Hakko FX-888D soldering station
Ranked 2 of 3 soldering irons by recommenders
Recommended for everyday soldering, including fine tips and surface-mount work. Common caveat: swapping tips means waiting for it to cool, and critics find its controls awkward.
Recommended for everyday soldering, including fine tips and surface-mount work. Common caveat: swapping tips means waiting for it to cool, and critics find its controls awkward.
14 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 8
- criticize it
- 6
- approval share
- 57%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 8 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 1.3 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Pretty good overall
“It's pretty good, although I wish there was some way to switch tips that didn't involve letting it cool down to a safe handling temperature.”
Comment from 12 May 2026 in “I hate soldering existentially” “It's pretty good, although I wish there was some way to switch tips that didn't involve letting it cool down”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “I hate soldering existentially” Works well for fine and surface-mount work
“The cheapest Hakko iron (888?) and a flat fine tip works great.”
Comment from 12 May 2026 in “I hate soldering existentially” “works just fine for me, even for surface mount components”
Comment from 12 May 2026 in “I hate soldering existentially” Soldering feels easy and enjoyable
“Perfect soldering is effortless now. It's a delight.”
Comment from 16 Jan 2026 in “Ask HN: What are your best purchases under $100?” “things got a lot easier after that”
Comment from 5 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: Resources to get good at soldering?”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Tip swaps require cooling down
“It's pretty good, although I wish there was some way to switch tips that didn't involve letting it cool down to a safe handling temperature.”
Comment from 12 May 2026 in “I hate soldering existentially” “It's pretty good, although I wish there was some way to switch tips that didn't involve letting it cool down”
Comment from 11 May 2026 in “I hate soldering existentially” Awkward controls, hard to adjust
“going back to a Hakko or any other soldering iron is downright painful”
Comment from 6 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: Resources to get good at soldering?” “seemingly designed to make basic adjustments as difficult as possible”
Comment from 5 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: Resources to get good at soldering?” “Trying to use a Hakko afterwards will make you want to curse”
Comment from 5 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: Resources to get good at soldering?”
Other soldering irons people recommend
The two most recommended other soldering irons, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pinecil soldering iron | 10 | 1 | 91% | 5 | — | Approved |
| Hakko FX-888D soldering stationThis page | 8 | 6 | 57% | 3 | — | — |
| Metcal soldering station | 7 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
14 of the 16 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“it was neigh impossible at any temps my desktop hako could output”
“going back to a Hakko or any other soldering iron is downright painful”
“Trying to use a Hakko afterwards will make you want to curse”
“things got a lot easier after that”
“seemingly designed to make basic adjustments as difficult as possible”
“cost less than the much recommended Hakko irons and is orders of magnitude better”
“The tip on my soldering iron is perfectly fine though.”
“works just fine for me, even for surface mount components”
“The cheapest Hakko iron (888?) and a flat fine tip works great.”
“It's pretty good, although I wish there was some way to switch tips that didn't involve letting it cool down to a safe handling temperature.”
“It's pretty good, although I wish there was some way to switch tips that didn't involve letting it cool down”
“known to have a significant time delay between tip temperature and reported temperature”
“The often recommended Hakko FX-888D is just plain awful.”
“Perfect soldering is effortless now. It's a delight.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.