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Cold Heat Soldering tool
Description: A perfect demonstration of the cordless, quick-heat/quick-cool application of Cold Heat technology, the Cold Heat soldering tool revolutionizes the soldering industry for hobbyists, DIY-ers, technicians, electricians, engineers and the military.
Reviews (35):
 cold heat soldering tool
Reviewer: Anonymous manchester nj 09-19-2005
does not work as advertised. insufficient heat to melt solder
Could NOT get the thing to work!
Reviewer: Anonymous Kansas City, MO 09-09-2005
I don't think the product needs ANOTHER bad review, but I thought it might help if I provided a different example from the uses I've seen so far.
First, I didn't read the reviews on Amazon before purchasing. Big mistake. I would never have bought the thing if I had.
However, my intent for using this tool was a little different from the other reviewers. I don't really understand much about the electrical, wiring or motherboard soldering that most of the other reviews reference.
I wanted this tool to solder my silver charms to my charm bracelet. I collect charms and unfortunately, every time I need a new charm added, my jeweler charges $15.00 per charm to solder.
I thought this neat gadget would be perfect to solder little sterling silver solder rings to the bracelet. WRONG. While the tool did get hot, and did make the metal soft, it NEVER would actually solder the ring together. I tried everything. I left the tool on the metal for LONG periods of time thinking that it just needed a long heat transfer to work. I even tried different angles, different amounts of pressure, and two different tips. Nothing. I spent two hours trying to solder one ring! I guess it just doesn't get hot enough to make a solid joint.
So, for any ladies out there who thought this tool might work for jewelry making or jewelry repairs, I can tell you first hand, this thing STINKS.
 Limited, but uniquely useful; bad manual
Reviewer: Anonymous Houston, TX 08-26-2005
I've been using it primarily to install components on a PC board. My experience has been generally good. Reading the previous 35 reviews (mostly bad), I believe many users do not understand the operating principle and try to use this little tool like a conventional iron.
How it works: The energized dual electrodes at the tip are gently positioned to bridge the wire, or part to be soldered (red light comes on), which then, in a tiny spot, is rapidly heated by resistance heating. At the same time, your other hand holds the thin solder on the wire: it will melt and flow instantly. Solder, and then tip are rapidly removed. All this happens fast, in a flash as it were. The solder is NOT to be melted directly by the tip, as then the work pieces (wires, etc.) would not be hot. Note that the tip cools fast because it never gets very hot.
So what's good about it? The big thing is that only the work pieces get heated, so the solder is always melted by the locally hot work pieces and you never have cold solder joints. Meanwhile, adjacent plastic parts (insulation, board, components) do not get heated much, eliminating need for heat sinks. In fact, it runs so cool, I found it wonderful not to have a big, fat conventional hot iron lurking next to things I did not wish to heat.
And what's the problem? My big problem is that rosin flux (or possibly something from the PC board) began to coat the tip, making it difficult to establish an effective contact and get the red lite on. I called Coleman (my brand) for suggestions, and they knew "nothing" of this problem, but offered a total tool replacement if I'd send it back. Pittiful. I later discovered that alcohol easily removes this deposit.
Also, I only got about 75 small solder joints out of a set of 4 AA batterys; the advertisement suggests you will get 750!!! This makes it kind of expensive to operate. You learn that the batterys are low when the solder refuses to melt.
Another problem is that it does take some practice to develop the routine: very gentle touch and very slight rocking side to side to get contact, then quick solder feed and removal (or solder will be stuck to the work piece). How quick depends on thermal mass of work pieces.
Another concern is internal damage done to ICs, LEDs, etc. by accidently contacting two leads with the two electrodes (we have 6V here). Possibly. There have been mentions of LEDs flashing or being destroyed. Or damage to delicate components like MOSFETs by the tiny spark often seen as the electrodes make contact. I have not (yet?) had this problem.
Lastly the manual from Coleman STINKS: it's too vague, is actually wrong in places, and offers few or no suggestions on many of the topics mentioned above. The cust. service person at Coleman said that's because it was "written in China". Ha!
