Advise / Opinions to Sell and Buy Welder

[jaxs]

New toys are fun when you can afford them but you've said you are on a budget. That coupled with indesisions on what kind of work you will primarly do is reason for keeping the stick for now. Try 3/32 7014 rods on some thin metal. The rod restart's without busting slag so you can tack-skip-tack-skip to avoid warp and burn through on thin sheet metal. It's difficult to stick 7014 so they will work while you train muscle memory, control and coordination. Putting a cotton cloth "curtain" on back of hood will help you see better. It's hard doing much without oxy/fuel torch so I suggest that might be your next purchase. Oxygen/propane will do everything acetylene will EXCEPT WELD,but very few people gas weld even if they have the means. One 20 pound grill bottle of propane will last longer than $150 worth acetylene for cutting,heat & bend,braze and solder. I built an air/propane burner-torch from scrap for heating large items and limited forging. It uses same hose,bottle and regulator as my oxy/fuel torch.

 

[Spike56]

Eric, Thanks very much ! That was a great summary !!
I am still leaning hard to get the Everlast i-200 MiG machine instead of keeping the Miller Thunderbolt and buying a separate MiG. While I can see a big advantage to having 2 machines (wrt setup), my shop area is very small. I have a cart, but the Miller consumes all that, and really I do not need that "large" of a stick machine for what I plan to do. I will NOT be doing any "serious / heavy duty / safety type / farm stress" type welding.
The mention about MIG brazing was something I had not considered / thought about. I believe the i-MiG 200 comes with what you need to use gas.

My next step is to decide how much to list the Miller Thunderbolt for, and sell. Where I live.... who knows how long that may take ? Thanks again !

 

[WranglerX]

If a MIG welder you are considering is flux core only (FCAW) or does not come hose and regulator for solid wire welding (GMAW) just walk on by.. This goes for any brand or price range..... The mistake I made was I bough a welder that was to small for "some" projects.... I have a Hobart Handler 140 and it is great machine for home/farm/ranch work for light to medium projects, but here is a time I wish I had not been so conservative and have gotten a good 120/240 Volt machine like the handler 210MVP.... Bottom line is in your budget, but buy once, cry once, be happy for long time... And Just for FYI... I sold my stick machine to go MIG (only) and have never looked back or regretted decision...

As for TIG, probably not in my life time with my poor vision.... Tried it many times at welding demos at local welding suppliers and all I ever succeeded in doing was balling up electrodes.... Guess the is why I stayed with MIG only...

 

[WranglerX]

Eric, Thanks very much ! That was a great summary !!
I am still leaning hard to get the Everlast i-200 MiG machine instead of keeping the Miller Thunderbolt and buying a separate MiG. While I can see a big advantage to having 2 machines (wrt setup), my shop area is very small. I have a cart, but the Miller consumes all that, and really I do not need that "large" of a stick machine for what I plan to do. I will NOT be doing any "serious / heavy duty / safety type / farm stress" type welding.
The mention about MIG brazing was something I had not considered / thought about. I believe the i-MiG 200 comes with what you need to use gas.

My next step is to decide how much to list the Miller Thunderbolt for, and sell. Where I live.... who knows how long that may take ? Thanks again !

Check high and low pricing on e-bay, put yours somewhere in the middle for local sale..... There is always someone on local "Craig's List" looking for a "deal"...

 

[etpm]

Eric, Thanks very much ! That was a great summary !!
I am still leaning hard to get the Everlast i-200 MiG machine instead of keeping the Miller Thunderbolt and buying a separate MiG. While I can see a big advantage to having 2 machines (wrt setup), my shop area is very small. I have a cart, but the Miller consumes all that, and really I do not need that "large" of a stick machine for what I plan to do. I will NOT be doing any "serious / heavy duty / safety type / farm stress" type welding.
The mention about MIG brazing was something I had not considered / thought about. I believe the i-MiG 200 comes with what you need to use gas.

My next step is to decide how much to list the Miller Thunderbolt for, and sell. Where I live.... who knows how long that may take ? Thanks again !

You're welcome. I'm glad that I could help. It makes me feel good when I can help someone. I think the best thing about the internet is that it gives people the ability to share their knowledge and that people take advantage of this. And this knowledge sharing and distribution happens world wide.
Eric

 

[Spike56]

If a MIG welder you are considering is flux core only (FCAW) or does not come hose and regulator for solid wire welding (GMAW) just walk on by.. This goes for any brand or price range..... The mistake I made was I bough a welder that was to small for "some" projects.... I have a Hobart Handler 140 and it is great machine for home/farm/ranch work for light to medium projects, but here is a time I wish I had not been so conservative and have gotten a good 120/240 Volt machine like the handler 210MVP.... Bottom line is in your budget, but buy once, cry once, be happy for long time... And Just for FYI... I sold my stick machine to go MIG (only) and have never looked back or regretted decision...

