Welders.... what are you rockin

[mattdk318i]

Im a welder by occupation, But heres my home units. i dont have pics of my MIG machine. But it welds Aluminum and Mild Steel. So between the 2 i can perform 4 welding processes on around 6 types of metal

[LINUS]

Jscotty - you need to figure out if the expenditure for a welding rig will pay off, or not. I suggest anyone take a community college class, as you get to burn more in rod/wire and misc. than what it would cost you in real lie to learn on.

I've been through 3 classes at the local CC. - 2 were paid for by my employer, but still worth it if it wasn't. You learn to use a generic welder, and you get a "over the shoulder" perspective on what you are doing.

Def worth it.

Plus, in my case, I build so much of my housing & other hobby stuff using my welder(s), it just is near mandatory.

Other hobbys include:

-R/C cars
-Homebrewing beer & a little wine
-Various auto stuff (Duh, E30 - but I also have 2 4x4's)
-Gunsmithing (just starting)
-Espresso Machine repair & nearing the start of building from scratch.
-ORV vechicles in general (have a quad & a bike)
-Home audio (nobody makes the size audio racks I need.)
-Furniture making (ex left me, so I can do anything I want now)

In reality, if you buy a welder - you'll find a ton of uses, and you will think you were pretty tricky when you can repair something yourself, like old world craftsmen did. Repair is becoming a lost art these days. Plus anything you make yourself is something you can call yours. If you buy someone else's work you are just an owner.

But taking a class, and getting a 220v MIG & going solid core wire, Blueshield 8 gas will give you a lot of options.

[Jscotty]

When it comes to welding, I am a total wuss. Up until this point I have been too much of a punk to even try it. But after watching some of the programming on Discovery and TLC I think that I have been able to build up enough fortitude to get into this.

Should I take a class on welding? Or is welding an easy idiot-proof trade that anyone can do and perfect with practice?

A while back I had a guy come over and re-weld some of my wrought iron backyard furniture. We got to talking and I mentioned that he made it look easy. The guy told me that welding is actually as easy as it looks but I am not buying that-

I mean on one hand I'd like to think that he knows what he is talking about but on the other hand when you have been doing a particular trade for a long time, the things that you learn become second nature. So I'd like to believe that welding is easy but I do not want to be so foolish about it that there are things I ought to know before attempting to do it on my own without any advice.

[SoCal Life]

Millermatic 175 on Steel mix. This system rocks for what I use it for. Welds up to 1/4 and works great!!

Doesn't hurt that I work for Grainger (Click to see Welder)so I get it at cost!!

I have a Miller 110V unit that I love. I run it with gas, and can do anything up to about 3/16 (units rated thickness). If it isn't load carrying, I can hit up to 1/4 with a double or triple run. I wish I had a 220V unit, but so far with the correct heating and method of welding the 110V unit has been totally adequate.

[AndrewBird]

We currently have an older Lincoln flux core 110v that has done us well. Has worked great, even after having a boat trailer fall on it and smash it. They are tough little units.

While I agree with what Linus said about 110 not giving enough penetration, I find that for all of projects, it does just fine for what I need it for. What you should look at is what are YOU going to be using the welder for,and then find one that is capable of what you need. A 110 unit might be enough for you.

As far as brands go, Lincoln or Miller are really the best. I personally like Lincoln better, but Miller makes a great product, no doubt.

I found this interesting:

http://content.lincolnelectric.com/pdfs/products/literature/e7242.pdf

[LINUS]

Thanks for the input! Looking for a miller unit as we speak....

I'd be more concerned with the 220v thing than the Miller thing, but you really can't go wrong with any Miller less than a decade old, they build Millers pretty tough.

I couldn't afford a new Tig like what I have, so I bought a "shipping damaged" one off fleabay for under $600 (it's like $1500 NIB). The damage was carefully hidden in the auction (bastards), and if I had seen how bad it was, I wouldn't have touched it, because what I got was so badly beaten, I expected it to be dead.

The plate steel frame is a "c" channel, and was really deformed on all corners to the point the channel was totally folded, and it hit whatever so hard the magnetic transformer inside had dished the flat area of the metal a good 3/16"!

I wasn't going to put any effort at all in in it, so I just hooked it up & if it was dead, it was going back.

