The easiest way to make a soldering iron at home is with a resistor. The assembled device will be designed to operate at a voltage in the range of 6-24 volts. To assemble such an electric tool, prepare the following fixtures and materials:
- PEV resistor with legs-outputs with a power of not more than 7 watts and a resistance of 20 ohms;
- textolite plate;
- one spring ring;
- power wires;
- screws with washers;
- two copper bars with different sections.
Advice. The first thick copper bar should match the diameter of the inner cavity of the resistor being used. The second one should be thin enough so that it is convenient to solder microcircuits with its tip.
Assembling an electric soldering iron with a resistor does not require much time. So, first, in the end face of a thick copper bar, drill a hole with a fine thread for the screw. A few centimeters from the opposite end along the entire diameter of the bar, cut a groove and insert a spring ring into it - it will act as a retainer.
Then drill a hole for a thin rod in the second end face of the thick rod and insert the latter into the resulting recess - this is how you get the rod of the future soldering iron. Next, install the rod in the resistor and fix the structure with a screw and washer in a pre-made hole.
Cut out a handle for a soldering iron with fittings for a resistor and wires from a textolite plate. Fix the legs of the resistor to the plate with screws, and then connect the power wires to them.
Now it remains only to twist the homemade electric soldering iron and test it in practice.
Instruction # 2: Soldering iron with a ballpoint pen
The second is not quite ordinary, but the same affordable way to build a soldering iron with your own hands - using a ballpoint pen as a working body. In this case, you will need:
- ball pen;
- MLT resistor with a power of not more than 0.5 watts and a resistance of 10 ohms;
- a plate made of double-sided textolite;
- power wires;
- insulating material - ceramics or mica;
- copper wire - 1 mm in diameter;
- steel wire - 0.5-0.8 mm in diameter.
Soldering iron assembly technology:
Important! The voltage of the power supply must be no higher than 15 volts.
As you can see, even a novice electrician who does not have professional knowledge and skills in the field of electrical engineering can make a soldering iron with his own hands. Here are two instructions for assembling tools of varying complexity - having prepared all the necessary tools at hand and adhering to the technology, you can definitely make a functional device at home.
DIY soldering iron: video
Before you make a soldering iron with your own hands, it is recommended to decide on its model. This tool can be used for car radiator, wire soldering, network connector repair. To perform the above work, a home-made soldering iron with a power of 25-40 watts is made.
Before starting work on the manufacture of a homemade soldering iron, you should decide on its subsequent purpose.
Design features
To make an electric tool, you will need copper and nichrome wire, foil, tin tube, electric cord, tweezers, pliers, electrolyte. To power the electric soldering iron, an ordinary electrical network with a converter and an NDR-110K transformer is used. The last unit can be dismantled from a tube TV.
A miniature soldering iron is made from copper wire. One end of the segment is sharpened in the form of a dihedral angle with a radius of 40 degrees. The edges of the corner will need to be tinned. The next step is to prepare the electrically insulating mass.
Flour dough is mixed with liquid glass and talc. The resulting mixture is applied to a cylindrical surface. To do this, you can use a plate or tweezers.
The tool is pre-treated with a dry composition of talc. A tube of copper foil is put on the sting. Its length should be 30 mm. The resulting design is the basis for the soldering iron.
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Additional work
An electrically insulating mass is smeared on the tube. Then it is dried at a temperature of 100-150 degrees. The base is wrapped with a heating nichrome element. Experts recommend tightly fitting the base.
The lead ends of the wire are left straight. Then the base is re-wound. The mass is dried over the fire. The long end of the wire is wrapped back, pressing it against the tube. A third layer of insulating mortar is then applied, which requires re-drying.
If the heating element is ready, then the ends of the wire are covered with an electrical insulating solution. To assemble a mini soldering iron with your own hands, you will need to thread the cord in heat-resistant insulation. If the ends of the nichrome electric heater are screwed to the bare wires, then the tool is re-coated and dried. Bare wires are insulated. The soldering iron can be built into a protective cover made of tin.
