Buying a new Tig.

[Glen Waldron]

Ive been wanting to get into Tig for a while, so now I have some spare cash which swmbo does know about.

Im looking at a ACDC 1 phase 220-240V machine.

I have had a look at the following machines locally so far,

Migatronic fokus 200 ACDC,
EWM Tetrix 230 ACDC
CEA Matrix 2200 AC/DC.

from dealers in the UK

JASIC Pro TIG 200P
SWP Digi TIG
R-Tech Digi 210

But with me being oversea's im considering these, but just a bit worried with the distance to return them should they have to be returned under warranty.


I know there is a huge different in price here, but I dont mind spending on a good machine now rather then replace it 9 months down the line.

My main work is car restoration, and thin plate welding as a hobby.

My main concern is I only have a 16 Amp course available at the moment and the R-tech requires 23 Amps.

Any one want to point me at other units which should be on the short list ?

Cheers
Glen

 

[antonio costa]

If you have enough funds the ewm is hard to beat, an amazing choice. And of course it has the bonus of having local support. From ones you listed I only have used the CEA and the ewm and both are top notch and at least around here the price isn't all.that different but I found the arc on Ewm bit smoother on Ac and it seemed to have a more robust construction. If you have any doubt about the ewm Jim Davey in this forum has huge amount of knowledge about then. When you have the funds there is no better option than buying the best you can afford. Regards, Antonio Costa

 

[Richard.]

The selection you've put up are very much in 3 different bands. And it's very dependent on what you want to spend and get out of them in return.
The ewm/cea are top of the range machines you won't find an issue with them regards there reliability and capability.
The migatronic is also an excellent brand of machine and although I've not used the tig in question going by the migs I've used it will serve you well and is perhaps a small step behind the other 2.
The 3 you list at the bottom are capable machines more set for the DIY or lighter use user. A lot of RTech owners on here with good things to say about them. And I believe jassic , swp are in a similar band regards price and quality. All those machines will weld Alu and do it well but like everything in this world the more you want to fork out the better you'll get for your investment. If money was not the deciding factor I'm with Antonio. Give Jim davey a pm and have a look at the tetrix.
Regards power supply I thought all those machines would have no prob off a 16amper. Could be wrong but I think most RTech owners plug them straight into domestic supply's without issue.

 

[Jrstainless]

If your after an ac/dc to run off 240 there's nothing better than Richards fronius in the for sale section on here.
Top quality bit of kit with all the bells and whistles have a look and do some research on it.
Jr

 

[Richard.]

A Q that springs to mind is why this short list.
Have you considered other high end European brands such as esab, kemppi, fronius, rehm

To match up with the migatronic I would very seriously consider the gys 208. This is water cooled package also.

If your looking at RTech and jassic also seriously consider thermal arc and parweld. Again a lot of happy owners with blinding results from there sets.

 

[Richard.]

If your after an ac/dc to run off 240 there's nothing better than Richards fronius in the for sale section on here.
Top quality bit of kit with all the bells and whistles have a look and do some research on it.
Jr

Yep that's another option a good used set up can be an economical way of getting high end gear reduced. Mine is full package also. Machine, cooler, pedal, high speed pulse remote. Etc cheers JR

 

[AndersK]

Hi neighbour

You might find pricing in sweden lower than in Norway.

This is a place where I have got excellent service from, they sell a good variety of machines.

http://butik.svetsmaskinservice.se/svetsmaskiner/6

If you are in the south of norway its within driving distance.

If you want to weld thin aluminum the Parweld is a bit rough on low amp AC ( own experience).

There is a reason why Gys almost dissapeared from swedish market, own experience with that too...

 

[Glen Waldron]

Thanks for the replies chaps.


Im looking at used, but to be honest the savings if its out of waranty will be a huge loss in the end, as repairs are expensive.

Ill look in the used section.

Ive considered Kempi, but havent got prices from them yet, I have a very high degree of respect for Fronius, but they are almost double the price of the Migatronic.

Thanks AndersK,

Ill check them out have friends down south who come over the mountains alot.

 

[Glen Waldron]

At the end of the day I got an OK deal on the Migatronic, so its being picked up this week.

Some of the vendors I contacted gave very short vague answers, some did not answer, some didn't even bother to read the email properly.

Well as a buyer it wasn't difficult to choose who I parted money with.

Thanks to forum members for assiting me.

My next post will be guaranteed in the learning section :-) have some scrap material to collect and a bunch of supplies.

 

[AndersK]

Good luck
Please let us know how it turns out.
I have heard nothing but good about their mig/mag welders but nothing from their tig range.