Hi everyone, I have been reading this site and forum for a while now and have found it very valuable so far. I am about to start welding for the first time, so wanted to get some final advice before finally deciding on a machine.
The Clarke range seem to get very good reviews for DIY work so I have looked at a few of them, but I'm open to recommendations for all brands.
My requirements are:
1) Budget of around £300.
2) Welding mild steel from 1mm right up to about 6mm (more on this later).
3) Very rarely I may need to do very minor welding outside - would it be worth going for a machine which can also work gasless?
On the subject of metal thickness, one of the projects I need to undertake is detailed here: http://www.diygokarts.com/kart-plans/steering-plan-spindles.html
The brackets in fig 2 and 3 are made of 6mm mild steel. Would a 150A MIG be able to tackle this with special preparation? I took a look at the thickness guidelines on this forum, and it looks like 6mm is pushing it for a 150A machine. Can you weld thicker material by using thicker wire?
Would I be better finding a more powerful used machine for that budget instead in order to properly weld 6mm steel.
I'm very keen to hear your thoughts and opinions. I am just starting out with it all, so looking to gain as much as information as possible to make an informed purchase, instead of ending up with an unsuitable machine.
The Clarke range seem to get very good reviews for DIY work so I have looked at a few of them, but I'm open to recommendations for all brands.
My requirements are:
1) Budget of around £300.
2) Welding mild steel from 1mm right up to about 6mm (more on this later).
3) Very rarely I may need to do very minor welding outside - would it be worth going for a machine which can also work gasless?
On the subject of metal thickness, one of the projects I need to undertake is detailed here: http://www.diygokarts.com/kart-plans/steering-plan-spindles.html
The brackets in fig 2 and 3 are made of 6mm mild steel. Would a 150A MIG be able to tackle this with special preparation? I took a look at the thickness guidelines on this forum, and it looks like 6mm is pushing it for a 150A machine. Can you weld thicker material by using thicker wire?
Would I be better finding a more powerful used machine for that budget instead in order to properly weld 6mm steel.
I'm very keen to hear your thoughts and opinions. I am just starting out with it all, so looking to gain as much as information as possible to make an informed purchase, instead of ending up with an unsuitable machine.