I’m looking to buy a small MIG welder, any recommendations? I like the Miller products and there is a dealer nearby. Thanks for any help!
PLP
Good times, riches and Son of a _itches
I’ve seen more than I can recall.
J. Buffett
I’m looking to buy a small MIG welder, any recommendations? I like the Miller products and there is a dealer nearby. Thanks for any help!
PLP
Good times, riches and Son of a _itches
I’ve seen more than I can recall.
J. Buffett
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Replies
If you like Miller, the 115Volt Miller that can run gas or flux-core is a good buy. Steel drive wheels. I think its the 175 Cricket, or 135. The 175 might be 220v.
You cant beat the portability of the household voltage, and if you go 220, you might as well get a big welder, like the Miller Vintage or the new 250 with digital controls.
I do have the Lincoln 3200 HD, which is their small 115v gas or fluxcore mig. It is great, and about 150 bucks cheaper than the Miller
I am a fan of Miller and have the Pulser for my bigger jobs.
I do more metal fabication than wood work. I own the miller mig 135. My advice. smallest to get the 175. the 135 is cute and small but its only good for sheet metal. If you want a man type welder. the lincoln cracker box but only if it does DC. Ac is a joke. Dont even look at the linciln weldpac at HD, its too small for anything. I,m usually run my 135 wide open just to get a decent bead.
Edited 11/4/2005 8:31 pm by brownbagg
Does the Lincoln Red-Head 'real DC' unit still exist? I haven't touched an arc welder since I stopped shipping out on tugs, and I keep wanting to get one. But I'm such a weekend warrior at metal work that I need that nice steady generated DC flow to compensate for my lack of practice, LOL....
Dinosaur
A day may come when the courage of men fails,when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship...
But it is not this day.
My first welder was the lincoln ac 225 cracker box. Then at work I was playing with a dc welder. my welding improved 300% just because of DC. So I bought an lincoln AC/DC 225 cracker box. I feel anybody that welds with only AC, does not need to be welding. In the picture the red machine is the lincoln, and over to the left the blue machine is the Miller 135
Edited 11/5/2005 2:35 pm by brownbagg
BB..I have a lincoln Buzz box, can you explain the diff between AC welding and the DC? I am not a very good welder , but I think it may be more important in the next few weeks.
Any explanation? Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"I don't think it's funny no more" Nick Lowe.
alternation current is a 60 cycle freq. so every second it change polarity 60 times. Dc is a direct current which does not change polarity. polarity has an effect on the welding rod. On a/c for a micro second 60 times a second there is no voltage. The other time the voltage is climbing then falling 60 times per second.on dc machine the voltage and polarity is the same, all the time.The welding rod is fighting this polarity and voltage change and that what cause splatter and jumping of arc.The dc is smooth from beginning to end To overcome the splatter you raise the voltage on the machine.Dc will weld the same thickness at lower voltage so you dont catch yourself on fire. more smooth, more comfort and less heat so you dont burn holes or warp the metal.there are both good machine, but i will never weld ac again. I am welding at least four times a week.
Edited 11/5/2005 1:00 pm by brownbagg
Excellent explanation! Thank you. I think my Lincoln can do both, I'll be back at you. Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"I don't think it's funny no more" Nick Lowe.
never weld ac again
for some reason on hard surfacing the ac works better than dc for me.
picked up an old free 400 A dc miller with Wisconsin engine, neigbor asked and rebuilt the Wisconsin for me for fun (would not even let me pay for the parts), still need to rebuild the generator, but what a bead!
I am really going to confuse things here. With a "standard" DC welding machine, once the machine is started, polarity and current will remain constant. There are three types of DC machines: Frequented DC - used for heli-arc(TIG); constant current DC - used for SMAW(stick) and TIG; and constant voltage - used as a power source for wire-feed SMAW and GMAW(mig).
With regards to the Red Head, that is called a "motor generator", and is sadly a thing of the past. They use a lot of juice, but are simple, and can often be bought cheaply.
My Lincoln tombstone is AC only. Took me a long time to get good enough to tell the difference between AC and DC. I haven't bothered to replace it with AC/DC, probably won't. Mine's one of the old ones with copper windings. Mostly I do structural repairs (until I get to the next roof). Did buy a wirefeed for light stuff.
If you're looking for strength and AC, there's 7018 AC available. Works very well. BB welds more in a week than I usually do in a month. Had an opportunity this week when I broke a rail on my Cat crawler. Chose instead to spend a couple hundred with a mobile welder and watch him do contortions. New rail (if available) from Cat was $8k. PITA to get it apart, hope it holds. His prediction was 50/50.PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
its bad when your monthly budget for welding rods is a couple hundred dollars.
