Suggest a Begining Welder!

[woodrail]

So I did some basic searching and got very overwhelmed with answers, data, and information that I'm not sure what i read!

As my Dad was a millwright, I'm almost ashamed to ask this. He taught me alot about home repair, plumbing, cars, and woodworking. When metal working time came, I think he chose to leave it at work!

I basically want to learn the craft. I'm sneaking up on 50 years old and never really put welding in my "skill set". I just always found a way around it.

What I'm looking to do is some basic stuff like attaching tabs on steel for shelves, some lightweight supports, and decorative stuff. I would eventually like to progress into aluminum work for my airstream.

I don't intending on doing anything structural such as roll cages or tow hitches.

The only welding I've ever done is some Arc in high school.

As always, the less money, the better! But, I'm too poor to be cheap. I'd rather buy something once, than have to upgrade in six months.

I know 220v is desired, but right now I've got 110v available plus portability is a big plus.

Any lessons and advice from the "masters" would be great! Assume I don't know squat cause I don't!

 

[stratman977]

For what you want to do and buying only once look for a lincoln or hobart mig welder that has the ability to take a gas bottle.

The cheap ones like the $100 harbor freight special work but aren't as easy to learn on and don't always weld that nice.

You are not going to weld aluminum with a 110v welder. Not enough heat. You would also need a spool gun attachment for the mig welder for alum which isn't cheap either.

 

[Highlux]

Hobart Handler 140. Should be able to get one for a little less than 500 new.
Add gas bottle....good to go.

 

[Lightfoot]

I bought a Lincoln HD 100 weld-pak last year off of craigslist like new for 100 bucks. It's paid for itself over and over. Not the best, but certainly filled my needs as a homeowner. I like the portability and the 110 hookup. It's all i need. Bought a red $39 HF cart to put it on. Matches perfectly.

 

[Unmarked Bill]

I have the millermatic 140 and it has been good for me. More expensive but a LOT easier to sell if you decide its not your thing. The instruction tape or dvd or whatever that it comes with will get you a good long ways toward making decent welds. I fought with mine for a year or so before I watched the tape, silly. Also youtube has a lot of good videos.

That said, I had a cheaper made century welder that was also 110 and about the same amps and it was fine.

 

[dmeadow]

I'm using an Eastwood MIG welder. It is fine for my purposes-- mostly sheetmetal work for automotive repairs.

I've got the 135, but you'll want the 220v one for aluminum. Great price and includes the handheld spool.

Don't forget to include the bottle for gas in your budget.

 

[Karl_B]

I've been shopping for a welder, as well. I have the same goals as woodrail, except maybe the aluminum. This Harbor Freight welder seems to get some good reviews. Does anyone have experience with it?

http://www.harborfreight.com/80-amp-inverter-arc-welder-91110.html

 

[Ohmthis]

I read everything you wrote, but I'm going to lean on this one thing. You only want to buy once!!! Please do yourself a favor and get a 220v machine. It will be a little more up front (welder and wiring), but it will meet your every need. It can be brought down to weld thin stuff, brought up to do heavier stuff, and with the right gear (argon and a spoolgun) do your aluminum (although they do have limitations here). I have a Lincoln 180 machine that I love, but have used miller and Hobart machines in this line and they were all nice. I started with a fluxcore only, then a Lincoln 135, now my 180. If I had known what I do now I could have went straight for the larger machine and save several hundred. My 2 cents!

 

[Karl_B]

In my case, I'm wanting a small machine for portability and so it can be used at other people's houses. I'll get a good 220v welder later, but I'm hoping that little arc welder I linked to will be fine for small tasks. I'm only trying to avoid replacing a bad purchase, not having an assortment.

At my old house, I ran three different 220v drops in case I wanted to get a bigger compressor, a big welder, and one just in case there was something I forgot, but I never did get around to buying any of it.

 

[bsaint]

Miller 252. Last welder you'll ever buy.

 

[crewchief888]

i have a lincoln promig 140

nice little welder for the price.

red, blue or gray

pick your favorite color


my 140 has welded evereything from sheetmetal to roll cages and bumpers.

 

[Xtrom]

I bought a Miller 140 in college. Had about a $1000 into it with a lease on a tank, cart, helmet and some wire. That was 6 years ago. I've got a 200 Miller now but I still like the 140 for sheetmetal work. It'll burn 3/16" no problem. All my buddies try to buy it but it was my first big purchase so it's sticking around. Keep an eye out on Craigslist for a good deal. Stay away from the cheap welders!

 

[bcradio]

My advice is to stay away from the Harbor Freight welders. Get a lincoln, miller, or hobart 140 series if you only want 120volt... otherwise go dual voltage.

