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TIG welders
- Thread starter Kapt
- Start date
Aceman
Well-known member
You may have better luck searching/posting on weldingweb.com
1320stang
Well-known member
What will you be welding primarily? I understand that you can get good deals on them from an aircraft repair facility as the High Freq wears on them and they get new ones every year or so. The HF is used in welding aluminum but for welding steel, they're fine. They'll still weld aluminum, but not as good as a new one. My chassis guy told me about this, he had to get a new machine and he couldn't believe how much better it welded than his first one. He has both Miller and Lincoln.
sneezer41
Well-known member
~10 years ago I bought a lincoln tig, comes as a package with everything but the bottle. It has been super, no problems. It has its limitations, 175 amps, mostly aluminum is tough for thick sections.
Graham08
Well-known member
Depending on your budget and space limitations, I would take a serious look at an inverter TIG machine. Lincoln's Invertec and Miller's Dynasty line. The nice part about an inverter is the smaller ones will plug into a 110 volt outlet, and are small enough they have a handle on the top to carry them around. A similarly powered transformer machine will weigh a couple hundred pounds, and require 50A or more input power.
I have a Lincoln Precision TIG 275. It weighs about 650 lb without an argon cylinder, and requires 100A input power. It is a serious machine, and I have yet to run into something I can't weld with it...new it is over $4000, though.
I have also done some welding recently with a friend's older Lincoln Square Wave 175 machine at his shop. I was pleasantly surprised at how nice a machine this is. You can pick these up used pretty reasonably...he has about $500 in his. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the newer Precision TIG series, but is a good machine.
I would recommend taking a look at Miller's site, www.millerwelds.com. They have an online forum (obviously skewed a little toward Miller, but not too bad) where this sort of question has been debated to death.
I have a Lincoln Precision TIG 275. It weighs about 650 lb without an argon cylinder, and requires 100A input power. It is a serious machine, and I have yet to run into something I can't weld with it...new it is over $4000, though.
I have also done some welding recently with a friend's older Lincoln Square Wave 175 machine at his shop. I was pleasantly surprised at how nice a machine this is. You can pick these up used pretty reasonably...he has about $500 in his. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the newer Precision TIG series, but is a good machine.
I would recommend taking a look at Miller's site, www.millerwelds.com. They have an online forum (obviously skewed a little toward Miller, but not too bad) where this sort of question has been debated to death.
PAToyota
Well-known member
Miller Syncrowave 250DX with water cooled torch here... A lot depends on what you plan to do with it.
Aluminum? Other metals than mild steel? That is going to push your requirements up the scale from the base models.
Aluminum? Other metals than mild steel? That is going to push your requirements up the scale from the base models.
tdkkart
Well-known member
If it fits your size requirements, take a look at the Synchrowave SD200:
http://www.millerwelds.com/products/tig/syncrowave_200/
I've got the SD180, previous model without the pulse feature. Works great as a general purpose TIG without the complexity of some of the larger models.
http://www.millerwelds.com/products/tig/syncrowave_200/
I've got the SD180, previous model without the pulse feature. Works great as a general purpose TIG without the complexity of some of the larger models.
ZRX61
Well-known member
I have that exact set up. I notice the list price has gone up by about $650 since I bought mine.......If it fits your size requirements, take a look at the Synchrowave SD200:
http://www.millerwelds.com/products/tig/syncrowave_200/
VDubJoe
Well-known member
I bought a used lincoln tig 300/300 for 500.00. Its a big unit but its very robust. Welds anything and all parts still available.Works great. Found it on ebay.
Joe
Joe
goodfellow
Well-known member
I bought a used lincoln tig 300/300 for 500.00. Its a big unit but its very robust. Welds anything and all parts still available.Works great. Found it on ebay.
Joe
Same story; bought a late 70's vintage Miller Dialarc HF with lots of accessories (Miller cooler, Miller cart, Victor regulator, Weldcraft torch) for around $600. The older equipment is bullet proof and doesn't rely on any sophisticated electronics so although it's bulky, it's also pretty cheap to run.
Replacing circuit boards on new inverters is VERY expensive.
mike944
Well-known member
I have a Thermal Arc 185TSW.
(current model) https://www.mythermadyne.com/thc/en...srcApp=&productID=10-3073A-2&tabName=OverView
I know a lot of people are going to give me a hard time because it's not a miller or lincoln, but it's just for a "hobbyist use" and not for hard production use. It's an inverter machine, and small and lightweight, and includes AC and high freq for aluminum. It was about 1K cheaper than the dynasty, when you consider the thermal arc comes as a complete kit, and the dynasty is sold as power supply only. It would have been nice to have the 110V power capability of the dynasty, but it wasn't worth 1k to me.
Thermadyne is more known for their thermal dynamics plasma cutters, but they made decent welders as well.
One more thing, if you don't know how to TIG, i would probably reccomend against an inverter machine. If you're learning, you'll probably be shorting out the tungsten quite a bit, and the inverter machines are probably much more sensitive to abuse than the "old-school" bulletproof transformer machines. I don't know this for a fact, but it's a funny suspicion of mine.
(current model) https://www.mythermadyne.com/thc/en...srcApp=&productID=10-3073A-2&tabName=OverView
I know a lot of people are going to give me a hard time because it's not a miller or lincoln, but it's just for a "hobbyist use" and not for hard production use. It's an inverter machine, and small and lightweight, and includes AC and high freq for aluminum. It was about 1K cheaper than the dynasty, when you consider the thermal arc comes as a complete kit, and the dynasty is sold as power supply only. It would have been nice to have the 110V power capability of the dynasty, but it wasn't worth 1k to me.
Thermadyne is more known for their thermal dynamics plasma cutters, but they made decent welders as well.
One more thing, if you don't know how to TIG, i would probably reccomend against an inverter machine. If you're learning, you'll probably be shorting out the tungsten quite a bit, and the inverter machines are probably much more sensitive to abuse than the "old-school" bulletproof transformer machines. I don't know this for a fact, but it's a funny suspicion of mine.
The Diversion is a basic limited adjustment and function unit intended as a stepping stone up for a hobby welder with basic skills. It is the inverter based version of the Econo Tig.
I have a transformer based Miller Syncrowave 250 runner. It is a good machine but I like to weld aluminum and would like to be able to run the Hertz up to get more focus, given a do over I would spend the extra $ and go inverter. With Tig you will always wish you had more adjustment.
I have a transformer based Miller Syncrowave 250 runner. It is a good machine but I like to weld aluminum and would like to be able to run the Hertz up to get more focus, given a do over I would spend the extra $ and go inverter. With Tig you will always wish you had more adjustment.