Welder Advice

[#40Fan]

I hate to say this, but I bought a $200 MIG welder off of Amazon that I am amazed with. My Millermatic 221 that has auto set fried its motherboard and I needed a welder faster than I could get the board, so I bought an Arccaptain 165A and had it in hand the next day. 110/220 volt capable, gas or flux core as well as stick welding and has a comparable auto set feature.

I've been so impressed, I still haven't ordered the motherboard for the Miller. The auto set feature on both welders can take a beginner and make them look like someone that knows what they are doing.

 

[PoTreeBoy]

No aluminum, welds would be on carbon and mild steel from 24ga - 1/4" plate for all the stuff I've been putting off. Sounding like a decent 220 mig would give me the best chance at actually succeeding at faking my way through them. I'd still like to end up around $400 though if that's even reasonable.

Here's two mail-order possibilities, they both have everything for stick, MIG and flux, except gas regulator. Harbor Freight

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

I hate to say this, but I bought a $200 MIG welder off of Amazon that I am amazed with. My Millermatic 221 that has auto set fried its motherboard and I needed a welder faster than I could get the board, so I bought an Arccaptain 165A and had it in hand the next day. 110/220 volt capable, gas or flux core as well as stick welding and has a comparable auto set feature.

I've been so impressed, I still haven't ordered the motherboard for the Miller. The auto set feature on both welders can take a beginner and make them look like someone that knows what they are doing.

I've been seeing Arccaptain Ads all over the place and wondered if anyone other than a Youtube mouth peice had anything good to say about them.

 

[#40Fan]

I've been seeing Arccaptain Ads all over the place and wondered if anyone other than a Youtube mouth peice had anything good to say about them.

I was the same way when I was looking at it. I could have purchased it from the company directly and saved a few $$, but buying from Amazon, I knew I'd have recourse if it turned out to be a pile of junk. Other than it can't weld as long as the Miller could at the highest setting and it didn't come with a regulator, it surprised the hell out of me.

One other draw back....it will only fit the small 2 lb. wire spools. The machine is tiny.

Edited to add: It reverts to flux core after every power cycle. It scared me the first time it did it. Switching it now isn't a big deal.

 

[PoTreeBoy]

I've been seeing Arccaptain Ads all over the place and wondered if anyone other than a Youtube mouth peice had anything good to say about them.

I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the Chinese machines use components from the same factory. They seem to have the same features. Just a new brand every few years.

I haven't used my yeswelder a bunch, but it still works. I'm not enough of a welder to know, but it seems adequate. One place they save money is the case, they may roll out soup cans. They make improvements periodically, the current 'pro' model supports a spool gun, I think, and has settings for more wire (I'm not a big fan of synergy so far). They've gone to a manly black paint, mine sports baby blue. And mine has a 110 plug on the cord. Which means the adapter is a short cord with a 220 male plug on one end and a 110 female receptacle on the other. Better not plug your grinder into that! I understand they've reversed that on the newer rev's.

I looked at Miller, Lincoln, Hobart and ESAB. They make some fine machines, most likely better controls since they're designed by real welding companies. But for this hacker, I couldn't/wouldn't pay the price. And the multi-function machines are all made in China, I think.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

Hard to add to all the good advice posted above.

My ‘vote' would be for a MIG machine for sure.

There seems to be a smaller learning curve for MIG Vs. TIG.


I will just add that my “personal experience” with Thermal Arc was/has been stellar.

Not sure if they make MIG machines or not though.

I wanted a Miller Dynasty, but like the saying goes “Want in one hand, and sh1t in the other, and see which one fills up first” applied here.

I can’t recall exactly when I bought it, but it must have been nearly 15-20 years ago.

Got lots of hours out of it so far.



EDIT; I also agree with the “practice, practice, practice” idea.

And I really like watching this guy the “Weld Monger” ..(Jodie?)

I like the fact that he tends to cut his welds open, to show how well (or not) his welds were.

 

[Yooper]

For the price point I would recommend you eliminate tig. Tig welding is a whole ‘nother animal to get good at and it is very unforgiving! All the advice so far has been good.

I have never welded with a 110 machine but with the latest inverter technology I guess I wouldn’t be shocked if they would suffice for 1/4” mild steel. The duty cycle would be my main concern.

 

[unhdsm]

My Eastwood 180 Mig has been good to me. They have them right now refurbished from the factory for $350. My neighbor bought a entry level 110v from Tractor Supply and ends up using mine because his 110V isn't hot enough. If you want 110V you have to get one of the better brands, which ends up being more than the Eastwood 180. I'm in Northern New England too and I would also recommend an intro class at a tech school. I paid $500 and it was well worth it for 6 classes.

 

[Old Machinist]

For the price point I would recommend you eliminate tig. Tig welding is a whole ‘nother animal to get good at and it is very unforgiving! All the advice so far has been good.

I have never welded with a 110 machine but with the latest inverter technology I guess I wouldn’t be shocked if they would suffice for 1/4” mild steel. The duty cycle would be my main concern.

I welded with a 120v Lincoln for 40 years and defended it's capabilities. I DID put in a dedicated 25 amp service for it. What you will find when you read is you can't get full power out of a 110v unit on a standard 15 amp household circuit.

By the time you add a dedicated circuit you might as well go 240v at the appropriate amperage for the machine and be done with it. I have been much happier with my mig since I went that route.

 

[chim]

My MM175 is 240V only. If I had it to do over I'd get a 120/240 machine. My stick welder is 120/240 as is the plasma cutter. All are more capable at 240V and that's what they are usually being run on but there are times it is very handy to do some light work with 120V. Sometimes it's nice to just plug in and go to work. One of the selling points on the plasma was that in addition to being dual voltage it has its own onboard air supply. It won't make cuts on 3/4" material but it handles the things I get into.

I'm an electrichicken so I've done some tapping into nearby sources at times, plus I have a tow-behind generator and a fair amount of cords that can run any of the equipment. However, if 240 isn't readily available and the work can be done without it, having dual voltage equipment can be nice.

 

[Old Machinist]

Don't forget the safety gear. Here is a good deal on a large screen auto darkening helmet. I have had it about a year and it has worked fine. The larger screen is a game changer.

Also get a leather head protector, welding jacket, and leather gloves.

 

[PoTreeBoy]

One thing that I wasn't prepared for was the need for good light. I figured once you struck an arc you'd have plenty of light. But I guess the arc light is predominantly uv and is filtered out.

 

[chim]

One thing that I wasn't prepared for was the need for good light. I figured once you struck an arc you'd have plenty of light. But I guess the arc light is predominantly uv and is filtered out.

Good point. I do my welding outside, and when the sun is bright the best thing for me is to pull the hood of a hooded jacket up over the helmet to block light coming from behind. I have used aux lighting sometimes when ambient light wasn't sufficient. Adjusting the shade of the auto-darkening helmet was helpful as well.

 

[GeoHorn]

All Good Advice has been contributed.

I got lucky and found Tractor Supply had a sale one week on Hobart “Handler” MIG machines. I bought one (187..??) anyway…. I’m not a ”real” welder….but this thing is almost as easy as using a hot -glue gun. (BTW, Miller and Hobart are the same company)

Take-Aways IMO: 1- Avoid cheapie-units. Buy a name brand for longevity and for future parts availability. 2- Seek 220/240 volt units if you really want to do anything other than “tack-weld’ toys, 3- Gas makes nicer finish on welds….but Flux-core is what you should plan-for if you’re not making jewelry and if you’re working outdoors or in high-places like rafters, etc. (Mig machines have short gun-leads so you’ll have to plan on having the machine close-by and use a heavy-duty extension cord.)

It was good advice to Guy Good Protective Gear and genuine Welding Jacket and Gloves! (You will RUIN many good shirts and blue-jeans before you take me seriously on that.)

Lastly: IF YOU WANT TO AVOID SKIN CANCER ON YOUR FOREARMS….. you’d better realize that a welding-arc is a little bit of SUNSHINE right NEXT TO YOUR ARMS.

Also, KEEP PETS AWAY. They’ll go blind watching their Daddy.

KEEP a WATER HOSE and FIRE EXTINGUISHER with you. Keep it ON your welding-cart. With your Hood on….you’ll not notice the grass-fire until you SMELL IT. You don’t want to lose your house…OR have your neighbor sue you because you din’t think ahead on that.
(same goes for the chop-saw or grinders that will throw sparks)

 

[powerkraut]

Tons of advice here, thank you all! I think I've got a good starting point in the arccaptain, plus an idea of what to keep an eye out for used. I do make the 6 hr drive to a major metro area a few times a year so upgrading with a used machine isn't impossible. I was planning on spending good money on PPE, I have excellent eyesight even in my 40s and don't feel like risking that on a cheap welding hood. Wish me luck, I appreciate the youtube resources as well, when you're a complete novice in anything it can be hard to tell who actually knows what they're talking about and who's faking their way through things for clicks.

 

[Tughill Tom]

Just throwing this out there, check in on your local Miller dealer and see what they have in house as trade -in's.

 

[Hugo Habicht]

Read the basics and then practice is the key to good welds.