What would be a good beginner welding unit?

[Joemctag]

It was once thought that one gets good at welding, by well, welding, but it seems there's a formula here, that the more money spent on a welder, the better the weld results.

Maybe those thousands of YouTube videos, of people (some claiming to be novices) making good-to-beautiful welds, on a sub $700 welder, are AI deep fakes.

If the OP decides not to weld much, a $3000 unit will be nice to look at.

You don’t NEED an SA300, although you can get one used for $2,000 to $4,000. But I will say, the output is like melted butter compared to a small machine.

 

[zendriver]

You don’t NEED an SA300, although you can get one used for $2,000 to $4,000. But I will say, the output is like melted butter compared to a small machine.

I was wondering why anyone would sell a welder that’s working perfectly, it’s a welder.

I would be worried that it’s worn out from use may be overheated or has glitches in the circuit boards

That’s the last thing I would want to be dealing with as a new user

 

[IRQVET]

I started with a (sub $250) Chinese 110v buzz box (new) flux core welder. Watched a lot of YT and practiced a lot. Once I found myself getting better, and I knew it was something I more importantly would stick with doing- I spent the extra money and upgraded to the machine I've had now for over 10 years.

 

[Jswain]

I was wondering why anyone would sell a welder that’s working perfectly, it’s a welder.

I would be worried that it’s worn out from use may be overheated or has glitches in the circuit boards

That’s the last thing I would want to be dealing with as a new user

I've found mostly the opposite. People buy them for a projects or they get gifted/inherited and then they sit around, eventually selling.

I've bought/sold probably 15ish Lincoln's/millers since COVID. Out of the 15, 14 worked perfectly. Probably half or more were literally like new. The 1 that didn't work perfectly I was able to repair

Now when you're dealing with old farm or welding truck units, yeah make sure it's a good enough deal if it needs a board(and they are obtainable) then you're still above water.

 

[mattthemuppet]

A Hobart 140 or similar with 0.024” wire and C25 would be a very forgiving machine to learn to weld on. Limited on the thickness but perfect for thin metal welding.

 

[IRQVET]

The Hobart 140 has a cult like following. Never used one myself, but I know a lot of people who have and they swear by them. I have the Hobart 210MVP and it's a (HEAVY) but fantastic machine for a suitcase style welder.

Pre-covid prices obviously, but I'm only $1,200 bucks into this pair. Both were factory reconditioned units from www.hobartweldshop.com

 

[zendriver]

I've found mostly the opposite. People buy them for a projects or they get gifted/inherited and then they sit around, eventually selling.

I've bought/sold probably 15ish Lincoln's/millers since COVID. Out of the 15, 14 worked perfectly. Probably half or more were literally like new. The 1 that didn't work perfectly I was able to repair

Now when you're dealing with old farm or welding truck units, yeah make sure it's a good enough deal if it needs a board(and they are obtainable) then you're still above water.

Fair enough, but that’s even worse

Wasting extra money for expensive product that the purchaser will never use

 

[Jswain]

Fair enough, but that’s even worse

Wasting extra money for expensive product that the purchaser will never use

Miller's(more so) / Lincoln's keep a very high resale value.

If you buy used and get even an ok deal chances are you can resell for same price 10 years later. Even if you buy new & keep it in good condition the price remains high

It's like buying a Toyota

 

[finn]

Miller's(more so) / Lincoln's keep a very high resale value.

If you buy used and get even an ok deal chances are you can resell for same price 10 years later. Even if you buy new & keep it in good condition the price remains high

It's like buying a Toyota

The downside is that only lemmings buy Toyotas.

 

[whateg01]

The Hobart 140 has a cult like following. Never used one myself, but I know a lot of people who have and they swear by them. I have the Hobart 210MVP and it's a (HEAVY) but fantastic machine for a suitcase style welder.

Pre-covid prices obviously, but I'm only $1,200 bucks into this pair. Both were factory reconditioned units from www.hobartweldshop.com

That's not a suitcase welder. Suitcase welders are designed to be packed up and taken out into the field.

 

[MovingAlong]

I want to purchase a welder however I do not have a clear vision of what type I would need.

Would recommend that you first learn how to weld. Familiarity with multiple processes is important, each process requires different equipment and techniques. Recommend taking classes...

But that's a bit hypocritical since I'm self taught. Started with stick - no idea what I was doing and it showed. Got an Oxy/Act kit and a book, started with brazing and then fusion welding - learned a lot! Then back to stick - was much better. Have also used MIG (electric caulking guns) for both steel and aluminum - easy to make it look pretty, hard to ensure they're good welds. Tried TIG - again, no idea what I was doing and it showed.

Learn the trade, not the tricks...

 

[zendriver]

Miller's(more so) / Lincoln's keep a very high resale value.

