Last updated at 09/06/2026 16:51:37
Milwaukee M12SI-0 12V Soldering Iron (Tool Skin Only)
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Milwaukee 2488-21 M12 12v Cordless Pivoting Head Soldering Iron Kit
Delivery $125.16
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
Soldering Iron Kit 10-3/4 L 90W
Delivery $86.06
originally posted on milwaukeetool.com
I usually don't post reviews but the quality of this product is so bad I couldn't let it slide. I've had two of these melt after minimal use. I purchased the first one thinking Milwaukee always had excellent products and didn't even look at the reviews. But after a short period of use, the plastic collar that attaches the soldering tip melted. I returned it thinking it was just a dud and got a second one. Within 5 minutes, the second one melted in the same place.The plastic screw on collar can't withstand the heat and just melts. I've attached pictures for reference. The collar really needs to be metal for it to provide the quality that I've come to expect from Milwaukee (especially at the price of $200 for the tool with 2 battery's).
originally posted on acmetools.com
This iron heats quickly about 15 seconds, each battery will hold a charge for around 45 minutes in use. The charger will recharge the battery quickly even so we chose to purchase 2 extra batteries for no lag time.It is versatile with a pivoting head that allows you to reach nearly any angle with ease. ‘cordless’ yet capable of industrial as well as circuit board repair. If I hadn’t seen the circuit board repair I would not have believed it. Heat tip tops out between 660 to 750.As for ‘the collar’ issue we haven’t had a problem. If we do we will contact Milwaukee.In summery: Big jobs, small jobs you no longer have to lug any project back to the workroom. Take this iron along in its handy carry case to special events to fix what falls apart. Quick to heat easy ... MoreThis iron heats quickly about 15 seconds, each battery will hold a charge for around 45 minutes in use. The charger will recharge the battery quickly even so we chose to purchase 2 extra batteries for no lag time.It is versatile with a pivoting head that allows you to reach nearly any angle with ease. ‘cordless’ yet capable of industrial as well as circuit board repair. If I hadn’t seen the circuit board repair I would not have believed it. Heat tip tops out between 660 to 750.As for ‘the collar’ issue we haven’t had a problem. If we do we will contact Milwaukee.In summery: Big jobs, small jobs you no longer have to lug any project back to the workroom. Take this iron along in its handy carry case to special events to fix what falls apart. Quick to heat easy to use and versatile. Backed with Milwaukee’s good name and warranty.Acme Tools has the best price I found on the tool and charger combination. I always price compare / check out the business that is offering everything before making a purchase. (Internet safety & competitive prices)
originally posted on milwaukeetool.com
I really like this soldering iron. You can't beat the convenience, and it heats up well enough for the toughest automotive connections, and is fine enough for my HAM radio work. My only disappointment was that recently when soldering some 10 gauge wire to an alligator clip for a jumper wire, I noticed that the plastic collet that the outer element screws into had started melting, and the outer element was bending to almost a 45 degree angle! I turned it off and gently moved it back to the correct position before the plastic cooled, but the thread in the plastic collet is now pretty much shot, and I am worried it will be weaker now, and just melt again. I would have expected some sort of heat resistant material in this critical fitting, but appears not. I didn't have ... MoreI really like this soldering iron. You can't beat the convenience, and it heats up well enough for the toughest automotive connections, and is fine enough for my HAM radio work. My only disappointment was that recently when soldering some 10 gauge wire to an alligator clip for a jumper wire, I noticed that the plastic collet that the outer element screws into had started melting, and the outer element was bending to almost a 45 degree angle! I turned it off and gently moved it back to the correct position before the plastic cooled, but the thread in the plastic collet is now pretty much shot, and I am worried it will be weaker now, and just melt again. I would have expected some sort of heat resistant material in this critical fitting, but appears not. I didn't have it on for more that maybe 10-15 mins, so I am now turning it on for just a few minutes and turning it off between processes, which is painful waiting for it to reheat and use unnecessary battery power.
| Product dimensions | 12.7 x 33.02 x 27.94 cm; 1.81 Kilograms |
| Batteries | 1 Product Specific batteries required. |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Style | Gun |
| Power Source | Cordless |
Milwaukee M12SI-0 12V Soldering Iron (Tool Skin Only)
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
Milwaukee 2488-21 M12 12v Cordless Pivoting Head Soldering Iron Kit
Delivery $125.16
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
Soldering Iron Kit 10-3/4 L 90W
Delivery $86.06
I usually don't post reviews but the quality of this product is so bad I couldn't let it slide. I've had two of these melt after minimal use. I purchased the first one thinking Milwaukee always had excellent products and didn't even look at the reviews. But after a short period of use, the plastic collar that attaches the soldering tip melted. I returned it thinking it was just a dud and got a second one. Within 5 minutes, the second one melted in the same place.The plastic screw on collar can't withstand the heat and just melts. I've attached pictures for reference. The collar really needs to be metal for it to provide the quality that I've come to expect from Milwaukee (especially at the price of $200 for the tool with 2 battery's).
