thirdgen

iTrader: (26)

I bought a gas 110v hobart off of craigslist 20 minutes from my front door. The guy wanted like $400 for it, I offered him $325 and it was a done deal. It welds exhaust better than any welder I have ever used. I got a huge tank with it that was running on fumes and a ground clamp that was fucked up, but for $325 and craigslist? I'm surprised someone didn't offer me a transvestite bj to buy it!!!

ZX-Tex

iTrader: (15)

FWIW I have a Hobart Handler 187 (220V). I am really happy with it. I looked and looked for used stuff locally but could not find anything I liked, so I bought it at Tractor Supply. They had the best price locally at the time, cheaper than Northern. It is sitting on a Harbor Freight welding cart

http://www.tractorsupply.com/welding...welder-3807126
I do not remember paying that much for it so it must have been on sale. I think it was well under $600.

I built a setup with a junction box and a 40' extension cord so I can plug it into the dryer outlet (in the house) and still weld out in the driveway. Works well.

I am lusting after a spoolgun so I can weld aluminum, though I keep blowing it off because I know a guy with a really nice TIG that I can use pretty much whenever.

Rennkafer

iTrader: (3)

Don't count out used TIG welders if you ever really want to do nice aluminum work. While they are more expensive, the difference in weld quality is quite noticeable and they can be found for not a LOT more. I picked up my TIG (Miller Synchrowave 300) off of EBay for $650, and it had a brand new water cooled torch and lead cover. The only downside to an old-school TIG like mine is they're huge.

WonTon

iTrader: (17)

miller is my fav to use! they are a well set up machine that doesnt require alot of fine tuning. at my last job i had it set on one setting for the main job i did and left it there the pretty much for my 3 years i was there.

i have a lil lincoln 140HD its great for what i am doing with it ( i have only been able to use flux core so far till i can afford to get a bottle)

the only other welder i would consider is a ESAB (i used one in school and a buddy of mine had a one of the huge combo ones) it was pretty nice. but miller first, lincoln second

lordrigamus

iTrader: (14)

Hobart is a good brand too but you don't see a lot of them anymore.

+1 on the tig.

If I had to do it again, I would have saved up a little more and went that route. Weld quality is far superior and it's more controllable. The prices seem to be dropping, I've been watching the Miller 150 STHs and they seem to be gradually getting a little cheaper. If I had the money though, I would ****** up a 200 DX AC/DC in a hurry. It's a sweet machine.

******* 120 volt service is whats killing me. You can get some decent used 220v Tig units every now and again.

magnamx-5

iTrader: (7)

my grandfather used to be a black smith and did a ton of wrought iron work gates etc in his later years he always had a miller by his forge ever since i can remember. (And yeah he actualy had a forge it was so bad *** to watch him work.)

shlammed

iTrader: (8)

i have a miller DVI2 where you can change the end of the chord and it instantly goes from 120 to 220v... it works well and i think it is a feature that most of the new welders have.... mine is about 3 years old now.

i was informed by lincon when i was looking at welders that although they may be cheaper at places like HF or something, the internals are a step down.... some use a plastic wire feed or something compared to a metal one custom made to be cheap for those places.
they are replaceable but i would rather not have to right away.

jayc72

iTrader: (14)

I've got the Lincoln 180T and really like it, for the amateur I don't think you can go wrong. My brother is a professional welder and was impressed with how well it worked for a little machine.

clay

iTrader: (6)

Lincoln's lower end stuff you find at HD and Lowes will only have 4 settings for voltage instead of infinite adjustment. This is one thing I definitely want on my next machine as it comes in really handy.

Miller's lower end stuff doesn't have the Miller name so it can seem like Millers cost alot more than Lincoln, but carefully compare specs.

ZX-Tex

iTrader: (15)

Some guys I know who are TIG welders recommend that very same welder if one is looking for a used TIG.

dv/dt

This is the one I recently purchased. Great bang for the buck and a TON of power in a relatively small case.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...2663_200392663

clay

iTrader: (6)

This one just popped up on CL an hour ago. Deals are out there...
Millermatic 175 Mig Welder - $400

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

As much as I've been enamored by the general idea of TIG for some time, everything I have read and heard suggests that it is a more difficult process to learn to do well.

This has never made sense to me, since with TIG you have realtime control of current via the footpedal and totally independent control of wirefeed with your other hand- one of the things that bugs me about MIG is that you can't apply heat to a part without also applying filler material.

I cannot, for instance, imagine how hard electronic soldering would be if solder flowed out of the iron at a constant rate every time I touched the tip to a pad. To me, TIG seems like a much larger version of soldering, and I'm pretty damned good at that.

