If I may. I've been looking at gas or gasless MIG welders. I always used the stick. Gas they claim nice bead but can't be used outdoors? Gasless, use in or out and not a nice bead. I also wonder if I can weld farm machinery with either? Say a crack on a bush hog or something along those lines. 120 or 220?
Most MIG machines come set up for flux core wire. To run gas, you hook up the bottle, and change polarity. Make sure you buy one with enough amps to weld your desired thickness. A lot have 120/ 240v capability. A nice option, when working on the fly. If money is concerned, Look at Hobart. Cheap, rugged machines. Made by Miller, without the bells and whistles.
You maybe able to limp by with an extremely cheap Chinese box, as long as you don’t mind it crapping out on you in the middle of a job.
Thanks Ken and Anon. I'm a recluse so have no one to ask these questions. Thanks for pointing out the 240 too. It's not something that would get a lot of use but so many times I wished I'd had one. I sure want a good machine. Miller and Lincoln is all I ever used with the stick. So, I'll look at the Hobart. Welders would let me throw on a tack if we were upside down and crossways welding 4" black iron pipe. They said my bead was good but not good enough. A quote, "Ya got the pool but ya aint movin it."
Been using Millermatic 200's for 30+ years. Wire feed with gas is the way to go. I run .035" wire and Union Carbide's Stargon shielding gas. You can weld outside, but have to turn up your gas flow and shield your arc from the wind. I find 25 - 30 cfm works well outside. I rebuilt my neighbor's Bush Hog this summer, on the pad in front of my garage. It does get frustrating, sometimes, when the wind is non-stop. I am partial to Millers, but Eastwood does sell some decent machines for slightly more than Harbor Freight prices. The Farm has an Eastwood 175 MiG, and I am quite impressed with how it performs. It even came with a spool gun - that is marginally useful. I have used Flux-core, and I do not like the results. Smaller inverter based welders don't have the duty cycle for heavy work. Nor do the 120volt machines. My MIller 200 can single pass 3/8" plate, with a 100% duty cycle @ 180 Amps. I've welded thicker, multi-passing. Personally, I would recommend you find a good used Millermatic 200 or 250 - or a comparable full sized Hobart or Lincoln.
Give a man a welder. One day I'll have another one.
ReplyDeleteIf I may. I've been looking at gas or gasless MIG welders. I always used the stick. Gas they claim nice bead but can't be used outdoors? Gasless, use in or out and not a nice bead. I also wonder if I can weld farm machinery with either? Say a crack on a bush hog or something along those lines. 120 or 220?
ReplyDeleteMost MIG machines come set up for flux core wire.
DeleteTo run gas, you hook up the bottle, and change polarity.
Make sure you buy one with enough amps to weld your desired thickness.
A lot have 120/ 240v capability.
A nice option, when working on the fly.
If money is concerned,
Look at Hobart.
Cheap, rugged machines. Made by Miller, without the bells and whistles.
You maybe able to limp by with an extremely cheap Chinese box, as long as you don’t mind it crapping out on you in the middle of a job.
Thanks Ken and Anon. I'm a recluse so have no one to ask these questions. Thanks for pointing out the 240 too. It's not something that would get a lot of use but so many times I wished I'd had one. I sure want a good machine. Miller and Lincoln is all I ever used with the stick. So, I'll look at the Hobart. Welders would let me throw on a tack if we were upside down and crossways welding 4" black iron pipe. They said my bead was good but not good enough. A quote, "Ya got the pool but ya aint movin it."
DeleteI suggest a really good helmet.
DeleteThe better you can see the puddle, the better you can move it.
Been using Millermatic 200's for 30+ years. Wire feed with gas is the way to go. I run .035" wire and Union Carbide's Stargon shielding gas. You can weld outside, but have to turn up your gas flow and shield your arc from the wind. I find 25 - 30 cfm works well outside. I rebuilt my neighbor's Bush Hog this summer, on the pad in front of my garage. It does get frustrating, sometimes, when the wind is non-stop.
DeleteI am partial to Millers, but Eastwood does sell some decent machines for slightly more than Harbor Freight prices. The Farm has an Eastwood 175 MiG, and I am quite impressed with how it performs. It even came with a spool gun - that is marginally useful.
I have used Flux-core, and I do not like the results.
Smaller inverter based welders don't have the duty cycle for heavy work. Nor do the 120volt machines. My MIller 200 can single pass 3/8" plate, with a 100% duty cycle @ 180 Amps. I've welded thicker, multi-passing.
Personally, I would recommend you find a good used Millermatic 200 or 250 - or a comparable full sized Hobart or Lincoln.
Good luck, Bright Eyes.
Leigh
Whitehall, NY
leigh, many thanks.
DeleteMy uncle was in the excavating business and played with metal working on the side. He would have made one of those if he saw the picture.
ReplyDeleteSerious thermal mass. Get that going and you have heat all night.
ReplyDeleteBeast. Meanwhile, most of the heat sneaks out of the back of my barrel stove. :( Gota add that second barrel to capture and radiate the heat.
ReplyDelete- Arc
A coworker, an ace welder, built a woodstove from a large transformer. It was covered with cooling fins, worked great for radiating heat.
ReplyDeleteAnyone ever read "Mike Mulligan and his steam shovel"?
ReplyDelete