Hey all, 1st post and i'm sorry if your sick of people coming on here asking "which one should I buy" but i've read through a fair few posts and found no conclusive answer for my questions.
I am looking to get a welder for christmas from my mother as a joint present for my brother and I who are fairly keen automotive enthusiasts. My wants from a welder would be to be able to cope with most hobby stuff (upto 5mm max i'd recon) but i'd like to be able to do SS (for exhausts) and possibly Alu (for intakes and fluid tanks) at times. It is my under standing that to do this i would need SS wire and Alu wire, aswell as so MS wire for when i'm just messing about? is this correct? I know that TIG would be more suited for both SS and Alu, but cost is a restriction. As of yet i've done no welding but are trying to seek sponsorship from the ImechE (i'm a MEng student at The University of Warwick) to fund a night class for beginners at Warwick College.
At first I was looking at the Clarke 155TE, since practical performace mag said that this was a best buy, but after I read on here that it can only accept small gas bottles I have moved away from this idea.
The 160 TE, seems to be the next up at little extra cost, although it has no gas or wire included, which can accept a larger gas bottle. I would prefer a larger gas bottle since I'm planning on doing a decent amount of welding in my life and it seems a more cost effective way of doing it. At first my plan would be to buy small amounts of each of the required wires when i need them and see how it goes.
I wont ask basic questions about wire sizes as i'm sure there is plenty of litrature out there which covers this full. Can anyone recomend such litrature though? Is the Haynes book any good?
Does the 160TE (~£230) seem to be an alright choice for my needs? Is it worth paying an extra £50 and getting the 165TE? the only advantages I can see are the slightly higher power rating and the newer design of electronics, however as I understand it, the electronics are the critical part of these beasts. They are both found here: http://www.machinemart.co.uk/ranges.asp?g=105&r=2031
Can anyone give me an approx cost of a bottle of gas from BOC? Should I be buying the argomix (or whatever its called) instead of CO2, as i plan on SS at some point, though I expect i'll play with MS first for a while. Is there a large price difference between the two? How big a bottle should I be getting? I'd like to be able to throw it in the back of the car from time to time but mobility is not at the forefront of my requirements.
Thanks for any help anyone can give, hope this n00b post isnt too annoying for the regulars.
JAmes
I am looking to get a welder for christmas from my mother as a joint present for my brother and I who are fairly keen automotive enthusiasts. My wants from a welder would be to be able to cope with most hobby stuff (upto 5mm max i'd recon) but i'd like to be able to do SS (for exhausts) and possibly Alu (for intakes and fluid tanks) at times. It is my under standing that to do this i would need SS wire and Alu wire, aswell as so MS wire for when i'm just messing about? is this correct? I know that TIG would be more suited for both SS and Alu, but cost is a restriction. As of yet i've done no welding but are trying to seek sponsorship from the ImechE (i'm a MEng student at The University of Warwick) to fund a night class for beginners at Warwick College.
At first I was looking at the Clarke 155TE, since practical performace mag said that this was a best buy, but after I read on here that it can only accept small gas bottles I have moved away from this idea.
The 160 TE, seems to be the next up at little extra cost, although it has no gas or wire included, which can accept a larger gas bottle. I would prefer a larger gas bottle since I'm planning on doing a decent amount of welding in my life and it seems a more cost effective way of doing it. At first my plan would be to buy small amounts of each of the required wires when i need them and see how it goes.
I wont ask basic questions about wire sizes as i'm sure there is plenty of litrature out there which covers this full. Can anyone recomend such litrature though? Is the Haynes book any good?
Does the 160TE (~£230) seem to be an alright choice for my needs? Is it worth paying an extra £50 and getting the 165TE? the only advantages I can see are the slightly higher power rating and the newer design of electronics, however as I understand it, the electronics are the critical part of these beasts. They are both found here: http://www.machinemart.co.uk/ranges.asp?g=105&r=2031
Can anyone give me an approx cost of a bottle of gas from BOC? Should I be buying the argomix (or whatever its called) instead of CO2, as i plan on SS at some point, though I expect i'll play with MS first for a while. Is there a large price difference between the two? How big a bottle should I be getting? I'd like to be able to throw it in the back of the car from time to time but mobility is not at the forefront of my requirements.
Thanks for any help anyone can give, hope this n00b post isnt too annoying for the regulars.
JAmes