Actually the big ones are still made in USA...Hobart and Miller 100%, some Lincoln.
Still Made in USA.com - American-Made Tools
Weesy
Still Made in USA.com - American-Made Tools
Weesy
Beginner welder recs
- Thread starter weesa20
- Start date
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From what you're describing, one way or another you're going to end up with a 220V DC welder. If you get one of these little 110V toys, you'll have fun up to about 1/8", then sit around daydreaming about a "real" welder, a 220V AC. Then when you get one of those, you'll sit around daydreaming about a "real" welder, an AC/DC box. The Hobart Stickmate 235 AC/DC is a great welder for about $500 at Tractor Supply and you will use it forever. If you need portability (i.e. not limited to the nearest electrical outlet), you'll have to go up to a generator-powered welder, the industry standard being the Miller Bobcat, $2000-$4000.
Let us know what you end up with!!
Let us know what you end up with!!
Scooby074
Super Member
Hobart/Miller...
And before anyone comes up with a snappy comment, there MAY be a foreign diode or capacitor in there.. But ive yet to be shown proof... and even if there is, the overwhelming majority of the product is still made here.
On top of that i'd put Miller's customer service up there with the best in the business from personal experience :thumbsup:
Brad_Blazer
Veteran Member
Try the nearest community college. For example:
Ashland Community & Technical College - Welding Technology
Ashland Community & Technical College - Welding Technology
Shield Arc
Super Member
You better think again, about 12 years ago there was a huge blow out on the Hobart forum! A member discovered that his new Hobart welder had off shore components in it. Some of the Hobart moderators denied it, but a moderator by the name of Rock admitted it was true. Rock eventually got fired over his statement. I know this is out dated information, but this same subject just came up here a week or two ago, Mark can tell you what each manufacture uses of off shore components in todays machines.
Mark @ Everlast
Advertiser
Most of our equipment uses Texas instruments for its chipsets, at least the majority of them...But are they made in the US? No...
Anyone that has looked inside a Miller will see foreign components oozing out. Most all of the electronic industry has moved its manufacturing overseas to Korea, Japan, or China (and yes taiwan)...Look for India near you soon. Even though silicone valley is big business, its not in manufacturering any longer. What Miller uses for its electronics are foreign sources from the many of the same ones we use...Unfortunately (depending upon your viewpoint), that's the truth. You car may be a Ford or Chevy but still have 60% foreign components and still be made in the USA.
I am not trying to get into a gripe contest...But I peeked into a tombstone (relatively new)...Made in Mexico...with chinese components. In fact, I can point you to some of the chinese factories Lincoln is using for some of its products....Also MOST of its inverters (and plasma cutters if I remember right) are Made in Italy from mostly Chinese made electronics.
You think your local welding supply guy is going to tell you this when he is trying to make a sale and keep you from buying another product? :laughing:
Is Everlast a US company at least...?with these other companies, even if their units aren't 100% made in US with 100% US parts, I believe the companies are still US so at least the money is staying in the States. Anyway, just trying to be a good citizen. could you PM me a quote for the PowerArc 200? and also, can you explain 1 & 3 phase power and how I would know if I have it or not. I asked for welder compatible outlets to be put in my shop when it was built and I am pretty sure they are 3 plug 220/230V outlets, but don't know about the phase.
Shield Arc
Super Member
If you need a definition, you don't have 3-phase.
Scooby074
Super Member
Really this chestnut again?
Got proof that millers components are the same as yours? Im not saying that every electronic component in a miller machine is made in the USA, but i bet there is less chinese content in a Miller than your machines. Personally i have no problem with Japanese or Korean components, as theyre not going to be the ones the next WW will be fought against, but i do my darnedest to avoid china.
Not to mention the high paid manufacturing jobs that Miller maintains here.
