decision help on new welder please :-)

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Hi wasn't sure which thread to add this to so started a fresh one hope thats ok?
I have a SIP 130 migmate that to be honest is only fit for the bin so the time has come for an upgrade.
Ive spent the last week trawling the net reading the forums making notes and going round in a few circles.
I think however I have narrowed it down to this setup but before i place the order I just wanted to put it out there past you lovely people incase i have missed or overlooked anything.

Welder - Portamig 186
Helmet - Speedglas 9100
Gas & Reg Argomix

The portamig looks to have only good reviews and has a wide amp range, my only concern is it looks to be very basic? less to go wrong yes, and are those extra nobs dials and LCD displays on other machines really needed??
I will be mainly working on light fab up to 5mm approx, sheet / carbody and sculptural pieces quite small and delicate. For anything bigger i can use my brother in laws 3 phase machine.

Power supply is a dedicated 16A
Budget £1000
I can review the budget if by pushing it a little I can get a better set up but this is where i start to get lost. wouldn't want to go more than an extra £200 I am a firm believer in buy nice or buy twice so after waiting so log to save up for this want to make sure i get it right this time!
look forward to your advice and input.

 

[Tom Orrow L]

Looks like you’ve done your research.
£1000 will get you exactly what you need and it’ll be a quality set.
Have you considered any inverted sets? Moving big transformer sets around cars can be a little bit of a PITA sometimes.

 

[Fazerruss]

Personally I prefer transformer sets as they are more reliable. I've had my migatronic for over 20 years and dragged it everywhere.
Inverters are smaller but you need something substantial to fasten the gas cylinder to. So by the time you've made a trolley to house everything it's as big as a transformer set anyway.

 

[cumbriasteve]

Welcome to the forum

I don't think you will go far wrong with what you have decided, I owned a Portamig and had no complaints at all, I think they come with a regulator to suit your gas, mention what you intend to use when purchasing.

However, your views on buy once buy right is spot on and for the little money extra I personally would get the next size up, a bit of extra power is nice to have and it also means on most days your machine is running well below it's max which is never a bad thing.

I also prefer the heavier transformers as long as I don't have to transport them around.

 

[Richard.]

Nowadays I would not say a transformer is more reliable than an inverter as 2 of my inverter tig sets were well over the 2 decade mark also.
However a transformer is probably much easier and more cost effective to repair when there is a problem. Inverters have main pcbs in them doing the work and quite often a blown pcb can write off the machine. But reliability wise a quality inverter will Last you many many years if you look after it so I wouldn’t worry about this.

 

[Gareth0123]

Personally I prefer transformer sets as they are more reliable.

Really?

My single phase R-Tech 250-1 inverter Mig has lasted longer than any of the singe phase transformer sets I've owned from new both in physical age and amount of work done: Sealey, BOC Murex mig, Snap-On and Ceobra .

I am 3 years and 1 month into owning my R-Tech 250-1 and it currently it has its 108th (one-hundred-and eight) 15kg roll of 0.8 grade A18 wire on it or if you include the bit of 1.0, A18 and stainless work I do it has laid down the best part of 1700kg of wire on M/S material from 1mm to 12mm thick and 5mm to 30mm diameter round bar.

As I've written before in earlier posts, I go on to about 1 dozen local farms and smallholdings and use their welders on-site and the only ones that give me any trouble are the two Portamigs.

My own personal experience of a buying Portamig is tale of frustration, woe and despondency: it was 53 days late being delivered, the one I was delivered was someone else's and the set caught fire under the panels within 20 minutes of its first use and then it took them a few more days to collect the dead set it from me............. although Weldequip as the supplier handled the situation extremely well with initial support and a lightening fast refund, it was Portamig directly who made a catastrophe of it all.


ironically I had never heard of R-tech until I did an Internet search on the day after my brand new Portamig died and R-Tech were the only ones who could guarantee next day deliver on a new Mig set........... I've never looked back since.

 

[daedalusminos]

You're in exactly the same position I was a year ago: main use automotive, current welder SIP 130 (circa mid '80s).

I went for the Oxford 200, though was also considering Portamig. They're both made by Technical Arc along with their own brand mig. I went for the Oxford since at the time it had a better wire feed and output capacitors, was concerned the 20A min current wasn't as low as the Portamig's 15A.....you won't need 15A for car bodywork, I'm a couple of notches off min on 1.0mm.

You may want to consider going up a size for max current, the Oxford 200 will weld 5mm, I'm not sure how you'd do on less than 200A without joint prep.

The Oxford is a dream to use as I'm sure the Portamig is, I'd question your mask....do you need to spend so much on it? I use a £25 auto-dimming eBay job with no problems.

