Hi,
I am currently after a Mig (not Gas less) for blacksmith type work, Gates , Railings. I also wanna start by putting together a Coke forge, which at its thickest would be 1/2" plate. any info or opinions you could spare on Amps and make, model
Hi Farrier, welcome to the forum
For gates and railings type stuff you want to be looking at something around 180 amps plus, ideally something like 220A or even 250A. Unfortunately even a 220A mig won't be much good for 1/2" plate, it will weld it if it's not critical strength wise but it wouldn't be ideal. I'd suggest a stick welder for that sort of stuff, they're really cheap and will handle thicker stuff much better than a mig will. What sort of budget do you have and are you looking to buy a machine to get you up and running with a view to upgrading it when funds permit or do you intend to buy a machine you won't 'grow out of'?
If you plan on doing real ironwork and sticking bits together an arc welder would be better as you have more choices for rods for things like dissimilar metals.
A 200A or more arc welder will do, preferably AC/DC.
MIG will do, but will need multiple passes on heavy plate unless you get a very large MIG.
For gates and railings, you may need something portable for on-site work. An inverter welder will be lighter and require less power.
The reason i would prefer Mig is that its what I learnt on, it seems cleaner than Stick, if you think i can fabricate just as well with stick i will go for it as its cheaper and as you say simpler. My budget is £500- £600< i was looking at a Butters 180 Mig with 7 year warranty, but if you reckon i can get similar results with stick then I will consider it. As you have probably guessed I dont know it all yet and so I really am thankful for your advice, any other pointers on Blacksmithing/Fabrication rigs would be great
£500-600 is a decent amount to spend. Butters are nice machines but the 7 year warranty isn't what it appears, I believe it's only on the main transformer and you have to have it serviced by Butters (or an agent?) for the warranty to remain valid. Having said that, I have one and it's nicely built and Butters are a very good company to deal with in the event of any problems.
I'd still go bigger than 180A though, yes it will do what you want but you'll be running it on pretty much it's highest settings.
Oh, and while I agree with Shenion about stick for on site work, mig is much quicker and easier for fabbing the stuff in the first place and has no post-cleaning to do like stick welds.
Welcome farrier,
have you looked at the portamig range, if you pm weldequip on here then he will send you the specs and im sure a 215amp machine comes at just shy of £600,but he can give you exact info or the other option is look out for something good secondhand.