Mig welders

[kboettcher]

Don't know if I should be asking this here or not but if it is in the wrong forum, please feel free to move it Mr. Moderator. I was just wondering if anyone out there is using any of those little home mig welders from Lincoln Electric? You can get them with or without the Argon gas option. I am just thinking about getting a little welder for around home and at my dads farm. It would come in handy, but I have heard of a few people say they are just junk and not to get ANY 110 VOLT welder. I know our welder at work is only 110 volts but it is about a $2500 mig welder, so there could be a little difference from the ones they sell at the local Cosco . I would be interested to hear if anyone in TDR land are using any brand of these little home units, from Lincoln, Sears, Miller, Hobart or any others that I may not have heard of. Any and all replies would be greatly appreciated.

 

[HEYBOSS]

Mig welders are real handy and can save your life at times, that's if you use them a lot.



Now Lincoln is a very good welder, don't buy a cheap one or you'll be disappointed. I've owned a Snap on one for over 12yrs and love it but I use it in my business, it can get expensive to use it. If you want nice clean welds definitely get it with the argon gas, now that little bottle that comes with will run you somewhere around $20-30 to fill it and last you about 20mins.





Good luck,



Fred.

 

[Briar Hopper]

The "next one up" , a Miller or Hobart 175, with gas hose hookup, will definitely get you by on most anything, except anything thicker than 1/4" steel. If you have something thicker than THAT to be welded, you might ought get it professionally done!

 

[Todd G]

I have a Lincoln 110v model. I think it's a Weldpak 100 with the gas attachments. It is a good little welder for around the garage for welding up to 1/8" steel. Any more than that and you should look elsewhere. I think the whole neighborhood knows I have the welder from the light show and they are constantly bringing me things to fix.

 

[bighammer]

I think the whole neighborhood knows I have the welder from the light show and they are constantly bringing me things to fix. [/B]

:-laf :-laf :-laf I know the feeling. I just have a basic AC stick welder and I've done a few projects for the neighborhood folks. My garage is small and ventilatin is poor so I move to the driveway and use a plate on sawhorses (tailgate of the old truck today) They can't help but watch as they pass

 

[Scot]

The small name brand MIG's are good for what they are designed for. Don't expect to weld over about 3/16" with one though. I bought a Hobart Handler about 15 years ago. It has had a few problems, but works decent. It once again taught me, buy a lot more welder than you really think you need. You won't wish it was smaller. You will wish it was bigger. I will replace it with a 175+ amp model.

 

[metal tech]

This is something to think about. What are you thinking about welding? If you have several projects in mind, you should skip a 110V machine. Once you get the hang of it you'll be doing more & bigger projects. By getting a 220V machine you'll save money by getting something you won't outgrow near as fast. I have a MillerMatic 210, works fine on a dryer curcuit. It's built a 20ft car trailer. I weld for the USAF so projects are always running thru my mind. My $. 02, get nothing smaller than a 175 amp/220V machine. If you want to get more info go to www.hobartwelders.com/mboard, lots of good info and people.



Al

 

[HVAC]

Miller

I considered the 110v models cause they were cheap. But no one I spoke to that had one was happy with them. I went to a large welding gas company and we tried Millers and Lincolns. I really wanted the Miller 210 but I bought the 175. When using the gas the weld quality is quite nice. We just welded some plates onto a truck frame without running out of power. We also welded a 8" channel on my goosenek to mount my winch to. This 175 has been capable of all my projects so far. I think it was about a grand with helmut, tank, etc.

 

[HoleshotHolset]

Why MIG when you can TIG?! Just kidding... .



I have been blown away with the quality and performance of my Miller TIG... . The Millermatic 210 is one sweet MIG machine... . 100% duty cycle, etc..... overkill for you, but since when is overkill a bad thing?



Matt

 

[Paychk]

You might want to keep an eye on the auction sites. Sometimes you can pick up a quality setup for just a little more than what a 110v. unit would cost. As an example I picked up a Millermatic 200 with the spot/pulse panel, a Tweco 200A. mig gun and the Spoolmatic aluminum gun, 2 spools of wire (steel & alum), the flow regulator and a bag of gas nozzles/contact tips for 1500$ At times you can get a similar unit with out all the accessories for about $800 - 1000. There are a lot of deals to be found, just be patient.

 

[HEYBOSS]

Originally posted by HoleshotHolset

Why MIG when you can TIG?! Just kidding... .



I have been blown away with the quality and performance of my Miller TIG... . The Millermatic 210 is one sweet MIG machine... . 100% duty cycle, etc..... overkill for you, but since when is overkill a bad thing?



Matt

I knew for the longest time there was something wrong with you and couldn't figure it out. So it's the welding fumes that's doing it Don't get all Tigged up about

 

[HoleshotHolset]

Actually, it's a combination of TIG, plasma, and stick welding fumes.....



It CAN'T be that diesel fuel I drank a while back..... :-laf



I'd rather die from welding or diesel soot/fuel than some lame heart disease.



Matt