If you buy used and get even an ok deal chances are you can resell for same price 10 years later. Even if you buy new & keep it in good condition the price remains high

It's like buying a Toyota

I have a Toyota, but I don’t leave it setting unused in the garage. It’s a great vehicle, but it’s only worth half of what I paid for it.

If those Welders retain their values so well, how do you make money flipping them?

 

[finn]

I have a Toyota, but I don’t leave it setting unused in the garage. It’s a great vehicle, but it’s only worth half of what I paid for it.

If those Welders retain their values so well, how do you make money flipping them?

I “made money” on my old Millermatic 175. Paid something like $325 or $350 for it, but it was a mess, having come from a body shop. Put on a new liner, cleaned it up, lubed the fan motor, which helped but didn’t eliminate the noise, added a cheap $35 HF piece of garbage cart, and used it for a number of years before I sold it for $600.

Probably barely kept up with inflation, but it was an easy sell at that price, since people pay for the name.

The buyer could have picked up a new Primeweld with a three year no hassle warranty and more features for less.

 

[Jswain]

I have a Toyota, but I don’t leave it setting unused in the garage. It’s a great vehicle, but it’s only worth half of what I paid for it.

If those Welders retain their values so well, how do you make money flipping them?

People moving, inheriting, or have enough money they don't care and want it gone today.

It's not like I'm making this up. One of the metal suppliers in Calgary flips welders as well, and said people only want the blue or red ones.(Mostly blue)

I had a Thermal arc Tig welder posted for cheap for a long time(nice inverter Tig) next to no interest. Post a Miller & it sells tomorrow for top dollar with 40-50 people messaging about it.

 

[whateg01]

I have a Toyota, but I don’t leave it setting unused in the garage. It’s a great vehicle, but it’s only worth half of what I paid for it.

If those Welders retain their values so well, how do you make money flipping them?

I bought a handler 187 for iirc $300 because it "doesn't work". Doesn't work meant it wouldn't feed. It wouldn't feed because the drive roller had a bunch of crud built up in it. Cleaned that and have been using it for fcaw but could easily sell it now for way more than $300

 

[emeraldcoupe]

i started off with a lincoln weld pak 100 that i converted to gas, was a great little machine. i needed a higher output welder and being a home gamer bought a HF vulcan migmax 215 back in 2018 and it's been flawless.

 

[Under_Pressure]

That's not a suitcase welder. Suitcase welders are designed to be packed up and taken out into the field.

Not to be too nit-picky, but that's not a suitcase "welder" either- it's a suitcase wire feeder, which needs to be connected to a welding power source (a Miller XMT for example, or an engine drive unit) to do any welding. All it has inside is a place for a wire spool, drive rolls, etc. And that particular one is capable of remotely adjusting voltage as well as wire feed speed. I'm not sure I would say there is a specific class of self-contained welders called "suitcase" style, but if there is that Hobart seems to fit the definition as much as anything. I still wouldn't want to carry it around much, and 90+% of them probably spend their lives on a cart.

Speaking of field welding, one of the biggest changes for industrial repair work since the inverter revolution has been what I would call "lunchbox" welders- the 120/240 SMAW/GTAW machines like the Miller Maxstar 161. They often weigh less than 20 lbs and you can carry them with a strap over your shoulder. If you have 120v power available, you can weld (perhaps a bit slowly depending on what you're doing) with stick and lift-arc tig. If you have 240, you can weld faster. Still not like a full size 300 amp machine of course, but compared to what it would take to get a full-size machine in place, it's worth some extra time. I work in nuclear power, and you would be amazed what gets done by pipefitters and boilermakers in difficult-to-access areas (which is a lot- basically all work inside containment, buildup and tube repairs inside vessels, overhead work, etc.) with these little machines.

 

[Toold_up]

The lunchbox welders made in Italy are really nice.

 

[Al Borland]

Older guy... learned to weld with torch, then stick, TIG, and MIG.
For sheet metal/bodywork, torch and fusion weld.
File fit the parts to **** together solidly.
Use a jeweler's torch and start at one end/corner. Heat till melting, and "push" your weld puddle along the joint.
You want to melt without burning thru. this is a "one and done" weld. Don't stop midway.
Practice on scrap and old fenders, once you "get it" it's easy.
Weld is the same hardness as the parent metal, and heat shouldn't warp the panel much.
No Hard or brittle weld means it's easier to straighten and warpage.
No panel overlap, no brazing flux to react with painting.

 

[ching0n]

If you go import MIG, make sure they go down low enough on the amps. I only recall hitbox brand going low enough in the price range when I was shopping.

For Plasma, I really like the "bestarc" from amazon. They have a nice fluxcore mig (w/gas option also) I may pick up too but fluxcore isn't great for thin stuff.

 

[PhantomEB]

Definitely go bigger than yo think you need. One day I will end up with a Miller 212 auto set.