Amazingly enough, everything worked like a champ. To illustrate how deformed the chassis was, the cooling fan that should be just over 1/2" away from the back vent was hitting the blades on the endcap, and that was because of all the dish is the center area where it dished down on impact. I bet the box it was in fell from at least 25' feet to a nearly square landing.

Part of what saved this welder had to be how Miller hot-glue encased a lot of the circuitry, so even this fall didn't kill any of the circuit board stuff, and in a complex multi-process like this, there is plenty. I know this machine saw some shock too, as the circuit boards had popped cleanly away from their sturdy clip-in mounts, but no other inner faults at all.

So since it worked, I spent $100 for a new baseplate, and hammered out the tin bodywork.

My experience with that machine has made me personally a Miller customer for a long, long time. At least until they sell out to a company that kills the quality built into the machines.

You should be more than happy getting a Miller 220v MIG unit for your first & possibly last welder.

[LINUS]

Show off. I know who to call if i need something welded... hehe

Nahh, I'm no showoff, actually more than happy to keep my stuff to myself, but in a thread like this - it's best to show you know a little of that which you speak.

No probs on the weld thing either. Bring me some Full Sail or Rogue beers and it's a deal. Will do minor work for beer.

[thectrlguy]

Thanks for the input! Looking for a miller unit as we speak....

My setup:

It's a 220V MIG , and a 220V multi-process (stick & TIG).

I've personally used a Hobart Handler, and a Lincoln 110v unit, and I didn't like either. I've also had the Hobart owner use my 220v MIG, and it was because you just don't get decent heat penetration over 1/8" in our experience with a 110v unit. So he (Hobart guy) brought one entire project to my place, and slapped some cash on my counter to cover his gas & power.

I've got nothing against Hobart, actually they were owned by Miller last I knew - I just don't think a 110v welder has a purpose outside of pure autobody work.

Also, if you think you will use the heck out of a machine, then find out what the cost of various consumables will be. Tips most importantly, then gas cups & then the poly bushng most MIG welders hold the gas cup with - those are the biggies that nickel & dime you.

Also, if you are only MIGing, look at the auto-dark hoods in just shade 10. They are quite reasonable, and well worth the money. I know the line-up for Speedglass by heart (have a 9002x myself), but I hear the Miller hood at full shade has a nicer color tint to it, never yet used one - but if my 9002x ever "gives up the ghost", then I know I'll look at the Miller lineup.

That said, I have a Speedglass Utility (a shade 3/10) inner cassette I'd sell for $100 shipped.

But stretch your budget on the welder first, then worry about a hood. You need a 220v unit if you plan anything outside of autobody work. Find a used Miller Challenger (if you can) on fleabay, it's worth it.

[backtrail69]

Show off. I know who to call if i need something welded... hehe

[LINUS]

My setup:



It's a 220V MIG , and a 220V multi-process (stick & TIG).

I've personally used a Hobart Handler, and a Lincoln 110v unit, and I didn't like either. I've also had the Hobart owner use my 220v MIG, and it was because you just don't get decent heat penetration over 1/8" in our experience with a 110v unit. So he (Hobart guy) brought one entire project to my place, and slapped some cash on my counter to cover his gas & power.

I've got nothing against Hobart, actually they were owned by Miller last I knew - I just don't think a 110v welder has a purpose outside of pure autobody work.

Also, if you think you will use the heck out of a machine, then find out what the cost of various consumables will be. Tips most importantly, then gas cups & then the poly bushng most MIG welders hold the gas cup with - those are the biggies that nickel & dime you.

Also, if you are only MIGing, look at the auto-dark hoods in just shade 10. They are quite reasonable, and well worth the money. I know the line-up for Speedglass by heart (have a 9002x myself), but I hear the Miller hood at full shade has a nicer color tint to it, never yet used one - but if my 9002x ever "gives up the ghost", then I know I'll look at the Miller lineup.

That said, I have a Speedglass Utility (a shade 3/10) inner cassette I'd sell for $100 shipped.

But stretch your budget on the welder first, then worry about a hood. You need a 220v unit if you plan anything outside of autobody work. Find a used Miller Challenger (if you can) on fleabay, it's worth it.

[thectrlguy]

Basically as it states, what are you using and why....

I'm looking at this unit...

http://cgi.ebay.com/HOBART-HANDLER-140-MIG-WELDER-WITH-CART-500505-NEW_W0QQitemZ130140272426QQihZ003QQcategoryZ113743QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem