Ebay help needed please

[Supernube]

Hello everybody.
I am new to the forum and this is my first post. although I have been reading through the site for the last week or so.
I want to buy a Mig welder and have my eye on the two I will mention below on ebay.I cannot afford to go down the new route...although there Is a new sealey Mighty mig 150 in Trago for £215 ish...which I was tempted by.
Anyway...I think I am going to choose the Clarke over the sealey as I believe opinions suggest they are the better machine.
So the two clarke welders I am looking at are this one...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/171036363365?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

and this one...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/181135006949?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

I believe these are the sort of thing I need for what I have in mind ...which is a few summer projects with my 13 year old son...he wants a drift trike made for him and his little brother. So we will be cutting and welding a few bicycle frames and some mild steel box section.
Nothing major I guess ?
anyway...could I please ask for some advice on the two listed welders from you all...you obviously are going to have much more experience than me and I would very much value your opinions.
Thank you
Daniel

 

[Jim_gsxr1000]

Yeh look ok to me for the money, Clarke stuff is generally regarded as decent hobby gear, as for pricing a rule of thum is 2/3 new value for a1 condition and less for scruffy gear, I think around £100 would be about right for those machines, what's your max budget and how thick is the steel you want to weld ? And btw Welcome

 

[zzr1200]

As new member your not allowed to post in the "For Sale Section", but I see no reason why you can't post in the "Wanted Section" of the For Sale Section.

I'd try and posting in the "Wanted Section" to see if any of the members might have a "Just in case" spare machine on a shelf that they might sell.

If you can't post in "wanted", contact a forum moderator and ask why?

 

[Jim_gsxr1000]

Yeh there's a pro 90 for sale if I remember right £75

 

[Jim_gsxr1000]

Check this out, good buy
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=448405#post448405

 

[Supernube]

Hello. Im sorry for the late reply but Ive been sulking...I missed out on the new one of the two I was watching by a fiver ...gutted.
Anyway...thank you very much for your replies...and I will have a browse through the for sales later...and keep an eye out on Ebay ...bloody constantly again ...sooooo annoying...thought I was gonna have a welder tonight.
Thanks for your help
Daniel

 

[Jim_gsxr1000]

Yeh it's the way it goes, I'm watching a kemppi pulse mig on the bay ATM

 

[Supernube]

Hello again.
Im getting all frustrated now...wondering if Im buying the right thing for what I want to do...the missus is moaning about spending ANY amount of money on a welder because "Its just gonna sit in the shed like that motorbike you got"
I was looking at this Sealey mightymig 150 in Trago...thinking Id just get that one rather than messing about with Ebay and doing my head in when I miss it !!!
But now I see the duty cycle (which I just about understand) is - Duty Cycle: 100% @ 30A, 15% @ 105A - which I THINK is pretty **** ? I think that means I can run the welder for just over a minute at full bore and then rest it for 9 bloody minutes ?
which seams ridiculas but I dont really know...and I cant find a duty cycle comparison for the Clarke 150 TE... that I can make sense of anyway.
I think Im gonna include a link to a video if thats alright...the sort of thing my boy wants us to make...basically going to be cutting own an old BMX frame...welding the head set onto some box section (cant tell you the thickness as I dont know ??) I know what the box section is by sight but have no idea what the measurements are sorry...not my thing.
And I dont actually want to restrict myself too much incase I ever want to do some welding on my old van etc...who knows...I certainly dont want to just use it to build this thing with my son and then listen to my missus saying "I told you it would end up just left in the bloody shed" ...ALL SUMMER !!
I dont know...I dont even know what Im asking....but :dontknow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6Mk_quJ01A
Any advice will be very much appreciated
Thank you
Daniel

 

[PTvor]

But now I see the duty cycle (which I just about understand) is - Duty Cycle: 100% @ 30A, 15% @ 105A - which I THINK is pretty **** ?

Unless they state the temperature at which the duty cycle is quoted at, the figures don't mean much.

http://www.clarkeinternational.com/shop/range/details/hobby-mig-welders/path/diy-mig-welders

I like this bit

"*Turbo fan cooling for prolonged welding at full output."


Generally, for any MIG welder, unless you are paying serious money for Kemppi etc, the duty cycle drops off to truly pitiful as you go towards max amps. Often they don't quote for max amps.

Have you seen this?

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/buying.htm

I think that means I can run the welder for just over a minute at full bore and then rest it for 9 bloody minutes ?

Not full bore (150A) but 105A, but it depends on the temperature you are welding at and the temperature at which they measured the duty cycle. In any case, I work it out as welding for 90 seconds and resting it for eight and a half bloody minutes.

However, if you are using it mainly for car panels and only occasionally for a bit of work on thicker steel, that's not too bad. It's amazing how little time you can spend welding and how much preparing, aligning and fiddling with clamps etc.

I'd have thought the comparable Sealey and Clarke machines would be more or less equivalent, one might be a better buy, easier to get and cheaper spares etc, but I doubt one completely outclasses the other. They've both been selling hobby MIGs for a long time.

