alternative to weldequip portamigs?

[k.weld]

Hi,
My first post on this forum. Have been looking at mig welders on various sites. I like the spec of the portamig 235 amp package. Decent chassis, amps can be set low and go high enough for some stronger welding.
anybody suggest a mig of similar spec and price for me to look into? A lack of reply to my emails from weldequip has put me off considering the portamig.

 

[cumbriasteve]

He (Steve) is usually on the ball with customer comms, there could be many reasons I suppose..have you tried phoning?

Oxford and Tec Arc sets are just about the same.

 

[harryb94]

I emailed them before buying my portamig and never got a reply, however ringing up they couldn't be more helpful, I got the 215 and it really is worth the money and very well made

 

[Paul99]

Tec-arc compact mig welders are the same machines made by the same people. Available from a number of different suppliers like Cornish Welding supplies, MigTigArc(MTA), Wellyweld etc

 

[harryb94]

Tec-arc compact mig welders are the same machines made by the same people. Available from a number of different suppliers like Cornish Welding supplies, MigTigArc(MTA), Wellyweld etc

I think they're all to slightly different spec though? As far as I'm aware the portamig is the only one that goes down to 15 amp and I seem to remember when I looked at the tec arc it had a few things the portamig didn't

 

[matt1978]

If your going to compare mig sets you need to compare the minimum voltage it puts out. The amperage range is only a guide. The voltage is a more accurate guide if you want to look at how thin material you can weld.

For example if two machines of different brands both have a lower voltage range of 20v for example and the feeder is capable of outputting the same feed rate but one claims 15 Amps and the other says 25 amps, then someone is mistaken as they should and will be indenticle in regards to the thinness of material that can be welded

 

[Paul99]

I think they're all to slightly different spec though? As far as I'm aware the portamig is the only one that goes down to 15 amp and I seem to remember when I looked at the tec arc it had a few things the portamig didn't

I looked hard when I was in the same position as the OP quite a while ago and nowhere have I ever found any evidence that Portamigs are made to a different spec than any other Tec-Arc made migs of the same output. It's the minimum voltage the machine is capable of that is important - but no comparisons or claims are made to differences between Tec-Arc made migs - I've always wondered why?

 

[Paul99]

Matt1978 beat me too it and explained it better too. In reality even if there was a difference My Tec-Arc goes down too low for nearly everything I've needed to weld so far - including some paper thin MX exhausts that I initially had no faith in being mig weldable at all - I won't bat an eyelid next time.

 

[blenkie1]

I was told the difference between them is the Oxford/Tec-Arc Machines have some type of different capacitors in them compared to the portamigs? Not sure what!

 

[Paul99]

I was told the difference between them is the Oxford/Tec-Arc Machines have some type of different capacitors in them compared to the portamigs? Not sure what!

Oxfords certainly have several differences to the tec-arc "design" of migs (Portamigs included in this group) the main one being the extra smoothing capacitors - I've also read a post on this forum somewhere where a member asked Technical Arc directly about Oxfords vs Tec-Arc migs and were told that the Oxfords had slightly higher quality drive motors IIRC. That difference may though might be less important than price and duty cycle though so look carefully at the whole package. Incidentally you can even buy direct from Technical Arc - who I'm sure could build a machine to your spec to include lower min voltage, higher quality / 4 roller drive feed motors etc etc if you really must have it.

 

[premmington]

Oxfords certainly have several differences to the tec-arc "design" of migs (Portamigs included in this group) the main one being the extra smoothing capacitors - I've also read a post on this forum somewhere where a member asked Technical Arc directly about Oxfords vs Tec-Arc migs and were told that the Oxfords had slightly higher quality drive motors IIRC. That difference may though might be less important than price and duty cycle though so look carefully at the whole package. Incidentally you can even buy direct from Technical Arc - who I'm sure could build a machine to your spec to include lower min voltage, higher quality / 4 roller drive feed motors etc etc if you really must have it.

