I would really like to buy a small welding machine and learn the basics, I have way to much free time on my hands lol… do they have welders that do not run on gas? I heard of a all electric welder? if this is true what is a cheap reliable machine to learn on?
Get a mig welder. You don’t have to use gas with it… but gas makes for better welds. Go to harbor freight, by a cheap mig welder, get a piece of metal and try to make beads on it.
/inexperienced welders opinion
Innershield or flux core wire is a decent option if you aren’t interested in using gas. Sold at Lowes/HD and will feed right into a harbor freight junk welder.
IMHO, if you are welding anything of value or anything that needs an ounce of strength, DON’T weld with standard wire and no gas. Ugly slag covered mess with terrible penetration.
Tractor Supply has decent budget welders also.
:lol
Thanks for the advice, well how does a gas welder work? i have 0 xp on welding and dont want to blow up our shed lol
Argon doesn’t explode.
look at some car magazines. Several of them have covered basic welders and gave a general overview on how to use them in recent months including Street Rodder.
theres a guy in the classifieds here selling a perfect starting machine. http://shift518.com/showthread.php?t=25571
go with gas, its shielding gas… doesnt explode
Don’t waste your time with a flux cored welder. There are good flux core welders out there but they are VERY expensive. FC is mainly used on areas that cannot be properly cleaned and prepped, and/or where maintaining proper gas coverage(known as shielding) is very difficult.
Go to lowes or something and at the worst walk out with a decent lincoln MIG that will weld 90% of what you’d do for ~$700. Head over to United welding supply on freemans bridge road, talk to Bob, tell him you know me(Adam Hennessy) and fill out the paperwork to rent a small tank of argon. Buy a set of miller gloves there(the best/most comfortable and cheap) and maybe pick up yourself a auto darkening hood. Swing over to harbor frieght and pick up a cheap 1/4hp angle grinder and some 4" grinding wheels(~$35) You’ll need that to clean/prep metal at the least. Buy a pair of their MIG pliers as well(~$6-7)
Hell you can go to United welding and they may even have a used welder there for cheap ready to rock and roll.
If your place is setup for 220volts I highly recommend getting the welder as such, even if it means making up a 20’ extension cord to make is accessible. 110 is ok, but don’t quite have the balls to get good penetration on heavier gauge parts over 11 guage . If 110 is all you’ve got, then that’s fine.
Then you can start learning. I’ve seen far too many people buy shit cheapo welders and struggle/get frustrated thinking they cannot weld, when it’s the shit welder holding them back. Spend ~$1000 for just about everything and you’ll be setup pretty damn good. I could teach you the basics in 1/2hour and have you putting down acceptable beads within the hour. Been welding for 20+ years and have AWS certifications in many areas including weld inspection(still have my ultrasound equipment here).
Not going to steer you wrong in this field 
Adam, what about TIG? I am pretty interested in learning TIG and would love to get into it. Mind you, I have a very limited welding experience with MIG however I’m guessing that’s not a big deal seeing how they are very different.
Any Tig machine is going to cost money. If you’re going to buy a machine, look for a used inverter. Far more stable arc, especially in AC form. I think Lance was selling one IIRC.
I can teach you anything welding wise. Only welding experience I do not have is liquid submerged arc(underwater) but have done media submerged arc(sand) welding before testing machines out. Going to add that I haven’t done explosion welding either, but have messed with rotary laser tube welders before and automated MIG/TIG robots.
You can have years of MIG experience and poorly weld at TIG. It’s a different learning curve and requires hand skills for control. Some pick it right up while others struggle, mostly due to the hand/eye coordination required and some bit of ambidexterity. Many of the new machines these days have features that can really help a new person(like arc pulse) but in reality it’s a crutch to those who never learn to use the machines without them.
I’ve always said that many CAN weld, but fewer know actually HOW to weld, with the latter referring to knowing filler types, material prep(not just cleaning), proper penetration, etc. In reality, far more knowledge than 99.5% of people would ever really need to know for what they’d weld. It’s not like you guys are doing structural stuff(bridges, buildings, airframes, etc).
I can teach anyone who wants to learn. Just buy your shit and give me a ring and I’ll swing by your place and get you going. If anyone ever needs help looking stuff up, just let me know as well. I’m always going to be an advocate in buying good equipment, even if it means you having to save up a little more to get a better machine, and some people don’t like hearing that.
Thanks for the info! I’ll look around for some used machines. Think I’d be better off learning an old machine without arc pulse or just go for a newer one? Can the arc pulse be disabled to learn the “older” way?
Also, I may be building up the 3B in the near future and I may want some of your I5 pointers :ninja
Yes, you can shut the pulse off on all of them that have it. It’s an adjustable setting.
And yes with the motor too
try a few types out. thanks to Rtrac1 for the bump. the mig i have for sale can be used with or without gas. without gas it is ok for just tacking things (what i did) but if your going to finish weld i would set up for gas. I just used my dads because it had the tank and he is 8 miles down the road. If you want to take a look at what I have let me know. All of what Adam said is good advice, get gloves, hood, grinder, and clamps before trying to do anything.
I can stick weld pretty darn good
/PJB
I have a sickkk auto darkening helmet for sale! Also, get a nice Lincoln/Miller/Hobart MIG unit, you won’t be sorry. And you won’t lose much money if you ever choose to upgrade.
pics of helmet?
^ Speedglas, very nice. All my helmets are from them including my respirator.
so its deff a nice one? and it loooks sick!!! how much? were u located? maybe my blackfriday deal lol.