As for TIG, probably not in my life time with my poor vision.... Tried it many times at welding demos at local welding suppliers and all I ever succeeded in doing was balling up electrodes.... Guess the is why I stayed with MIG only...

>> Bottom line is in your budget, but buy once, cry once, be happy for long time

Absolutely - my thought process too. I *believe* both the Hobart 210 and the Everlast I-MIG 200 would work for me. That I can tell, both are 110v/220 V machines, and both come with what you need for "gas" should that be a future option. The real attraction (without knowing anything else) is the Everlast is a MiG & Stick, the Hobart is wire only.

Settings / Adjustments / Ease of use ? I do not know. Everlast, the company ? I do not know. A welding newbie like me, there is so much I do not know. But someone like you & Eric offering options is VERY helpful ! At the moment, one thing I think about is Hobart is "local" (Tractor Supply). Is this enough to sway my decision... ? Maybe not, but it is something I *always* consider brand vs. local , especially with an equipment purchase (gator, local JD store), STIHL (many local distributors), Miller Stick welder (local Airgas). I think a lot about parts, service and repair availability. Hopefully, not a serious consideration for a welder ?

Thanks !

 

[greenerdreams]

my experience:
owned a lansdcape and excavating company. The more employees, the more things broke. Tired of paying for others to repair stuff when i didn't have the tools. realized i needed a welder. bought a miller 135 mig. did most of what i needed, until i started to get bigger machines. bought a used arc welder to do the occassional thicker stuff but it still kind of was pushing it. Got completely sick of fixing things multiple times since they were not getting welded completely due to excessive thickness. If i had to take things somewhere it just felt like wasted money having someone else do it. Finally decided to buy a much better welder and got a miler 211 that could do most everything. sold all the old stuff and basically paid for the new with a good deal. Have never wished i bought a cheaper machine ever since but do wish i did it sooner.
Side note, my dad was really frugal and always fixed everything himself. this is how i became a diy type person. the big difference is he would make do with what he had and improvise tools. My thought process has always been different, get the right tool for the job almost without regard for the cost since a diy repair with tool cost will still usually beat having someone else do it and you then have the tool for eternity. My point, spend money on quality and you will rarely regret it, also why pay for multiple tools when a better single unit can replace them.

 

[jigs_n_fixtures]

When I was a teenager, my Dad explained to me that: I have an extremely high level of mechanical aptitude, and can fix nearly anything. And, that for me it was generally going to make sense to buy the special service tools to do the job, and I would still be into it for less than if I had someone else do it. And, that I will always do it to a level of quality and craftsmanship I find acceptable.

Fifty years later, I am certain he is right. Nothing bothers me more than paying someone to do something, that is at a level quality, and craftsmanship lower than the younger brother’s drugoid buddies would do.

And, over that fifty years, I have amassed a pretty large selection of tools. part of that was i used to buy tools from guys who had gambled away their whole paycheck. I would give them what the pawnshop would give them, and they had a week to come buy it back for what I paid for it. Usually they would come back on Saturday and buy their tools back. But, I did end up with a few titanium framing hammers, a few laser levels, and a Porter Cable drywall sander.

 

[jaxs]

I do agree that wire welders a versital but for some who might go weeks or months between small projects AND is on a tight budget stick rules. Why? Wire soon rusts sitting on the shelf or in machine. Stick electrodes laying beside rusting wire will be 98% good as new years later. Anything less than 10 pound spools is expensive and 10 pounds will rust before used so it's a danged if you do and darned if you don't if you try and keep various wires on hand to do different type welds. You can stockpile an impressive varity of rods buying a few here and there from pros for double what they paid in 50 pound cans and still save over buying 1-5 pound paks retail. Pound for pound,dollar for dollar,job for job and depreciation on inital cost a $100 Lincoln AC225 off CraigsList can't be beat.
A pro can make passable welds using a 120 volt mig on 3/8" steel but he will be much prouder of beads laid with a 240 volt machine,not to mention difference in time required.
Then what do I know, I wouldn't trade my 40 and 50 year old tools for all new Harbor Freight if they threw in an Alaskan Cruise to boot.

 

[metalmagpie]

I suggest you take a welding class before you buy anything. You will learn a lot and will make local connections.

It is virtually impossible to make pretty welds when fluxcore welding. Buy gas capability. The machine has to have a gas valve. You can buy the bottle, regulator and hose separately. Although that way would usually cost more.

It is very important to buy a machine that uses 220 volt power. The little 110 volt machines have their place but are too wimpy for many jobs.

Hobart is an OK choice. Despite the glitzy youtube videos and shiny paint I would avoid Chinese and Italian welders because parts aren't available.

As for your Miller Thunderbolt AC/DC, those are great little welders but they have a 20% duty cycle and if that has been abused, the welders are scrap. And it's really hard to weld 2 minutes then wait 8. So a lot of guys would not buy such a machine used. But they do come up for sale. I prefer the older ones with detachable leads. I would put the price range at $250-350. But it all depends on condition. Ask yourself how much for a Ford F-150?

metalmagpie