Welder,

[bshillam]

So I have been doing a bit of research and have decided instead of paying someone to do something I could do I thought it might be time for a welder. I have read just about all I could on the net, watched videos, and thought I would reach out -
Anyone near Bellingham that could share some tips face to face? Show some basics? What would be your suggestion on the best welder for a beginner? I am looking for something to plug in to my 20 amp 110 plug here in the garage. Yes I have 220 but don't want to be tied to my garage. Inverter/transformer? Model/Make suggestions? One of my first projects is to weld on my new trailer and add a bumper cut and extend my tongue add a receiver to the back for cooler/wood rack, etc. I don't ever see needing to weld 1/4" - I find the thought of welding my own trailer build to be very enticing, I understand that I need to learn how to generate a good bead and penetration so the welds hold long term down the road with a lot of abuse. Heck I am even thinking of taking a few quarters at the local tech school. Thoughts and opinions? Thanks.

 

[tgreening]

As far as welders go you cant really go wrong with Red or Blue (Lincoln/Miller). My personal preference is Miller and thats pretty much all I run in my shops, home or business. Resist the urge to go to harbor freight.

There is only so much you can get done on 110 power, realistically anyway, so I'd also resist the urge to buy the cheaper 110 only units. Go for the dual voltage. I guarantee you will find something to use the extra capacity on. Once you start welding crap you will be surprised how fast you start finding stuff that just absolutely NEEDS to be welded. With the dual voltage you can run on the 110 anywhere you need, and the 220 when you have to.

Get a machine thats gas capable already.

Dont cheap out on the helmet. Do yourself a favor and buy a good auto-darkening hood and dont look back. You dont have to spend $400, but dont opt for the bargain basement $50 models. They're not worth it.

Go to the scrap yard nad pick up various thicknesses and types of scrap. Flat stock, angle, tube etc, and then go practice practice practice.

Youtube is your friend. There are a bazillion how-to videos that can get you started, and pics/videos are worth a thousand (+/-) words on a chat forum someplace.

Flip the switch and let the fun begin.

 

[jsexton]

Throw tan/orange into the mix too (hobart). Hobart is made by the same company that Miller is and they have good stuff. I have a Hobart Handler 190 and have been very happy with it. I would not get any smaller though. I mostly weld 1/8" - 1/4" stock. Like tgreening mentioned, a dual voltage machine might be a very good fit for you since you don't want to be tied to the garage. There are a few good ones in the 210A range. If you can afford it, go with one that can run shielding gas - welding with c20 is awesome. In my experience, it's quite a bit easier than welding with flux core wire.

 

[SoCal Tom]

I'm sure the guys above are right, and are probably much better welders than I am, but about 10 years ago we bought the 125 amp Home Depot lincoln and loaded it with flux core wire. Mainly because we wanted it to run off of the 4KW generator in our RV easily to use on repairs on our desert toys. Its not used much lately as we don't go out as often and sold most of the toys, but it was very handy to use and we built a lot of stuff with it. If you are working with stuff under 1/4 thick then this is a good cheap welder. We already had a larger AC ( stick) welder for thicker metal, so having larger capacity wasn't a big deal. Flux core welding isn't as clean as using gas in a nice shop, but I was able to do better welds than I expected with the flux core. ( If you are welding previously painted surfaces, you have to do a good job of cleaning them before you weld or it doesn't matter what you use)
Tom

 

[Herbie]

Yeah, there's both sides. A good welder will make you into a better... welder. But having a welder is better than no welder. I learned a lot on an old italian-made Sip that I got from a friend who'd upgraded. Until it finally died, I was doing pretty well with that piece of crap.

 

[SoCal Tom]

Yeah, there's both sides. A good welder will make you into a better... welder. But having a welder is better than no welder. I learned a lot on an old italian-made Sip that I got from a friend who'd upgraded. Until it finally died, I was doing pretty well with that piece of crap.

My original PoC was one of the 90amp Harbor Freight welders someone gave me. I didn't realize how bad that thing was until we got the Lincoln. I never got a decent weld from it. It wasn't worth what I paid for it, and it was free!
Tom

 

[Airmapper]

You really won't have good results with a 120v welder, if you really want to take on some projects, I'd reconsider 220v.

You do not need to be confined to a garage with 220v if you have a plug in the garage, I'm not. I have a 50 foot extension cord, and some folks will gasp and say, oh not that, but yes, you can quite safely extend a welder, but you MUST use the proper size cable. I think mine is 8 gauge wire. They are not cheap, but having one, it's very nice to be able to head out well past the garage apron if needed.

