110 or 220 wire welder?
- Thread starter jgrieve
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FWIW, this is what I did. I picked up a small 110 Mig, and a Lincoln tombstone buzz-box 220 welder. Both used, probably $200 stuck into both of them. I use the Mig for small stuff and to tack bigger stuff together, then use the Lincoln to finish the job.
Also, given that you have to run a 220 extension cord, I think I'd stick with the 110 until you can get the garage wired a little heavier.
I'm not a fan of extension cords. My brother built a shop a few years ago, still doesn't have it wired. Extension cords laying all over the place. Says he doesn't have the $$$ to get it wired properly. He's going to get zapped one of these days. Extension cords are not made for this kind of "semi-permanent" use.
I'll get off my soapbox now.
Also, given that you have to run a 220 extension cord, I think I'd stick with the 110 until you can get the garage wired a little heavier.
I'm not a fan of extension cords. My brother built a shop a few years ago, still doesn't have it wired. Extension cords laying all over the place. Says he doesn't have the $$$ to get it wired properly. He's going to get zapped one of these days. Extension cords are not made for this kind of "semi-permanent" use.
I'll get off my soapbox now.
yankeerider
Platinum Member
It depends on what you want to weld. If just light sheetmetal, a 110 machine will do just fine. Few of us though, are content with only modest tool capability, and find ourselves wanting to do something a bit bigger.
Tell us how thick you want to weld, and we can provide better guidance. You can't go wrong with 220v capability, but you might with 110.
Tell us how thick you want to weld, and we can provide better guidance. You can't go wrong with 220v capability, but you might with 110.
EastTexFrank
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I went the same route as Mattlt. I got a 110v mig for a start and it worked well on the thin stuff and to tack thicker stuff. I also got a 220v stick for the bigger projects but I have to run an extension cord from the shop to use it outside but that's not too often. The 110 migs are good pieces of equipment but they are what they are, if you know what I mean. If your main use is going to be repairing broken farm equipment, like mine, they are a little light but can be made to work with grinding, beveling and multiple passes. I have no experience with the MM221 but that may be something worth looking at.
David Devuono
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I started with a 230 amp ac welder (stick). It requires excellent ventilation or a respirator when welding in a garage. Takes almost 4 times longer to master, as opposed to a MIG welder. With a mig welder you don't have to chip slag, almost no smoke. I use a lincoln SP125 welder. It still requires a 25amp 110 Volt outlet, though I never popped a 20 amp breaker. You need to clean off the rust and paint with a mig welder whereas a stick welder will break through the rust. Move around a stick welder requires you make up a cable to plug into your buddies electric stove and run it out the kitchen window. You have to double or triple the cost to set up with a mig welder, gas bottle, cart, regular that will weld 1/4 inch.
I started with a 110v mig and after a year or so ended up buying a 220v stick welder. I guess for my needs that(!) mig was too small. Stick welder was much cheaper even with the 60' of extension cord. I also realized that the thinnest metal I would want weld/use is about 1/8" and that is easy with the stick welder. My vote is: go with the 220v mig or stick it is much more versatile.
2manyrocks
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You need to check on the Hobart and Miller welder sponsored forums. I had a el cheapo 110 mig, and the duty cycle was so limited that it was "weld and wait, wait and weld....."
220v gets a higher duty cycle and the capacity to weld thicker material. 110v is more convenient.
A little caution about welding thin material. The machine itself may be capable of welding thin material, but probably not with flux core wire. Don't expect to weld up body panels with flux core wire. Flux core wire is more useful for welding thicker material, outdoors, when welding gas is not available.
If I were doing it again, I'd bypass the el cheapo MIGs and save my money towards a Lincoln. Miller or Hobart.
220v gets a higher duty cycle and the capacity to weld thicker material. 110v is more convenient.
A little caution about welding thin material. The machine itself may be capable of welding thin material, but probably not with flux core wire. Don't expect to weld up body panels with flux core wire. Flux core wire is more useful for welding thicker material, outdoors, when welding gas is not available.
If I were doing it again, I'd bypass the el cheapo MIGs and save my money towards a Lincoln. Miller or Hobart.
Bill_C
Gold Member
I've got a 110 volt Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 which I run flux-cored wire, and I've got a Lincoln AC/DC 225 "Tombstone" stick welder.
What are your needs/expectations? If you want to weld lighter stuff, like mower decks, or thinner structural stuff up to 1/4 inch, the wire feed is outstanding. I've only had the thermal breaker trip twice in the dozen or so years that I've had the wire feed, and that was after many minutes of welding very thick stuff. So IMHO the concern over duty cycle is exaggerated. Most welding (around my place at least) involves a minute or less of actual welding, followed by fitment, figuring, cutting, etc....And the 110 volt operation is extremely convenient--for example, the mailbox needed welding, and it's anchored into the ground with cement. Kinda hard to move it into the shop. But no problem with the wire feed, run a 12 gauge extension cord out to the mailbox and weld 'er up.
Now if you want to weld lots of 3/8 stuff, then I can see going to the 220 volt model-- but that's what my stick welder's for.
I'm not going to weld a thin-gauge mower deck with my stick welder. (However, at least with the wire feed--regardless of whether its 110V or 220V-- you can turn the current way down and have more control than with a stick, again IMHO)
But before I got the stick welder, I welded up lots of stuff with the 110 volt wire-feed. Like an engine hoist, various brackets, bearing pullers, etc. Clean the steel to bare steel and it can do surprisingly well.
What are your needs/expectations? If you want to weld lighter stuff, like mower decks, or thinner structural stuff up to 1/4 inch, the wire feed is outstanding. I've only had the thermal breaker trip twice in the dozen or so years that I've had the wire feed, and that was after many minutes of welding very thick stuff. So IMHO the concern over duty cycle is exaggerated. Most welding (around my place at least) involves a minute or less of actual welding, followed by fitment, figuring, cutting, etc....And the 110 volt operation is extremely convenient--for example, the mailbox needed welding, and it's anchored into the ground with cement. Kinda hard to move it into the shop. But no problem with the wire feed, run a 12 gauge extension cord out to the mailbox and weld 'er up.
Now if you want to weld lots of 3/8 stuff, then I can see going to the 220 volt model-- but that's what my stick welder's for.
I'm not going to weld a thin-gauge mower deck with my stick welder. (However, at least with the wire feed--regardless of whether its 110V or 220V-- you can turn the current way down and have more control than with a stick, again IMHO)
But before I got the stick welder, I welded up lots of stuff with the 110 volt wire-feed. Like an engine hoist, various brackets, bearing pullers, etc. Clean the steel to bare steel and it can do surprisingly well.