New mig under £400 - my head hurts!!

[flyingbenny]

Guys, apologies for another 'which welder' thread but I want to make the right choice, I have looked at other 'best welder under £400' threads but there is nothing recent and options change over time so
I am after a bit of help please.

I have recently posted elsewhere that my trusty old Nu-Tool NW170 welder has died, with the help of some off here we are working on getting it going again but I have been offered some money to purchase a new mig to replace it. I will mainly use the mig for car restoration work but also for the odd bit of small fabrication using up to 5 or 6mm wall box section etc, nothing too massive I have access to bigger welders for heavy duty stuff. I have no use for gasless, tried that once and hated it, I use a 10ltr size hobbygas type bottle. Ideally I would like a euro torch but not essential if there are other options, I've managed until now without. I have up to £400ish to spend, I know a little bit more might get me a better welder but then another little bit more would get me a bit better again then a little bit more etc, etc, £400 is therefore pretty much my limit.

My options I have come up with so far:

Clarke - 160TM - 30-155a - non euro
Clarke - 165TEM - 30-160a - non euro

SWP - Redline 180 Turbo - 40-180a - euro torch
SWP - Redline 170 Turbo - 40-170a - euro torch

Sealey - MIGHYMIG 170 - 30-170a - euro torch
Sealey - SUPERMIG 180 - 30-180a - euro torch

Or this is my option with spending that 'little bit more' and I am quite tempted with this:
Parweld XTM 171C - 30-70a


What do you think then any of the above to disregard straight away?? Are there any other options worth considering? I have thought second hand but as it will be going through my work it would be a lot simpler with reciepts, warranties etc.

Cheers
Ben

 

[grim_d]

Considered this? http://www.weldequip.com/gys-smartmig-162.htm just a hair over £400 with the gas upgrade.

IMO either spend the little bit more or keep an eye on the classifieds for a better used machine if you can swing it.

The lower end of the swp is a bit high if you intend to do panel work.

Clarkes are fairly well regarded for hobby migs but better can be had for your budget.

Dont think I've ever used a proper sealey mig but I have a rule to never buy anything sealey that has moving parts if possible.

 

[Bigjoe]

Can I suggest you contact Dylan at r tech welding, they may have an mig 180 ex display or may have a deal on? Inverter mig with mma function also,even full price is £448 I think.

 

[cumbriasteve]

ifAs good as the Clarkes are I think the mention of some fabrication work may put them out of the running, they are an excellent hobby machine, capable of a little extra than hobby work but still in that bracket.

I have never used a Parweld but that one may be the best of the bunch you have listed.

The Smartmig is well liked and seems a good machine.

R-Tech also come out well with their users, simply because they seem to work well and have great customer backup.

Always squeeze a few more £'s from somewhere if you can and if it means getting a better machine, hopefully you are only going to buy once for a lot of years.

 

[BrokenBiker]

Anyone mentioned cws best mig?

 

[Bigjoe]

You just did,I don't know a great deal about them to be honest, had a look at the cws site, anyone here got one?

 

[Tom Orrow L]

You just did,I don't know a great deal about them to be honest, had a look at the cws site, anyone here got one?

I believe @chunkolini has experience with them. Any input chunko?

 

[Tom Orrow L]

Parweld machines are transformer based.. Don't know if that influences your decision at all.
They're tidy machines with good back up too.

 

[mr migwire]

nowt wrong with the sealeys you have listed there, I'm on my second one, (first is still in use too) cant fault them at all.

 

[flyingbenny]

Thanks guys, keep them coming.

Considered this? http://www.weldequip.com/gys-smartmig-162.htm just a hair over £400 with the gas upgrade

I did see this but didn't give it a second thought with it not being a make I know, so this is another one in the mix people, your thoughts?

Parweld machines are transformer based.. Don't know if that influences your decision at all.
They're tidy machines with good back up too.