This iron heats quickly about 15 seconds, each battery will hold a charge for around 45 minutes in use. The charger will recharge the battery quickly even so we chose to purchase 2 extra batteries for no lag time.It is versatile with a pivoting head that allows you to reach nearly any angle with ease. ‘cordless’ yet capable of industrial as well as circuit board repair. If I hadn’t seen the circuit board repair I would not have believed it. Heat tip tops out between 660 to 750.As for ‘the collar’ issue we haven’t had a problem. If we do we will contact Milwaukee.In summery: Big jobs, small jobs you no longer have to lug any project back to the workroom. Take this iron along in its handy carry case to special events to fix what falls apart. Quick to heat easy ... MoreThis iron heats quickly about 15 seconds, each battery will hold a charge for around 45 minutes in use. The charger will recharge the battery quickly even so we chose to purchase 2 extra batteries for no lag time.It is versatile with a pivoting head that allows you to reach nearly any angle with ease. ‘cordless’ yet capable of industrial as well as circuit board repair. If I hadn’t seen the circuit board repair I would not have believed it. Heat tip tops out between 660 to 750.As for ‘the collar’ issue we haven’t had a problem. If we do we will contact Milwaukee.In summery: Big jobs, small jobs you no longer have to lug any project back to the workroom. Take this iron along in its handy carry case to special events to fix what falls apart. Quick to heat easy to use and versatile. Backed with Milwaukee’s good name and warranty.Acme Tools has the best price I found on the tool and charger combination. I always price compare / check out the business that is offering everything before making a purchase. (Internet safety & competitive prices)
I really like this soldering iron. You can't beat the convenience, and it heats up well enough for the toughest automotive connections, and is fine enough for my HAM radio work. My only disappointment was that recently when soldering some 10 gauge wire to an alligator clip for a jumper wire, I noticed that the plastic collet that the outer element screws into had started melting, and the outer element was bending to almost a 45 degree angle! I turned it off and gently moved it back to the correct position before the plastic cooled, but the thread in the plastic collet is now pretty much shot, and I am worried it will be weaker now, and just melt again. I would have expected some sort of heat resistant material in this critical fitting, but appears not. I didn't have ... MoreI really like this soldering iron. You can't beat the convenience, and it heats up well enough for the toughest automotive connections, and is fine enough for my HAM radio work. My only disappointment was that recently when soldering some 10 gauge wire to an alligator clip for a jumper wire, I noticed that the plastic collet that the outer element screws into had started melting, and the outer element was bending to almost a 45 degree angle! I turned it off and gently moved it back to the correct position before the plastic cooled, but the thread in the plastic collet is now pretty much shot, and I am worried it will be weaker now, and just melt again. I would have expected some sort of heat resistant material in this critical fitting, but appears not. I didn't have it on for more that maybe 10-15 mins, so I am now turning it on for just a few minutes and turning it off between processes, which is painful waiting for it to reheat and use unnecessary battery power.
Have used this product off and on for 3 years. It's good to work with, but I've had it sent back for warranty once, because it stopped working and the plastic collar get's soft when the heating element gets hot, which is a nuisance when you need to make good contact with whatever you're heating. Nothing was done about the collar, the tool came back in working condition, but today it stopped working again, should still be under 5 year warranty, but do I really want that soft collar back? The green led keeps flashing, but that's it.
I use this every couple weeks to solder. Worked great on small jobs but this week was doing more solder, had several wires that were pinched and as I was doing the second set the tip started moving around like it was loose. Shut it down to cool and noticed the rubber nut had started to melt. Was able to finish the job after cutting away the melted rubber and tightening back up the tip but when I was finished it had melted again only this time it was stuck! Only 7 months old hope it gets covered. I sent an email but haven't heard back.