 

[stratman977]

I've been shopping for a welder, as well. I have the same goals as woodrail, except maybe the aluminum. This Harbor Freight welder seems to get some good reviews. Does anyone have experience with it?

http://www.harborfreight.com/80-amp-inverter-arc-welder-91110.html

If you want to go stick get a lincoln ac225. You can get them used for less than the harfor freight welder. You are going to hate welding if you buy that 110v stick welder and have never welded before.

 

[wayne55]

I'm only a hobby welder with an older Miller 172. If I were buying a welder today, I would look hard at the Hobart 190 at $700 or 800 (can't remember) and the Hobart 210 at 850 at Tractor Supply. Northern also has them for similar prices. Both are spoolgun capable for the aluminum you mentioned. They also have package deals sometimes with the spoolgun package included. However these are 220v, but I think the 210 can use both 110 and 220.

 

[sberry]

I got to agree with the Hobart 190, brandy new without stuff you don't need. There is a tendency to over estimate the "need" to move it, that's nice but it shines as a 030 solid wire machine for light steel work like Diy and maintenance. It has double the poop of a 140.

Something you get for 100$ can work but I never saw anyone who stepped up to a 180 class didn't think it wasn't worth every penny after the first bead. These new machines are so good, warranties are super and they last so long that this is a good spot to reach and spend some more up front. There is a big competition among mfgs in this not just for price but how well it works and its dependability.

 

[sberry]

I am not sure how to tell if a wrench which costs 15 or 20 times as much as a cman is worth the difference but 2 x on a welder is. I suspect the Eastwood works pretty fair but I havnt used one. The major brands however are a sure bet and are near the same dollars they were 20 yrs ago. The red one at the box store is identical today and I paid 650 at a dealer for mine in 92 or so.

One of the reasons they tout new features is to try to get the sales price to rise some. These cost less than a fukkin **** tv anymore, they havnt dropped like computers in cost but they have inflated very little in the face of huge material costs and have got way better.

 

[sk farmer]

So I did some basic searching and got very overwhelmed with answers, data, and information that I'm not sure what i read!

As my Dad was a millwright, I'm almost ashamed to ask this. He taught me alot about home repair, plumbing, cars, and woodworking. When metal working time came, I think he chose to leave it at work!

I basically want to learn the craft. I'm sneaking up on 50 years old and never really put welding in my "skill set". I just always found a way around it.

What I'm looking to do is some basic stuff like attaching tabs on steel for shelves, some lightweight supports, and decorative stuff. I would eventually like to progress into aluminum work for my airstream.

I don't intending on doing anything structural such as roll cages or tow hitches.

The only welding I've ever done is some Arc in high school.

As always, the less money, the better! But, I'm too poor to be cheap. I'd rather buy something once, than have to upgrade in six months.

I know 220v is desired, but right now I've got 110v available plus portability is a big plus.

Any lessons and advice from the "masters" would be great! Assume I don't know squat cause I don't!

the multi voltage machines like the miller 211 and hobart 210 will work on 110 and would allow you to move up to to 220. they are the same basic size as the 140 class machines so you don't lose anything on portability. unless you are in a location that is only served by 110 such as an an apartment garage or some sort of detached garage with really crappy service there is usually 220 nearby. if you have an electric water heater or electric clothes dryer, you have 220.

i have a miller 211 and did a pretty thorough search for what i wanted before i chose it. here are the reasons i chose it over others. feel free to pick and choose what you want from the list but the 211 is the only one i found that had all of these features at the time.

1. 110 or 220 operation by only changing the plug. the 211 will perform like a 140 class welder but a 140 class welder can never perform like a 180 or larger class

2. the ability to run .024, .030 and .035 wire.

3. the ability to run flux core or solid wire.

4. metal drive gears.

5. the ability to add a spool gun for aluminum.

6. autoset, sets wire speed and amperage for you by dialing in your metal thickness.

7. infinite control of wire speed and amperage when not using auto set.

8. will accept the smaller 2lb and larger 10 lb wire spools.

9. nearly identical capabilities to the full size model 212 other than duty cycle. 3/8 single pass steel versus 5/16 on the 180 class and 3/16 on the 140 class

these features may or may not be important to you but if they are then i doubt there is another welder out there with all of these features.

don't forget that to get full output on a 140 machine you need to be on a 20 amp outlet. most circuits are 15 amp or less. if you need to rewire for 20 amp it is just as easy to go 220. then you have something.

 

[frank_c]

I bought a Hobart 190 because I wanted a machine I could grow into and not out of, and have to start over.

