First buy - welder, cutting machine, welding table

[Paduroiul]

Hi,
I have a question for welders who do this part-time, as a side income, or as a complementary activity in their workshop.
I’ve done some stick welding before, and now I want to buy a MIG/MAG and dedicate a bit more time to this activity.
At the moment, I’m not planning to switch to metal fabrication, etc., but I would like to invest in equipment that would allow me to handle things properly if I decide to take it more seriously in the future.
So, if you had to start over with a maximum budget of £2000, how would you allocate the money?
I’m thinking about three main pieces of equipment:

Welder
Cutting machine
Welding table

I’m tempted to buy a machine that satisfies all my preferences and “nice-to-have” features, but cutting with an angle grinder requires more patience and skill than I currently have to get really clean results.
P.S. I’d probably fit within £1000 and that would be enough for small DIY jobs at home, but at least for the welder I’d prefer something smooth/precise, reliable, and with good resale value in case I want to upgrade later.
And yes, I know there are welders for 300–400 £, but considering the voltage fluctuations in the grid, I’d go for something around 200A and preferably with PFC.
Thank you.

 

[Maxakarudy]

Choice of welder depends on what metal thickness you are mainly using, 1ph or 3ph?, this would be the main part of the budget.
Cutting straight lines or box section can be done with 8" angle grinder & chop saw, plasma cutters cost more & require some skill to operate efficiently & accuratley.
Band saws are a good choice.
I never had a welding table, but would like one, just because, but have always managed with steel trestles & plywood tale.

 

[Paduroiul]

The most common thikness would be in the range of 1.5-5 mm.
Also, I m not that confident that the circular hacksaw type machines make a accurate cut.

 

[skotl]

The most common thikness would be in the range of 1.5-5 mm.
Also, I m not that confident that the circular hacksaw type machines make a accurate cut.

Is "circular hacksaw" a bandsaw? If so, they can be very accurate, especially if you can make up a jig (which might be nothing more fancy than a clamped piece of wood as a straight edge to use as a guide).

Also depends on size of material (chop saws can't do medium to large plates), length of cut and repeatability. Plasmas are great and, although they always need a fair amount of tidy up, at 1mm to 1.5mm thick that's not so much of a problem. But you do need a decent compressor (3HP+, 100L+) to run it so it all eats into the price.

You mention DIY and also potentially getting into fab later. If you're only playing with DIY for now then I'd go (in order, and only as you find the first options don't work):

1. Two or three angle grinders, with a permanent cutting, grinding and flap disc in each (cos it's a total pain to keep swapping discs). Cheap Aldi/B&Q throwaway will be perfectly fine
2. Band saw - second hand or Aldi/Lidl modified to work on a bench (my video of doing so)
3. Chop saw or mitre saw with TCT metal blade - Evolution do well priced options, albeit needing some initial setup to get them true
4. Plasma cutter and a hefty compressor
5. Rapidor / Manchester Nodding Donkey. Say, second hand, from £50 to £300

 

[Maxakarudy]

Reviewing what you are doing from a business point of view & not meaning to put you off wanting to learn new skills, but a lot of well established fabs shops
who've already invested in professional kit can & do work at a very reasonable price, it's their bread & butter stuff, so even someone doing work at home with no overheads
might be surprised at how competitive a fab shop can price their work, especially when they have off cuts of material lying about, just something to bare in mind.

 

[Arc Tourist]

You will find plenty of qualified suggestions from Member's here. Before purchasing equipment, make sure your home power supply is sufficient for the machines you intend to buy.

 

[Munkul]

Three main things: cutting, drilling holes, and welding.
2k budget isn't very high imo. Unless you can look around at second hand stuff. I'm assuming 1ph 240v as well.
I'd start with a femi band saw type thing. Chop saws are cheaper and very effective with a good tct blade, but extremely noisy.
Drilling - there are some truly terrible pillar drills out there - try to get a more solid gear head type if you can. But any pillar drill is better than none. Could also maybe do a mag drill on a fixed base, some people make that work.
Welder - I'd want a 200 amp inverter stick/mig thing, from a decent brand, not a (s)hitbox or stahlwerk type thing, but I'm a snob so do whatever.
Basically, i reckon you want a budget of £1k per item really.