I bought one of the Aldi inverter welders yesterday and tried it out today. My first impressions are very favourable with absolutely nothing to find fault with, especially for the price. The welding leads look perfectly good to me and I can't see why anyone would need to replace them. Arc start...
It sounds like you do more welding in a typical morning than I do in several years. Those SIP 140 machines feel like they produce well over 120 amps at the top end so I'm still pleased to claim my 3.2mm rods worked fine. Aesthetics didn't seem too bad, especially since my rebar welds are now...
I used an identical SIP 140 welding unit with 3.2mm rods last week, and it certainly didn't struggle at all. Further information and a photo of my welded 12mm rebar here at post #36:
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/rebar-10mm-welding-into-legs-for-wooden-table-which-machine.55383/page-2
I agree. I remembered this thread earlier today when I welded together some 12mm rebar for use in concrete I'm laying. I used a decades-old SIP140 arc welder, which really does 'buzz', together with cheap 3.2mm 6013 rods which came from Screwfix. I set the arc welder on maximum and blasted away...
I have three DC inverters, yet I would never dispose of my transformer-based arc welders. For a start, they supply AC which I often prefer to DC. Second, the buzz boxes are highly unlikely to stop working whereas the same cannot be said for complex inverter technology, as Bill Edwards said...
I use concrete quite a lot and I usually add reinforcing bar. Perhaps a few cracks in a shed floor, in a few years time, would not be much of an issue, though.
Who sets the standard? I suggest that arc welds stand a good chance of being stronger than many mig welds. Either of them can be ground back to look tidy but I generally don't bother, in hidden away areas, because I prefer to keep the strength of the original weld deposits. None of my real-world...
I agree with Kent and others who say it's not only possible but perfectly achievable. Most of my arc welding is on thin steel, mostly 0.8mmm depth or thinner when partially rusted, of course. That said, it's much, much harder to do on a car panel in situ, rather than weld a test piece on a work...
I agree with mrfuzzy re. the great value of inverter welders available on eBay. I thought a £50 inverter I bought 5 or 6 years ago was brilliant value but it was only 75 amps. That' still going strong. Then, a few months ago I bought a 200 amp inverter on eBay for just £80 and I think it has HF...
Just to mention that, rather than risk taking this thread any more off-track, I started a new thread with some replies and other comments, for anyone who wants to discuss cost-conscious welding:
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/georgeb-replies.54459/#post-642346
Chrs - thank you for reminding me that I have a SIP 140 arc welder and it's been neglected for too long in conditions which must have been far too damp. My SIP 140 was never as rusty when I last used it, about a year ago. I rate this unit very highly for jobs where I require a bit of power. The...
Just to wrap up this thread, here's the complete assembly, built to support the branch of an old tree. You may question whether 12mm rebar is the best material to use, but it's cheap. If anyone thinks they can pull that assembly apart, let's arrange another weld-meet and I'll bet £1000 that you...
Drains, dannyp and knoba - thank you for your helpful comments. Yes, I really am clueless when it come to weld bead placement on a joint like that.
I cut off the ends of the angle iron in order to tidy up the overall assembly. As it happens, I cut off the end of a weld bead as well and here's...
Snowcat - are you an undercover moderator or what? It's a serious question. I had no idea you are a moderator or otherwise had special powers to 'close the thread.'
If so, I think you should clearly state 'Moderator' in all your posts like I thought all moderators did. I'm a moderator of...
This isn't the structural support for a public footbridge or anything! I'm sure the joint in post #1 is more than strong enough for my needs. I very much doubt if you could pull it apart. I sometimes wonder if there's more emphasis on artistic merit than technical strength. Perhaps that's why...
Thank you for your suggestion. By welding all the way round, do you mean like putting a ring of new metal round it, at about 1"-1.5" diameter? I did weld on all sides, as it happens, but one side at a time.
I agree with TechnicalAl and Snowcat's suggestions that formal training would be...
Thank you for your comments - spot on in terms of my lack of knowledge in terms of how best to go about making a joint like that in terms of almost everything. I did indeed go over the joint 2 or 3 times, hoping it would increase the joint strength.
I will try and find some Murex rods - are...
Here's some recent welding I did, after wiring up my SIP buzz box arc welder to the cooker point in my kitchen (30 amps). At last, I can run the buzz box on full (about 130A output I think) without it blowing a 13A fuse.
I tacked the 12mm rebar together and then ran some 'beads' on 130A with...
They certainly do exist. I have some from Toolstation and rate them very highly. As for bad reviews, here and elsewhere, I sometimes wonder if they are planted by companies selling over-priced products.
The welder may be assembled in Germany but I expect the rectifiers are made in Italy. Portamigs are assembled in York and their rectifiers (the plate type) are made in Italy.