I was gifted a $100 HF welder but I dumped it on my brother...

 

[cagullett1]

Hobart 140 or 210MVP. Both are reasonably priced at Northern Tool and if you do some searching on Google, you can find a $50 off coupon code.

 

[Hpozzuoli]

I have had this for 4yrs. It's the original blue one from harbor freight. It's the 220v model. It's set up for gas which I have never used. I use it a moderate amount. I would say monthly or so. I have done a lot of small stuff that didn't require the gas. I would like to get more into frame work and would need to try the gas first or just upgrade altogether.

To learn this is a great machine. I use Lincoln wire and tips. I have used .30 and .35 wire with it. The door chart is useless so it took me a while to make my own. For the price it's a good start.

I am not sure if you can add a spool gun to it.

 

[Zeke]

While most people want to start out on a MIG, I will suggest a small arc welder. Very portable and very versatile since the inverter arc welder came out. Quite a bit of power too and there are dual voltage units. 120v will do a lot. It's down and dirty welding and you can grind it to pretty it that's what you need.

MIG welders are great for many things, make no mistake. Which way you choose will still be the right choice. AFA aluminum, you can weld it with an arc welder. But when you say your Airstream I'm thinking no. With a more expensive MIG and the ancillary spool gun you still might not be where you need to be with AL. For this reason I suggest you plan on getting 2 welders, one now for fundamentals and later on stepping up to something in the $1500 category tailored to your needs and desires after getting started. The 2nd one won't be very portable with the bottle and all, but it can be done.

Then there's the all in one welders. Most of them are cheap inside and not always reliable. Warranty shipping is on your dime and sometimes you are talking about shipping over 50 lbs across the country. For this reason I'd buy local and from someone that can fix it if it stops working.

Here'$ a deal that looks good to me. You don't have to buy the bottle to use the arc but it is bottle ready.

This little guy would be the bomb but I couldn't spend the grand for the limited features. I am only posting it for reference to the type of welder I was talking about.

Here's even a better deal on the TA unit:
http://www.cometsupply.com/mp/THERMAL+DYNAMICS/pm/TDYW1003202/r/ga/
No meter gauge and no TIG torch. So really the $444 is the better deal overall.

 

[justanengineer]

the multi voltage machines like the miller 211 and hobart 210 will work on 110 and would allow you to move up to to 220.

JMHO, but Ill never buy another dual voltage machine. Almost every time Ive been bitten buying a dead machine at auction its a Miller that died bc the dual voltage logic gets screwed up when folks switch between 110 and 220 often. According to the local Miller service center its a pretty common issue and youre stuck either paying 80% of the cost of a new machine or usually, just buying a new machine.

 

[pfhWJ]

So I did some basic searching and got very overwhelmed with answers, data, and information that I'm not sure what i read!

As my Dad was a millwright, I'm almost ashamed to ask this. He taught me alot about home repair, plumbing, cars, and woodworking. When metal working time came, I think he chose to leave it at work!

I basically want to learn the craft. I'm sneaking up on 50 years old and never really put welding in my "skill set". I just always found a way around it.

What I'm looking to do is some basic stuff like attaching tabs on steel for shelves, some lightweight supports, and decorative stuff. I would eventually like to progress into aluminum work for my airstream.

I don't intending on doing anything structural such as roll cages or tow hitches.

The only welding I've ever done is some Arc in high school.

As always, the less money, the better! But, I'm too poor to be cheap. I'd rather buy something once, than have to upgrade in six months.

I know 220v is desired, but right now I've got 110v available plus portability is a big plus.

Any lessons and advice from the "masters" would be great! Assume I don't know squat cause I don't!

Check out longevity 140 mig good mig for the money.

 

[sberry]

I would like to try the Longevity small stick inverter. I tried a Forney for 100$ and its ,, well a 100$ machine. I saw a test on the Long it cost another 50 or 75, that could be neat. I have a Max S and its is near revolutionary on 120V, really slick.

 

[bcradio]

JMHO, but Ill never buy another dual voltage machine. Almost every time Ive been bitten buying a dead machine at auction its a Miller that died bc the dual voltage logic gets screwed up when folks switch between 110 and 220 often. According to the local Miller service center its a pretty common issue and youre stuck either paying 80% of the cost of a new machine or usually, just buying a new machine.

Sounds like one instance in literally thousands of reviews/testimonials I have read... I'll chock that one up to being a lemon. Especially since it was purchased used.

 

[premierplayer]

hobart handler 140. Should be able to get one for a little less than 500 new.
Add gas bottle....good to go.

this!