I obviously like this tool, and may continue to use it because what it does, it does really well. You do have to learn how to use it. Dave
Cold Heat NOT SO HOT!!!
Reviewer: R. Hoffman Hills of PA 08-08-2005
I purchaced the cold heat to carry in my RC car and slot car toolbox. I tried to use it on several solder joints,wire to wire, wire to deans plugs and wire to motor tabs, it failed to do anything other than arc and vaporize the copper wire. Kind of like trying to solder with a tig welder. The split tip is very delicate and replacements cost as much as a new cold heat. Overall I found it to be good for not much of anything I am returning it for a refund and buying a new butane powered soldering iron.
Landfill
Reviewer: OldAmazonian Portland, Oregon United States 07-14-2005
With good functional battery irons like the Hakko FX-901 and the Wahl IsoTip models available, why would anyone buy this [unmentionable] garbage? It barely works, will easily wreck any but the crudest circuitry, and merely serves to worsen America's trade deficit while enriching the marketers of "seen on TV" BS.
Looked cool on T.V.
Reviewer: C Pardue So. Cal 07-03-2005
Unfortunately, I agree with the majority. A huge waste of money. I understand the precautions regarding the tip and in spite of my efforts to be very careful, it chipped the first time I used it. The wire strippers that came with it also broke after two uses. A big disappointment!!!
COLD HEAT = JUNK
Reviewer: C Pardue 07-01-2005
Do not waste your money on this garbage! It will not work for anything. It will destroy your electronics with high voltage. No instructions are included and no warnings provided. Tip does not cool to touch like on TV it stays hot for minutes not seconds. Would not melt solder even with direct contact.
JUNK, JUNK, JUNK Beter stick with lanterns and such there Coleman...
 It works. You Just Need to Understand Its Limitations
Reviewer: Hey Mo!! The City of Townsville 06-20-2005
I've been using a ColdHeat tool regularly for six months and I can attest that it works very well for some jobs, but it VERY obviously does not replace a traditional soldering iron for many jobs. Once you undertand its limitations, you'll find that it's actually pretty handy.
The electric arc that it generates for heating makes it unsuitable for working on delicate electronic components. The nonstick tip makes it ineffective for tinning or desoldering and the nonstick tip and awkward shape combine to make it hard to place a drop of solder on a board with precision. It heats up quickly enough that it will quickly char solder and make it unusable if you dawdle.
When I used it to solder LEDs to a board, it destroyed them. DON'T USE THE COLDHEAT TOOL ON SENSITIVE ELECTRONICS.
BUT...
For simple jobs, this thing is unparalleled. I pull out my ColdHeat tool when I have to make a quick repair to a phone or to a CD player or to wire up a big switch.
This is a common repair: Securing a speaker wire that has come loose is a matter of touching the tip to the existing solder, which heats it to a liquid in about a second, at which point you place the end of the wire to make the joint and the job is done. It's almost too quick to believe.
You want to impress your girlfriend? Crack open her broken Walkman and resolder the earphone jack in under two minutes. That's the kind of job the ColdHeat is good for.
Yes, I broke a tip -- eventually. The tips are fragile, but if you are putting a lot of pressure on the tip then you are using the tool improperly. Also, it seems that over time the tip becomes more fragile, presumably from the rapid heating and cooling, and it will inevitably need replacement. My first tip lasted me 5 months.
It doesn't replace a soldering iron for every job, but the ColdHeat has its place in my toolbox and I'm very satisfied with my purchase.
Use the Sun and a magnifying glass...it works better
Reviewer: Hey Mo!! Chicago, IL 06-08-2005
This is another "as seen on TV" piece of garbage. It may work for very very small joints but don't even try to solder two 16 ga. or larger wires together. Within the first 5-10 minutes, the tip split in two pieces. I was able to get one good solder connection before the thing started to fall apart.
There's no substitute for a good electric soldering gun. This is one of those deals that aren't worth the shipping charge, let alone the item cost.
NOT EVEN FIT FOR THE 99 CENT STORE!