Granted, with TIG you have to have everything perfectly aligned and clamped down, since humans only have two arms. Is that the only reason why people think TIG is harder? Or is it really that hard to learn to maintain the correct arc gap with the torch?


Why not a Diversion 165? It's the same price as the 150STH, but it's AC/DC and also works on 120v.



Heh. I've got sort of the same problem (living in an apartment) however I at least have an electric dryer that's reasonably close to the garage (about a 40' cable run)
and worst-case, the breaker panel for my unit still has a couple of open slots in it, and it wouldn't be the first time I've cut holes through the walls and run wiring in this apartment complex.


Really? I mean, to be honest, it seems like just one more thing to fiddle with. I'm not sure that I'm awesome enough to deal with a fully variable control.


What name does it have on it, Stacy?

y8s

iTrader: (8)

get fully variable voltage control.

tig's not terribly difficult but it is TERRIBLY SLOW.

wayne_curr

iTrader: (8)

Get that Diversion 165. I've been wanting one for a long time but cant afford it. A buddy of mine has one and its awesome. I really like my mig, but i'd trade it for a tig any day.

ZX-Tex

iTrader: (15)

Yeah I can TIG aluminum and I have only done it once or twice. The guy whose welder I used was surprised at my bead quality (for a beginner). Not bragging, just making a point. Of course he set up the welder for me, handed me the right filler rod, etc. so I cheated a bit. The dexterity requirement IMO is very similar to soldering, with the foot pedal added in.

In other words, don't let the perceived difficulty stop you. Really it is not that bad, and you already have general fab skillz so you are not completely clueless going in. Plus, if you are going to weld aluminum, it is more difficult for reasons other than the type of welder you are using. The material has to be really clean, it sucks away heat from the weld zone very quickly, etc. That is true regardless of whether you use MIG or TIG.

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

I don't mind slow. In fact, I kind of prefer slow. Slow is easy to control.

I'm just trying to get a handle on why everyone says that TIG is a high-skill, difficult process.


I'm seriously considering it now. Figure if I'm gonna spend the money and buy a machine that I'll hopefully be using for the next 20 years, it might as well be a good one. Actually, the 180 is seriously calling my name. The cost difference between the two will be largely eaten up if I buy the foot pedal and run the 220v wiring for the 165 vs. running the 180 off of 110v (which will probably suffice for most of the work I'd be doing.)



I need to enroll in a welding course at the local community college...

wayne_curr

iTrader: (8)

Ya that 180 is exactly what I need for my garage. If I could afford it i'd go to the welding store today and buy it.

lordrigamus

iTrader: (14)

It's not, it's just different. Once you get the hang of it, it's as easy if not easier.

Agreed, you have complete control over both aspects, variable voltage and variable fill rate. I believe most welders would prefer a TIG for more critical work.

It pretty much is in practice, aside from the way the heat is generated and thicker, harder alloys. I'm sure you would excel at it.

Unless your an octoped, then you could have a beer, sandwich, watch tv, and start cleaning up early as well as hold your work and weld. I don't understand the stigma it has received either, it always seemed easier to me. You can rest your torch arm or wrist on something and maintain the arc gap just fine. Bigger items are slightly more difficult as they require a "freehand" approach but not impossible.

Because I'm lame and missed that episode of Gearz. Seriously, I never saw to many used ones for sale but you have reinvigorated my interest. I think it's time to change my search criteria and be on the lookout for one. It seems like a nice unit as per the specs and is cheaper than a 200DX. For what I would do with it, the amp output should be sufficient.

http://www.millerwelds.com/pdf/spec_sheets/AD1-5.pdf

LOL! Being on the top floor, I would have to tear up too much **** to get to the dryer. My landlord would kill me. Currently I'm restricted to the 120 exterior outlet and lots of extension cords. I gave up trying to weld upstairs a long time ago! Who knew carpet is that flammable?

Joe Perez

iTrader: (8)

**** it. My welder budget just tripled. Amazing how that **** works.



I was wrong- it's the 180 that runs on 120, the 165 is 240 only. (Seems oddly backwards.)

Are you trying to weld outside? Seems that any process which involves shielding gas would be a tad iffy.

I'm pretty fortunate, space-wise. My apartment is on the ground floor, and has an attached 2 car (tandem) garage. There's only one 120v outlet in it, but as I said, it's a short run to the 30A dryer outlet in the laundry room, and if I really wanted to get creative, the 50A range outlet is on the other side of the back wall on the garage.