Hakko T18-B - Conical, 0.5mm Radius

The Hakko T18-B Conical Soldering Tip is a high-quality product that heats up quickly and maintains a consistent temperature. It is durable and precise, making it perfect for intricate soldering projects. I highly recommend this soldering tip for anyone looking for a reliable and efficient tool.

The item I received is a legit Hakko product and a perfect size for through hole use. What more is there to say? Well, let’s see.... If you are eyeing low cost knock-offs and wondering “How much better can Hakko’s product possibly be?”- the answer is a lot. Also it beats buying a new wand... some of the new Hakko stations on Amazon can be had for a little bit more than a replacement wand. 9/10 it’s the tip that goes not the heating element, so you can save yourself a nice chunk of change. The conical tip is a matter of preference. You might also want to explore a wedged tip of similar size and see what you like best. Also a popular misconception: these are not something you buy just to swap in and out for different soldering duties, these are wise to replace on a regular basis. Think of them like tires - it’s “where the rubber meets the road” and is a part expected to wear and need replacing. You will know when to replace when your tip isn’t holding solder well, even after tinning. However, I swap mine out every 6 -12 months as a weekend hobbyist. When you put in a new one it’ll feel like a whole new iron. I also suggest maybe getting yourself some tip tinner, new sponges, some braid, a Soldapullt and some new copper for your wand stand while you’re at it if any of these are looking rough or you don’t have them. The average hobbyist tends to ignore this sort of thing until their station looks like it was thrown out a window into a dumpster, or they try to make due with less than any pro would consider acceptable. Paying some mind to these odds and ends makes the process so much more enjoyable and your work a lot cleaner. Hope that helps.

This soldering tip is good for general purpose SMT soldering. I was able to solder 0402 sized components and also get heat into connections that had large heat sinks (ground connections on PCB). I had also gotten a T18-S4 tip, but this works much better for most uses. Definitely recommend this genuine Hakko tip over the garbage aftermarket tips.

Works very well for soldering, easy to hold the solder.

I couldn’t read the engraving on my existing conical tip from hakko, and thought it said T18-B, but it obviously didn’t, because this is a much broader tip and not really suitable for the kinds of things I work on. I was replacing a hakko tip that is more finely pointed, and on an angle (so it almost looks like the last 1.5mm to the tip is bent maybe 25°). This is a perfect conical tip, and rather broad. At least .5mm in mg estimation.

I purchased a $30 iron from Electronic Specialists and after a year of heavy use, I found my tip had oxidized too much to where it wouldn't heat properly. I searched around for another one and found this one on Amazon and decided to give it a try as I wasn't exactly sure if it was the tip that was causing my problems. I got this new one in, installed, and fired it up and it was working just like before. It was an easy replacement and the price was good too. It's a little larger tip than my previous, which I was a bit bummed about, but it works just fine and is just as described.

I wish I had discovered Hakko years ago. I could solder SMD components with this tip.

I bought a relatively inexpensive soldering station that came with multiple tips. Supposedly they were pre tinned, but I’m having trouble getting solder to flow. I thought maybe a better quality tip might solve the problem. The tip seems to be well tinned, but I’m still having trouble. Probably my soldering skills need attention.