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Reviews For: Hakko 808 Desoldering Station

Category: Tools & Test Equipment for the amateur radio work bench

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Review Summary For : Hakko 808 Desoldering Station
Reviews: 15MSRP: 175.52 from tequipment.net
Description:
High-end desoldering tool for any serious builder
Product is not in production
More Info: http://www.tequipment.net/Hakko808.html
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
24.5154.9
WA4SCA Rating: 2007-01-09
When you need it, you need it bad! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I bought one of these on the recommendation of another ham. It seemed to be a luxury, until I found myself repairing a power switch in a tranceiver. After a tedious hour working my way into the rig, I was confronted with the existing switch which required 6 fine leads to be removed from the PC board. About 30 seconds with the Hakko, and the old switch fell out as if it had never been soldered in place! Removing another way was probably possible, but would have risked damage at several points.
AK2B Rating: 2006-01-13
This thing really sucks! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
But then, that’s what it’s supposed to do.

Admittedly, this is a luxury item for a lot of hams. If you build a lot of equipment, however, you might have a different opinion. This is a great item to have around. I’ve used a lot of “professional” solder suckers at work costing in the $400 to $600price range that don’t do as well as the Hakko 808. Of course these solder suckers are used day in and day out and I can’t say the 808 would hold up under the same stress – I can’t say it wouldn’t either – I just never tried it. I can say they the suction is better, though. The 808 heats up almost instantly ready to go to work. The tip seems to be very durable and the unit is very easy to clean. All solder suckers need to be frequently cleaned and this one is no exception. It does a remarkable job of removing solder from a joint and makes short work of tinning the leads of toroids. It’s kind of like one of those things that you wonder how you ever did without it.

Tom, AK2B
K9FTB Rating: 2003-08-01
Expensive but Excellent Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I've had my 808 for about 8 mos. now. I purchased it soley on the comments from the Elecraft K2 email reflector. Boy was it worth it! I had soldered a 20 pin connector on the wrong side of the board while building my K2. I can't imagine how I would have safely removed the connector without damaging the board. With the 808, it was a cinch - 20 minutes and I was rolling again without any board damage or damage to the connector.

The 808 is basically a soldering iron with built in vacuum pump that operates on demand (trigger pull). It's also ESD safe, another plus when I was building the K2.

This device is much more impressive than a "passive" solder sucker and provides much more professional results. The resulting hole is clear, clean, and ready to be used again. The removed component has very little effect resulting from the removal other than it was previously soldered. There are various sizes of tips (0.8mm, 1.0mm, 1.3mm) available. See the Hakko website for all the various tips available.

I had a warranty issue with my unit (the temp controller) and the unit overheated. I submitted the unit to Hakko USA (www.hakkousa.com) for warranty repair via overnight express. One day turnaround and Airborne expressed back to me, with a new tip!

www.outpost.com and www.tequipment.net both have the tips and cleaning / maint. tools to correctly maintain this tool. Also checkout www.elecraft.com for the access to their email reflector - search the archives for 808 or Hakko 808 and you'll find loads of comments, practical advice, and experiences other's have had.

I'd buy this tool again. It's a once in a lifetime purchase, but it's not cheap ($159 at Fry's Electronics). No I'm not associated with Hakko - just very pleased with my Hakko 808 and Hakko 936 soldering station.
KC1MK Rating: 2003-01-13
Only way to desolder! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought a Hakko 808 desoldering station about a year and a half ago, and I wouldn't want to do without it now. I don't do an extensive amount of desoldering, but this works so well that it was more than worth the money. In addition to doing the job well, it is easy to clean and well made.
WA4FOM Rating: 2003-01-10
It can suck the fillings out of your teeth Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
This tool, albeit quite expensive, has to be the
final word in desoldering tools. This rather
menacing weapon has to be the love child of a
soldering iron and a Hoover vacuum cleaner.
With one hand-held tool you can heat a solder
joint and slurp the solder out of that joint
until it is as clean as it was before the
component was originally installed. You DO
have to be careful; as I have discovered (and
as the manual points out), you can suck the
solder pads right off a PCB if you don't
exercise common sense. If you do ANY serious
rework (or just have little patience for those
wimpy little solder suckers as do I), buy it.
Your renewals for ulcer medications and the
bill at the liquor store might very well decrease.