i’d like to get a gasless flux core wire mig for the portability and cost. also looking for a 110V unit since i don’t have a 220V hookup in my house.
what it comes down to is brand vs cost. i’ve heard that you can find decent deals on used units on craigslist. i like the following because it comes with gloves, mask, hammer, all that, but i don’t like how it’s Chicago Electric (presumably Harbor Freight brand).
i have some old stainless exhaust i can practice on at first, probably can find some scrap steel to practice on as well. plan on doing mainly some stainless/mild steel exhausts in the future. no thicker than 1/4" or so.
my questions:
given that criteria, am i looking for the right type of welder?
should i keep looking for used stuff on craigslist, or is there something new that would be a better buy?
looking for some educated opinions. thanks in advance.
Gas setups aren’t that large. I had mine on a cart with a small tank and it didn’t take up much room. Tank lasted a long time too.
DO NOT BUY HARBOR FREIGHT JUNK
I REPEAT, DO NOT BUY HARBOR FREIGHT JUNK
Lincoln makes a great beginner unit and anything from Miller is gonna be a great machine as well.
I ended up paying around 400 from a used milller welder. Mine was a 220v but they do make smaller units that will work on 110v. Just buy something decent, don’t think that you can ‘make it work’. Good welders can barely make those pieces of shit work, let alone a clueless noob. Having a good machine will be crucial to the learning process.
Save up more money and buy something decent, it’ll save you huge headaches later on. I wouldn’t consider anything but a Miller or Lincoln (possibly Hobart too).
While i’d love to rock a top of the line machine, I’m a college student for a bit longer so I can’t really drop a grand or more on that. Looking to spend less than 400.
It worked fine for my exhaust tubing. I want a better one, but it did what I needed it to do.
Welding is all about practice. Knowing what to do is not that hard, but doing it right can be a PITA.
I still suck at welding and I really want a better one, but I have nothing special to weld any time soon, so i’ll just wait.
You might also want to look into taking a class of some sort… Burn through a ton of material on better equipment with someone else helping to pay for it.
Your not going to be able to weld stainless with the cheaper flux core welders. I would suggest looking at auctions for businesses/schools/boces clearing out. I used this site-http://www.auctionsinternational.com/index.htm and got a nice tig for less than 500 including everything. The unit that Karter has is actually very well priced and great for anything you will ever need beginner/home/small business wise.
You wont be able to use flux cored because of the heat. For exhaust, especially stainless you will want TIG. TIG is a bit harder to learn but really the best way to do it by far. This seems perfect for you http://buffalo.craigslist.org/tls/2013902153.html
I picked up a nearly new Miller 135 110V welder on CL for $400 with cart, helmet, gloves and tank 3/4 full and a spool of wire. Definitely sone decent deals out there on good machines.
I have a lincoln weld-pak 110 converted to mig, so it’s got the tank. Small unit so it’s portable and doesn’t take up much room when it’s stored. It does everything I need it to, I made my own exhaust, welded 1/4 panels, made some shelving etc etc. Since it’s kinda small you have to be a little more careful with things that may seem obvious to pro welders but weren’t obvious to me. For example you can’t have it plugged into an extension cord, even a heavy rated one as it loses too much amperage and you’ll get a shitty weld. Its nearly impossible to weld when there’s any wind because the gas gets blown from the weld or some shit, whatever the reason your welds don’t penetrate in the wind. Those are a couple tips I learned the hard way.