Transformer based as opposed to what? invertor??, should it influence my decision?

Can I suggest you contact Dylan at r tech welding, they may have an mig 180 ex display or may have a deal on? Inverter mig with mma function also,even full price is £448 I think.

Ok so this has thrown inverters into the mix, should I be considering this, the R-Tech 180 is within my budget?? I'm old school, I grew up with my Dad's big ole (Oxford I think) stick welder sat in the corner of the workshop.

As I said earlier, I know spending that little bit more will always get something better but I'm not sure if I actually need to for the amount I'll use it especially as my Nu-Tool did the job????

Cheers
Ben

 

[BrokenBiker]

a transofrmer or inverter machine isnt going to be a huge difference for hobby use...the only difference is the inverters will usually do stick welding as well, but the transformers wont...

there is nothing wrong with the gys smartmig...they get good reviews and the front panel makes it quite easy to set up by all accounts...

the best bit about an inverter in my eyes is that you have an infinitely adjustable dial for voltage, not some switches so you can tweak it until it is absolutely spot on for every scenario once you get to grips with it...

if you wanna see an r-tech 180 (and a 250) in use watch some of doubleboosts videos on youtube...he is a member on here and does some good reviews on r-techs kit...uses a 250 and a tig welder and plasma cutter from them in his home workshop too

 

[oddbob]

You just did,I don't know a great deal about them to be honest, had a look at the cws site, anyone here got one?

I've had one for a few months. No complaints so far. Nice enough to use ...comparable to an R-Tech I'd say (which I have had a bit of experience with in the past). Two year warranty from a UK supplier who stock all the parts as spares. Definitely a step up from Clarke machines.

 

[Tom Orrow L]

Indeed, transformers usually have a simpler nature about them.. Less to go wrong.

Inverters are brilliant and usually have the added stick/ scratch TIG function.

GYS Machines are nice, usually made in France but that particular machine is made in GYS factory in China. Doesn't take away from the quality though.

 

[Bigjoe]

I had and used a gys smartmig 162 which was a great machine, unfortunately had to sell it to raise some funds but was a really nice machine to use and the smart panel is useful. And also a euro torch so you can add a longer torch,the only negative is a short earth lead but it's fairly straightforward to fit a longer one.

 

[BrokenBiker]

I had and used a gys smartmig 162 which was a great machine, unfortunately had to sell it to raise some funds but was a really nice machine to use and the smart panel is useful. And also a euro torch so you can add a longer torch,the only negative is a short earth lead but it's fairly straightforward to fit a longer one.

with a 4M torch on it and the welder being quite easily portable a short earth would bother me too much...

 

[Bigjoe]

Not a problem really just an observation, didn't really affect what I was doing.

 

[BrokenBiker]

Not a problem really just an observation, didn't really affect what I was doing.

i put a longeer earth lead on my sealey as it was easier than putting a longer torch on and it made a big difference in where i could put the welder and not have to keep moving the earth...then i put a 2M torch on instead of the 1.2M standard and then i could leave the welder where it was and just move around with the torch...if i were to do it again i would just buy a welder with a euro torch and a long torch

 

[PTvor]

You just did,I don't know a great deal about them to be honest, had a look at the cws site, anyone here got one?

There are a few threads on them

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/...y-heard-any-news-on-this-machine.50712/page-2

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/...-are-its-bad-points-and-do-you-use-one.55385/

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/car-house-mig.54964/

CWS himself is a member and posts occasionally.

I don't think anything bad has been posted about them.

 

[Bigjoe]

There is a couple of videos on you tube about this very machine, looks a good bit of kit.

 

[BrokenBiker]

while i was thinking about buying one, graham from CWS was extremely helpful, just as helpful as steve at weldequip and the guys at r-tech...cant fault any of them for their advice and knowledge so i think your best bet would be to speak to each of them also and see what they reccomend...obviously they are all going to favour what they sell but their knowledge may be helpful also