Reviewer: JuliaIrene Santa Monica, Ca 05-24-2005
This is not a tool,it is a horrible, cheap, useless, waste of plastic. My husband saw the commercial and even though I tried to talk him out of it...he went ahead and bought it. He learned a pricey lesson.
If you are thinking of buying it as a gift for someone save yourself the embarrassment... If you are thinking of buying it for yourself...STOP...head toward your local dollar store and buy a bag of plastic straws...at least they would not be a waste of plastic...and they actually serve a purpose.
Total waste of money. Zero stars
Reviewer: Brian K. Neil "Cocolalla" Cocolalla, Idaho 04-11-2005
Sounds like a good idea. In practice it isn't worth anything. The carbon tip is make of fairy dust and about that durable. Can't solder anything but the smallest of wires. Did I mention the tip is: Expensive, $12.95+shipping from Coleman. Did I mention Coleman doesn't have any? Or that you may get one poor "cold" joint from each new tip even if you are very careful not to exert too much pressure on it?
There are other products on the market powered by rechargeable NiCad cells that work well and rate at least 4 stars.
Coleman has sunk to a new low and should be ashamed to be associated with such junk.
It works!!
Reviewer: Brian K. Neil "Cocolalla" Henderson, NV United States 03-12-2005
I recently bought the cold heat solder "iron" because I had a small hobby job with only 4 small solders. I thought this was a good time to try this idea. It worked as explained. It has its limits but I only had 4 small solders to do and rather that heating up my regular iron this worked well. I was impressed with its ease. This does not replace your regular iron but for a quik/small job you can't beat it usefullness. It looks like I am the only person that liked it but it worked!!!
Don't even think about buying this junk!
Reviewer: Bobby 03-11-2005
This tool appears to have been designed to steal money from American consumers and not to solder a darn thing! A regular soldering iron is cheaper and gets the job done quicker. It is also much more durable. I returned mine soon after receiving it because it ate up batteries and was a pain
(...) to use. This tool is of very low quality with an inferior design. (...) Anyone who thinks that they need a battery operated soldering iron, think again. Especially when a perfectly good soldering iron can be purchased for less than (...) right here on Amazon.
 Not very impressive..
Reviewer: Les "ie1ljs" Franklin, Tn United States 03-03-2005
Now that I own, this one... This is more of a "neat-o" collector's gadget. Not really useful for most applications that involve any amount of solder work. It's OK for those occasions where you just need a quick mend on jewelry or small electronic "quick-fixes". Its design, both mechanical and electrical, is very fidgety and can be annoying trying to get both sides of the "heating" element in contact with what you are mending. DEFINITLY DO NOT USE THIS TO TRY AND FIX CIRCUIT BOARDS WITH CLOSE SOLDER POINTS! This thing works by passing a current between the two halves of its "heating" element through what ever you are working on.
In short, if you're looking for a good soldering iron for doing serious electronics work, look elsewhere. Try the "WELLER WP-25 25W SOLDER IRON", also sold here. If you're just looking for a gadget to "ooh" and "ahh" your friends, this is OK for that.
p.s.
Sometimes I have seen a referral to "special" solder for use with this unit, it uses standard rosin-core 60/40 solder, .032 diameter, which can be found at places like Radio Shack.
won't melt solder
Reviewer: F. Kirk Atlanta, GA 02-27-2005
I really should have read the reviews on Amazon before buying this exact item at Home Depot yesterday. I got it home and put the batteries in it and opened a pack of solder. To my great surprise, it wouldn't melt the solder - barely made it warm! This item is as close to worthless as anything I have purchased in the last five years. It really does deserve ZERO stars. Lesson learned.
Cold Heat Boo.......total waste of money
Reviewer: Ronald B. Vlack "Ron" NY 02-21-2005
This product is totally useless. Won't heat anything but the tiniest connections and you have to use solder the diameter of a threat.
