[pkolaczk]

For affordable, semi-professional grade equipment, it is hard to beat Quick. I have Quick 202d + Quick 861dw. The tips on 202d are integrated with thermocouples and heating is indirect but inductive, which strikes a nice balance between the price of the tips (3x more affordable than cartridge tips) and performance (heats just like cartridge tips). The handle is light and has short grip-to-tip distance. I still use the original tips I bought a few years ago, so they last. I always soldered lead free and I’m shocked people on the internet find lead free hard. Some even said I must be nuts to solder lead free at 600-650F.