I have picked up a number of NOS Weller items (no longer in production) this
past year (from a number of sources) --
due to the relocation of the Weller production facilities in the Carolinas
to Mexico.

You can call Weller (North Carolina) and ask for Mr. Larry Smith (who is
Weller's product line manager and engineering support)
IF Weller is no longer making the part, Mr. Smith or "Dino" who leads the
repair center -- was know of a source !

Greg


"BFoelsch" wrote in message
...
OK - As long as we have all this Weller knowledge here, who has the secret
stash of tips for the W200 iron? Yes, they made a 200 watt iron with the
magnetic temperature control, but I have been unable to find parts for
many
years. Can't find W200 on the Weller web site.

Thanks in advance.

"G.Beat" wrote in message
news:idDEb.602781$Fm2.547319@attbi_s04...
"Andrew VK3BFA" wrote in message
om...
"Michael A. Terrell" wrote in message
...

3. LOOK at tip, see if mangnet thingo at bottom has fallen of - if so,
buy new tip (and after all the years youve had it, I wonder if it
could solder anything except 2 wires together, my tips last about 3
months on average, I buy them by the half dozen). If tip defective,
completely dismantle iron and remove magnet from switch assembly.

I have heard this from some other user - but I have tips that last
years -
BUT I
only use the 700 degree tips.

4. If tip OK (go on, be a devil, buy a new one anyway....) then switch
faulty. Buy new one.

A spare tip should always be available on the bench. I just repaired an
older WTCPN station
an the college student had placed an "ET" tip (aka tips are all the same
right! - wrong)
from the Weller EC1000/EC2000/WES50/WES51 models.
Glowed cherry red -- changing to the proper tip -- corrected problem.

5. Exception to item 4 - if you have done bugger all maintenance to
your iron, clean the garbage out of the barrel - it is rare for
switches to fail "on" (never had one do it, as a matter of fact, but
have only been using Wellers for 20 years so it COULD happen...) - use
a bamboo satay skewer to clean out the crap, then follow procedure 2.

I saw my first internally shorted SW60 last year (although I think the
user
had wacked it against a hard surface to
cause this type of damage). I also have seen a "kinked" spring -- near
as
I
can tell -- originally assembled that way --
over a decade earlier. I never saw a heater fail as shorted (dead
short -
but not heating) until last year -- all previous ones
failed as "open". See enough stations and you see many failures, bad
operating practices and unique equipment abuse.

Hope this helps,

de VK3BFA Andrew (at 50, an "official old grump")