Tig or Mig that is the question

[zhaddock]

I currently have an everlast Power Arc 140st dedicated to Tig and a cheap 110 flux core mig welder. I'd like to get something bigger so I can weld heavier material and also be able to do steel or aluminum. I keep going back and fourth between getting a newer larger Mig or a newer larger Tig machine. For Tig I like that it's clean and quiet and I can do it in tight spaces and not have to worry too much about setting something on fire, also only one type of gas is needed for both steel and aluminum. However, there's a little more prep work involved anytime I want to use it. I like the Mig because if I just want to throw something together without a lot of fuss or prep I can but I'll need to have a bottle of C25 in addition to my argon. Obviously the easy answer is get both but that's not in the cards.

Currently in the running...
TIG- Eastwood Tig 200 ACDC

MIG-Miller 180 or 211 or Hobart Equivalent

Anybody want to offer arguments for either side?

 

[lakeroadster]

Keep your GTAW machine.

Buy a 220V GMAW machine with gas purge capabilities.

I'd suggest you look at Lincoln, Esab and Fronius also.

 

[willy (traer)]

I'm a die hard Miller Fan - Have a MM251 and Syncrowave 200, although I do have a Lincoln SA-200 portable and just recently purchased a Lincoln 210MP. You may want to take a look at one of those 210's - nice little machines!

 

[sberry]

A mig is really the workhorse in a small shop. I have a tig, havnt even turned it on in 10 yrs. I was considering moving it till I figured I could toss out a couple carts and use the top to store other machines.
My world would stop without a mig. Use one daily and have one dedicated to my work bench for that reason. Open bottle, flip switch and weld, takes about 10 seconds.

 

[404]

If one is patient perfectionist who does small projects to the highest quality and works with thin expensive materials (ss exhaust) then TIG. Can even braze with TIG.

If welding lots of bed frame angle iron projects in a real hurry, then MIG.

 

[Warrenator]

I like my TIG machine for switching materials, I do thin sheet sometimes stainless or copper sometimes steel, also brazing with silicon bronze. If everything was steel I think MIG would be faster and easier.

Depends on what you make. If your tinkertoys are all steel, the steel hot glue gun is the way to go. My tinkertoys are all jumbled up, so TIG.

Also if you are laying 6 inches of bead, TIG. 6 feet of bead, MIG.

 

[motofool33]

aluminum will run the price up on either machine, if mig you need a spoolgun, and tig you need AC capability.

 

[zhaddock]

aluminum will run the price up on either machine, if mig you need a spoolgun, and tig you need AC capability.

Yep, every machine I'm looking at will have either of those.

 

[rsanter]

It depends on what you do and what you use more often.
For most people the mig is the go to machine. I would go miller 211 or 212 depending on your needs.
Then go for a TIG

Bob

 

[jimbbski]

I have both and I have used the TIG a majority of the time since I purchased it 12-13 years ago. I do use the MIG for tack welding exhaust pipes together if SS and of course for roll cage and trailer work. Most of my projects are small so I use the TIG machine and if I design that project correctly I can weld it together without filler rod, or at least part of it. You can't do that with MIG!

 

[sanddan]

If one is patient perfectionist who does small projects to the highest quality and works with thin expensive materials (ss exhaust) then TIG. Can even braze with TIG.

If welding lots of bed frame angle iron projects in a real hurry, then MIG.

Actually, the "bed frame" type projects are a great way to practice tig skills. A mig welder could be the workhorse welder for your shop if you are a professional welder/fabricator such as sberry but for a hobby welder/fabricator such as the OP (guessing from the first post) a tig welder could easily be your only welder. I have a Lincoln 180 amp tig and it will weld 95% of what I do in my shop. I also have a Miller 200 amp mig but seldom use it unless I am doing a farm type repair as it is easier for me to use when out of position of if I am doing very thick material. Tig is slower but time isn't money for me, (retired), so not a big deal. The last time I used the mig was when I was rebuilding my utility trailer. That really wasn't a good job for the tig welder, just too many inches of weld. Just goes to show you really need both. Maybe look for used equipment? My miller was $1000 with bottle and was barely used. I like the full sized machines but room isn't an issue for me.

 

[zhaddock]

All great points

 

[BD1]

One issue with tig is that it is slow and neat. Mig is fast and can be pretty neat if you use 75/25 gas. You really need one of each machines and multiple tanks.
Mig on thin material is awesome and so is tig. By the time you get the pieces tacked with tig, mig would have them welded out. Mig is also easier for one hand welding and the other hand for holding piece . Each process has it good and bad points.

 

[sberry]

It isn't a hobby for me, I think the hobby types fart with a lot of alloy but I can go a long time between aluminum jobs and most are one off save your can jobs in a time sensitive business.
But I make a 1000 steel for every alum and cant even recall the last stainless I did. Its not I cant but last steel tig was in the trades 30 yrs ago.

 

[sberry]

If I was starting over with todays equipment in small maintenance or hobby would be 2 machines I would have. A simple Maxstar S for stick and one of the 211 class feeders with a spooly for crisis work.
I would find a friend for tig if I had to and maybe learn alum with a torch.
If I was selling sideline work might go for a tig. To keep it all running though I can make it without one.

 

[trackwelder]

Wire is king in my opinion. I weld for a living and the last thing I want to do on my projects is waste my little bit of free time screwing around with TIG. Cut it, square it, tack it, burn it in!!!!

 

[SunnyBeach]

Flux core "mig" is very dirty and generally bad for your health when you breathe in the fumes. If you have the option to try out a MIG with gas you will see it is a different type of welding.

In addition to the welder, make sure you have the budget for a decent table, saw, and the other related tools.

