This butane soldering iron is awesome at this price point ($17). Like any other fuel-powered tool, it will be empty, so you'll need to buy butane to charge it. It is equipped with a piezo ignition and a variable gas valve, which means that even in windy conditions it does not need a lighter to work. The tapered tip is just over 1mm thick and has no flat surface, making it ideal for almost all indoor and outdoor applications. Whilst this iron is very reliable there are more powerful butane gas soldering irons from the same brand for around 3 times the price of this one which if you make money from it is well worth it and has a wide range of replacement tips not available for this model . Now if you need an iron for repairs, soldering, hobbies, etc. it's worth every penny and you'll love it as much as I do. no longer works, without it all this is practically useless. But like I said, it's not for professional use, so while I'm disappointed, I still think it's kind of my money's worth. There are better irons out there with more features at the same current price.