Rolson 60335 Helping Hand with 60 mm Magnifying Glass

You never know when you will need a helping hand soldering or assembling small jobs until you need one! This great product is perfect for holding PCBs in position when soldering, devices such as small switches or socket/plugs to solder wires on and many other applications. The crocodile clips are on ball joints and can be adjusted in an almost unlimited number of positions and then tightened using the thumb clamps. The magnifier is solid glass and is useful, especially if your eyes aren't as sharp as they used to be! Just be careful to keep this out of the sunlight when not in use for obvious reasons. Nice weighty base makes this a good buy.

I got this to hold small pieces whilst I soldered and fixed them. It is a lot safer than trying to hold the item, and it does do the job for what it was intended. The 2 clips are strong enough to hold the item, they can be swivelled and turned so that you get a wide range of movement. The magnifying lens is good, helps with the close work. The stand has a good weight to it and as long as you do not put anything too heavy to hold, will not tip over. I did find that the magnifier got in my way at times, but the worst part was trying to get the arms in the right place when fixing 2 complex items. It took me a good 15-20 minutes to get the right position. For standard fixings, it should be easy, but when you are trying to align multiple points, it is time consuming. Small enough to store, I can see it proving useful in the long run.

I bought this Helping Hand to use while soldering, and it has been an absolute lifesaver. It works perfectly as my "third hand," holding those tiny wires securely in place with the strong crocodile clips so I can actually focus on the work. The magnifying glass is a great bonus, providing just the right amount of extra detail to make precise work much easier. The build quality is spot on, featuring a heavy cast iron base that keeps the whole thing rock solid on the workbench, and the fully adjustable joints are brilliant for getting the work piece positioned exactly where I need it. If you do any soldering, modelling, or intricate arts and crafts, this is an indispensable tool that makes the job so much smoother. Easily a 5-star purchase!

I've had this for a while now and bought it for only one purpose. To help me repair one item of old jewellery which it is sufficient for. If I'm nitpicking the item I received certainly isn't the one in the product picture. The one in the picture looks like it's made from stainless steel and the movable parts well engineered and slick. The one I've got is more like steel (not stainless plus i noticed somebody mention rust!?) and the movable parts are awkward to tighten up and move about as they're not as 'finished' as they could be. You may need a pair of pliers to tighten them up enough but. . .they do work. The stand could do with being a tad heavier too but I suppose you get what you pay for. I will upload a pic. Basically it's a cast iron stand with fully pose-able crocodile clips and a magnifying glass. The magnifier is 'okay' not amazingly powerful but sufficient enough. The clips are strong and may damage delicate items so bare that in mind. You may want to pad them out first. In use it's okay and does the job of magnifying an item for you to do close up work on. I'd give it a go if you're looking to buy one of these things.

Good gadget

I bought this item after spending a few days struggling to tin the connections of a chip to be added to a motherboard. Numerous attempts to complete the tinning prior to this purchase ended in frustration and I have to admit, some swear words!!! This item comes in plastic packaging and was easy to remove with a good sharp pair of scissors. The base has a really good weight to it and the joints appear strong enough to hold some weight steady. Due to the base size, I don't think this would be very good if you were trying to solder onto large flat items as I think the base would topple over due to the small footprint. However, I've now used it for a few projects and the jaws have held the pieces together perfectly without movement. There is a wide range of movement in the arms to get the placement right and the magnifying glass is really strong and out of the box, really clear and mine was scratch free. It is well made and I can see this lasting for a very long time. I would definitely recommend it over some of the more costly versions as this seems to work perfectly. If I had to criticise it for anything, I would say that it could do with some kind of rest for the soldering iron. If you found this review helpful, can you please help me by clicking on the helpful button, thanks. Any questions, please feel free to ask and I will try to answer as best as I can.

The older one gets the less we worry about what people think of us and the more we want to be able to do what we want in a way of working that suits us. This product is an invaluable third hand, and with the addition of a magnifying glass even the smallest detail of ones work can be seen easily. Brilliant for modeling and electronics assembly. My primary use is with 'N' gauge railways and for the small detailed work that requires, this is invaluable. Very stable and well worth the price. If there is a down-side the magnifying glass could be larger by 2cm.

Basic no frills helping hand that does exactly what I need for small craft and soldering jobs.