 

[AB9NZ]

To me most time is spent cutting, shaping, machining and fitting up. The time under the hood is small in comparison to the other work. Why not lay down beautiful nuclear reactor looking welds on your projects? My vote is for a nice tig machine. Best regards, Tom Bruzan

 

[theoldwizard1]

Keep your GTAW machine.

Buy a 220V GMAW machine with gas purge capabilities.

I'd suggest you look at Lincoln, Esab and Fronius also.

Hit the nail on the head !

 

[kkroger]

Depends on immediate need I suppose, if you are familiar and proficient with TIG you may not NEED MIG, but then again if you do a lot of production welding a MIG can't be beat. but TIG can be pretty fast with a proficient and skilled operator... I weld pretty fast with TIG... but MIG is just so much FASTER, if you can make nice MIG beads...

 

[zmotorsports]

I agree with others that state you really need to buy the welder to fit your work envelope. If doing small intricate work then the TIG (GTAW) is the go to, for larger work such as building trailers, truck frames, etc. then MIG (GMAW) would be the best choice.

I bleed blue in my shop (Miller) and have a MM251 MIG machine and a Dynasty 300DX TIGRunner and use both a lot. I would say percentage wise it would be about 70/30 TIG/MIG at the present time.

The only thing of Millers that I am not a fan of is their plasma cutters, they seem to go through consumables much too fast for my liking. If looking for a 220-volt MIG machine, I would also suggest taking a look at the Lincoln. Their PowerMig lineup of MIG welders are very nice and seem to be quite pleasing to weld with.

One thing I noticed is that IF you have a problem with a Lincoln, they are good about helping you but you have to order the parts through a preferred vendor and cannot order or have them shipped directly to you. Miller on the other hand will ship parts directly to your doorstep. That may or may not be a big deal to you but I thought it worth mentioning. We have quite a mix of machines/brands at work and have had some experience in ordering replacement parts.

Once you get proficient at TIG you will find that it is not as slow as people think it is. Prep is the key with TIG, fitup is king.

Mike.

 

[Robbie13]

Good info. I have been stick and mig welding all my life. I am looking at buying a tig welder for an exhaust build for my bike. Looking at the Lincoln Precision Tig 225. Good to know about the Miller parts.

 

[zmotorsports]

Good info. I have been stick and mig welding all my life. I am looking at buying a tig welder for an exhaust build for my bike. Looking at the Lincoln Precision Tig 225. Good to know about the Miller parts.

Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the Lincoln Precision Tig 225. That is a very nice machine as well.

Mike.

 

[Robbie13]

Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the Lincoln Precision Tig 225. That is a very nice machine as well.

Mike.

Not at all. But it is nice to know I can get any replacement parts shipped to my door to replace myself.

 

[zkling]

If I* could only have one (please don't make me choose ). It would be a 250+ amp ac/dc square wave tig machine. It will do anything a mig machine will do, only slower.

*Disclaimer: My work is not your work thus our needs may be drastically different.

Miller, in my experience has great customer support even on older machines bought used. While I have never need Lincolns customer support service for a machine, I haved called them many a times to discuss consumable selection and they have always been top notch in service and knowledge. Hobart too.

 

[sberry]

If this was a wish list for someone that didn't have machines a Dynasty would be on the top.

 

[jar944]

I have a Hobart Ironman 210 I bought 11 or 12 years ago it has done everything I've asked of it, even pushing aluminum through 10' of liner. I finally bought a TA186 last year to do more aluminum on engine cases. I wouldn't change the order of things if I had to do it over. For me at least buying the mig first was the right decision

 

[mustangmike6996]

I LOVE my Lincoln Mig 180. I am looking into adding a TIG to the arsenal too. How do you like the Eastwood?

 

[Robbie13]

I LOVE my Lincoln Mig 180. I am looking into adding a TIG to the arsenal too. How do you like the Eastwood?

I looked at the Eastwoods too. They have a tig/plasma cutter combo with cart with a 3 year warranty. I have never used one but they seem to have good reviews. From what I understand they are made in China. I have a Lincoln stick buzzbox and a Hobart mig now in my shop that I've had for years. I think what I will do is get either a Lincoln or Miller tig for now and then maybe a plasma cutter next year. I have a O/A torch so I can wait on the plasma.

 

[koditten]

Wire is king in my opinion. I weld for a living and the last thing I want to do on my projects is waste my little bit of free time screwing around with TIG. Cut it, square it, tack it, burn it in!!!!

True that!

As we get older, free time gets rarer and rarer.

 

[koditten]

To me most time is spent cutting, shaping, machining and fitting up. The time under the hood is small in comparison to the other work. Why not lay down beautiful nuclear reactor looking welds on your projects? My vote is for a nice tig machine. Best regards, Tom Bruzan

Only to coat it with paint. Kinda shame that any welding weather tig of mig will be painted. You beautiful weld is gone.

 

[Robbie13]

I want to know the weld is there and not seen. For my bike exhaust anyway. I want a smooth full flowing pipe. I'm all about my weld, just not in this case.

 

[sberry]

I have a Hobart Ironman 210 I bought 11 or 12 years ago it has done everything I've asked of it, even pushing aluminum through 10' of liner. I finally bought a TA186 last year to do more aluminum on engine cases. I wouldn't change the order of things if I had to do it over. For me at least buying the mig first was the right decision

This is about right. If you do not have any machine that is a good place to start.

 

[Ironhorse74]

I have a Lincoln 210 MP that I love. ESAB has been advertising a new machine called the Rebel due out November 2nd. From the hints they have let out it will be a multi process machine.

Brad