Weller WLC100 iron element replacement "hack" for masochists

I love my wlc100, it's been a very reliable iron for the past few years.  However, when i went to use it yesterday, i found that it wouldn't heat up at all.  I checked the  base station with a multi meter and found that it was indeed putting out 119v.  So I opened up the Iron and discovered the heating element was bad (theres not much to the iron, just the plastic, 2 AC wires and the element)

"Oh well" I thought...I'll just stop by my local electronics store (where i bought it) and pick up a new element.  Went there, looked around, no dice.   They had elements for the screw in variety (the teal ones) but none that would fit my WLC100 (the iron is model number SPG40).   I solder a lot of stuff and i needed something today....and didnt want to spend more than $20.  The closest my local electronics shop could come  to a replacement was only  30watts and $50, almost the price of a new WLC.

After a bit of consideration, I finally decided to go to home de-pot to see what they might have in the soldering arena.    While they didnt have a big selection, they did have a 40 watt iron (SP40L) with a similar looking heating element...could this be the same one the WLC100 uses???????

YES, it is.  Also, it was only 19 bux.   Perfect.   Took it home, unscrewed the top, discarded the "ON" light ( and plastic) it comes with and put everything back into my WLC100.  Perfect match.

Before you try this, make sure your solder station isnt at fault.  Connect a multimeter set at 120volts or higher to the outlet on the side of the soldering station (where the iron plugs into) and make sure it puts out 115-120v on temperature "5".  If it does and you're iron isnt hot, it's your iron's element that's bad and needs to be replaced.

Here on these next few pages i'll show you how to do it.    It's super easy and it will save you the hassle of waiting a few days for shipping.   Hang with me through the less-painful steps until you reach the big climax on the last page...or if you cant wait, jump to the last page!

Step 1 Get the SP40L

I know home dpot and lowes carry it but i'm sure a lot of other home improvement stores have it also.

GET THE 40 WATT version, there's a 25watt version that looks similar and may work but the WLC100 is 40 watts.   it's not temp controlled but It gets hot and comes with sharp tips- what more could you ask for?