Hi A malleable iron cast pot can be made from an iron pipe fitting. The internally threaded end cap for water pipe would be ideal. Malleable iron fittings are cast and then heat treated to make them less brittle. Solder will not attack this stuff or very slowly if at all. They are also thick walled and heavy giving the unit the required stability. The 12 volt heater requirement solution for the pot came to me in a flash of inspiration! The widely available12 volt diesel engine glow plug, the shielded type that has a spark plug type body with a 1" clad heater element, these get HOT! The heater shielding material is a high temp. nickel alloy, impervious to solder. They are also easily replaced if burnt out. A little machining would be needed to install the heater plug and the necessary temperature controls fitted to maintain the solder at the optimum temp. On Tue, Mar 12, 2013 at 5:51 AM, Spehro Pefhany wrote: > At 12:03 AM 3/12/2013, you wrote: > >Here are a couple of photos of solder pots I have made > >http://www.flickr.com/photos/93979674@N03/8549790073/in/photostream > >http://www.flickr.com/photos/93979674@N03/8549790011/in/photostream > > Oh, if we're doing "show and tell", here's one that I have: > > http://www.speff.com/solder_pot.jpg > > I think I paid about $14 USD, shipped, for the pot (220V, with the > Chinese/Aussie plug*). I have 220V and various foreign sockets available > on the bench, so that's not a problem for me. The controller is just a > "dimmer" power control, not a temperature controller. > > So far, it has not electrocuted anyone important, nor has it burst into > flames much. It's all-metal construction, and the housing on mine is > properly earthed, so it ought (!) to be safe enough. > > --sp > > * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:I_plug_Chinese.jpg > > -- > http://www.piclist.com/techref/piclist PIC/SX FAQ & list archive > View/change your membership options at > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist > --=20 http://www.piclist.com/techref/piclist PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist .