Welder/Welding advice

[njc110381]

Hey guys. I'm looking for a bit of advice and I'm sure we must have one or two keen hobby or pro fabricators on here somewhere. I was wondering if any of you could offer me your opinions?

 

For some time now I've been thinking of buying a half decent welder. I like doing basic fabrication and have taught myself to do a fairly strong but messy weld with my £45 Machine Mart arc welder. I would like to upgrade to a mig of decent hobby quality because I know the one I have is pretty pants - you get what you pay for and the one I have is as cheap as they come!

 

I'm looking to weld some quite heavy material - mainly steel up to 6mm thick I would say. Budget is unknown as I'm not really sure what these things cost but I'm looking for a half decent make (doesn't need to be pro quality but a good usable DIY machine). I guess I need to be able to go up to what, 150-180 amps to do the thickness I may want to?

 

So, what's out there? I have no idea and I don't want to go out and spend a fortune (or not enough) on something that's not really adequate for the job. There are loads of makes out there, some good value for money and some overpriced junk I expect?!

[paul99]

Hey guys. I'm looking for a bit of advice and I'm sure we must have one or two keen hobby or pro fabricators on here somewhere. I was wondering if any of you could offer me your opinions?

 

For some time now I've been thinking of buying a half decent welder. I like doing basic fabrication and have taught myself to do a fairly strong but messy weld with my £45 Machine Mart arc welder. I would like to upgrade to a mig of decent hobby quality because I know the one I have is pretty pants - you get what you pay for and the one I have is as cheap as they come!

 

I'm looking to weld some quite heavy material - mainly steel up to 6mm thick I would say. Budget is unknown as I'm not really sure what these things cost but I'm looking for a half decent make (doesn't need to be pro quality but a good usable DIY machine). I guess I need to be able to go up to what, 150-180 amps to do the thickness I may want to?

 

So, what's out there? I have no idea and I don't want to go out and spend a fortune (or not enough) on something that's not really adequate for the job. There are loads of makes out there, some good value for money and some overpriced junk I expect?!

 

Spooky - I'm in the exact same boat as you njc and down to just about every last detail. I have been reading around alot lately trying to come to a decision. Thus far it seems Portamig (185, 215 or 235) stands out as fitting my / your needs but will be keeping a close eye on this thread to see what else crops up...

[mark a]

if your going to use a single phase machine i would stick to the arc welder,a hobby mig wont weld 6mm plate very well you wont get the penertration.

a single phase hobby mig is ok up to about 3mm maybe 4mm at a push.

if you do decide to buy a hobby type machine look for the duty cycle,you want 60% or more anything lower thans this and your wasting your time and money.

hope this helps.

mark

[stavvy]

http://www.wellyweld.com/products/kemppi-minarcmig-evo-200-package-72675.aspx

 

This is, in my opinion the best mini mig you can buy. I've got one in the workshop along with a 3 phase beast and for everything 6mm and below we use this one every time.

 

Edited as the original link was for a TIG

Edited October 14, 2012 by stavvy

[njc110381]

The one in that link is well over budget. I'm looking at spending less than half that if possible (either that or I may not bother!).

 

It's only for hobby use. I was hoping I may find something in the £300ish range. Am I expecting too much?

[gixer1]

Neil,

 

I have a Clarke 130 mig ( gas or gasless - but I use it as gasless with flux cored wire) and its perfect for hobby stuff, I've welded up trailers, high seats (pics on here somewhere) and cars with them no problem at all, they are around the 275 quid mark.

 

The real difference between that and the likes of an sip machine is the fact you cannot do a long run of weld such as a foot long run but how often do you really expect to be doing that?

 

I can't see many home welds being NDT tested!

 

Regards,

Gixer

Edited October 14, 2012 by gixer1

[njc110381]

I've been looking at the 151EN and the 160TE. I'm beginning to get the feeling that most people who do this sort of thing for a living will have given up with this topic when I suggested my budget! I wonder if the 130 would have enough power? I could always use my arc welder for the thicker stuff as it's not really worth selling. I just want something with more control to be honest.

[mfletch]

I will second portamig good copper transformers

 

http://www.weldequip.com/portamig-mig-welders.htm

[dan-250]

Keep an eye on a good second hand one. We have one similar to this on the famous auction site, item number 221138716871, supermig, Clarke, sealey stuff isn't bad.

 

Another 400326680889

Edited October 14, 2012 by dan-250

[la bala]

if you have a tight budget mate and want to weld 6mm, get a second hand arc welder.

Edited October 14, 2012 by la bala

[Alex C]

Stick to the Arc Welder. Everytime i go to use my MIG the gas bottle has emptied itself or the wire has corroded and knackers the liner in the whip, its more hassle than its worth.

 

Get your self some decent 4mm welding rods, not the easy arc ones that Machine mart sell and practice. The arc welder will weld as thick as you want if you bevel the edges of the plates you want to clag together and lay down weld runs in multiples.

 

A little tip for a novice is to keep the power as low as you can, if you crank up the power it will spit and throw spatter all over your work piece.Build up a pool and let the rod burn itself away slowly.

 

Good Luck

[lumpy]

Any 160/180 amp mig set will be fine just make sure whatever you get has a cooling fan (thermal cutout switches suck) make sure you can get hold of co2 or argoshield as some suppliers insist on having an account, AVIOD gasless welders they are **** !

[Paddy Galore!]

i've got a fronius trans pocket dc arc welder, it's the tits, very light too so you can carry the thing about by the strap over your shoulder all day long, it's about the size of a brief case, it'll also weld 1/2" plate digger buckets all day long too.

[kent]

the new inverter welders are fab. In the old days (ex-pro welder) 240 v MMA sets said 160 amp but only gave that for a nano second and realy gave about 130 at best but faded with use. I have an ESAB buddy arc 180 here and its great realy powerfull no descernable fade, hot start and also acts as a scratch set TIG if you buy the torch and bottle gear. Cored wire DIY mig kits are useless for you requirements. it about fits the £300 budjet at trade but not 100% sure of price. One thing you will need is plenty 13 amp plug fuses as realy they need 15 amp unavailable in UK.

 

If your not in a time constaint possision or need to do a fair bit outside forget mig. TIG is better for non ferrous and thin stuff and MMA is still the king outside

[The Essex Hunter]

Hey guys. I'm looking for a bit of advice and I'm sure we must have one or two keen hobby or pro fabricators on here somewhere. I was wondering if any of you could offer me your opinions?

 

For some time now I've been thinking of buying a half decent welder. I like doing basic fabrication and have taught myself to do a fairly strong but messy weld with my £45 Machine Mart arc welder. I would like to upgrade to a mig of decent hobby quality because I know the one I have is pretty pants - you get what you pay for and the one I have is as cheap as they come!

 

I'm looking to weld some quite heavy material - mainly steel up to 6mm thick I would say. Budget is unknown as I'm not really sure what these things cost but I'm looking for a half decent make (doesn't need to be pro quality but a good usable DIY machine). I guess I need to be able to go up to what, 150-180 amps to do the thickness I may want to?

 

So, what's out there? I have no idea and I don't want to go out and spend a fortune (or not enough) on something that's not really adequate for the job. There are loads of makes out there, some good value for money and some overpriced junk I expect?!

 

Look up your local BOC firm as a friend picked up a 195 amp mig the had as a x demo for £275.00!! work a look around as they have to move stock

 

 

TEH

[gixer1]

What a load of cack about gasless and cored wire being no use for hobby applications - they are absolutely fine for this.

 

Neil, I have literally welded up hundreds of things with mine and its fine for occasional small projects such as highseats and trailers.

 

It's your money of course so pay a premium for a top notch welder to sit in the garage doing nothing for 95% of the time!

 

Regards,

Gixer

Edited October 14, 2012 by gixer1

[Albert 888]

I have done ouite a bit of home diy welding with a 130 gas mig welder ok for cars and small gauge upto 4mm.If you are doing 5mm-6mm upwards i would recomend using 3.2mm vodex rods maybe 4mm if enough amps and an old type weld if you can get one ie no fans and cutout switchs,think they are oil filled.I also weld a lot at work with mma stick if you will,genset and bench work but thease will be way out of a diy budget price range. As said above a good prep job and a small gap will give a starting point for you a good route weld.

[kent]

Albert888 makes a good point about prep, you can weld practically anything with a light set IF you know how to prep the joint correctly and bags of time to complete the task. I am not lacking in my knoledge of cored wire mig sets, we have one here- its pants though someone who didn't know better might think his weld looked good. Some of the more upmarket pro sets are passable with cored wire but its more a case of fewer persons being trained in MMA (stick) these days that have made them more popular sellers. If you have 1k to spend you can get a dandy MIG set that will work ok with cored wire and weld thicker plate but sub £300 forget it and every pro welder would use it with gas unless he was outdoors in a wind

[Albert 888]

What a load of cack about gasless and cored wire being no use for hobby applications - they are absolutely fine for this.

