Buying a welder on a budget

[32Bowtie_Rat]

Hi Everyone!! [dr

I'm looking to buy a good welder on a budget. $800-1000.

Thanks to all my new found friends in the frame thread I will be building a new one instead of reusing... makes complete sense too.

What is a good welder I should be looking at? I haven't welded in 10years so you'll have to explain why such as volts, amps and duty cycle.

I want to use it to build my frame, squaring my body and all of the other necessary work I have to do for building my '32 Chevy.

 

[2.3Turbo_T]

What city are you in? Check your local CL. Always good deals to be had there. Nothing wrong with used if you do your research and check the unit out thoroughly. Also, you'll wanna look for one with an owner-owned tank, quality gauges/regulator and as many accessories as you can get. If your shop isn't wired for 220v, you're probably gonna want to do that. 220v opens up a realm of possiblities, the least of which are a large, quality air compressor and a good welder. Yes, frames can be fabbed with a 110v welder but you're very limited. A 220v should let you weld from 22ga. sheetmetal all the way up to 3/8" steel (probably more than you'll ever need to do). Most units have a chart on the inside that'll tell you the voltage and wirefeed speed you need to weld types and thicknesses of metal. Buy the best you can afford and you'll never have to upgrade. Do it once, do it right! I picked up this Hobart 220v unit with less than 20 hrs on it, complete and as you see it here for $700 off of CL.....and I live in the expensive SF Bay Area. Granted, Miller and Lincoln are the top brands but Hobart is an offshoot of Miller (kinda like Bluepoint/SnapOn) so it works for me. I fabbed the frame for my roadster with it. I'm on my 2nd tank of gas and 3rd roll of wire. I luv this thing!

 

[Sam_Fear]

If you're doing frame work, you need a 220v machine or an arc welder. If your work space is out where there will be possible breezes, gas won't work - the wind will blow away the shielding gas and you'll have poor welds.

I bought a Miller 211 w/gas - it's a little beefier than the 180 and has a dual plug so I can use it on 110v or 220v. (But if I weld frame, it still needs to be plugged in to 220v)

Wish I could remember where I bought it. DMW or Donsrods turned me on to the place - online welding supply store with incredibly good prices.

Any quality Lincoln or Miller will do in my opinion. I've heard the newer Hobarts aren't as quality as they used to be.

I never see a MIG on Craigslist around here - and if I did, it would be overpriced or sold within hours. All the farmers need a welder.

 

[Bamamav]

If you can afford it, get a stick and a mig. I'm using a Lincoln buzz box that came over on the mayflower, it looks like hell but still welds good. I bought a gas/gasless Lincoln Handy Mig 110 volt from Sears online, it's great for sheetmetal and small stuff. If I need to weld thick metal, I break out the old stick welder.

 

[RPM]

I would do this miller. It will do everything you need it to do.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/MILLER-MILL...30480040702?pt=BI_Welders&hash=item1e61376afe

 

[32Bowtie_Rat]

If you're doing frame work, you need a 220v machine or an arc welder. If your work space is out where there will be possible breezes, gas won't work - the wind will blow away the shielding gas and you'll have poor welds.

I bought a Miller 211 w/gas - it's a little beefier than the 180 and has a dual plug so I can use it on 110v or 220v. (But if I weld frame, it still needs to be plugged in to 220v)

Wish I could remember where I bought it. DMW or Donsrods turned me on to the place - online welding supply store with incredibly good prices.

Any quality Lincoln or Miller will do in my opinion. I've heard the newer Hobarts aren't as quality as they used to be.

I never see a MIG on Craigslist around here - and if I did, it would be overpriced or sold within hours. All the farmers need a welder.

Do you like the Miller 211? I was looking at that one too & kind of had it on the list.

Question... With all of the options now available & with flux core, why would I want to attach gas?

I haven't welded in about 10 years... Need some schooling

What about this Lincoln welder... Would it do what I need it to do? Reason I ask is that every couple of months it comes on sale for ab out $200 off. So I could pick it up around $600 plus tax

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/p...74396672077&bmUID=1369713670169&stop_mobi=yes

 

[2.3Turbo_T]

What about this Lincoln welder... Would it do what I need it to do? Reason I ask is that every couple of months it comes on sale for ab out $200 off. So I could pick it up around $600 plus tax

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/p...74396672077&bmUID=1369713670169&stop_mobi=yes

Those Lincolns are all over CL for $600. Seems like they'll do the job for ya.

http://ottawa.en.craigslist.ca/tls/3781929078.html
http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/tls/3776793397.html

 

[32Bowtie_Rat]

Always made me wonder how something can be brand new & on craigs list.... Maybe it fell off the turnip truck! LOL

 

[donsrods]

The place Sam Fear is thinking about is Cyberweld.com. Super good prices, great service, and usually free shipping.