I can't wait to go back to my old plug in pencil point soldering iron
Its a TOY
Reviewer: Bobby "Bob" NY, USA 02-10-2005
I have to write this review because this item its a TOY. If you are looking for a toy soldering product then you can go ahead and buy this one. I bought this item because I wanted to be more flexible when I have to solder but this item its just terrible. I am an electronics technitian and I really have to say it again ....this is a TOY and a headache. No wonder why it works with regular batteries. You can try it but after you first take it in your hands you will remember my words....I don't even know why they permit them to sell it as anything else than a toy.
TOO GOOD (to be true)
Reviewer: Jonathan Sabin Ellenton, FL USA 02-04-2005
When I saw the Cold Heat commercial on TV, I thought it seemed too good to be true.
I was right.
First off, forget the word "IRON." This is a soldering CARBON. (Think 'pencil lead')
"IRON" implies a certain degree of strength. Within the first five minutes of owning this piece of garbage, the ends of the carbon tip spread apart and split completely in two.
Having read some reviews (and the directions) that implied that one needs to be gentle with this thing, I was NOT using a ton of pressure.
I suppose I might have received a defective tip, but frankly, I'm not impressed enough with the way it worked in the FIRST four minutes to try to get them to send me a free replacement.
Not that I think I'd GET a free replacement, mind you. The tips (and there are several sizes available), are advertised on their website for $9.95 EACH. So given the fact that MY experience shows they'll last about five minutes, you could easily spend 40 or 50 thousand dollars a year on replacement tips, given a moderate amount of usage!
I'm returning my "IRON" tomorrow. I'll stick with an actual soldering iron (or gun).
Too bad you can't give zero stars
Reviewer: W. D. Hall "nhsd" 02-01-2005
This thing is total junk - period.
Really, I have never purchased a more useless tool. Even the cheap crap from those traveling tool sellers usually do a little something at least once before breaking. This thing doesn't have to break because it doesn't work to begin with. Total junk.
Limited Usefulness
Reviewer: M. Lengowski 01-20-2005
What we have here is a very cool technology with a reasonably good implementation. The problem is that the technology and implementation do not combine to produce a very useful tool.
I wanted to like this tool very much but after using it on some actual projects and doing some test soldering I will wait for something better and keep my $20. (maybe the yet-to-be-released Cold Heat Pro?)
I'm predicting this tool will produce some initial excitement for just about every user but the majority of the tools sold will probably end up in the bottom of a drawer and eventually forgotten.
PROS:
- tip cools off within 3 seconds
- battery powered
- comfortable to hold
- illumination light
- "heating" indicator light
- nice storage case
- protective cover for tips
- multiple tips available
CONS:
- tips are fragile and expensive ($10)
- difficult to apply steady current to stranded wire
- disabled by oxidation more easily than standard iron
- only recommended for wire gauges from 18 to 24
- overpowered when heating 20 or 18 gauge wires twisted together
- sometimes sparks while making contact
- only recommended for desoldering with a wick
- heating indicator light not visible when holding iron upside down
In defense of the manufacturer, they do inform the customer of the limit on wire gauges and the fragility of the tips on a sticker inside the storage case. They also mention the hazards from sparking and the desoldering limitations, but only on their website. It would be nice if these things were plainly shown on the product packaging but it's obvious as to why they are not.
The "tip" is actually two tips (i.e. electrodes). It looks like two pieces of what might be a carbon compound separated by about a millimeter of insulating material. The iron generates heat by passing 6V from tip to tip through the metal you are trying to heat. It's a resistance soldering iron. More powerful versions of these irons seem to be popular with the model making crowd, particularly model train enthusiasts.
In theory this sounds great but in practice I found it very difficult to heat anything but small solid-core wires and small metal contacts. I could tin most of the recommended gauges of stranded wire but I found the iron to be finicky if the strands had begun to separate at all.
This make sense since the electrodes only directly heat what is between them. The rest of the material is only heated if it is in contact with the material being heated by the electrodes. If the strands separate then it's diffult to heat the entire tip of the wire. A traditional soldering iron works better because it can heat multiple strands at once.
In a resistance soldering iron the tips are not the heat source. The material being heated is the heat source.
