Thread: Welder Reccomendations?

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Criteria

Price range- $250 preferably but 475 absolute max
Have no problem buying used if I have too but must be in good shape
uses- Exhaust, brush guards, bracketry, light work
Must plug in household wall outlet
will probably use 1-3 times a month maximum

I would love something capable of light chassis and suspension work but know that my budget limits me a lot. I will never build a frame from scratch or cut up a frame so I don't need something that radical.

Any suggestions? Thanks

Put a couple of bucks extra and buy a Hobart 140: Good machine for the money. I just sold a 135 Hobart because we didn't use it anymore since getting the Miller 210, but the 135 built a lot of stuff in the 4 years we had it.


Hobart MIG Welder - Handler 140 (115 Volt)
pad
Mfg Industrial Price: $607.00
Cyberweld Price: $509.00


I've bought a few welders from these guys, they are top notch in all respects and tough to beat on price. Here is their website:

http://store.cyberweld.com/hobmigwel.html

Don

Ya , It will be hard to find anything good for 250, It will definitely be USED. IMO ,save a little more to buy something better. I think you can get a small welder for about 450 dollars that will weld up to 1/4 thick out of a 110 wall outlet (flux core wire), and will weld thin sheet metal up to 3/16" thick. I have a Lincoln that I bought new and used it to weld some floor pans in my truck but ended up buying a big Miller mig welder and never used the smaller one again. My point is buy the best one you can afford.

Bigtruckdriver makes a very good point. There is no other piece of equipment that you will outgrow as fast as a welder, so buy one that will last your needs for the forseeable future, even if you have to save up a little longer. Everybody says they are only going to use it occasionally and only weld thin stuff, but it never ends up that way. Once you start using one the handiness of them makes you want to do more and more stuff.

I realize we all have budgets and not all of us need industrial quality equipment, but for a hundred bucks or so above the figure you mentioned you will get so much more use out of it.

Don

I also was low on funds but I needed a welder bad. See if you can get a credit card at one of the hardware retailers.Thats what I did and bought a Lincoln weldpak 3200 HD.I have abused the snot out of it with no problem as a flux welder doing bodywork welding.Never used the CO2,,,maybe don't know what I'm missing,,,,,,,,.

Yup, re do your budget and work a bit of overtime and get a quality welder. Tools and equipment are an investment, not an expense!!!!! Once you have one you'll use it a lot more then you think, no reason to wish you would have spent a few bucks more and got a good one......

I have an old Linde stick welder that I've had for 30+ years. It was my first welder and I keep it around in case I need to do something really heavy duty...

But the one that does 98% of the work in my garage is a Firepower FP130. It can be used as a regular MIG, or as a flux-core wire welder (which is how I use it). They may be a few bucks more now, but mine was $455 delivered to my door. It has a 35% duty cycle (which is very good for small welders) and plugs into an ordinary 110 volt wall outlet. It easily welds up to 1/4 inch plate steel. So far (4 1/2 years) it has been virtually maintenance free. A friend of mine borrowed it to use on a job once and liked it so well he bought one just like it. That was about a year and a half ago; he uses it as a regular MIG and loves it.

If you'll look in the newest Northern Tool Catalog they have new Northern "branded" machines that I am certain are Lincoln-125 Amp for $237.00, a 135 Amp for $313.00, and a 175 Amp for $436.00-all of these units have tapped voltage settings and include Gas Regulator, Hose and Tweco gun-

Biggest difference I could suggest would be to get a 220 volt rig---most 110 volt circuits are too low ampereage to weld with and you can fix up a 220 v one about as easy as you can run a higher amp 110---

Something everyone seems to be missing. Find the one you want then start haunting the local pawn shops. I bought a nearly new Lincoln 175 for 75$ complete with the mig conversion three years ago.

I have been welding for over 40 yrs. & prefer the 220 v MIG welders. When Mig welding it is sometimes difficult for a beginner to know how much penetration one is getting for anything thicker than sheet. You will be able to set the heat setting higher for better penetration w/a higher votage/amp machine. This is extremely important on thicker metals......like welding in a X-member.

On some areas like windshield post (when chopping a top) I prefer gas or TIG welding for penetration.

Good luck ! Don

I'm not sure about these ones but it's in the price range:

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...2691_200332691

I also checked around on some of the welding sites like this:

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/w...2691_200332691

They had a good link I'll try to find, cheapest prices around but they wouldn't ship to Canada so I deleted it from my list.

I also see these guys mentioned a lot, they have some cheaper reconditioned welders:

http://www.toolking.com/page/2/categ...g-welders.aspx

Sean.

Beware of the cheap units like Harbor Freight stiff. They are ok for thin sheet metal but for frame work you need 220v. If you use an extension cord with the 120v units it is a problem waiting to happen. If the welder does not go up in smoke sooner than later the welds will be the one to suffer.. My preference is Miller, Lincoln, Hobart & name brands. pick up the name brand in one hand and the economy model in the other. The name brand is usually heavier, this is due to copper windings versus aluminum. The copper windings will always win out in the end.
INMO it's better to pay a little more up front and only purchase the machine only once.

Bob

I am not a welder. Would not make a bump on a good welders asre. BUT, I am going to welding school and I'm learning. I do quite a bit in the pole barn here and am trying to get better, thats why I'm going to school. I can share what I know with ya. You can pick up a good AC/DC welder for about $400-500 new that are decent. Hobart makes one that sells at Tractor Supply. I have an old Miller Thunderbolt AC, and its fine but DC will produce a slicker looking weld, and you wont see blowby with those. 220 is much preferable to 110. I have a small mig. I have a Clarke 135. I have found this to be ok for medium steel 1/16-1/8th. You get into 3/8", you better have at least 180 amps, and be able to make multiple passes.For very thin metal this is not the best setup beacause it has very few settings for amps and wire feed. You need alot of settings like with a potentiometer, not a 4 position switch. So Im gonna say at least a settable 180 amp mig and a ac/dc welder, and your good to go. Just remember to practice alot. An ugly weld is an accident waiting to happen. Hope this helps.

Even if you have to save another month or so, get something that will be big enough to weld everything you think you ever will as far as thickness, then double it. I was on a very strict budget when I bought my little Lincoln because I also needed a bigger compressor at the same time. While I still use the heck out of my little "baby", it's another "I shoulda.......". Maybe someday I'll move up to a biggie

I'll go against some of the grain here and say that you should buy a known name brand. While the Northern might be a rebadged Lincoln, they do make other "adjustments" to keep the price down. It might be a lower duty cycle transformer or a 2 foot shorter lead, it's this kind of mod that can end up biting you where you sit for parts as these outfits like Northern move on. Stick with the Lincoln, Miller, Hobart, etc kind of welder and in a 220 volt application and you'll never be sorry.