I bought one iron about a year ago and loved it. I did small wire repairs at work with it as a mechanic. It lasted a year doing one wire here and there as simple repairs. I started an electrical project for myself and my first iron died so I sent that out for repair but being in the middle of my project I bought a second one off the same tool truck I sent the first one back with and not even a few days later the second one did the same thing it blinks but won’t heat up so now I have two paper weights. These are great if you only need to fix one wire but if you have multiple stick with propane
I bought it june 12th 2023 it is used for car audio installs it does not get left on for periods of time over 1 minute if it does its for a max of under 2 minutes. Today (july 11th 2023) it crapped out on me. It's light turns on it tells me the battery life left and it flashes green to indicate its heating up. I can hold the end while it's "heating up"... I for one am extremely extremely disappointed in the quality of this item from the brand that I genuinely go to first as I am not a massive purchaser but I have friends with full packouts like everything they own is milwaukee. Any and all electric tools I own are milwaukee. Perhaps this is one tool. I'll have to find somewhere else unfortunately. I'd also want my money back vs going through the warranty department ... MoreI bought it june 12th 2023 it is used for car audio installs it does not get left on for periods of time over 1 minute if it does its for a max of under 2 minutes. Today (july 11th 2023) it crapped out on me. It's light turns on it tells me the battery life left and it flashes green to indicate its heating up. I can hold the end while it's "heating up"... I for one am extremely extremely disappointed in the quality of this item from the brand that I genuinely go to first as I am not a massive purchaser but I have friends with full packouts like everything they own is milwaukee. Any and all electric tools I own are milwaukee. Perhaps this is one tool. I'll have to find somewhere else unfortunately. I'd also want my money back vs going through the warranty department 9 times which is live feedback from a coworker.
The first time I ever used one was my bosses, then I bought my own. Ive had mine for well over a year, and has taken many plunges to the floor off my tool cart getting bumped. The only issue I see is if youre doing a solder project, leave it on, dont turn off/turn on, this will help your battery life. Those complaining it dont warm up, start with a fresh battery EVERY TIME. Most of us also buy an extra battery too. I used this gun for atv/utv/snowmobile accessories, building wire harnesses and fixing electrical. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!!! They may have had a bad run of the soldering irons from factory, but I have honestly havent had a problem with mine.
Quick heat up, and it did a decent job on small solder connections. Not enough heat to tackle anything larger than maybe a few 12 gauge wires, or soldering to a crimp connector or ground lug, but not great for anything that can sink a fair amount of heat, so a bit weak for a PL259 connector shield on coax, but it can do it. It's basically about what you would do with a typical electronic soldering iron or soldering station, no more, no less. The included small 12V battery will give you a bit more than a half hour of run time, but I would advise turning it off between jobs if there's even a couple of minutes between connections. It heats up in about 30 seconds, so using it for short durations, even including the extra heat up time, should get you maybe 15-20 soldered ... MoreQuick heat up, and it did a decent job on small solder connections. Not enough heat to tackle anything larger than maybe a few 12 gauge wires, or soldering to a crimp connector or ground lug, but not great for anything that can sink a fair amount of heat, so a bit weak for a PL259 connector shield on coax, but it can do it. It's basically about what you would do with a typical electronic soldering iron or soldering station, no more, no less. The included small 12V battery will give you a bit more than a half hour of run time, but I would advise turning it off between jobs if there's even a couple of minutes between connections. It heats up in about 30 seconds, so using it for short durations, even including the extra heat up time, should get you maybe 15-20 soldered connections before you need to swap batteries. Obviously you could add a much larger M12 battery pack, but then it gets a lot more tail heavy, which you may not like the feel of, but would work. It'll stand on it's end using even the smaller battery packs, as long as it's kept straight, and not angling the tip off at 90 degrees. There are also reports of leaving it run continuously causing melted plastic around the heating element, so short duration solder joints and shutting it off in between is the way I've been using it so far. If I need a continuously hot iron for 4 hours, I would drag a cord along and get it done, but for a few connections, I'm in and out with this battery powered one and almost no setup / cleanup time for dealing with cords. Outdoor use is a different story. Even the slightest breeze is enough to carry away quite a bit of heat, and leave you with a cold solder joint, or even leave the tip of this iron stuck in cold solder, and held to the joint, which happened to me. That's not really this tools fault - it's basic thermodynamics when you blow cool air over a 750 deg F tip, and even a gentle breeze will transfer away a lot of heat, and may give you trouble. You could setup a wind break (cardboard box around the job, tarp around your work area, etc), but that adds time. Some butane and propane soldering irons not only generate more heat, they use a MUCH larger mass for the tip, and if you can keep it away from the wind to reach temp, the mass of the tip might help you get the job done without needing a wind break. Not many other options for jobs where a full propane torch is too much for a smaller task without causing heat damage. If there's any kind of real breeze across the tip of this unit (even a 5 kt breeze), it's going to cause trouble with your soldering. So plan ahead if you need to solder outdoors, up on a roof, on top of an antenna tower, etc, so you don't get up there and can't keep the breeze from causing poor solder connections, or else look for alternatives to this Milwaukee tool if that's your primary use case.
So I have had 2 of the older model soldering irons both of which broke in the same location everyone else's has. In the last week I purchased the new model which appeared to have resolved the head breakage problem however the iron stopped working after 30m of use. Took it back and got another today. What do you know same result. Now I have to take this one back. Dare I grab another one? There must be a manufacturing defect. Please advise.
| Product dimensions | 12.7 x 33.02 x 27.94 cm; 1.81 Kilograms |
| Batteries | 1 Product Specific batteries required. |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Style | Gun |
| Power Source | Cordless |
Milwaukee Tool 2488-21: Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron Kits
The Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron delivers fast application speeds by reaching operational temperature in under 18 seconds and maintaining an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs. The heat indicator utilizes RedLink Intelligence to notify users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. A green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached. A red LED indicates tool is off and still hot. An LED work light illuminates your project. The 3-stop pivoting head allows a user to adapt the tool for use in confined spaces. The tool-free tip change feature allows you to switch easily between chisel and pointed tips. This tool delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included)., Reaches operational temperature in under 18 seconds Maintains an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs Heat indicator with RedLink Intelligence to notifies users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. Green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached Red LED indicates tool is off and still hot LED work light illuminates your project 3-stop pivoting head for use in confined spaces Tool-free tip change for switching easily between chisel and pointed tips Delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included) Model Number: 2488-20. Age Group: adult.
The Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron delivers fast application speeds by reaching operational temperature in under 18 seconds and maintaining an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs. The heat indicator utilizes RedLink Intelligence to notify users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. A green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached. A red LED indicates tool is off and still hot. An LED work light illuminates your project. The 3-stop pivoting head allows a user to adapt the tool for use in confined spaces. The tool-free tip change feature allows you to switch easily between chisel and pointed tips. This tool delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included)., Reaches operational temperature in under 18 seconds Maintains an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs Heat indicator with RedLink Intelligence to notifies users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. Green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached Red LED indicates tool is off and still hot LED work light illuminates your project 3-stop pivoting head for use in confined spaces Tool-free tip change for switching easily between chisel and pointed tips Delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included) Model Number: 2488-20. Age Group: adult.
The Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron delivers fast application speeds by reaching operational temperature in under 18 seconds and maintaining an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs. The heat indicator utilizes RedLink Intelligence to notify users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. A green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached. A red LED indicates tool is off and still hot. An LED work light illuminates your project. The 3-stop pivoting head allows a user to adapt the tool for use in confined spaces. The tool-free tip change feature allows you to switch easily between chisel and pointed tips. This tool delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included)., Reaches operational temperature in under 18 seconds Maintains an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs Heat indicator with RedLink Intelligence to notifies users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. Green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached Red LED indicates tool is off and still hot LED work light illuminates your project 3-stop pivoting head for use in confined spaces Tool-free tip change for switching easily between chisel and pointed tips Delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included) Model Number: 2488-20. Age Group: adult.
The Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron delivers fast application speeds by reaching operational temperature in under 18 seconds and maintaining an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs. The heat indicator utilizes RedLink Intelligence to notify users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. A green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached. A red LED indicates tool is off and still hot. An LED work light illuminates your project. The 3-stop pivoting head allows a user to adapt the tool for use in confined spaces. The tool-free tip change feature allows you to switch easily between chisel and pointed tips. This tool delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included)., Reaches operational temperature in under 18 seconds Maintains an optimized temperature throughout demanding jobs Heat indicator with RedLink Intelligence to notifies users when the tool is ready to use and safe to store. Green LED indicates operating temperature has been reached Red LED indicates tool is off and still hot LED work light illuminates your project 3-stop pivoting head for use in confined spaces Tool-free tip change for switching easily between chisel and pointed tips Delivers a 40-minute run time on an M12 compact battery pack (not included) Model Number: 2488-20. Age Group: adult.
in 3 offers
The lowest price for Milwaukee Tool 2488-21: Milwaukee M12 Soldering Iron Kits right now is $201.89 at eBay.com.au, compared across 3 retailers.
The all-time low was $195.79 on 7 May 2026 — today's price is 3% above the lowest ever. This is at or near its all-time low — a good time to buy.
Prices last updated 9 June 2026.
