Well, I got tired of waiting and just outright bought the iron. I've only had it for a little while now, but I think I will be liking it quite a bit :)
Massdrop, please make sure to include the 240V version of the Hakko FX-888D (preferably with the Australian plug) as an option for us international buyers when you finally are able to drop this.
Hey everyone, things are still a little slow moving with the holidays and conventions going on in January, but we’re still working on getting the HAKKO soldering iron up on the site. Thanks for your patience and we will update you as soon as we hear something.
Cheers
FX-888D is the only one on this list worth bothering with. It's both affordable, and holds up to the demands of the professional shop environment where I'm using it - and at under $100. Don't bother with anything else.
Hey guys we're going to reach out to Hakko and see if we can work something out on a couple models. I'll update everyone when we have some news. Thanks all.