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impulse device
To perform electronic work, you will need to make a light and compact soldering iron. Such a tool differs in the principle of operation of the sting heater. In standard soldering irons, a nichrome spiral is used. It is a heating element that transfers heat to the sting.
Experts recommend making your own soldering iron, which heats up in 5 seconds. This time is necessary for him to acquire the ability to melt tin. As its basis, a pulsed battery is used.
The principle of operation of a pulsed home-made tool is to short circuit the second winding of the transformer.
The last device is presented in the form of a copper bus. For its manufacture, you can use two cores (1.7 mm each). The winding consists of one turn.
The sting is made of nickel or copper wire, which is then connected to the second winding of the transformer. The last device is presented in the form of a ferrite ring. It can be dismantled from the pulse converter. Otherwise, rings from electronic transformer blocks are used.
Rings can have different parameters. In the network winding, there are 100-200 turns of wire with a cross section of 0.5 mm. The winding must be evenly stretched over the entire ring. A ballast deviation of 30% is allowed. The resulting device is lightweight and does not take up much space. Experts recommend making pulse soldering irons from compact ballasts from LDS.
Sometimes there are situations when the owner simply cannot do without a simple soldering iron. For example, you need a multi-core cable for an outlet, or from a burned-out appliance. At such moments, one has to either borrow an instrument, or postpone the matter for an indefinite period. After all, not everyone wants to buy an expensive soldering iron or soldering station if he is not a repairman. However, there is a simple way out of this situation - to independently assemble a small soldering iron, it is just right for small work. The manufacturing process will not take much time and effort, but you can save some money and gain invaluable experience. Next, we will tell you how to make a soldering iron with your own hands at home. You will be offered several designs, and you can choose the one that suits you the most.
Idea #1 - Use a Resistor
The first and simplest technology for making an electric soldering iron with your own hands is using a powerful resistor. The device will be designed to operate at a voltage of 6 to 24 volts, which will allow it to be powered by various current sources, and even make a portable version powered by a car battery. In order to make your own tool, you will need the following materials:
To make a soldering iron from a resistor at home, you must follow these steps:
- At the end of a thick copper rod, you need to drill a hole and drive the thread under the screw with a tap. It is also necessary to cut a groove for the retainer, which in our case is the spring ring. This can be done with a triangular needle file or a hacksaw.
- From the second end, drill a hole with a diameter like a thin rod, which will act as a mini soldering iron tip.
- All elements of the rod must be assembled into one whole, as shown in the photo.
- The resistor is prepared for mounting the soldering iron tip, which must be inserted and fixed at the back with a screw with a washer.
- From a textolite or plywood plate, you need to make a comfortable handle with a seat for a resistor and a wire with your own hands. To do this, use a jigsaw to cut out two identical halves of the handle and make holes and recesses for screws and nuts.
- Connect the power cord to the heater terminals. It must be screwed onto the screws so that the contact is reliable.
- The finished homemade soldering iron is twisted and checked.
We draw your attention to the fact that with such a portable gun you can easily solder microcircuits and even with your own hands. It can work not only from the power supply, but also from the battery. On the forums, we met a lot of reviews, where this homemade version was connected from a 12 volt cigarette lighter, it is also very convenient!
Please note that when first turned on, all soldering irons may smoke and stink for a while. This is normal for any model, as some elements of the paintwork will burn out. This will stop later.
Video instructions for making a simple electrical appliance
Idea number 2 - The second life of a ballpoint pen
There is another unusual, but at the same time simple idea of how to make a soldering iron with your own hands from improvised materials for soldering small parts or smd components. In this case, again, it will come in handy for us, but now it’s not PEV (as in the previous version), but MLT, with a power of 0.5 to 2 watts. 
So, first you need to prepare the following materials:
- Ballpoint pen of the simplest design.
- Resistor with characteristics: resistance 10 Ohm, power 0.5 W.
- Double-sided textolite.
- Copper wire with a diameter of 1 mm, it can be wound from an old choke or you can buy a single-core copper wire in insulation at an electrician's store and carefully remove it with a clerical knife
- Steel or copper wire with a diameter of not more than 0.8 mm.
