Welder for D-I-Y

[JLSAG05]

Hey guys, what specs on a welder do you suggest for the tripods and feeders yall are building. I'm looking into buying one soon, don't know too much about them but the bare basics and don't want the guy at AIRGAS to sell me more than I need. Just curious what specs and brand you pro D-I-Yer's suggest. I will use it for for stands, feeders and the occasional home project and light farm work. Thanks in advance.

[Hog_Hunter]

I use an ARC welder for just about everything.

[Bill]

I'm not a tradesperson, so I bought a $100 mig welder at Anchor Freight. It's 100 amp and does not have the inert gas tank hookup. More amperage and the gas raise the price. You definately get what you pay for. The welds are not pretty at all, but they're holding things together.

Get one of the helmets with the automatic lens that darkens when you strike the arc. I got one for my son for Christmas and use it now myself and it makes welding much easier.

2 cents advice from a welding novice.

[Problem Child]

A wire fed mig is the way to go. You can pick up a small 120 volt mig in the $500.00 range. I have a one I picked up at Home Depot and it has handled every project that I have needed welding for.

[Dale Moser]

Miller makes the best wire feeds, Lincoln makes the best stick rigs. For your purposes (basicly the same as mine) wire is the way to go. The argon hookup makes everything easy, but flux core wire, without gas will do anything you need. Plus it can be used outside in the wind with no ill effects.

I've not used one but I've heard good things about Hobart welders and they don't cost as much as Miller or Lincoln. I can't imagine they wouldn't be just fine for what you want to do. If you've got the power a 220v box is nice to have but 110v will build any deer feeder, pipe fence, or skinnin rack you could need, they just use more juice that way.

Check out www.northerntool.com

[Texastaxi]

Dale, I think my little lunch box welder is a Hobart.

I picked it up at Lowe's for about $100 ... knowing NOTHING about welding. It's a flux core machine without the gas hookup. It didn't take long before I was sticking metal together, mainly because the machine is SO simple and doesn't have a bunch of knobs, switches or gizmos. I've used it to build all kinds of stuff. I know I've got a long way to go before my welds are "pretty", but they hold. For the price, I don't think a beginer can go wrong!

[Joey~AP]

I use a Hobart w/ flux core.

Easy to use. Heat range corresponds to steel thickness. Just make sure you can see it penetrating bothe pieces of metal as you weld. If it dont.....I wouldnt climb on er.

Run a test weld to get yer speed rite.

[jta]

Miller 135 is a great little wire welder. Everything i use it on has held.

[Wayno]

I'm lucky

I must be the luckiest guy on here. My dad is a welder by trade, so anything I need like this, I get done by a pro, and my prices can't be beat either...FREE! He was reminding me and my brother-in-law this past weekend of how we are going to miss him when he is gone. He's right, in more ways than one.

[Dale Moser]

BTW the one I use is a Miller 175. I've done some stuff here at work that HAS TO BE stout, out of 1/2" and some a fuzz bigger, and have had zero problems.

People will tell you, and have told me that this rig isn't big enough for "High test/heavy duty" stuff. They're full of it, or don't know how to weld.

[Bill]

Like most other hardware and hunting gear, you get what you pay for. My $100 mig (in my hands) does not make pretty welds. As my son's friend said in the waterfowl refuge when I pointed out the ugly welds on the cart I built, "there's no points for pretty out here".

I'd watch craigslist in your area, you may find a used pro quality mig for sale at a good price. My son and I did that when he needed power tools for a summer job doing framing. He has all used Milwaukee stuff for less than Dewalt at Home Depot.

[RR 314]

I know you guys love the wire welders, and they certainly are easy to learn with, not to mention very easy to use when welding light gauge metal. I still prefer the stick welder for beginning welders as I believe it makes you a better/safer welder. I have seen a lot of welds with no penetration with gobbs of bead/slag with beginners using the stick, but if you begin with a stick I believe you truly can be a better welder with stick or wire as you progress. I realize the logic may not follow and why start with a stick when you ultimately want to end up with a wire welder? Good question, and that is one you will have to answer. As far as price, you can pick up a used AC/DC 220v stick welder for a couple hundred bucks and are ready to start (learning how to) weld.

I have been looking at Dale's projects over the years and he certainly is a good welder with the Millermatic 175. The problem I see with novices starting off with the wire welders is if you buy the most inexpensive wire welders out there (knock off brands with 110 v--certainly the Miller(matics) are excluded from this list and are great machines) you simply cannot get enough penetration--IMHO--to safely weld some of the heavier metals.

I made some towers with 4" galvanized angle and I may catch grief, but you cannot get enough penetration with a crackerbox wire welder. Just so there is no confusion, the Millermatics mentioned above would be suited for this work, but again, you are looking at $900 on the low end (135) for a set up, on the way to several thousand dollars, even if you don't get set up for aluminum. If you want an inexpensive set up, I would go for the trusty old stick and spend some time in the shop with scraps learing how to weld. If you do sheetmetal (light), forget the stick and move up to the wire welders.

I hope not to start a stick v. wire thread, but do think you should consider a good and inexpensive stick welder if money is a concern, especially if you want to make stands and trust your safety to your welds. Pick up a good angle grinder and slag hammer and have at it.

[Big_gun]

I have a craftsman welder (don't know who makes it for Sears) and it has done fine. I believe I have about $275 in it....All I use is flux core wire BUT it does have gas hookups. up to 3/16" single pass had the highest cycle rate of all the " cracker box" units I looked at.

[Dale Moser]

RR 314, I can't disagree with one word of that either!

[expressfish]

if you go with 110v , go with a wire fed, they burn hotter than a stick. anything more than 3/16 will be hard to get good penetration tho. I have two cracker boxes, one 110v and other 220v.......nice to have when 220 plug not in reach. oh and the wire and plugs to make an extension cord aint cheap either !!! geez theres another 70-100 bucks