 

[Supernube]

Hello.
I wont quote everything youve said PTvor I will simply say thank you very much...very useful links and some very good advice.
I would love to be able to throw some money at a nice make welder but I just dont have the money to do so...I think for what I need it for and for the amount of welding I am likely to do.. I may just buy that Sealey one from Trago unless a good one pops up on Ebay before. I would imagine it will be just about good enough for what I need to do.
I will have another look about tonight and see If I can find something a little better but Its just having the cash to play with...annoying but hey ho.
Thank you all very much for your advice.
Daniel

 

[Supernube]

Hello again.
I have just found a Murex Tradesmig 140 - 1 on Ebay....just wondered what everybodys thoughts were on this welder...compared to the sealey or Clarke I was originally thinking about.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MIG-WELDER-MUREX-/290912977083?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item43bbc3c0bb
I understand Murex to be a good make...I think ? but will there be any benefits over the Clarke or Sealey as far as what I can weld and How well I will be able to weld with it ? If you know what I mean ..sorry.
Also what do you think it might go for ?
Thank you
Daniel

 

[Supernube]

Just a little nudge

 

[keith19]

That should be an excellent welder for thin panels and car bodywork, providing it has no unseen faults. However, it only goes up to 130 Amps at the top of its range, so not so good for anything over 3.0mm. This is only important if you will need to be welding heavier stuff every now and then, like bars, brackets, trailers, etc. Then you need at least 150 - 160A at the top of the range, more if your funds run to it.

Murex generally make very good quality welders. I haven't used that exact model, but have used earlier ones, and once set up they will happily weld all day on their intended material. The Murex spec is here:
http://www.murexwelding.co.uk/manuals/other/Instruction Manuals/Tradesmig 140-1.pdf

You will note it has a low output amperage of 35A, not 30A. Normally I'd say 35A is a bit high for car panel work, especially on a hobby welder or low-grade 'pro' machine. But Murex will likely have extra smoothing technology built in to ensure that it will still weld metal down to 0.8mm or so without problems, providing you have some experience, or get in sufficient practice.

If you can test it before buying, or test a similar model, so much the better. Parts will still be available, but probably dearer than Sealey or Clarke. A nice m/c for what it's built for, which is mostly thin metal work.

 

[Supernube]

Thank you Keith. I have now made a decision ..and I havent even asked the missus If I am allowed to
I am in the process of Ebaying a few things myself that have needed shifting for a while now. I have also decided to sell the stamp collection I was left in my dads will....worth nearly a staggering £75...thanks Dad
Soooooo.... I will be investing in a welder of slightly higher quality and power.
Im hardly ever going to use it...my wife is going to constantly tell me that "its just sitting in the shed like that motorbike you got" and "If you hadn't of spent all that money on a welder you dont even use you could afford to"
but I will have a good welder
Thank you all for all your help and advice. I will let you know what welder I get.
Daniel

 

[Supernube]

Hello all. One more question...for now anyway.
If you had £400 to £500 to spend on a welder...what would you go for ?
Im looking for welding 5 ml + and making go karts chopping up bikes to make drift trikes for my kids.
Im basically asking you because when I went on Ebay for a quick look...I typed in Mig welder an was faced with nothing but Sealey..Wolf ? and things with no Branding at all lol....Just made me realise that Ebay is probably the last place I should look for quality...and then I thought Id ask you all.
Just wondered
Thank you
Daniel

 

[keith19]

Providing you have the space, aren't bothered about portability, and want durability far into the future, something like this:
http://www.oxfordwelders.co.uk/singlephasemig.html
or this:
http://www.weldequip.com/portamig-mig-welders.htm
both made by the same people, and you can even change the basic specs to suit what type of work you'll be doing, if you want to.
The same sort of money will buy you a nice mig inverter, if you need portability. But you maybe won't be handing it down to the kids....

 

[Supernube]

Thank you Keith....a little higher than I expected but I do understand them to be a buy once kind of Welder....just a little out of my price range thats all.
What do you think about the GYS SmartMIG 162 ?
Infact ...what does everyone think ?
I have a feeling this may be the one Im going to go for

Thank you
Daniel

 

[PTvor]

What do you think about the GYS SmartMIG 162 ?
Infact ...what does everyone think ?
I have a feeling this may be the one Im going to go for

Try the forum search facility using "SmartMIG 162" or start a new thread called "SmartMIG 162 opinions please", that way the question is more likely to be noticed and commented on by SmartMIG owners than buried in a thread on ebay help.

Just looking briefly at the Weldequip shop, it's £400 with the gas conversion kit which you'll need. You could also phone Weldequip and have a chat about it.

 

[keith19]

Weldequip sells the GYS, so it will have been pretty well tested, as he doesn't sell rubbish. There are one or two reports of it on here, I think, all good, but it hasn't been around long enough to have built up a fund of threads about it yet.

Personally I'd buy one if I needed a new mig to use more regularly than at present. The control settings look easy to set up for folks beginning welding, and this is quite important if you're starting out. Electronic controls might pack up earlier than manual ones, but all modern hobby welders have electronic boards which can go wrong occasionally, so that's no big deal. Spares are readily available for the GYS, and according to Weldequip, no more expensive than Clarke ones.

Short of getting a good s/h workshop welder, like a Murex, I'd say the GYS is a good hobby choice.

 

[Jim_gsxr1000]

Give Steve a phone at weldequip he will give you good advice