Miller stamps their machines Made in the USA. To do that they have to meet the necessary government content requirements. We all know where everlast makes "their" machines and which regime they support dont we.
weesa20: Everlast is a US based importer of chinese machines. Some of these machines are sold under various other names like Lotos, Longevity, Clarke, Giant etc. for example. I suggest you check some different boards to form an opinion, particularly ones where Everlast isnt a paid sponsor.
Shield Arc
Super Member
Just like my John Deere tractor is made in the USA. In reality it was made in Yanmar's factory in Japan, the tires were installed in the USA!:laughing:
Mark @ Everlast
Advertiser
A unit capable of operating on both 1 and 3 phase power is simply that. As SA said, if you don't know what three phase is, you don't have it. But it wills still operate on 1 phase. Some units operate on 1 phase only, Some three phase only, and some 1 and 3 phase.
Everlast is based in San Francisco, and is privately owned in the US.
As far as our proverbial ostrich with his head stuck in the sand... We do not sell our machines under the name LOTOS. There are all levels of quality welders coming from China, with over 1000 welder companies manufacturing in China...That's right. 1000. All operating and manufacturing differently. Some companies simply order off the shelf product and resell here. By and large, though some companies do try to copy things, such as looks, features and appearance, we do not. Occasionally we will use a basic product from off the factory shelf, but we evaluate it, test it and then have changes made to our demands, usually with some significant internal revamping.
We have several completely new products from the ground up that we have brought out recently such as the PowerTig 185.
A lot of people will try to say we copy name brand companies by ripping them off and cloning them. I had to deal with some Hobart guys the other day peddling that around. I told them IF we were going to copy someone, it wouldn't be them. We don't deal with transformer welders...They do. Find one welder that is copied. We do just as Miller and Lincoln do to each other....We evaluate their products, and see how we can stay competitive. Miller reps have told me the day Lincoln releases their "new" product on the market, by the end of the day it is stripped down in the HQ of big blue.
We have active input and design into the welders. We are there during the manufacturing process and we maintain our own US based tech support staff. You cannot pigeon hole the product. We have product at our disposal more advanced than anything the US has...but because of the price we do not sell it here...It costs as much as the name brands if we were to.
If it says Everlast it is from us...If not, from someone else. We have a growing world wide distribution system. Canada, Australia, S. America, Costa Rica, Brazil, Columbia, Finland, Russia...seems like I forgot something...and we are working on at least a half dozen other countries right now.
Also, as "he" is fond of trying to mislead...we do not have control over this forum.
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Mark @ Everlast
Advertiser
Yes, and they tried that same thing with their 5x03 series too...Made almost entirely in India by Larson and Toubro...yet they put the made/assembled in America on them as long as they could...I can't remember how its worded now, as it has changed something that really doesn't say made in India....Yet its one of their most popular and lucrative lines.
Scooby074
Super Member
Not so much...
Thats not a really apt comparison when it comes to the Everlast vs Miller discussion.
Chilly807
Elite Member
Remember when I said this was going to get interesting? Not that I'm clairvoyant, but I do understand some of the emotions and semantics involved in this discussion.
I'd like to have a lightweight, highly portable welder that has more capability than my old AC/DC transformer that weighs close to a hundred pounds, but the fact remains that after at least 25 or more years of work and probable neglect (I'm not the original owner, neither was the guy I bought it from) it still welds as good as it did when it was new.
If it does pack in, it owes nobody anything, but the kicker is that it'll probably be easily and cheaply repairable.
Light weight, sophistication, and low price comes at a cost, since the old rule of "you don't get something for nothing" applies as usual. Light weight and sophistication is achieved through modern electronics that are somewhat more susceptible to damage from moisture, excess heat, and neglect. Low price comes from offshore parts supply and labour. How much that affects reliability and the domestic economy is obviously a hot topic.
To me it comes down to whether I actually need what the new breed of inverter "suitcase" welders can offer me. I really don't, since I can weld just fine with the gear I already have, portability isn't much of an issue, and I like the fact that at least some of my gear was made in the US or Canada a long time ago.