- Wires for connecting to the network.
Making a soldering iron from a pen at home is quite simple, you just need to follow these steps:
- Remove a layer of paint from the surface of the resistor. This operation can be carried out with the help of a skin, a needle file or a file, in extreme cases, a knife. The main thing is not to overdo it, so as not to damage the resistor. If the paint is difficult to remove, connect the product to a regulated power supply and heat it up a little.
- 2 wires come out of the barrel, cut one of them and drill a hole for a copper wire in this place (diameter 1 mm). To prevent the wire from touching the cup (this must be avoided), countersink with a thicker drill, as shown in the photo below. In addition, you need to make a small cut for the wire right on the resistor cup. A triangular file will help you with this again.
- Bend the steel wire into the shape of a ring-shaped handle, with a diameter similar to that of a drank on a cup. If you have copper wire, then you need to clamp the cup in it and twist it with pliers so that the contact is reliable, but do not overdo it, otherwise you will wrinkle the body. Remember that the wire must be without varnish insulation.
- Carefully cut out the board from the double-sided PCB with your own hands, exactly the same as shown in the example in the photo. It is not necessary to buy a new sheet of textolite. You can use a jigsaw to cut a suitable piece from any unnecessary double-sided board. Or do without it altogether: twist the wire with wires, and attach them to the handle with superglue. The main thing to pay attention to is that the distance between the heating element and the handle is more than 5 cm, otherwise the plastic may melt.
- Next, you need to assemble a homemade soldering iron from the handle, which should not cause difficulties.
- It remains to install a thin sting in the seat. To prevent the copper wire from burning through the resistor, you need to make a protective layer of a piece of mica or ceramic between the back wall and the sting.
- The last thing to do is to connect the homemade product to a 1 A power supply and a voltage of no more than 15 Volts using wires.
That's the whole technology of creating a homemade mini soldering iron at home. As you can see, there is nothing complicated in making this tool, and you can easily cope with it, and all the materials can be found at home by dismantling old equipment or looking for them in the bins.
How to make a more complex model of a mini soldering iron at home?
Video review of a device with nichrome wire, powered by 12 volts
Idea #3 – Powerful Impulse Pattern
This option is suitable for those who are already more or less familiar with radio engineering and can read the corresponding diagrams. A master class on making a homemade pulsed soldering iron will be provided following the example of this scheme: 
The advantage of this tool is that the tip heats up within 5 seconds after turning on the power, while the heated rod can easily melt the tin. At the same time, it can be made from a switching power supply from a fluorescent lamp, slightly improving the board at home.
As in the previous examples, we will first consider the materials from which you can make a soldering iron with your own hands at home. Before assembly, you must prepare the following improvised means:
All you need is to connect the tip to the secondary winding, which, in fact, is already part of it. After that, one of the ballast leads must be connected to the primary winding of the transformer and all the elements of the circuit must be fixed in a reliable case that will protect you from accidental electric shock, since the circuit contains a life-threatening voltage of 220 volts!
The principle of operation of this design is that the ballast from the lamp creates an alternating voltage that is applied to the primary winding of the transformer and is reduced to low values, while the current increases many times over. One turn, which is, in fact, the tip of the soldering iron, acts as a resistor, on which heat is dissipated. When the button is pressed, current is supplied to the circuit, and rapid heating occurs, after the button is released, the tip cools quickly, which is very convenient, since you do not have to wait long for the tool to heat up and cool down.
Idea #4 - Simple Wire Option
There is another option for making a miniature soldering iron - using nichrome wire. For this you will need:
Manufacturing process:
- Drill a hole in the bar for the copper wire 3 times larger than its diameter.
- Put a piece of copper wire in it so that it protrudes about 5 cm and fix it there with thick plaster putty, let it dry.
- Put on a copper bar, which is a sting, insulation and wind the required amount of nichrome wire, leaving a distance between the turns. Also put insulation on the ends and bring them closer to the handle. Then connect to twists with wires. Tape them to the handle with electrical tape.
