Homemade nearly-free Soldering Iron Stand

Why pay megabucks for a fancy Soldering Iron stand when you can build one yourself with scrap?

Or, why use that flimsy plastic stand that comes with your cheap pencil soldering iron, and risk burns, fire, or melted stuff?

Step 1: Parts

- piece of wood, appropriately sized for stability and weight
- heavy coat hangar wire
- broom handle (only needed temporarily.. borrow your mom's/wife's/roommate's broom for 5 minutes) or 3/4 - 1" dowel scrap
- half of a travel soap dish
- kitchen sponge

optional
- rubber feet, or just staple a piece of old bicycle inner tube to the bottom of the wood to make it non-slip

Comments

[pfred1]

I have also made something sort of like this. You can see it in this image:
http://home.comcast.net/~pcf1/DesolderBench.jpg
I used some sort of a spring and wrapped a strip of sheetmetal into the spring, welded that to a 1/4x20 bolt then welded a 1/4x20 nut to a scrap of steel I welded to an 1900 box I wired with a receptacle and a switch, to switch the lower outlet. I went with antislip rubber feet too.
I still should put a pilot light into this thing someday.

Now that I picked up a Weller station at a flea market I use that more.
I'm stripping some boards in that picture. That pot works really well for tinning iron tips too. Or tinning plumbing fittings, or what have you. Whenever you need 5 pounds of molten solder I guess.

[pfred2]

Wow a post of mine from 2006! I might as well update my comment being as the link is no longer any good. I can't get Comcast where I moved to, or my old account back on this site either for that matter.

I like your holder too jaimie9999 by the way. Good stuff!

[k4mik4ze]

Instead of using a broom handle since their thickness may vary, It'd be better to just put something abt 4-5mm thick next to your soldering iron's metal area and wrap the metal hangar around that, that way you ensure a snug fit for your soldering iron.

[mason0190]

mine is a chisel tip is there a place where i can get a pointey tip?

[stephenniall]

Rated 5/5 It works very very well!

[Stew2]

Thanks for the instructable, it works fantastic. Too bad I am still a lousy solderer. Maybe I can just blame my cheap Radio Shack iron for that though : )

[Yerboogieman]

what helps is not to put solder on before you start, using helping hands, cleaning it often, and using a sharp tip. makes you look like a pro in front of other people.

[endolith]

Cut a hole in the center of your sponge! We got new irons at work with a hole in the sponge instead of ridges, and it's such a simple change, but makes a big difference. With the ridges, you get all this crap stuck in the grooves and it just makes a mess. With the hole you just get a little mountain of solder globs in the middle. Not the same as this, but you can see the hole:

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/B000B5YCSK.01-A2SHU9394LE8AJ._AA280_SCLZZZZZZZ_V40054434_.jpg

[Crash2108]

You should have drilled out a space for the sponge.

[mrbob1000]

i just made one and let me tell you it rocks

[The3rror]

I made something similar once except your coat hanger wire is twisted much better than mine does.