That's a lot of rod unless you're buying something exotic, couple of yrs for me. Hope you're getting some ventilation there. I've known a couple of retired welders with serious respiratory problems. Didn't make it to normal retirement age.PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
I gotta fab a scaffold..picture the square frame with an adjustable foot that lags onto the roof plane...as an outrigger.
We'll insert the pic/plank in the lower arm, and hang..add a stand off to brace against the stucture as built..this'll be real fun.
Grant has a vision, I have a dire need to stay alive. Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"I don't think it's funny no more" Nick Lowe.
I'm not getting his vision, but if it's square tubing, no sweat. Round pipe is more difficult, particularly to get cut right. Does that "adjustable foot" need to telescope or just hinge?
I made a pole hauler, inverted U with some high speed hubs from an Oldsmobile. Telescoping tongue. Even with a good metal saw I had difficulty with the pipe welds. Wanted to be able to haul a 42" d. x 30' log. Pretty large pipe. With this, I don't need a tractor to pick the log up.
Staying alive is a prerequisite for pretty much everything else.PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
Hmmm? Ok so we have a pivot foot ( plate stock) that angles to the roof plane, drop back and form a square buck..with a kicker to the stucture adjustable of course...I had not considered round pipe, we are in the square mode of thinking..but captured nuts ( not mine) might do it for the extensions.
If I am hanging my butt offa it, it WILL be stout..getting it up there may be a bear, but CU bought the manlift..so maybe we can survive. Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
" it is your reflection , silly" ..Dare I say? Ian DG..
Got it.
Big bolts I hope. Much easier to weld large nuts. Square is good. For telescoping, round works better. You're talking about shorter length, a whole lot less weight, and no problem with a bumpy road at 60 mph.
Better you than me in that manlift. No nosebleed probs? Or sphincter issues?
Speaking of captured... Blackpowder guys here yesterday were talking about a buck that castrated the shooter last year. Guy works in a local elec distributor here. None of them admitted to a close inspection though. Seems they found it funnier than he did. Pretty sure there wasn't a cup in the crowd. PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
All joking aside..I need to make this a " do-able"..
betcher axe i am concerned..my Lincoln Buzz box is just a tad shy of being the do all, end all..( did I say that out loud?)..
I am talking gussets of plate stock, 3/8ths I guess, and rails of 1.5" square. with 1'' sliders and thumb screws...
Wanna be a part of the design? When Grant gets a view that he will fund, I will (with Dale) fab it up..
The more the merrier, but it is MY azz up there..no time for sargents, just do-ers in flesh and little blood. Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
" it is your reflection , silly" ..Dare I say? Ian DG..
Your Lincoln'll be fine for that size. Just gotta turn up the heat. And use a BF hammer to check your penetration if you can't yet eyeball it. How tall you going with that scaffold? That's not particularly small steel. And I'm pretty sure Grant won't want you up there when it's blowing hard.
The only time I'd use thumbscrews is when I'm trying to get info out of somebody. Socket head cap screw for me, grade 8 at least. Weld a chain on that allen wrench if you're worried about beaning somebody with it. I drilled a few holes and used a big pin, but it's not continuously variable. Oops, you said captive nuts, which are what the thumb screws go into? That'd work. Thumb screws threaded in 1.5" and bearing on 1" stock doesn't sound good.
Happy to help, but I'm still a little fuzzy. Hauled a Case backhoe Friday from N. Va and now have to effect the repairs for my rock client. Promised his wife he didn't get the key until I was sure he wouldn't hurt himself. What's left of my mind has been wrapped around tractor brakes, cylinders, and manuals. A little WD40'll free it up.
Got a scanner you can post a sketch from? I'll promise not to laugh.
Stayin' alive, stayin' alive ....PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
Lemme work on that sketch..I will raise a few OSHA brows if we indeed do the take off..but hey, why not?
I figgure I met my half life, time to be daring.
Don't forgo the silicone spray, wd40 can't do it all. Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
" it is your reflection , silly" ..Dare I say? Ian DG..
Don't forgo the silicone spray, wd40 can't do it all.
Does it matter, left ear or right ear?
I squirted some silicone on my Cat's master pin that had confounded me last Mon. On Tues. it popped out with only a 12 lb. sledge as persuasion. The guy holding the punch was impressed. Oh, that's a T shaped contraption, preferably with a padded handle so the guy holding has his mitts a long ways away from that flying steel. You've gotta really whack it.