That's all, you have another simple and reliable DIY soldering iron design.
We still recommend using either the first or the second option, which is more understandable and easier to manufacture. As for the transformer version, although it is more powerful, it is still not so convenient to use. We hope that these photo instructions were useful for you and finally we recommend that you definitely watch all the video examples in which the assembly process is considered in more detail!
Also read:
A tool such as a soldering iron is indispensable for radio amateurs, but people who are far from electronic technology and components do not consider it a necessity. Sometimes situations happen that can only be corrected with the help of this tool, and if it is not there, then what to do? If the problem is one-time, then there is no need to go to the nearest store and purchase an expensive product. You can make a little effort and, with the help of simple components, assemble a homemade soldering iron. There are many options for assembling this device - consider some of them.
Resistor device.
This is a very simple but extremely reliable device. At home, it can be used in different ways. Depending on the design and power, they can solder microelectronics up to laptops. A large device even allows you to solder a tank or any other large product. Consider how to make a soldering iron with your own hands.
The circuit is interesting in that a resistor suitable for power is used as a heater. It can be PE or PEV. The heater is powered from the household network. These quenching resistances make it possible to solve problems of various scales.
We carry out calculations
Before proceeding to the assembly, some calculations should be performed. So, for the manufacture of devices with resistors, it is enough to recall Ohm's law from a school physics course and the power formula.
For example, you have a suitable part of the PEVZO type with a nominal value of 100 ohms. You are going to create a tool based on it for use in household electrical networks. With the help of the form you can easily calculate the parameters. So, at a current of 2.2 A, a homemade soldering iron will consume 484 watts of power. This is a lot. Therefore, with the help of resistance-damping elements, it is necessary to reduce the current by a factor of four. After that, the indicator will decrease to 0.55 A. The voltage across our resistor will be within 55 V, and in the home network - 220 V. The value of the quenching resistance should be 300 Ohms. As this element, a capacitor for voltage up to 300 V is suitable. Its capacitance should be 10 microfarads.
Soldering iron 220V: assembly
Perhaps the glue will worsen the heat transfer a little, but it will dampen the system of the rod and the heating coil. This will protect the ceramic base of the resistor from possible cracks.
Another layer of glue will protect against backlash in this important knot. The cores of the wires will be brought out through the hole in the tube-rod. This diagram will help you understand how to make a soldering iron reliable, efficient and inexpensive, as well as safe.
To avoid trouble, it is better to strengthen the insulation where the cores will be connected to the heater. For this, an asbestos thread is suitable, as well as a ceramic sleeve on the case. Additionally, you can apply elastic rubber in the place where the electric cord enters the handle.
It's so easy to make a soldering iron with your own hands. Its power may vary. To do this, you simply need to replace the capacitor in the circuit.
mini soldering iron
This is another simple circuit. With this tool, you can work with various miniature devices or parts. With it, you can easily dismantle and solder small radio components and microcontrollers. Each craftsman has the materials to create this product. You will learn how to make a soldering iron, and then you can easily assemble it from improvised materials. Power will be provided from a household transformer - any one from the frame scan of an old TV will do. A piece of 1.5 mm copper wire is used as a sting. A 30 mm piece is simply inserted into the heating element.
We make a base tube
It will not be just a tube, but the base of the heating element. It can be rolled up from copper foil. Then it is covered with a thin layer of a special electrical insulating compound. This composition is also very simple and easy to make. It is enough to mix talc and silicate glue, lubricate the tube and dry it over gas.
Making a heater
In order for our do-it-yourself soldering iron to adequately perform its functions, you need to wind a heater for it. We will do this from a piece of nichrome wire. To solve the problem, we take 350 mm of material 0.2 mm thick and wind it around the prepared tube. When you wind the wire, lay the turns very tightly together. Don't forget to leave straight ends. After winding, grease the spiral with a mixture of talc and glue and let it dry until it is completely baked.
We complete the project
The third stage is additional insulation and installation of the heater in a tin case.
This work must be done very carefully. The ends that come out of our heater should also be treated with insulating material. In addition, treat with a mixture of any cavities that may have arisen from a lack of accuracy.
