If I may, I would complete a few points in the article.
Soldering iron:
Get a decent one. That doesn't mean you must throw a boatload of money, just avoid the crappy ones, which almost always are the cheaper ones. A notable exception is the Pinecil by Pine64.org, which is truly a great iron despite being cheap.
Pinecil aside, you can snatch a used Weller or Hakko on ebay without spending too much, but beware of the many fakes. I had for a while a Hakko clone, and although well built, it was garbage: the heater-tip contact makes all the difference, and that was its weak point.
Solder:
Get leaded solder when possible. It's easier to use and joints are a lot less subject to tin whiskers.
Sponge:
Very useful, but don't forget to buy one that is suitable for soldering. A kitchen/bathroom one made of synthetic material will melt as soon as you put the heated tip on it.
In the meantime, a damp strip of cotton cloth rolled into a coffee cup can be similarly effective.
Work surface:
I don't use a specific one, so don't have direct experience, however I doubt one could use a rubber doormat with heated tips. A oven silicone mat would probably be safer, but again, I never used them.
Other items the article doesn't cover:
-Flux. You will need it. No matter if the solder already contains rosin flux, having a way to put some extra flux on the surface to be soldered will help immensely.
-Brass wool sponge. Some see it as complementary to the wet sponge, but I find having it handy because it is best at removing tin residuals from the tip, while the wet one helps cleaning it.
-Solder wick. Very useful to remove tin in excess from old joints, therefore also for desoldering parts. Buy a couple rolls of different sizes and practice using it.
-Sal Ammoniac. An almost forgotten item which can make a tip shine almost like new. It's cheap and a single tablet will last years.
> A notable exception is the Pinecil by Pine64.org, which is truly a great iron despite being cheap.
I have a Pinecil and I like it, but I feel that it's not a good recommendation for a first soldering iron. The UI may be confusing for some, it doesn't come with a power supply, the tips are fairly expensive, and there's no place to rest the iron while using it. Instead, I would tell a newbie to get a middle-of-the-road temperature-controlled soldering station. They don't cost that much more and are generally ready to go out of the box.
I would certainly recommend the Pinecil as a second soldering iron, though.
The Pinecil was the first iron I really used extensively and I think it's fine for a beginner. Plug it in, press plus, it heats up. Press plus more if you want to set it hotter, minus to go back down after pressing plus. It can use any USB-C PD power supply, so many will have one from a phone or laptop, you can even run it off a power bank if you want. The default tip is very good and my most-used of all the tips (built a whole keyboard kit using it as my first project), even after getting more. If you set the iron on its side on a flat surface, the tip does not touch the table. This can be used in a pinch, but also Pine64 sells little sponge holders with the positionable metal bar to rest on, or if you get your own brass sponge it should have the same.
I got a KSGER T-12, and it's pretty good. I watched a few videos before buying, and it is able to put out a lot of heat, and it works with a variety of tips. I only wish that it was easier to change the tips.
Oh, there definitely is such a thing as too much flux. I have some active flux that works really well on old and oxidized boards, but it's a pain to clean. I try to use only the amount necessary to do the job. No-clean flux still needs to be cleaned, but it's a lot easier to clean up, and with that I will say that I agree with your statement, conditionally. Having a swimming pool of flux or more flux than solder is not good.
I've had good results with SnBi soldering wire - it has low melting temperature and you don't have to be so careful with hand washing (I think ;) I got mine from LCSC shipped from China, but it seems [0] you can now get it in US.
I know it's supposed to be much better, but the idea of vaporizing lead anywhere remotely near where kids may someday play is pretty intimidating. Are there any useable lead free solders?
I also did a lot of googling on the subject recently when I decided I wanted to try out Stained glass, but wasn't sure what precautions I should take. I've come to the personal conclusion to not stress about the lead in solder.
The lead does not vaporize at soldering temperatures. The fumes are just flux. Will irritate eyes and airway, but won't really hurt you. However do wash your hands, and if you are de-soldering with a pump you probably want to vacuum wipe surfaces with a damp cloth, as you can end up creating some lead dust in the process.
Lead can't really vaporize at any temperature used in soldering. There are other fumes (mostly from flux) to be worried about, and you have to make sure that solder leftovers are well disposed of (especially when desoldering). But lead free is definitely usable now, though I only use it for solder paste.
Soldering iron:
Get a decent one. That doesn't mean you must throw a boatload of money, just avoid the crappy ones, which almost always are the cheaper ones. A notable exception is the Pinecil by Pine64.org, which is truly a great iron despite being cheap. Pinecil aside, you can snatch a used Weller or Hakko on ebay without spending too much, but beware of the many fakes. I had for a while a Hakko clone, and although well built, it was garbage: the heater-tip contact makes all the difference, and that was its weak point.
Solder:
Get leaded solder when possible. It's easier to use and joints are a lot less subject to tin whiskers.
Sponge:
Very useful, but don't forget to buy one that is suitable for soldering. A kitchen/bathroom one made of synthetic material will melt as soon as you put the heated tip on it. In the meantime, a damp strip of cotton cloth rolled into a coffee cup can be similarly effective.
Work surface:
I don't use a specific one, so don't have direct experience, however I doubt one could use a rubber doormat with heated tips. A oven silicone mat would probably be safer, but again, I never used them.
Other items the article doesn't cover:
-Flux. You will need it. No matter if the solder already contains rosin flux, having a way to put some extra flux on the surface to be soldered will help immensely.
-Brass wool sponge. Some see it as complementary to the wet sponge, but I find having it handy because it is best at removing tin residuals from the tip, while the wet one helps cleaning it.
-Solder wick. Very useful to remove tin in excess from old joints, therefore also for desoldering parts. Buy a couple rolls of different sizes and practice using it.
-Sal Ammoniac. An almost forgotten item which can make a tip shine almost like new. It's cheap and a single tablet will last years.
Oh, and practice, practice, practice.