Hi Harvey, I might have to go a bit more budget on the rework station to begin with. So far I have been lucky. When I need something and keep a positive belief that the need will be met, something always turns up that I can afford. I have almost all Xytronic soldering stations in the lab. Some old Weller and Pace stuff too. When I bought some additional Xytronic gear over 10 yrs ago Xytronic had just come out with new models and Howard's Supply in the US had a close out on the older, more bulletproof units.even the tips were cheap, so I bought 6. Not one has failed. I have two of their newer soft button controlled units but I like the older dial type better. I have a 60 min timer on each bench that all soldering irons and some other tools are plugged into. That was originally for my repair work. I would get called away from what I was doing and sometimes left my iron on. No Bueno!
I currently have a 485 and a heathkit that work for what we do, mainly chasing an injected Hz signal through a tube amp circuit looking for where the problem is. It is indeed allot of fun and more revealing than using a probe hooked up to a small battery powered amp, like I did for years. Both work, but the oscilloscope certainly is less "caveman". Maybe in the years that I have left I will learn more about the real potential of the tools I have.....and more about transistors before they join tubes as a relic junkies hobby. I often wonder how long repair shops will even be cost effective over replacement . It seems like nowadays, by the time a battery in a device no longer takes a charge it is already a dinosaur.?
Russ