This makes it even more important NOT to solder by touching the solder to the tip of the iron. You shouldn't solder this way with a traditional iron and you definitely shouldn't solder this way with a resistance soldering iron. You will make nice little solder droplets but unless they land on a heated piece of metal they won't do much good.
Oxidation seems to cripple the Cold Heat iron more than a standard iron. I'm guessing this is because a standard iron can "melt through" the oxidation. Granted, oxidation is bad and you should be using a clean tip and clean metal but you can get away with a reasonable amount of oxidation. If the resistance soldering irons can't make contact they can't generate heat. Simple as that.
Basically, oxidation gets annoying much faster with a Cold Heat iron than a traditional iron.
And finally, the heating indicator light is a nice touch but when you are contorted under something like a car dashboard you don't always have the top of the iron facing you. Often, it's the only way to tell you have made sufficient contact with the metal. It gets very frustrating when you THINK you have been heating a wire only to find out you really didn't make good contact. This iron needs some kind of indicator that is visible (or audible) from any angle.
In closing, if you plan to stick to small, clean, easily reachable parts the Cold Heat soldering tool may be useful for you. If you plan to use it as a portable, multi-purpose iron, it fails.
Perhaps the Cold Heat Original may be a good supplement to the Cold Heat Pro? I don't know anything about the Pro except that it's supposed to be more powerful. I'm assuming it will be rechargeable. Let's hope it has an audible contact alarm.
cold heat does not live up to promises
Reviewer: Loring Chien Texas 01-19-2005
I'm sorry guys but this tool was very disappointing - I should not have got my hopes up so high.
I'm an electrical engineer and have been soldering circuits and cables and connectors both professionally and as a hobby for 30 years (although I give that task to my technicians at the lab nowadays).
But I tried to but couldn't use this iron for my normal soldering tasks. For most tasks with a normal termperature-controlled electronics grade iron I place the tip at the junctiont so both parts being joined get heated and then I flow the solder onto the junction. The other job often done is to tin some stranded wire.
With the cold heat I could not get enough energy into the joints to melt solder - I tried contacting it lightly and then more heavily but I just couldn't get heat to make a good joint - when I fed solder to the junction usually a little bit just blobbed on the tip and that was all. As for tinning wires, forget it, usually the end of wires waves in the air I couldn't get enough pressure on the wire to make the circuit for the cold heat to run. The tip is real fragile, I chipped the expensive tip while testing it. Took the iron back to the store so fast...
Two thumbs down fo this one.
Limited use iron
Reviewer: Nathan C Billings, MT 01-14-2005
Overall, I think you can't expect too much from a $20 iron that runs on 4 AA's. If you start from that perspective, this iron does have some very good uses:
1) To "activate" the power, you have to bridge the gap in the tip & it feeds some good current through here heating up your project. I doubt you'll EVER be able to heat up anything of significant size (like jewelery), but the gap is spaced perfectly for normal pcb traces & circuit board mount electronics like LED's, jumpers & such. For *this* single use, this iron is far superior to a normal iron. It's instant hot, & it works great, allowing you to avoid overheating your sensative components.
2) The tip IS *VERY* delicate. I'm not sure if the darn thing melted (left behind a nice black puddle) or broke but after only 4-5 tests, i'm missing a little chunk of the sharpest point on one side. It still works ok, but I wonder how much use I can get out of this before I have to shell out $10 for a new tip! Bummer.
3) For anything other than small electronics & solid wires, I recommend a normal iron or what I use, a butane iron. I'm not sure if they make it anymore, but Bernz-o-Matic makes an excellent butane torch/iron that I got at Home Depot that works very well in the places this iron cannot.
A total sham! Stay away! Zero stars!
Reviewer: CQ DX Ohio, USA 01-14-2005
I got one of these for Xmas, and finally had the chance to use it today. After inserting 4 new 'AA' batteries, I tried using it with various size solders to try and make some simple connections on a small Ham Radio electronic morse code keyer kit PC board. I used 2 different size tips, and tried holding it to the PC board and/or solder at every conceivable angle possible, and it didn't work at all. The solder didn't melt even a little. I must conclude that this product is a sham, and is a good example of one having inflated claims. Absolutely worthless!
deceptive!