Don

 

[32Bowtie_Rat]

I've narrowed down my choices... I'm leaning towards the miller for the higher amps. Why does Lincoln claim it can weld up to 1/2" steel & Miller only 3/8"... Volts appear to be the same yet Miller is producing more amps.

Give me your thoughts on both as well as pros & cons if any own one of these.

http://www.millerwelds.com/products/mig/product.php?model=M00245

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brow...ic+MIG+Pak+180+Wire+Feed+Welder.jsp?locale=en

Miller has a deal on for 15% rebate... Canadian Tire puts this welder onsale for $599-699 every couple of months.

Can't wait for the feed back. [

 

[Sam_Fear]

That Lincoln is comparable to the Miller 180 I think. The 211 is a little beefier unit. I have the Miller 211 and like it, but don't really have anything to compare it to except my old cheapy low-brow Clarke 130 MIG. A few guys thought 110v/220v thing was a useless gimmick, but I've found it real handy. Especially since I moved and don't have 220v at the moment.

Flux core is messy (a lot more spatter, ect.) and a little harder to control on thin material (easier to blow thorugh...) Maybe some of the welding pros can shed a little more light on it.

 

[32Bowtie_Rat]

That Lincoln is comparable to the Miller 180 I think. The 211 is a little beefier unit. I have the Miller 211 and like it, but don't really have anything to compare it to except my old cheapy low-brow Clarke 130 MIG. A few guys thought 110v/220v thing was a useless gimmick, but I've found it real handy. Especially since I moved and don't have 220v at the moment.

Flux core is messy (a lot more spatter, ect.) and a little harder to control on thin material (easier to blow thorugh...) Maybe some of the welding pros can shed a little more light on it.

What's the best to do when welding thin metal?... I thought flux core is the way to go. Also heard tig is great for that kind of stuff but I can't afford one. What about stick?

Would it not be best to turn the amps down low & do consistant/ over laping tac welds rather than a solid bead?

 

[2.3Turbo_T]

Would it not be best to turn the amps down low & do consistant/ over laping tac welds rather than a solid bead?

That's exactly what I did and it worked great! Very little warpage!

 

[32Bowtie_Rat]

That's exactly what I'm talking about... Nice job!... How many amps were you running?

 

[nathannisbet]

Me too

I was thinking about buying a new miller 211. I would rather go a little bigger then to small. There are some specials going on in my market to the end of the month.

 

[nathannisbet]

Me too

I am thinking about a miller 211. There are specials through the end of the month

 

[32Bowtie_Rat]

I saw that too... 15% off with a rebate. Not too bad

 

[2.3Turbo_T]

That's exactly what I'm talking about... Nice job!... How many amps were you running?

I just used the chart that's on the inside door of my welder. It called for 2 (on a scale of 6) for the voltage and a 36 for wirefeed speed. For welding 18 ga sheetmetal I use a spool of .023 wire. I did quite a few patch panels this way.

For my frame, brackets and such (which is steel thickness anywhere from 1/8" to 5/16") I run a spool of .035 wire. Here is where I extended the frame rails by overlapping them. I rosette welded 3/16" plate inside the rails for strength and then welded them up. I cranked the voltage to 5 with a wirespeed of 52 for a really hot weld.

 

[JMAN101]

I agree, check craigslist for one. That is where you will probably find the best deal. Used ones are good too if you know what you are searching for. I got my ProMTS 200 from Longevity http://www.longevity-inc.com/multiprocess/promts-200 . It contains tig, mig and stick. The last time i checked, they were posting it for $1,099.99. However, when I called in they sold it to me for cheaper. If I was to compare it to my miller that I used to use the arc on the promts 200 is more stable. Just another option to look into if you are still debating on which one to get still.

 

[WickedFast1]

bought the Lincoln 256 last year best move I've made in a while.
[cl