I use it as a hot knife for cleaning 3D prints, not as a soldering iron. As a hot knife I'm not keen, but this is my first attempt at using it. I would like a very thin cutting blade like the Xacto knife - judging by the pictures I assumed I would get it. But what looks like a thin blade is actually more of a diagonal chisel point, too wide for what I intended to use it for. If you're looking for a hot knife for thin cuts, this isn't for you. The temperature controller seems to be responsive, but I have no way of measuring if the temperature settings match the starting temperature. I like having an on/off switch so it fits in my soldering kit and not my 3D printing kit. I haven't soldered with it yet, so I'll refrain from judging its soldering abilities.