The manufacturing process of this tool involves protecting the heater leads with heat-resistant insulating material and pulling the cord through the hole in the soldering iron handle. Screw the ends of the power wire to the heater terminals, then carefully insulate everything.
It remains to pack the heating element in a tin case, and then evenly put it in place.
Now you can use this product. If you did everything right, you get an excellent soldering iron, assembled with your own hands. With it, you can solder many interesting circuits.
Miniature non-wire resistor design
This tool is great for small jobs. It is very convenient to solder various microcircuits, SMD parts with it. The scheme of the product is simple, with the assembly there will be no difficulties.
We need an MLT type resistor from 8 to 12 ohms. The power dissipation should be up to 0.75 watts. Also pick up a suitable case from an automatic pen, a copper wire with a cross section of 1 mm, a piece of steel wire 0.75 mm thick, a piece of textolite, a wire with heat-resistant insulation.
Before assembling this soldering iron with your own hands, peel off the paint from the resistor body.
This is easily done with a knife or liquid with acetone. Now you can safely cut off one of the resistor leads. Where the cut was made, drill a hole, and then process it with a countersink. A sting will be mounted there.
At the very beginning, the hole diameter can be equal to 1 mm. After processing it with a countersink, the sting should not come into contact with the cup. It should be in the resistor housing. Make a special groove on the outside of the cup. A down conductor will be held on it, which will also hold the heater.
Now we make a payment. It will consist of three small parts.
From the wide side, connect a steel down conductor to it, in the middle part the case from the handle will be fixed. The second remaining output of the resistor is installed on the narrow part.
Before using this tool, wrap the tip with a thin layer of insulating material. That's how simple and easy you got a low-power 40W mini soldering iron.
Naturally, serious and hot-air hair dryers are offered today for professionals, but these devices are very expensive and are available only to masters from service centers for repairing computers, laptops and mobile devices. This equipment is inaccessible to the home master due to its cost. We hope this article will tell you how to make a soldering iron with your own hands quickly and easily.
The variety of modern soldering stations is amazing. Silicon, impulse, gas ... And you can make a traditional soldering iron (with a heating thread) with your own hands. This will be discussed in the material presented.
For any radio amateur, a soldering iron is the number one tool. Of course, in stores you can pick up an electrical appliance for every taste. However, it costs some money, and any master is interested in putting his hands on the manufacture of such a useful device. In addition, if you need a specific tool, only a home-made device can help out.
First, let's look at how the soldering iron works.
The basis is the body, which mechanically protects the heating element. A two-piece handle is put on the body. Its task is to protect hands from high temperatures. Power wire runs through it.
The heating element (usually nichrome wire) is wound around an insulator, such as mica. Inside is a sting, which is fixed in the body with a screw.
There are also pulse devices, their principle of operation differs from the considered option.
How to make a simple soldering iron at home
First of all, you need to define the functions. The selected project will depend on this. You need a soldering iron for SMD elements, or for car maintenance. You can choose from several options.
Soldering iron for garage made of ceramic resistor C5-35V
Such resistors withstand high temperatures, have a power dissipation from 3 W to 150 W. The body of the element is made of heat-resistant ceramics, the working element is a nichrome thread.
We make a typical car soldering iron for emergency repair of wiring in the garage. Of course, the power will be from a 12 volt battery.
A C5-35V resistor with a resistance of 20 ohms and a power of 7 watts is suitable.
The handle is most convenient to make a pistol type. The material is textolite or ebonite, the main thing is good heat resistance and poor thermal conductivity.
We have a heating element (actually a resistor), now we will make a working sting and a conductor for heat transfer. It is necessary to pick up two copper rods. One is installed inside the C5-35V case and will serve as a thermal energy accumulator. The second bar, thinner, will be a working sting.
IMPORTANT! A thick bar must be fitted as tightly as possible to the inner diameter of the resistor, to reduce heat loss.
You can take the rod a little thicker, and grind it with sandpaper, rotating the drill in the chuck.