 

[DAPPH]

Nowadays I would not say a transformer is more reliable than an inverter as 2 of my inverter tig sets were well over the 2 decade mark also.
However a transformer is probably much easier and more cost effective to repair when there is a problem. Inverters have main pcbs in them doing the work and quite often a blown pcb can write off the machine. But reliability wise a quality inverter will Last you many many years if you look after it so I wouldn’t worry about this.

From the experiences suffered by my friend it appears that the metalized dust from grinding is what short circuits the delicate circuit board on the inverter welders . So making a simple slide in place filter cartridge device might solve the problem .

Noting the amount of grinding dust and metal particles in my man-cupboard It's something I'm looking into ... putting a slide in / out set of fine & coarse integrated pads over each air inlet louver using 10 mm thick fine filter grade open cell foam sheet , attached to 10 mm thick reticulated foam sheet .

 

[Richard.]

Yeah mine is fitted with dust filters on the intake as standard.
If you do make this as a modification to yours I would just be aware you might cause a different problem as filters will restrict air flow slightly. On mine it’s incorporated from the design and as a result there are 3 powerful little fans doing the cooling of the heat sinks. Perhaps the reason for 3 fans is due to the fact air flow been more restricted with the filter. What you don’t want to do is modify it with filters and cause it to over heat.

 

[weldequip]

That's a fair old selection of Automotive kit you have managed to kill there Gareth0123. Including the Portamig 235 & two Sealeys you say you had I make that out as six machines?
Most people would have thought something odd after their second set died quickly, looked past price, put their hand in their pocket & bought something designed for the job.

So the OP (and many others) do not make the same mistake...do you want to weld up to 5mm mild steel thickness, or are you welding 5mm thickness a lot of the time? And how much of this work will you be doing?

 

[addjunkie]

Always go the next size up you wont regret it. i have an oxford, like it alot, nice quality. But Im sure any mig that price range will do everything you could want.

 

[Ads]

Hi thanks everyone for your feedback most greatly appreciated.
Some good points raised:
i.e big a a pain to move around, yes but its on wheels? but get your point and is very valid. size isn't too much of a problem trolley gas etc.
Getting the next size up is also a good point i would rather a machine running at part load for the majority of the time than regularly running at full chat. would be using it for up to 5mm at the moment but in all likelihood can see that creeping up
My main issue now is i can only go to 16A supply :-( the portamig 216s needs 20A so can't do that one
So started looking at the inverter sets...
The Jasic Pro mig 200 looked ideal at first but again needs 20A :-(
The GYS Multipearl 200.2 is looking to fit the bill, yes a step up in budget but it looks to do a lot more and goes up to 200A but most importantly only needs a 16A supply it has a 2yr warranty but i can't find many reviews about it online? Have not heard of them before? from what i can see they are made in France... Are the French known for their electrics?? maybe i'm being cynical.
Another plus is the GYS can be bought off the shelf? where the Portamig is made to order.... was hoping to get a few days playing with it over the christmas break

 

[Fazerruss]

Don't worry if you only have a 16 amp supply. The big welders will work fine on it. It will only pop the fuse when you crank it up to use the full output of the welder.

 

[Ads]

Thanks Fazerruss you think I'm over complicating things? Just go for the Portamig 216s and reset the MCB if it trips out?

 

[Fazerruss]

That's what I would do.

 

[DAPPH]

Hi thanks everyone for your feedback most greatly appreciated.
Some good points raised:
i.e big a a pain to move around, yes but its on wheels? but get your point and is very valid. size isn't too much of a problem trolley gas etc.
Getting the next size up is also a good point i would rather a machine running at part load for the majority of the time than regularly running at full chat. would be using it for up to 5mm at the moment but in all likelihood can see that creeping up
My main issue now is i can only go to 16A supply :-( the portamig 216s needs 20A so can't do that one
So started looking at the inverter sets...
The Jasic Pro mig 200 looked ideal at first but again needs 20A :-(
The GYS Multipearl 200.2 is looking to fit the bill, yes a step up in budget but it looks to do a lot more and goes up to 200A but most importantly only needs a 16A supply it has a 2yr warranty but i can't find many reviews about it online? Have not heard of them before? from what i can see they are made in France... Are the French known for their electrics?? maybe i'm being cynical.
Another plus is the GYS can be bought off the shelf? where the Portamig is made to order.... was hoping to get a few days playing with it over the christmas break

I give my vote to the GYG 200 . I got one 18 months or so ago
I also purchased a dedicated torch specifically for just aluminium & got two alu roller sets . I'm only a basic metal sticker rather than a high quality professional welder , I find I can occasionally do a couple of 4 mm rods in one go without any hassle on a 16 amp fuse , say 4 min continuous weld time in one go .

CO2 welding & Argon TIG are good but took me a while to master due to me having a stroke .

I found it a good idea to get the welding manual in PDF form & put the pages in heat sealed envelopes made in to a book for easy larger print reference .