New HF catalog showed up...Vulcan Welders
- Thread starter lbhsbz
- Start date
They look like nice welders, at the typical newer HF prices. Whats funny?
A good weld is more on the operator, than the machine anyway, IMO.
Other's see it different, in that the more money they spend, the better the weld.
A good weld is more on the operator, than the machine anyway, IMO.
Other's see it different, in that the more money they spend, the better the weld.
rk_tek
Well-known member
I'm hoping the have a tig kit for the Omnipro multiprocess welder that works with my Lincoln 210 MP. They have a 20% off coupon in the new catalog(I just got home from work and am reading it now). I know there are other vendors that offer the tig kit, but even those are a bit out of the current budget and I sure could use it right now.
mike93lx
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Looks interesting
Ign
Well-known member
Those Vulcans are f'n smart.
They make this really cool goop that makes my bike patches stick to my tubes
So they can probably make metal stick together, too..............
They make this really cool goop that makes my bike patches stick to my tubes
So they can probably make metal stick together, too..............
ex-x-fire
Well-known member
I didn't see if the migs are setup for gas.
The "Pro" TIG 200 has a 25% duty cycle at 200A... 170A 20%... on 240VAC...
for $900, comes with looks like a cheap stinger, WP17 Style torch, Ground Lead, and the pedal "Looks" better than most but still sketchy. the Regulator is meh.. not really "Pro"... the AHP AlphaTIG is $709 Shipped no tax and 60% at 200A and 100% 150A and Below. the Pedal is pretty sketchy the Torch is a 17Flex compatible, the lead is OK... the REGULATOR is GOOD. I think one would be better off with the Alpha... but YMMV... for out of the box use? the AHP would be the way I would go...
for $900, comes with looks like a cheap stinger, WP17 Style torch, Ground Lead, and the pedal "Looks" better than most but still sketchy. the Regulator is meh.. not really "Pro"... the AHP AlphaTIG is $709 Shipped no tax and 60% at 200A and 100% 150A and Below. the Pedal is pretty sketchy the Torch is a 17Flex compatible, the lead is OK... the REGULATOR is GOOD. I think one would be better off with the Alpha... but YMMV... for out of the box use? the AHP would be the way I would go...
If it is a "MIG" then it is setup for GAS, if it is a "Wirefeed" then it is probably not.
kctyphoon
Banned
No pointed ears. #fail.
johnyg
Well-known member
who is vulkan ???? the only one i know is dr.spock but never saw him weld...just that neck pinch stuff.
metaleltr
Well-known member
I would be buying ahp or everlast long before these at those prices
He wasn't a Dr... He was Mister Spock.. or just Spock... there was his pops Sarek, and some others... Savvik was Vulcan... and of course we can't forget T'Pol, she was HAWT! and Tuvok? Can't recommember all of em...
Course the "God of Fire" is Vulcan...
trekgod3
Well-known member
Soooo many people still confuse Dr Benjamin Spock https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Spock
With Mr Spock https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spock
With Mr Spock https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spock
gdocktor3
Well-known member
Vulcan beats Lincoln Electric. I mean really?
WhiffySpark
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By 25 amps on D.C. Tig
I think they're pricing themselves out of the market. If I'm spending $800 it's damn sure not going to be at harbor freight
moon_tanner
Well-known member
I wonder how it compares to Hobart
thool
Well-known member
I believe her name was T'Pau. And we always had a good laugh at the dramatic battle music during the fight scene.
Yes THAT machine is a tough one to beat... IMHO.
theoldwizard1
Well-known member
Now there is a man who knows how to "cut through the ****" and focus on the IMPORTANT specs !
thool
Well-known member
I think of T'Pau as
There are certain things that should cost good money...welders are one of them. That small mig weighs less than my shop vac I think...definitely not a copper wound transformer...likely aluminum (like Hobart tried) and likely not a lot of it. I'll still with what's tried and true. HF seems to have a hardon for snappy, Honda, and dewalt lately...and it's mostly ********.
