welder for a novice??

   / welder for a novice?? #21  
GreenMtns said:
Your going to really like that DVI welder. It is almost as good as the Miller 210 running on 240 and if you are going to weld lighter stuff you can change to 120 and it does great in thin metal. I got mine because it was on special and the guys at the local welding supply store recomended it for home and farm use. It is much better than the stick or mig welder it replaced that were stolen. I would buy one again without question.

Al
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Thank you for your input. I have been debating with the DVI and the MIller 210. I chose the DVI because there are times when I might need to fix a gate or something at one of my rent houses and with the DVI I can just plug into a regular outlet and not have to worry about it. I was a bit worried about the 40 per cent duty cycle. I noticed in the manual after I got it that at 125 amps it has about a 90 per cent duty cycle. I am just going to use it around my farm and for small projects I think it is going to be great for my use. My wife went ahead and bought the spool gun to go with it. I did not think that I needed one of those but I would not want to disapoint her by suggesting I did not need it. Besides that was what made all my friends at work jealous. :). Have you used yours hard enough yet to trip the overheat relay and shut it down ?
 
   / welder for a novice?? #22  
gemini5362 said:
Thank you for your input. I have been debating with the DVI and the MIller 210. I chose the DVI because there are times when I might need to fix a gate or something at one of my rent houses and with the DVI I can just plug into a regular outlet and not have to worry about it. I was a bit worried about the 40 per cent duty cycle. I noticed in the manual after I got it that at 125 amps it has about a 90 per cent duty cycle. I am just going to use it around my farm and for small projects I think it is going to be great for my use. My wife went ahead and bought the spool gun to go with it. I did not think that I needed one of those but I would not want to disapoint her by suggesting I did not need it. Besides that was what made all my friends at work jealous. :). Have you used yours hard enough yet to trip the overheat relay and shut it down ?
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I use it quite a bit and have never tripped the relay. I replaced a HH180 and a Miller Thunderbolt. I can’t say I miss either one of those now. The DVI welds 3/8" with no problem and I rarely need more than that. The few times I have I did multiple passes and it ended up very good.

Al
 
   / welder for a novice?? #23  
I probably spent no more than 3 or 4 days on a welder "old crackerjack box" growing up. EVERY time ended in frustration. Instead of welded steal, I usually ended up with a piece of steel that looked like a porcupine with stuck rods all over it.

Well, determined that it can't be that difficult and I wanted to try it again. I got is back out Friday and within a few tries I had some welds that actually held. I was working on a small project and was concerned about it not holding, but it worked. I was pleased.

Anyway, I figure if you once could weld, you should be able to pick it back up relatively quickly. Start with a cheap rod welder before dumping money into a wasted project.

Now for those experienced guys, I was burning 6011 rods on 1/8 steel. I had to be carefull or the steel would melt back. Should I turn the machine down or weld, stop, weld, stop, etc.

Thanks
 
   / welder for a novice?? #24  
I have a Clark 110v 125amp Mig welder that I have used for several years now and have run several spools of wire through it. I just used it last night welding exhaust on my Harley Ultra and plan on using it today to weld up a tool box mount on my tractor using 2x2 angled 3/16 steel (saw the idea here on TBN) then weld teeth onto my Fel blade. I have found I can weld almost any reasonable thickness with by turning up the power to max and slowing the wire feed down. I bought a 110v instead of a 240v beause I wanted to be able to do field repairs with it using my Honda 2000eu generator which is very light weight. Plus I wanted something cheap. I have welded all different types of metal and thicknesses with no problems including aluminum. Using your welder is your best teacher......my dad who has been a welder for 35yrs simply told me its not rocket science at my level of things I want to do.....he was right. I bought mine for under $200. Yes you can buy better ones but why....for light duty and intermittant use a Lincoln or Hobart is pricey. Plus after you buy a welder you will use it more than you think....All you buddies will be dropping by with small welding projects for you....you get to practice on their stuff....lol
 
   / welder for a novice?? #25  
rutwad said:
I probably spent no more than 3 or 4 days on a welder "old crackerjack box" growing up. EVERY time ended in frustration. Instead of welded steal, I usually ended up with a piece of steel that looked like a porcupine with stuck rods all over it.

Well, determined that it can't be that difficult and I wanted to try it again. I got is back out Friday and within a few tries I had some welds that actually held. I was working on a small project and was concerned about it not holding, but it worked. I was pleased.

Anyway, I figure if you once could weld, you should be able to pick it back up relatively quickly. Start with a cheap rod welder before dumping money into a wasted project.

Now for those experienced guys, I was burning 6011 rods on 1/8 steel. I had to be carefull or the steel would melt back. Should I turn the machine down or weld, stop, weld, stop, etc.

Thanks
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1/8th is thin for a stick welder (at least with MY small skill level). It sounds like weld, stop, repeat is the way to go. Tack it in a half dozen spots, let it cool, then do 1/2" long welds 8-12" apart and let it cool. Stitch it up that way. Take longer than you think you should to let it cool so it won't turn into a pretzel.

jb
 
   / welder for a novice?? #28  
I dont think it can get much easier than welding with a tig. Basically you just put the tip near the metal and pull the trigger. move the metal side to side a bit to make smoe nice puddles so the real welders wont laugh at you too much.
 
   / welder for a novice?? #29  
Glowplug said:
I have been eyeing a Lincoln Power MIG 180T myself.
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Now wait a minute here Chuck, Your gonna get this BIG tractor (according to many)....I never joined in on that one....but when it comes to welders your just gonna limit yourself to 1/4" maybe 5/16" single pass machine.

With all the Cat II implements your gonna gave you need some power to weld the thick stuff (fix what you may break) 250amp machine is more in the ball park for what may/will arise....
 
   / welder for a novice?? #30  
Now for those experienced guys, I was burning 6011 rods on 1/8 steel. I had to be carefull or the steel would melt back. Should I turn the machine down or weld, stop, weld, stop, etc.

Thanks




How large is the 6011 rod 5/32- 1/8 - etc.? 1/8 steel isn't very thick so, you'll have to be careful if you are (just learning )or you will burn through . On the box of most rods they will give you a setting( heat range ) for the rod . If you are just learning to weld, you could try this chart.Try to keep the heat set for the size rod used or don't go so slow( move the rod a little faster ) .If it's a large piece of steel you may want to stop & let it cool to keep it from warping
 
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