Apparatus for cleaning soldering iron bits

An apparatus for mechanically cleaning hot soldering iron bits contaminated with contaminants, such as tin oxides and soldering residues, comprising:

• at least two oppositely situated, interacting counter-rotating cleaning bodies formed of a sponge-like material for cleaning a soldering iron bit of contaminants;
• each of said sponge-like cleaning bodies having a lengthwise extending axis;
• means for mounting said two sponge-like cleaning bodies such that the distance between said lengthwise extending axes is less than the sum of the radii of said sponge-like cleaning bodies, so that said sponge-like cleaning bodies are continuously in mutual surface contact with one another at least at portions of their circumference;
• means for rotatably driving said counter-rotating sponge-like cleaning bodies at different rotational speeds, whereby said mutually contacting portions of said sponge-like cleaning bodies exert a kneading action upon one another and thus a self-cleaning acting upon one another, to thereby ensure that during cleaning of a contaminated soldering iron bit essentially only non-contaminated portions of said counter-rotating, sponge-like cleaning bodies come into contact with said contaminated soldering iron bit.