My favorite is their 4000W generator that has a max 13A 120V load limit
Don't forget their almost DIRECT knockoffs of Milwaukee M18 (though not the same) Bauer stuff....
Also not likely a transformer at all, most likely invertor....
crackit
Well-known member
I think they're pricing themselves out of the market. If I'm spending $800 it's damn sure not going to be at harbor freight
Amen. That's a lot of vulcan money for a vulcan HF welder.
Loscaldazar
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When's the last time you took a look at welders, bud? These welders (as are almost all new welders) inverter welders, not transformer. They should be fairly light otherwise they filled the case with lead. Has nothing to do with aluminum vs copper (and even Lincoln uses Aluminum in some of their transformer welders anyway).
I thought T'pau was an 80's rock chick. she sang "Heart and Soul"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T'Pau_(band)
back on topic, I too think HF is starting to price themselves out of the market. for the prices on the new higher end stuff, it's no longer the value proposition it used to be.
I'd buy a Hobart over the HF for the same money any day of the week. Love my HH175...and only $549 when I bought it. the newer models go on sale for good prices and use standard mig guns and consumables.
the older Chicago electric welders--have you ever looked at the guns? I tried to fix one for a guy once. it was a useless endeavor, like trying to fix a keurig...can't be done.
Joe0121
Active member
panknuckshovel
Well-known member
Seems simply odd to judge quality on what something costs. What about markup?
Besides, how much more does it cost to wire a transformer with copper? $6?
I have a 70's Century AC/DC welder aluminum wound transformer, works great.
theoldwizard1
Well-known member
ChuckE2009 on YouTube did a review on the Vulcan 165 TIG. Note it is DC only and no readout of that the machine is actually doing. He gave it passing marks.
I'm with you though, for a couple hundred dollars more, you can get an AlphaTIG 200 and you get a much more capable machine.
Snakebyt
Well-known member
i called about a welding cart earlier this week, was told i couldnt use the 20% off on welters, and welding stuff, also cant use on generators or compressors
Loscaldazar
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Miller isn't the end all be all... $1000-$2000 PC boards on TIG welders blowing multiple times, Arc stability being affected by the on demand fans turning on, cheap MIG guns on many of the entry MIGs, etc.
The Dynasty 200DX (yes, A DYNASTY, their infamous TIG welding machine) is pretty well known for blowing up its boards. (https://www.google.com/search?q=mil...WAhXDx4MKHV2gBQMQrQIIPigEMAE&biw=1680&bih=848)
Every time a Miller blows a board, you're looking at at $1000+ repair. That's a hard pill to swallow for many people. Many imported components in a Miller too. They haven't been Made in the USA in a while now. They're all labeled as assembled in USA, which means, legally, there could be as high as 50% foreign components in them.
Some of the newer Lincoln machines aren't fairing too well either. The 210MP has had repair backorders approaching a year at some points.
Now the higher tier Miller/Lincoln is still pretty good, but those are $5000-$10000 units, not their $1000-$3000 units (which is a LOT to spend still).
I'd take Fronius or a Stel for high end over Miller and Lincoln. At the low end, I'm not seeing too much that makes me want to buy a Miller or a Lincoln anymore over a Chinese brand name. And I did put my money where my mouth is and got a Stel (HTP) Welder.
At the very worst, when one of these Chinese name brand welders blows a board, it's $200 or so to repair. Everlast/AHP stock parts, not too sure about most other brands though. That's an important factor to keep in mind of course.
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Have you priced copper wire lately? There's a reason the tweakers and crack addicts are stripping it out of anyplace left vacant for a week or two.
Best prices I'm seeing for new magnet wire is around $12/lb. I'd guess that between ⅓ and ½ of the weight of a transformer is the wire. So, ballpark estimate, suppose that a 100 lb welder has 75 lb of transformer, that's maybe 25lb of copper wire or $300, just for the wire.
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That's been their policy for many years.