Weller Soldering iron tips transfer heat from a soldering iron into solder so that it melts and can flow into the joint between two components or workpieces. They're also sometimes referred to as 'bits'.

To protect your soldering iron tips, you should tin your tip before and after soldering to create a protective layer between the air and the soldering iron tip. Tinning prevents oxidisation and allows for a more efficient heat transfer.

Optimal operating temperature

Putting your soldering tips through excessive temperatures will shorten their lifespan. The temperature of the tip will decrease as the soldering iron is used more. There is the temptation to increase the idle temperature to compensate for this temperature drop – but don't as this will shorten the life of the soldering iron tip. If you aren't actively using your soldering iron think about turning it off or setting it to a low 'idle' temperature to maximise tip life.

Weller Soldering Iron Tip shapes:

Weller soldering irons have interchangeable tips that have slightly different shapes to allow for different tasks or precision levels. For example, conical tips are used for fine electronics work. Other common tip shapes include:

• bevel (aka hoof)
• chisel
• concave
• pyramid
• bent