Reviewer: CQ DX Florida USA 01-08-2005
The "free wire stripper-included" is a form you get with the solderer to send back with a check for $5.99 for S&H ! That is certainly not free. There was enough room in the shipping box for 5 wire strippers. Amazon should drop this company if they use this type of false advertising.
Cold heat stinks
Reviewer: J. Milian NYC 01-07-2005
I bought this cold heat piece of junk because the description sounded really good .. I tried it and could barely melt solder.I should mention that a piece of the tip broke off too! Unreal. What a piece of dreck! A red light comes on to tell you it's soldering but I held it to the "pot" with some solder..and held it, and held it.. and held..... instead of holding it and not melting anything, hold onto your money.
You should drop the product
Reviewer: wordsmith "carolina girl" Aiken, SC 01-07-2005
It does not work on any real size wire. Amazon if they are interested in customers should drop this product.
Don't even look sideways at the tip...
Reviewer: wordsmith "carolina girl" Seattle 01-04-2005
I didn't realize this product was available through Amazon, and certainly wouldn't have bought it had I seen the user reviews. I bought two, one for me and one intended for my Dad. One had a chipped tip when I first looked at it - I guess I may have done that taking the tip out of its foam case. The other I was very careful with, installing the tip, then putting its protective cap on. I put it in my jacket pocket, and by the time I got upstairs, it too had chipped. Talk about delicate - I hate to imagine how the tip holds up to actual use.
For something with such a delicate tip, the protective cap is a total joke. For one thing, the tip of the tip virtually touches the plastic, which itself is quite soft; any force at all on the cap, in the wrong direction, destroys the tip. Secondly, the cap itself slides on with virtually no friction, and slides off just as easily. From a design point of view, the cap is totally pathetic...
The instructions say "the tool is intended for hobby use in electrical projects with medium sized components, such as wiring, jewelry repairs, and larger printed circuit boards and components." This is exactly what I wanted it for, and I'm very disappointed it didn't live up to its promise...
Not what it is cracked up to be!!!!!!
Reviewer: Steven H. Cothran New Orleans, LA USA 01-02-2005
The Cold Heat soldering iron looks cool, but it does not work well at all! I use a soldering iron often on small electronic projects and I tried to use it several times and was never successful. Oh and the cold to the touch thing is not true! After you finally melt the solder and finally get it where you need it the soldering iron is very hot and will burn you!
I would not recomend this product.
Good for small jobs and low heat solder
Reviewer: Steven H. Cothran Jenks, OK 12-31-2004
I bought this item and found it good for small jobs dealing with LEDS and I actually find it superior to a conventional iron for small guage wire to wire soldering uses. I would not recommend this for anything other than this. Be very careful with the carbon tip it breaks very easily and will get dirty with wire insulation, resin, etc. You can scrape the gunk off with a very small flat screw driver but very careful and patient other wise you will do what I did and break the tip. If you buy this eventually you will need to clean the tip otherwise you will not get the electrical connection you need and it will become unusable as well. This works good where a conventional soldering iron would be overkill and for LED work where the soldering temp is not to go over 250 degrees. Finding spare tips is a pain as the places I have seen sell the iron don't sell the tips. The concept is appealing to a klutz but the delicate nature of the tip means that this same person is likley to break it and put them in my boat. Where the heck do you find a spare tip? Now if there is a place with a bag of say 25 of them it would probably last someone like me about one year.
dont Buy this
Reviewer: Doc Maker DC 12-29-2004
got this at Home Depot for doing some things on my computer. I got it and the very, very thin solder that they did not say you needed and I had to go to 4 different places. Then as I got home I sat down and started soldering and it would not give me a good joint. Then as i put the soldering iron into it's case furious that i only made a half decent joint the tip broke as I was puting into the section just for it.
Go get a normal soldering iron. It may be less safe but at least it works.
For small joints only
Reviewer: Michael J Edelman Huntington Woods, MI USA 12-27-2004
I bought mine at Radio Shack, where they sell it under their name, after reading a few reviews (not at Amazon). I'd hoped it would be a good field tool for soldering crimp-type connectors, coax, etc.
In short: It's not. This is a tool for small connections only. For small PC board work it's good. For tinning stranded wire- no. Coax connectors? Forget it.
I also thought it might make a good first soldering tool for my 11 year old nephew, in that if left on it wouldn't start a fire, and if dropped it probably wouldn't result in injury. The jury's still out on this one, but I suspect it wouldn't be a very good beginners tool.
Resistance irons such as this one have been around for a long time, particularly for tiny work, because they can localize the heat to a tiny area without damaging nearby componants, and the Cold Heat iron is still a good choice for much of this sort of work. But as a general purpose iron it just doesn't deliver.
Gimmick through and through
Reviewer: Michael J Edelman Florida 11-09-2004
Gimmick through and through
As you would think with most As Seen on TV products, this one is no different, a complete piece of garbage. I am an electrical happiest and wanted to check this thing out and see how it compared to a regular soldering iron. Doesn't even come close.
The way this thing works, from what I observed, is there is 2 parts to the tip. The 2 parts act like an anode and cathode, and the way the tool is "activated" is when you short the anode and cathode with a piece of conductive metal, which is supposed be your solder. When this happens the tool sends high current though the solder causing it to heat up and melt. It's very similar to welding; you can even see a spark when you short the 2 parts of the tip out.
Problem is that the normal way of soldering circuitry to a board, where you put the tip to the parts you want joined and feed solder to them doesn't work with this tool. And when you work it the way they want its shotty at best. It doesn't live up to its name of COLD HEAT ether, the tip is a hot as a normal iron after a bit of soldering.
I guess this would come in useful if you are in a situation where you have no access to a wall outlet and/or can't use a conventional soldering iron. But even then I would use a butane soldering iron. This thing is useless.
Cold Heat Soldering gun
Reviewer: Michael J Edelman Ohio 11-08-2004
I should have realized that this was not a good item. This Cold Heat Soldering unit is just that--COLD. It will not even melt solder which melts at 750 to 800 degrees. I went through four brand new batteries trying to solder a small piece to a jewelry item, as shown on TV. The batteries got hotter than to work! Bad, bad to buy and I am sorry I did. I want a full refund, or should I say a refund for a FOOL?
Don't believe the hype!!!!!
Reviewer: Jason Morton "yogafolk" des moines, wa United States 11-07-2004
I was so hoping this did what it promised. It didn't.
It couldn't heat up enough to even melt the solder well. I tried the thinest gauge solder and it wouldn't melt unless you held the tip on it (which they don't suggest). The other option is to heat up the area you want to solder to rub the solder on it. The COld Heat couldn't warm up the smallest of areas. I tried it on a silver ring (silver solder should melt easier) didn't work at all. Tried it on a speaker wire to a speaker- didn;t work. Tried an xbox mod chip, didn't work.
I am returning this fancy hunk of poop and getting a plug in that shows the actual rating on the box.
The directions say it is only for small low heat uses. I can't see how they made the commercial without pure fraud.
Nice Idea but Some Flaws
Reviewer: Charles Davis Glasgow, KY 10-09-2004
I've had this soldering iron for several months now. It does its job. Simply turn it on and go to work. There's no waiting. Being able to instantly turn it off is also great for those times where timing is very essential. However, it does have some glaring flaws.
The first is it is weak on heating. If you plan on doing something like an XLR connector, go with a traditional iron. My second complaint is the shape. It's not circular. It's more like a flattened oval. It's slightly awkward.
My final complaint is a design flaw. The positive battery contacts are rather small, shallow, and right next to some plastic. During normal use, it's not unusual for the power to die while moving the iron or holding it at some angles because one of the batteries is no longer making contact. I was able to correct this by disassembling the iron and carefully bending the contacts. I can now shake it violently and it stays powered. Just one note to those that want to take it apart. The gray section where the power swith is is glued down plus has a screw underneath holding the rest together. Be careful not to break the thing.
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