I have bought several bits welding plant directly from Tec-Arc for our car repair workshops. Super people to deal with. Spares good!

Never had to do a warranty claim! (but I am sure they would be a better bet than buying stuff from ebay).

I am about to order a TecArc MMA250i inverter.

 

[blenkie1]

I have the oxford 240 and if there is one thing I would change it's the semi synergic system it uses. Does my head in. Never used one before so I thought it would be handy but it's not. Cannot see it being any good for beginners as well. If they need to fit it they should make it so it can be switched off. Other than that it's a great machine. Fell out of a tractor bucket once and had a couple of inches of snow on it when it was left out in an open shed and never missed a beat. Just got a tec arc 276i but not had time to play with it yet.

 

[matt1978]

I have the oxford 240 and if there is one thing I would change it's the semi synergic system it uses. Does my head in. Never used one before so I thought it would be handy but it's not. Cannot see it being any good for beginners as well. If they need to fit it they should make it so it can be switched off. Other than that it's a great machine. Fell out of a tractor bucket once and had a couple of inches of snow on it when it was left out in an open shed and never missed a beat. Just got a tec arc 276i but not had time to play with it yet.

What makes the semi synergic feature something that you dislike so much?

 

[chevy2]

My Lincoln mig is synergic which i personally think is a great feature,
if i had to buy another mig this feature would be on the must haves list.

 

[blenkie1]

Mine is not full synergic. If you find a setting that seems right it's ok. Change the settings and it adjusts the speed to suit. Switch it off for a while and back on again and the wire speed is not at the speed it was before. You have a bit + and - to play with but this can vary wildly at times and you need to play with this a lot to get it right. When it's getting used a lot the speed seems to drop and you have to keep adjusting the speed dial a lot till basically the knob is on the max even though the speed of the wire is just right. Maybe just me always used a manual system and never had a problem. Thought it would be a big help when I got it but think the manual system is much better. Maybe other manufacturers systems are better

 

[matt1978]

To be honest that's not a problem with "semi synergic" that sounds like a problem with your machine full stop. On transformer machines there are two variations of semi synergic, like how yours should be, which is you set the voltage at the lower end of its scale and adjust the wire feed to suit. By doing this you have matched the voltage potential to the gas mix your using. Then in theory when you click the voltage up to higher levels such as spray, the machine should increase the wire rate pro-rata. It's not an exact science but the wire fees should be pretty close to optimum where ever you switch the voltage knob.

The second way is more accurate and sophisticated and is on our M-Pro range for example. Inside the Wirefeed unit you have a 12 position switch and each position corresponds to a wire type/Dia/gas mix combination. Pos 1 is 0.8mm Steel with 80/20 mix for example. Then once you have turned the 12 pos switch to match the combination your using, every time you click the voltage switch it will display a material thickness in mm into the display window. So if you wanted to weld 2mm, you click it round until it said 2mm and the machine will give you the correct voltage/Wirespeed and inductance to suit that particular thickness. If you don't want to use that feature you just select position 0 on the switch and then the machine knows it is in "manual" mode

 

[chevy2]

Mines simple, wire speed at 5.5 for 0.8 wire and 7 for 0.6 wire at all current settings, done!

 

[k.weld]

He (Steve) is usually on the ball with customer comms, there could be many reasons I suppose..have you tried phoning?

Oxford and Tec Arc sets are just about the same.

No I haven't tried phoning them yet, might try that next.
Everything I read have given the portamig a good name. Is there any know faults or bad points about them, tec arc or other variants?
In terms of good quality after sales/warranty cover who would everybody recommend?

 

[blenkie1]

Not as advanced as your machine Matt. It probably needs more money spent on it to produce a more sophisticated system and an option to put it into manual mode. It maybe a combination of me being used to a manual system and the fact the machine is most of the time running near its duty cycle (should of got a bigger one!) when you are having to adjust the speed most for some reason