have a switch.
In Canada and the US its considered a light fixture for the purposes of light for an area to have a switched outlet. You are supposed to plug a stand lamp in, in that area that can be controled by the switch. That's how you can have a living room or hallway in a house with no light fixtures and dark as all hell.
That's still a wall switch that's wired to an outlet. Some countries have switches on every outlet just built into them.
Germany. It's just live all the time, because why wouldn't it? If you plug something in, you want it to work. If you don't want it to work, you either plug it out (which works just as well as a switch, with the same convenience), OR you use the switch at the appliance because why would you try to reach the hypothetical switch at the wall outlet if the wall outlet is behind a drawer, under a table, or whatever inconvenient place? I use my remote control to turn the TV on or off, I don't physically walk to the wall power outlet.
I can't turn my tv entirely off without cutting power to it because of the standby light. Same thing for my laptop. The switch is typically not hidden behind things because that is really annoying. Power switch in my room that I use is right next to my bed, can turn the light off without leaving bed.
Things that don't get moved don't get unplugged because why bother when you hit the switch and it's entirely off, and actually entirely off unlike what most of my devices do when 'off' but powered
Keep in mind modern TVs have very low standby drain, and if it's an OLED then unplugging it or turning off the outlet instead of letting it stay in standby will actually slowly break your panel
Tv is like 10 years old and definitely not OLED. Good information to have though.