my advice, weld on others machines first, if welding isnt for you (for some people its not) my uncle is a machinist who wont weld, hates it.
dont buy a 400$ machine thats gonna be worth 150 when you want to upgrade.
See if someone has a machine that they will let you play around on for awhile to see if it’s really something you like doing.
If you do really actually like it, then decide to buy a machine.
When purchasing a machine, when you buy quality, you only cry once.
Watch the puddle, not the arc.
sry tht was just my opinion. you can absolutly weld thin stainless with MIG and Flux cored wire. but honestly ive only welded exhaust a few times and it was just more pratical to use a process that lets you adjust the heat mid weld.
thanks, i think i might be able to practice this weekend.
You can get into a Hobart Handler 140 with a cart for about $596 locally. Miller and Hobart are the same company. Actually, “Hobart Brothers” owns Miller, TriMark, Bernard, McKay, WeldCraft, Tregaskiss, and prolly a fee other companies I forgot to mention. The Hobart Handler 140 is the same machine as the MillerMatic 140, just no “auto-set” option (an idiots guide to proper setup of material thickness, wire diameter, ect). The Hobart is alot cheaper and performs the same. As for gas, you can buy outright a smaller bottle of 75/25 (75%argon, 25%CO2), or 98%Argon/2%Oxygen(works well for stainless and carbon steel) for around $100-160 depending on what size you want. (say, any thing from 20cu/ft to 145cu/ft size). So, for under a grand, you got new shot with a warranty. Not to bad. PM me for more info if you like.