Right I've been having a look around & now need a spot of advice.
The original idea was to get an inverter for the benefits of lighweight & portability for doing jobs around the farm. I have a Migatronic 301 for stuff I can get in the workshop. This would then have been followed at some point with a TIG kit for welding small stuff that I'd like to be done tidyer than the MIG, stainless steel for the like of exhausts & aluminium for stuff like broken mounting lugs on alloy brackets & mabye a fuel tank etc.
I did'nt read many threads before I'd got sussed the only practical way to weld aluminium is with AC & that's going to cost!
So I've got to think a few things through, I'm wanting decent quality whatever I get & for it to be well on top of it's job ( I dont think I've ever had the MIG flat out!) as although it wont get used daily when it does get used it'll be working as hard as any.
An AC/DC inverter Tig is going to be well over a grand & since the original idea & main use for this is for portability for stick welding on the farm it would'nt be a good idea to take a grands worth of inverter up a ladder to weld brackets to the side of a shed! So for now at least welding aluminium is out which is dissapointing as really that was much of the attraction of a TIG.
So I'm still keen to buy a DC inverter as the main use always was going to be stick welding, it'll rarely get used with more than a 3.2 rod but as said I'd like it not to be stained & the capability to use a 4mm now & then would be good.
So as the TIG is'nt going to be as much use as I'd hoped, I'm thinking what can I use for? Would I see much reduction in distortion over the MIG for work on 1.6mm steel sheet? If yes then there's a job there for it.
How interchangable are the TIG kits? If I do go for the TIG & then later get the chance in some way of an AC power source would the kit from the DC work?
If I do go for an AC set up at some time how big will I need it? I cant see me welding much 6mm aluminium sheet, more up to 2.5mm for aluminium tanks etc but I would want to do repairs to broken stuff, something that may only be a 50mm long weld but as much as 10mm thick.
As I would'nt want to risk an AC unit by hauling it around a site it would'nt need to be very portable, what possibilities would that open up?
Anyway, I'm off out now to the workshop (yes at this hour, I've got a lot on!) to use the MIG on a muck spreader I've been doing a bit of a rebuild on.
Cheers for any advice!
The original idea was to get an inverter for the benefits of lighweight & portability for doing jobs around the farm. I have a Migatronic 301 for stuff I can get in the workshop. This would then have been followed at some point with a TIG kit for welding small stuff that I'd like to be done tidyer than the MIG, stainless steel for the like of exhausts & aluminium for stuff like broken mounting lugs on alloy brackets & mabye a fuel tank etc.
I did'nt read many threads before I'd got sussed the only practical way to weld aluminium is with AC & that's going to cost!
So I've got to think a few things through, I'm wanting decent quality whatever I get & for it to be well on top of it's job ( I dont think I've ever had the MIG flat out!) as although it wont get used daily when it does get used it'll be working as hard as any.
An AC/DC inverter Tig is going to be well over a grand & since the original idea & main use for this is for portability for stick welding on the farm it would'nt be a good idea to take a grands worth of inverter up a ladder to weld brackets to the side of a shed! So for now at least welding aluminium is out which is dissapointing as really that was much of the attraction of a TIG.
So I'm still keen to buy a DC inverter as the main use always was going to be stick welding, it'll rarely get used with more than a 3.2 rod but as said I'd like it not to be stained & the capability to use a 4mm now & then would be good.
So as the TIG is'nt going to be as much use as I'd hoped, I'm thinking what can I use for? Would I see much reduction in distortion over the MIG for work on 1.6mm steel sheet? If yes then there's a job there for it.
How interchangable are the TIG kits? If I do go for the TIG & then later get the chance in some way of an AC power source would the kit from the DC work?
If I do go for an AC set up at some time how big will I need it? I cant see me welding much 6mm aluminium sheet, more up to 2.5mm for aluminium tanks etc but I would want to do repairs to broken stuff, something that may only be a 50mm long weld but as much as 10mm thick.
As I would'nt want to risk an AC unit by hauling it around a site it would'nt need to be very portable, what possibilities would that open up?
Anyway, I'm off out now to the workshop (yes at this hour, I've got a lot on!) to use the MIG on a muck spreader I've been doing a bit of a rebuild on.
Cheers for any advice!