Welding machines

"You can't run as hot of a bead with a MIG than the old stick." Maybe you haven't run the right wire welder. I run a R3S 400 Lincoln into a Lincoln feeder at work and it'll burn buddy, believe me. I've only run it as fast as the feeder will run 1/16" wire but the other guy there has run 3/32 wire and a loooooong arc. Just sold my R3s 400 from home cause I don't see getting 3 ph. power in the near future.:>(
 
I would rather stick weld than mig, probably because that's what I mostly use. As far as the 6010, that is some good stuff if you know what you're doing. There's no need to have the metal clean before starting and it's easy to downhill and still have good penetration. I think 1/16" metal a flux core wire welding machine will do fine. But if you're welding heavier steel's you should probably go with a mig or stick welder.
 
Cross J,

My applications are for light work, building tower blind stands, killing chairs, quail chairs, roll cages, etc. There are several welding shops here in town that I am going to go and chech out and ask questions, I just needed a step in the right direction. The shops here sell Miller, Lincoln, and Hobart, along with other brands. I am leaning toward the Miller machines just because of what I have read here, they are more expensive than the others but I guess you get what you pay for, right.
 
Old school or at least the school I was in.........

We used a 6013 rod weld line then grind off and due a seamans lay with a 7018 rod, that sucker is not coming off for anyone.........


Still use 7018 daily for mud flaps bracketts and Landing legs and K braces, the Miller Mig gets used for Building bogies and Great Dane Frame/5th wheelplates new holland repairs for the sliders......Alum. Heli-arc for the ridge floors.........

We have had Hobarts,Lincons,Astros.....nothing beats a miller, we have had them for 6 years now and havent Failed yet, We have but, they havent.........



We use 6013 for Galvanized steel,after wipeing it down with vinager (white) so when you paint it, the paint wont peel.........

I want to learn how to (TIG Weld) Waiting for lessons on High pressure Stainless pipe...........Never to old to learn.........
 
Ill throw one more opinion into the mix. A 110 welder would do fine for most of the things you are palnning to build Burris. If you are going to weld roll cages, you should use a 220 welder. The 110 can do it (for the experienced welder) but if youre a newbie, go with the 220. The 110 should weld anything up to 1/8" thick, maybe 3/16". I wouldnt trust it to do much more than that unless you plan on preheating. A note on duty cycles (in case you dont know what that means. I dont want to insult your intelligence) Say you have a machine that has a 60 percent duty cycle, you can weld for 6 minutes continuously out of 10 minutes. Thats how I was told to think about it. When you get a wleder you are going to start building anything and everything under the sun. My advice would be spend the money, get a 220v welder using sheilding gas and youre set. There isnt much you cant do with it. The flux core wire works if youre welding under windy conditions. My welder of choice is the MillerMatic 210. It came with a spool gun so I can weld aluminum if need be after I get my Argon bottle. Hope this helps.
 
I have been a welder for over 20 years. Did my first cert on stick and now TIG Aluminum, SS, Titanium exclusively. I personally would rather Tig everything but for a novice welder i will agree with the guy above me and go with a 220V Miller Mig machine. Eventually your going to run into some thicker stuff you are going to want to weld and the little 110 machines just cant muster the heat and i have used them all. Theres nothing worse looking than a cold convex weld and unsafe too. Get a 220V with the bottle set up and you can run mild steel, SS. And with a pure argon bottle you can run some Alu wire too. Flux core wire welds will come out nice and can be ran in all positions. Your better off spending the X-cash now than wishing you would have in the future. Take care.
 
Last edited:
For what you are doing a wire feed machine that runs on 220 with roughly 175 amps max capacity using .035 solid wire with shielding gas is your best bet. Miller or Lincoln it doesn't matter.

For tacking, time, and ease of use for what you are describing you will be using it for wire feed machines are superior to stick welding. And don't fall for the story that wire isn't as strong as stick. If used correctly, The wire in most cases has 70,000 lbs of tensile strength the same as 7018 stick rod. The key is the man using it knows how to set the machine and weld properly.

Take my advice and if your serious about your projects stay away from the 110 machines. The 110 machines are good for welding sheet metal and that about all. If you get a machine that has around 250 amps you can run the .045 flux-cored gas shielded wire has can be used on the thicker steels. You can always turn a machine with more capacity down but the small machines only have so much.

You are right on the money about going to some shops and see what they fabricate and check out what they use for welding machines. Good luck
 
Quote:
I have welded my entire life, and still do a lot. I've used almost every kind of machine they make, and most of the above posts are right.
If I had to have only one machine it would be a dial arc 250 Miller. It will run LoHi, all ac and dc rods and has a range that will weld paper thin stuff to 1 inch stuff or bigger. I build all my own grill guards, headaches, and rear bumpers, repair tractors,build chairs,furniture, as well as a LOT of other stuff. Stick welders are more versatile and you don't have to mess with any gasses.



I'll have to agree w/ Randy, I have 10 Dial-Arcs in my shop, they are all 20 years old and used hard every day w/ never a problem.
 
RickH2,
I am welder by trade and now a welding inspector. Both process's using 70 series rods or 70 series wire for mig are same tensile strength. I would trust both types of welds
 
Burris,

Much has been said about welders ...... many good points.

I "belong" to a ranch that has much farm equipment and construction equipment. We have cats from small ones to a two D8's and a D9 and a rock crushing enterprise.

I won't pick brands ........ a few years ago I would have said to avoid Lincoln but we have an older Lincoln 3 ph. 400 amp wire-feed that we just love. But Miller is still considered a standout around here with Hobart nipping on it's heals.

We are "stick people" pure and simple ...... but with the right wire you can get after somewhat dirty steel too. So it depends on your need for speed. Wire is faster, just need to Vee your work more, especially with a small welder.

If you go with wire there is one that really stands out for us (that is if it's made in a size that will fit the machine you buy) and that's Lincoln Outershield. It is a dual shield wire that has flux and needs gas..... don't go nuts over the gas requirement. You get 76,000 psi strength with just CO2 ..... you can use CO2/argon and get into the 86,000 range but it's just not necessary for mild steel and that CO2 is CHEAP!!!!!! and as a liquid it lasts for eons!!!

The real strength with L. outershield is that it works more like stick rod........ you set your voltage and wire speed and it just happily burns .... with solid wire we were always running around with a notebook having to write down our settings........ with outershield it will dig like a stick but pretty up and go blue blazes like a wire machine.

It is not as cheap as solid wire but it sure works nice under varying conditions.

But the main reason I jumped in is in case you did not catch the bit about helmets......... WHATEVER YOU DO .... get a good automatic helmet........

..... whatever did we do before these babies came out ..........?????

Three 44s
 
Quote:
I did not know exactly where to make this post but I figured that here was as good as any since it seems that we have quite a few welders that check the night hunting section because of all the postiive feedback on "killing chairs". I am in the market for a welding machine to be used to fabricate high racks or killing chairs and several other projects that I have in mind. I have been told that I should go with a wire fed type of welder and that the Hobart brand is a good one that can be found at the Tractor Supply near me. I have very little experience welding and I am sure it will take me some time to get it down. I dont need one with a generator just one that can be pluged into say a 220 outlet like your clothes drier plugs into, because I will do all the work in my garage. Can someone point me into the right direction on what to look for or what I might need? I want the cost to be kept under around $700.00. If there is any other info. that I can provide just let me know, like I said I am new to this but ya got to start somewhere. Thanks for any feedback. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif [/quote

One thing that I would like to add here that none have mentioned is, you say "220 outlet like your clothes drier plugs into". If that is the route you are going, keep in mind that some stick machines require 50 amp service and your drier only uses 30 amp service at the plug unless someone has up-graded that outlet for you....JOHN
 
I have been welding all my life and am currently an active welder. I currently manage a welding division that cators only to the government. I had my own business for 10+ years. I built the Elimination Chamber for World Wresteling, bla, bla, bla. It is all based on budget. for light gauge tubing I would recomend a Lincoln SP 135 for around $580.00. If you can spend around $1,800.00 then get a Lincoln Power Mig 255. If you have big bucks $3,000.00 then get a Lincoln Power Mig 300. If you know how to weld then get a wire feed.

Lincoln, Lincoln, Lincoln.
 
I do some metal fab on the side for mainly rock crawling and such. I personally use a century 220 machine. I bought it at sears. I paid around 600 for it and I can outweld my buddys lincoln. I would stay away from 110. Also there is some research going on about problems with fluxcore wire. There have been some cases of people with cancer that have been using that stuff alot.
 
I currently only use the 110 welders for conveniance in the field. We use them to splice handrail togethor in the field etc. I mostly weld with hard wire, but recomend the 110 to people with limited budgets. Most hobby welders don't realy weld that much any way. Lincoln has been around for a long time, so who knows what your buddy is running. I am spoiled & have the latest technology. Props to you if you can run a good looking bead. With all do respect I would goto a local welding supply store. Look it up in the yellow pages. Most machines will lay a bead. I guess it is about how serious you are about it. Most people will goto a major retailer & buy the cheapest thing on the shelf (thats not me). Lincoln makes one of those machines & you will see them on the shelf at Home Depot, Sams, etc. I have owned one & they are OK for the hobby guys, but I will never own one again. The Lincoln's I currently own are serious machines & I think it would be an over purchase for a hobbiest. Good luck!
 
I have used several different brands of welders since our shop is only concern is what on sale for a new welder. From what I have learned in eight years as a fitter@welder(isnt much) it doesnt matter what kind of machine you use if you cant set it up right your going to have a crappy weld with excess spatter undercut and the likes. Duty cycle is big you need a high duty cycle if you are doing any amount of welding. I have welded galvanized which is nasty stuff to weld and for your health so wear a mask but when you get used to it you can still put down a nice weld. With mig you have to worry about porosity if you have a breeze in the area and the weld will look like an aero bar. For stick 6010 is a quick freeze weld which is used mostly on pipe and then ground nice with a 7018 filler and cap which looks really nice and done right gauranteed not to break.
 
I have both Mig and stick welders. Both are Lincolns and I can weld just about anything between the two. The Mig is a 135-110 and is great for smaller stuff like tubing.I use the flux core since I'm outside so much welding. No way for me to use gas with it although it has the capability. I like the stick (gas machine) for doing heavier metals. I worked for a pipe welder years ago and learned all about weld/ grind/ weld/ grind then weld a cap with low/hy. One super stout weld when I get done. The Mig sure is handy, I use it 90% of the time now. I got it on sale for 450.00.
Next machine will be a plasma cutter.
 
Been looking at a Hobart/Miller Plasma cutter. One sweet cut especially on the lighter stuff I usually mess with. The new Rhino is taking up a bunch of my play funds right now. Maybe next year with a tax refund.
 
I agree with Randy. After welding for 27 years ( now a welding inspector)I mostly weld with stick no gasses to mess with and can "Git-r-done" quick
 
It all depends on what you are going to do with it.

I've got a Miller 200 tig/stick that I use around the house. I build spurs & motorcycles, (pretty strange combination) I can do pretty much anything I want to do with it.

BUT, if all I was going to do was build stuff out of tubing I would reccomend a wire feed WITH GAS. For around the house hobbys it pretty hard to beat one, they are light enough to carry around. And its pretty easy to learn to use.

A lot of guys will say stick only but, in the hands of a novice a stick welder can be tough to use on the thin stuff.

Better yet, find a buddy that will let you try their welder & pick what you like.
 
Back
Top