When did you say you were coming to play?PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
>but if it's square tubing, no sweat. Round pipe is more difficult, particularly to get cut right.You got that right. Just finished a railing for an S-curve stair using pipe and a railing for a straight stair using tube. Cutting the notches on the pipe was almost the end of me. Finally figured out a technique. Still almost did me in. Tubing was 10 times easier! These two were why I got the welder (Millermatic 135, iirc) and it's an investment that's paid off handsomely.
Cutting the notches on the pipe was almost the end of me.
I've seen a drill press jig that made it simple. Nothing I own or have any great desire for. Pretty sure it was $$$$.
Sounds like you've been having fun. Do your own bending? So where're the pics?PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
Not my own bending. There are limits to my thrift. Bent pipe cost about twice straight, but it wasn't enough more for a one-time use for me to justify the cost of a pipe-bender. But I _did_ look. Curiously, the radius of curve of the pipe for the outside rail was exactly the same as for the inside rail...and these are 44" wide stairs. I'll let you ponder that one a bit. It was a happy coincidence for me be/c I only had to order one size.The hardest part was where I had to take the twisting pipe and connect it to a straight section of railing. You can imagine that getting the ends of the connector piece to match the elliptical cut on the pipe on one side and notched on the other to fit a vertical pipe so that there'd be no crazy gaps was just nuts. Finally figured out a trick that made it work. Also learned to do as much as possible with the chop saw and as little as possible with the grinder.Pix? Haven't gotten around to doing it. Maybe...JoeH, thought about the jigs for cutting the notches, but convinced myself I could manage. Cursed that decision each notch, but figured since I finished that one, I could do the next. Then cursed the decision on that notch. See the pattern? :) Eventually I finished, and spent maybe $50 on chop saw and grinder blades. And another $50 on hops-based therapy, if you get the drift. :)
You need a tube cutting jig.
Aircraft Spruce sells them is the only place I can think of, but probably Ebay would turn one up.
Joe H
wasn't thinking of this, but here's a clever gizmo http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/pipemaster.php
this is what I had in mind. These work well.
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/notchers.php
Edited 11/8/2005 1:29 am by JoeH
Harbor Freight sells a cheap tubing notcher. I have no idea how good it is, but it currently is $39.99
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=42324
"There's 7018 AC Available"
The welding rod "code"
a) The first two digits ie: 70xx; the tensile strength in PSI X 1000.
b) The third digit, 1 = all position, 2= a position (flat) rod
c) Fourth digit: even = AC/DC, odd=AC
So, for example 7018 and 6010 are all position AC/DC rods. 6011 and 6013 are all position AC only rods. 7024 is a flat (high deposition) AC/DC rod.
I've got some 7018 that's DC only. Won't work with AC, which as my supplier explained, is normal. Specified AC is required. PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
DC only 7018? No, not per the AWS.
I need to make some corrections, per the AWS, and the United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters
xx1x all position
xx2x flat or horizontal
xx3x flat only
xxx0 cellulse sodium coating DC reverse
xxx1 cellulose potassium coating AC or DC (r)
xxx2 titania sodium DC
xxx3 titania potassium AC or DC
xxx4 iron powder AC/DC
xxx5 low hydrogen, sodium DC (r)
xxx6 low hy, potassium AC or DC(r)
xxx7 iron powder, iron oxide AC/DC
xxx8 low hy, iron powder AC or DC(r)
xxx8 iron oxide AC/DC
In reality, the rod may just run poorly AC. I spent years around heavy welds, and Pipefitter and Boilermaker welders, and only saw DC (constant current)machines. I think that the brand of 7018 runs poor on AC, but it should conform to the AWS guidelines.
I thought it was just me. Then I asked a certified guy from the shipyard to show me what I was doing wrong. He couldn't keep an arc either. This was Lincoln rod. When I asked my supplier, he showed me what I needed. It was specified AC. Works great.
Argue with Lincoln if you like. I don't buy from AWS.
I mostly use 7018, different brands. All of it is labeled AC. And there's always a choice.PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
"Argue with Lincoln" "I don't buy from AWS"
AWS is the governing body (along with the ASME) of welding in the United States. I am mearly quoting from their guidelines. Rod label such as 7018 must adhere to these guidelineshttp://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Catalog/consumableseries.asp?browse=104|2030
Why don't you argue with Lincoln. All their literature appears to support my position on 7018. Is your supplier mis-informed?