My Miller 180 was actually free to me (long story), and I got the AC/DC stick well used for $140 a couple years ago. The Miller might have Chinese components, I really don't have the interest to look, neither would I know what I was looking at.
Both work well, and they do all the welding I need done around the farm. If I were to get an Everlast DC inverter or a Miller Maxstar for free I'd certainly give either one a try, but I can't see that happening anytime soon. I have no bones to pick with Mark, in fact I think he's one of the more level-headed advertisers we have.
Sean
I'd like to have a lightweight, highly portable welder that has more capability than my old AC/DC transformer that weighs close to a hundred pounds, but the fact remains that after at least 25 or more years of work and probable neglect (I'm not the original owner, neither was the guy I bought it from) it still welds as good as it did when it was new.
If it does pack in, it owes nobody anything, but the kicker is that it'll probably be easily and cheaply repairable.
Light weight, sophistication, and low price comes at a cost, since the old rule of "you don't get something for nothing" applies as usual. Light weight and sophistication is achieved through modern electronics that are somewhat more susceptible to damage from moisture, excess heat, and neglect. Low price comes from offshore parts supply and labour. How much that affects reliability and the domestic economy is obviously a hot topic.
To me it comes down to whether I actually need what the new breed of inverter "suitcase" welders can offer me. I really don't, since I can weld just fine with the gear I already have, portability isn't much of an issue, and I like the fact that at least some of my gear was made in the US or Canada a long time ago.
My Miller 180 was actually free to me (long story), and I got the AC/DC stick well used for $140 a couple years ago. The Miller might have Chinese components, I really don't have the interest to look, neither would I know what I was looking at.
Both work well, and they do all the welding I need done around the farm. If I were to get an Everlast DC inverter or a Miller Maxstar for free I'd certainly give either one a try, but I can't see that happening anytime soon. I have no bones to pick with Mark, in fact I think he's one of the more level-headed advertisers we have.
Sean
Shield Arc
Super Member
It most certainly does, think about it........................ John Deere just like Miller, Hobart, and Lincoln wants you to think their product is made here.
Geez the only thing I'm sure of that was 100% made here is me, but that's only because my momma says so! :laughing:
Scooby074
Super Member
Not really, Deere publishes the info pretty obviously on their Nameplate tags. Just like my Kubota. Ive seen lots on nameplates on Deeres, Masseys etc. that indicate COO as something other than USA. No biggie.
As i said, show me the money. The tag on my welding machines say "Made in the USA" . They meet the standards to proclaim that. Until that changes and the tag says something different ill stand by that statement.
The Op asked for a Made In the US option and i gave him the only legitimate choice.
Shield Arc
Super Member
Soundguy, is this you?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:laughing:
k0ua
Epic Contributor
Remember when I said this was going to get interesting? Not that I'm clairvoyant,
I don't know Sean, you have done a pretty good job of predicting the future so far:laughing:
If my old tombstone had DC too, I would have never bought the inverter welder. I wanted DC because everyone said it was quite a bit better, and in my opinion they were right. The reason I did not buy the AC/DC unit to begin with, was back when we bought it the wife and I had to scrimp and save just to afford the AC only unit. But I love my inverter welder, the versatility, portability and so far the reliability. (time will tell on that one, only been a little over a year a year). good luck on whatever you choose.
James K0UA
I don't know Sean, you have done a pretty good job of predicting the future so far:laughing:
If my old tombstone had DC too, I would have never bought the inverter welder. I wanted DC because everyone said it was quite a bit better, and in my opinion they were right. The reason I did not buy the AC/DC unit to begin with, was back when we bought it the wife and I had to scrimp and save just to afford the AC only unit. But I love my inverter welder, the versatility, portability and so far the reliability. (time will tell on that one, only been a little over a year a year). good luck on whatever you choose.
James K0UA
Scooby074
Super Member
Shield Arc
Super Member
Now you're talking, I knew I liked you, just took me a little while to figure out why!
:thumbsup:
