Welding inquiry

[c-moe_117]

Looking into selling some stuff because I have been eyeing an everlast powertig 255ext. Just curious if anyone has some experience with said machine or have suggestions of another welder in the same price range that's a high frequency ac/dc tig rated a minimum of 200 amps and stick welding capable would be a nice as I've had fun dabbling in it with masonry mixer repair and other things.

Wanting to do roll cages, some trailer/frame work, aluminum and stainless steel is a must as I want to modify/build some intakes and exhaust manifolds, weld -an fittings to valve covers and oil pans, weld exhaust systems in place, weld intercoolers and piping for v-bands, etc.

I'm sure this unit may be overkill for what I want but figured it would be a worthwhile investment but I am open to other suggestions.

Also curious as to what I should ask price wise for my current stuff. I have a thermal arc hefty ii cc/cv, thermal arc lm-200 dc, and an esab pcm-875 plasma cutter. What would be a fair price to ask for said units?

Thanks for the responses.

 

[S4cruiser]

I haven't read much negative on the everlast machine. I have read their customer service appears to be better than AHP but I have had zero experience with either companies (just purchased the Lincoln Garage pak last week - Poer Mig 210 mp and Squarewave 200).

You'll likely find much more direct feedback over on welding web.

Sounds like a sweet machine with all the features!

 

[Bobcat753]

Everlast are decent welders. Chucke2009 on youtube seems to highly rate them, he is sponsored by them though. Have you looked at the Lincoln Square Wave 200 yet?
Also where are you located? That plays a big factor for the value of your current machines. Post some pics as well.

 

[JoeFin]

Have you looked at the Lincoln Square Wave 200 yet?

Ditto on the Lincoln Square wave

I've had a Lincoln Square Wave 175 for years and its never given me a problem. The foot peddle in Tig mode gives me a nice linear response that allows me to start off at almost nothing and then pour in the heat once I'm all lined up

 

[Gamble]

I have experience with out every welding company out there. Just bought my first everlast. Little dc tig only. No complaints but you will want an SSC pedal. Possibly a CK torch with superflex cable too.

 

[AA/FC]

Everlast are decent welders. Chucke2009 on youtube seems to highly rate them, he is sponsored by them though......

Correct.

Have you ever heard him say anything bad about ANY welder that has been given to him? Lol

Over the years he has been given welders by just about every brand name manufacturer and with the exception of a few minor complaints, he has "highly recommend" all of them. His channel went from a guy who likes to fabricate things for fun, to a channel who gets paid to review products. That youtube channel is his full time job. Don't get me wrong..... more power to him. Everyone needs to earn a living..... but I take his opinion with a grain of salt.

Ask Jimbo from Jimbo's Garage (on youtube) what his opinion of Everlast equipment is..... more specifically, Everlast's warranty process.

 

[brownbagg]

we got two of them in the shop that are broken, dont know why, it was green and broken. Boss bought a new Miller 252 last month, I have miller at my house too but im a fan of Hobart. So im not pushing any brands.

 

[danscobra6]

I've had the 255EXT for a couple months now. It's certainly the cadillac of
tig welders for the price. I still have the 2 latest versions of the AHP 200's and for the price they are hard to beat. The problem with AHP and the Lincoln 200 is the lower amps and less features, like me you can outgrow them.
As far as the pedal that the 255 comes with I prefer it over the SSC. The foot print is a bit smaller but the stroke is longer making it easier to control.
The Wp-20 and 9 it comes with are 25' long and very nice. For me they are flexible enough not to warrant the price of CK but that's your choice. Save the money and get a water cooler. I'm sure you will be very pleased with the Everlast, I know I am.

 

[G-ManBart]

While I don't have a 255ext, I do have an Everlast PowerArc 200ST that's only a few months old.

I will say that it has a nice arc and it works well with all the rods I've tried....6010, 6011, 6013, 7018 and even high nickel rods for welding cast iron.

I followed the advice of many people and plugged it in and let it run for several hours before welding with it....they say it helps stabilize the electronics of inverter machines.

A couple of weeks ago I was running it for an hour or two at a very low setting on cast iron (short beads, low temps, many minutes between beads to keep the part cool). Everything was going fine until I shut it off to take a break. When I came back, the unit wouldn't go below 63amps (I was running at 40 prior). I contacted Everlast and told them what happened. A day or so later they shipped out a replacement board (essentially the entire device inside the case) and it got here 8 days later. Turns out they sent the wrong board. I contacted them and sent them a picture of the wrong board with the inside of my 200ST. They sent another replacement board and used a somewhat faster shipping method which got here about 4 days later. I'm hoping to get the board swapped out today...we'll see what happens.

I guess they get a mixed rating from me. I like the way the welder works, and I like that they were pretty responsive when I had a problem, but sending the first board UPS ground and sending the wrong board would have had me completely stuck if I didn't have another welder on standby.

I'm starting to shop for a TIG machine, and I'm not sure I'm willing to accept being down for two weeks if something breaks since I won't have multiple TIG welders.

 

[ptschram]

The Chi-com machines get a bad rap from too many-and most of them, I suspect have never used one.

I don't have an Everest, but I do have a Longevity Three-in-one machine TIG/Stick/Plasma. I add my comments as I suspect the internals are probably identical and I suspect they are made in the same factory.

I bought it to finish a job I was badly stuck in the mud with and my wife told me I could buy it ONLY if it was gonna be paid for by the job at hand and that there would be enough meat left on the bone for the house to get paid when the job was done.

I bought it for the plasma and have only use the plasma and a tiny bit of stick welding.

What I can tell you is that the machine has worked damn near every time I've needed it to and with one exception, if it didn't, it was pilot error (me). The BEST part of my experience is two-fold. For what I paid, I told my wife I'd be glad if it lasted through the five-year warranty period. They say to make sure you retain the packaging material as you're required to ship it back in original packaging if you need warranty service-I can throw the packaging away as it has more than lasted through the five-year period!

Now, on to the failure I did suffer-that I'm certain was due to pilot error.

I was cutting up a burned up Land Rover that and been arson torched and I was working in the direct sunlight, it was hotter than Hell outside and I'd been cutting for at least an hour, taking breaks for a smoke when it would get to the limit of the duty cycle. Lunchtime, I turned it off and turned the air off as well. When I came back from lunch, I neglected to turn the gas back on. I called longevity, explained that I'd blowed up two diodes on the HF board and would they tell me the specs so I could fix it with some diodes I had. They refused, BUT, they shipped me a new board on Friday and I had it about 0830 Monday morning.

The few times it hasn't worked when I've needed it, it's ALWAYS been due to weathered consumables. In my experience (and this is with the plasma) once you start using a cup and electrode, if you shut the machine down for any period of time, they corrode and don't conduct as well and you'll have weird plasma starts and it won't cut. I found a vendor on eBay that sold me 100 cups/tips/electrodes for cheap and I stocked up and they've served me well.

Ignore my comments if you wish, but I've had good luck with the machine I have that as I said, I'm sure are appropriate for a similar machine probably made by the same folks.

YMMV, it might be worth what my opinion cost.

 

[demeter008]

Looking into selling some stuff because I have been eyeing an everlast powertig 255ext. Just curious if anyone has some experience with said machine or have suggestions of another welder in the same price range that's a high frequency ac/dc tig rated a minimum of 200 amps and stick welding capable would be a nice as I've had fun dabbling in it with masonry mixer repair and other things.

Wanting to do roll cages, some trailer/frame work, aluminum and stainless steel is a must as I want to modify/build some intakes and exhaust manifolds, weld -an fittings to valve covers and oil pans, weld exhaust systems in place, weld intercoolers and piping for v-bands, etc.

I'm sure this unit may be overkill for what I want but figured it would be a worthwhile investment but I am open to other suggestions.

Also curious as to what I should ask price wise for my current stuff. I have a thermal arc hefty ii cc/cv, thermal arc lm-200 dc, and an esab pcm-875 plasma cutter. What would be a fair price to ask for said units?

Thanks for the responses.

I have involvement without each welding organization out there. Just purchased my first everlast. Little dc tig as it were. No protests yet you will need a SSC pedal. Potentially a CK light with superflex link as well.

 

[G-ManBart]

While I don't have a 255ext, I do have an Everlast PowerArc 200ST that's only a few months old.

I will say that it has a nice arc and it works well with all the rods I've tried....6010, 6011, 6013, 7018 and even high nickel rods for welding cast iron.

I followed the advice of many people and plugged it in and let it run for several hours before welding with it....they say it helps stabilize the electronics of inverter machines.

A couple of weeks ago I was running it for an hour or two at a very low setting on cast iron (short beads, low temps, many minutes between beads to keep the part cool). Everything was going fine until I shut it off to take a break. When I came back, the unit wouldn't go below 63amps (I was running at 40 prior). I contacted Everlast and told them what happened. A day or so later they shipped out a replacement board (essentially the entire device inside the case) and it got here 8 days later. Turns out they sent the wrong board. I contacted them and sent them a picture of the wrong board with the inside of my 200ST. They sent another replacement board and used a somewhat faster shipping method which got here about 4 days later. I'm hoping to get the board swapped out today...we'll see what happens.

I guess they get a mixed rating from me. I like the way the welder works, and I like that they were pretty responsive when I had a problem, but sending the first board UPS ground and sending the wrong board would have had me completely stuck if I didn't have another welder on standby.

I'm starting to shop for a TIG machine, and I'm not sure I'm willing to accept being down for two weeks if something breaks since I won't have multiple TIG welders.

Update:

I just finished swapping the board on my PowerArc 200ST. Before it wouldn't go lower than 63amps (supposed to go down to 20) and now it won't go below 72amps.

The only thing that I can think is that the rheostat, which isn't part of the board, is failing.