Edited 11/8/2005 6:45 am ET by McMark
Edited 11/8/2005 6:46 am ET by McMark
Edited 11/8/2005 6:35 pm ET by McMark
Is your supplier mis-informed?
Wouldn't seem so. I have 2 versions of Lincoln's 7018. Only one, labeled AC, works with my AC welder. Is that clear now?
As I previously said, the other brands of 7018 I've bought also specified AC, or I wouldn't have bought them.
Give it a rest. I'm sure AWS would be proud of you. I really don't care. PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
Did you visit Lincoln's web site? Their own site clearly states that all of Lincoln's 7018 rod is AC/DC. Why do you keep on insisting that you're right when all available literature shows that you are in error?
How about Hobart? They show all 7018 rod to be AC/DC. Maybe the reason you have trouble with one of the rods is because you can't weld?
http://www.hobartbrothers.com/results.asp?category=18
You really don't read well, do you?PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!
I read very well. And I understand that by definition, 7018 is an AC/DC rod. How about this: http://www.esabna.com/webcatalog/showdetl.cfm?product_ID=1264&GID=84&CID=20
Atom Arc 7018AC is an AC/DCEP rod. Even 7018 that is touted as AC is AC/DC. Some AC/DC rod is going to run better on AC than others, but that does not negate the fact that all 7018 is AC/DC. Admit that you are wrong, and drop it.
I'm not current enough with welders to know all the nicknames, but the 'Red Head' was prized by the best welders I've ever worked with, shipyard pipefitters and welders. One guy told me he could build an entire tugboat if he had a dime to start with and enough welding rods....
The Lincoln "Red Head" was a 'true' DC welder, without transformers. It contained a DC generator that was turned by an AC motor. The boys in the shipyard swore by it, and I who usually struggled to run a smooth bead was able to do decent work using that machine. It had a dome-shaped red top, hence the name 'Red Head'. Looked a bit like an old fireplug.
Have you run across a machine like that in recent years? Last time I saw one was in the early 80s, in Norfolk VA.
Dinosaur
A day may come when the courage of men fails,when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship...
But it is not this day.
get the biggest one you can afford. because you will use it for more than you think ever. i have a hobart 125 which is ok and i have miller thurnderbolt which is a stick machine but the better of the two. can do anything with it once you have some practice.
Take a look at the Lincoln's. I read a lot at the Hobart Weld Talk forum, and they are die hard Miller Guys, but they all seem to favor Lincoln because it doessn't have wire speed tracking that the Miller and Hobart do. Good Luck.
I have the Hobart 135. I have only used it once and don't know if it was me or the welder but I got very poor penetration with flux core wire. Hopefully soon I will have my shop up and will have access to enough power for my 250 amp machines. One thing to be aware of with the small machines is that at the advertized amperage, you get very low duty cycles. With my Hobart, at 135, the duty cycle is about 10% - that means that you can only weld for one minute out of each ten without running the danger of the thermal breaker tripping. I have been told that each tripping of the breaker weakens it a little so that it is more likely to trip the next time, thus tripping is something to be avoided. Thus, if you plan on doing much welding at maximum amps, have something to play with while you wait for the machine to cool down.
I don't know about hard surfacing, but about the only thing that comes to my mind where AC is recommended is welding aluminum. The more sophisticated machines use pulsed DC where the pulse width can be varied for steel and the ability to change the amount of the negative and positive pulses when using AC, however, we are talking a few more bucks here than the little 120V mig machines...
I bought a Hobart brand "Handler 175" (220 volt 15 amp)
I love it. You can weld a 1/4" gap in three passes (in steel) or you can turn down the heat and weld 1/16" material with the same wire filler. Comes with flux-core wire filler but aqlso comes with regulators and hoses for gas shielding.
It is made by Miller (even comes with a Miller torch) but you don't pay the Miller price. (about $300-400 less)
Their little 110 Volt kits are beautiful too. Allserviced by Miller etc. Can't beat that
There could be a reason AC isn't working for you guys...
AC current (as one guy explained) cycles back and forth. it cleans the surface as you weld with it (which is good for a material like titanium (some series) and aluminum, which oxidise as you weld it). it lifts the oxide off and lays down filler in it's place as you move the bead.
On steel... it is lifting the steel out of the puddle and laying it back down (thus the spatter). You can weld steel with AC, but you will need a lot of spatter spray (silicon).
DC is the way to go for most general welding operations
Edited 11/6/2005 11:01 pm ET by opie10