As for a welder, take a look at the Thermal Arc Fabricators. If you insist on staying small, check out the 181i Fabricator, which you can pack around with a handle. That in conjunction with the extension cord, you'll be very portable.

http://victortechnologies.com/Thermal Arc 3in1/Fabricator 181i/product_features.php

If you look those welders up, you'll see its multi process. That means you can stick or MIG, whichever suits your situation. You can even TIG if you want to buy attachments. (But not aluminum, it is DC TIG only, unless you want to buy pure Helium, or so I hear.) Anyway, the advantage to that is I keep both rods and wire around. If I run out of gas, switch a lead and press a button, and I can still stick weld any time.

I have the largest of the Fabricators, a 252i. These are inverter welders, light, small, but stout. (Without the full size spool in it I can easily lift the 252i by myself, but I have it on a cart. They weld very smooth. My Dad is a welder by trade and got me all set up with my rig. When I first got it we were comparing it with a transformer buzz box (AC/DC) he got to use on farm equipment, the inverter welds much smoother.

 

[bshillam]

Great suggestions so far, I am trying to take it all in. I'll be checking with the local welding supply store next week and see if I can get in on some classes and gain some experience prior to purchase. Sometimes though we just have to teach ourselves - it's more trial and error but in the end it's just as rewarding taking responsibility and educating ourselves through practice.

 

[stingray1300]

26 years as an union Ironworker allowed me to weld with just about everything out there. In my personal shop at home (my current business), I have a Lincoln 140C MIG/wire feeder, a Miller AC/DC TIG welder, Miller plasma cutter. Miller is the choice for everything but the wire feeder. Nearly all union companies use the Lincoln wire feeder. They just hold up better (the new Hobarts are junk). Don't but anything "Chinese".
.
If you're on a budget, get a used machine. DO get the CO2/argon bottle/gauge so you can run MIG, you'll be much happier with the results. Only use flux core on welds that are not going to experience lateral stresses unless the weldments and points are engineered for the NR211 wire (the only flux core available in 030"/.035" sized wires. NR211 is brittle, and needs gusseting or proper engineering, otherwise the weld can break (note the freeway weld failures in the LA earthquake in '91 - welded with NR211. All would have been fine if the points had been engineered properly)
.
The key to learning to weld is the 'burn mass quantities of wire/stick'. FWIW, I've welded 1/2" iron with my 140C. Easy to do if you follow accepted protocols (multiple pass CP welds).
.
If you have any questions, you're welcome to PM me.

 

[I Leak Oil]

Yes, you can get good results with a 110v welder. They are great for the thinner materials, can weld thicker materials and easier to get into tight spaces with. If you plan on doing a lot of heavier materials then consider upsizing. Like anything else, if you run a machine at max capacity often it is likely to wear out quickly. As has been stated in one way or another, what ever machine you get, this is one tool you cannot really go cheap on. You simply won't be happy with it.

Ultimately, you must practice with it to get better at it. You will make mistakes and you will waste materials and gas but there is no way to get better watching a DVD or having your welding expert neighbor show you. YOU must put in the trigger time.

Good stuff so have at it!

 

[ripperj]

I second the Tweco Fabricator line if you get a 211, it's 110 or 220v, but it's $1200 vice $799 for the 181 ( 220v only)
when you buy a 181 or bigger they give a coupon for a nice electronic weld mask.
These welders are gas mig, stick and DC Tig ( no aluminum)

Sent from my Z10 using Tapatalk 2

 

[ripperj]

I did buy an aluminum spool gun for my 181, but have not tried it. My opinion on the Fabricator mostly comes from friends and online. I sold my big Miller Mig and Econo Tig to get the 181 as I really didn't need a huge Mig machine
Any more and wanted the room.

Sent from my Z10 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Stumpalump]

I bought a 50' RV extension cord because it was cheaper than buying the wire. I wired one end directly into my miller 180 and put a house hold dryer plug on the other. I made up a 30' extension cord with the same recepticle and plug. 80' from any dryer plug has been good enough for me for years. As far as size..... I've never heard anybody say that they wish they had a smaller welder. For those that need 110 portable for use on a generator then you want a tiny cheap flux core. You will grind it and fix it nice when you get home anyway.

 

[tgreening]

I'd buy a Hobart over any China based unit, but I'd still take a Miller. Yes they were made by the same company. To be honest I dont know who owns what anymore because I've ceased to care, but when Miller was its own thing Hobarts were made in the same plant on a line right next to the Millers. Biggest difference then was Hobart used a lot of aluminum where Miller used copper. They were the Hobby Line of the hobby line. When ITW purchased everything it was still that way. The who and what these days I'm not sure of. I've toured the shop and it was interesting to watch, but its been a lot of years now.

My personal opinion is Tweeco should stick to making guns and leave the welders to Miller and Lincoln, but in large part thats because I'm a Miller fan boy, and as far as I remember Tweeco doesnt make any 1500 amp machines.

 

[MrWesson]

I regret buying a flux core because welding in the garage its hard to get the ventilation I am comfortable with.

I wanted a mig but wasn't prepared to spend real money on something I wasn't sure I'd use and the used market is weak for them here.