There is one more player in that league: Goot PX-201. It is 70w soldering station with very compact design. Downside is tip price.

Another really good one is the Metcal irons. They definitely aren't cheap but if you watch ebay they can usually be had for around 150.00 with some tips. They are made for industrial use so they hold up very well and the iron itself is compact. I use them everyday at work and have one on each of my three benches at home.

I also use Metcals at work and at home - they are outstanding pieces of equipment.

I tried a beveled 3mm tip on my hakko 888d yesterday. Set on 670 degrees it got 4mm bullets hot enough to melt solder in about 2.5 seconds.

Part T18 CF 3. Youll love this tip

a nice feature of the hakko Fx888d is it allows you to correct the temp setting if the tip temp isnt the same as what is showing on the unit.

Hakko makes a tip tester(expensive) but a multimeter with a temp probe works as well. You can get one from sears for around $30.
heres one that measures temps and comes with a probe. http://m.sears.com/craftsman-multime...p-03482007000P

Awesome. My identical Ungar is still kicking too!

FX-888D here - could not be happier...

My 888 should come in the mail Friday. Looking forward to using it. I have a table full of stuff piling up that I need to weld together. 2 brushless motors, 3 glitch busters, 4 piggyback connectors for my escs. With the piggyback connectors, I'm gonna make it to where I don't have to unplug my esc to hook it up to a castle link/ hotwire

http://www.rctech.net/forum/r-c-item...ring-iron.html

Nice score for only $65. Though not digital, it is more intuitive with the analog temperature dial.

I bought a digital one from the forums that's only been used once for $80. Comes with original box. Even has the stickers that come with it. Gotta love stickers, they make things work better

True - Gotta love the stickers.

If someone is on the fence about getting into the soldering station level of the game, the FX-888 above is a very decent deal if still available.

My Hakko 936 is still on the original tip and is 6 years old. It's by far the best investment in RC I've ever made. The adjustability of the temperature and the modular nature is worth the expense. I went through about 3 higher end Wellers before I decided to drop the cash on something worthwhile. I've actually saved money by buying one of these.

i have two trakpower and i love them one for home and one for the track bag, never leave without it

The FX888D is a good soldering iron, but I wish it just had a simple dial. The digital system is not user friendly to me.

Im not sure if this one is still available, but worth a shot:
http://www.rctech.net/forum/r-c-item...ring-iron.html

Tennessee is covered in wet snow today, so I will have plenty of time to figure the preset temps out.