 

Neil, I have literally welded up hundreds of things with mine and its fine for occasional small projects such as highseats and trailers.

 

It's your money of course so pay a premium for a top notch welder to sit in the garage doing nothing for 95% of the time!

 

Regards,

Gixer

Albert888 makes a good point about prep, you can weld practically anything with a light set IF you know how to prep the joint correctly and bags of time to complete the task. I am not lacking in my knoledge of cored wire mig sets, we have one here- its pants though someone who didn't know better might think his weld looked good. Some of the more upmarket pro sets are passable with cored wire but its more a case of fewer persons being trained in MMA (stick) these days that have made them more popular sellers. If you have 1k to spend you can get a dandy MIG set that will work ok with cored wire and weld thicker plate but sub £300 forget it and every pro welder would use it with gas unless he was outdoors in a wind

I have a old gas 130amp mig welder thats good on small stuff.But cant touch the quality of a average stick welder for penatration and quality welding on larger stuff. I have used gasless mig welders and its like welding with solid wire without gas.

[Beretta28g]

I have a Tig that will do Arc too, usually i just use Tig, and can usually do very passable welds.

 

Welder cost £50 second hand. i have welded 6mm no probs

[kent]

I have a Tig that will do Arc too, usually i just use Tig, and can usually do very passable welds.

 

Welder cost £50 second hand. i have welded 6mm no probs

 

thats very cheap considering what a TIG torch pipes gauges etc cost alone, but this is a very versitle set up. I certainly shouldnt set out looking to get a TIG /MMA set for this sort of budjet. TIG is ideal for producing neat little welds and handy for so many gunsmithing tasks. its not generally known these days but MMA is good for all sorts of non-ferrous work in small quantities

[njc110381]

I struggle with the arc welder because the stick length makes me unsteady. I cut the rods in half which helps but I don't do it enough to get good. I figured the compact style of the mig torch would help with that?

[Albert 888]

I struggle with the arc welder because the stick length makes me unsteady. I cut the rods in half which helps but I don't do it enough to get good. I figured the compact style of the mig torch would help with that?

Easy fix. welding gauntlets hold rod half way down and move hand slowly up the rod.A natural shake is like a pro weave,which is what you want when caping fillng a weld with stick. or rest your elbow if you can,welding lead over the sholder relieves weight from the tourch.cutting rods in half causes flux damage wich will case porositty-slag inclusions and will be hard to get the rod welding. Another tip,weld on a piece of scrap to warm the rod first then move onto the area you would like to weld this will reduce strike up marks and spatter..As you progress you will get the feel and the sounds of a good weld.

[gixer1]

 

 

thats very cheap considering what a TIG torch pipes gauges etc cost alone, but this is a very versitle set up. I certainly shouldnt set out looking to get a TIG /MMA set for this sort of budjet. TIG is ideal for producing neat little welds and handy for so many gunsmithing tasks. its not generally known these days but MMA is good for all sorts of non-ferrous work in small quantities

 

Kent,

 

"black"....

[paul99]

A word of warning about inverter based machines - unless you have a BIG budget you will only get a chinese made machine that will cost more to fix should something go wrong than what the machine is worth. I believe a few companies are importing chinese inverters and re-working them but I am still wary of them - 5 or 6 years ago I bought an inverter based HF start Tig & mma set (gysmi) reviews at the time were good and to be fair for 2 years I couldn't fault and there was very little it couldn't do from 1mm up to 7mm or so with 4mm rods in mma mode. Then one day for no reason it packed up without warning. Off to the local welder repair shop who after pricing up the replacement circuit boards said don't bother it would be cheaper to buy a whole new machine so that was that £500 or so down the drain - I still have the dead machine on a shelf in the shed as a reminder never to go near cheap chinese **** again. Do your homework if you're thinking of an inverter based machine - a search for the machine I had shows that I'm a long way from being the only one to suffer sudden welder death. I've survived since using an ancient 130amp buzz box mma and has served me very well indeed despite some very severe limitations, pathetic duty cycle being the biggest one, but to be fair its outlasted the tig inverter by probably 20 years already and shows no sign of dieing yet so for me old technology, as heavy and cumbersome as it maybe, is the only way forward.

Edited October 14, 2012 by paul99