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Hakko FR-301 desoldering gun misery

I’m surprised you have to run it on 4. I rarely take mine off of 1, and it’s the 120v version. I’ve bumped it up to 2 before for lead free but never higher. I use a variety of tips from 1-1.6mm including the extended, super extended ones and the oval ones. Going on 5 years old and never an issue. I use the proper cleaning rods and clean the unit every few months.
 
I actually looked at mine last night and found it was on 4. I don't think I've ever touched it, but its highly possible its gotten bumped at some point. I put it back down to 2 and it seems fine. i had wondered why the tinning seemed to constantly burn off, too much heat would explain that.

I've pulled the nozzle off and cleared the tube out using a drill bit held in a hand chuck a few times. The poker tool won't do that.
 
no, I've peeled the filter several times to get it going again. I've also flipped the diaphragms over after cleaning them to restore vacuum without having to buy new parts. The flapper valves also sometimes need wiping off, the flux residue makes them sticky.
 
gadget73 said:
I've pulled the nozzle off and cleared the tube out using a drill bit held in a hand chuck a few times. The poker tool won't do that.
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Thankfully I haven't had to resort to using a drill bit yet. I've had a few close calls, but when that happens I find that dipping it in flux paste (I use MG RA 8342) kinda sucks up into the tube, and then the rod starts working again to clear it out. I only ever had one really bad clog (in the tip), and I was able to fix that by stuffing a little wad of solder wire between the tip and the heater, and then turning it on.

I need to order a few spare parts just to have on hand in case Hakko discontinues them like they did with their older models. The flapper/diaphgram thing, etc.

And yeah running it on 4 totally destroys the tips. Also the express lane to lifted pads. I still have the 4-5 year old tips for mine, I usually use the 1.3mm but I used it so much it kinda opened up to around the 1.6, so I finally bought another. I'm guilty of using it to pry leads up too... especially on the crap where they fold them flush to the board.
 
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