Hi All, Which MIG Welder

[jaynana]

first of all, HI to all, i've just joined in!

I've been thinking of buying a DIY Welder for a while, and i've stumbled on this interesting set of ppl and i'm hoping you can help me decide a few things welding..

my requirement is simply DIY stuff around the house. but then my requirements tend to grow as well, as i learn!.

I don't know and haven't done any welding in my life, but i plan to learn

i need help to decide on a welder to buy.. i guess MIG is the way to go.

within MIG welders here's what i'd like to know about pls, pros and cons of:
- Gas vs gassless welders
- Disposable gas canisters vs refillable gas to rent
- [EDIT] Inverter vs Transformer
- Non-live torch

Also can somebody please recommend a few good brands, models to me pls?

thanking you in advance

cheers

j

 

[rtbcomp]

Welcome to the forum. I've moved this to "Buying a welder."

 

[Wozzaaah]

You'll need to tell us how much you're willing to spend and what thickness you're likely to want to weld before we can advise.

 

[jaynana]

You'll need to tell us how much you're willing to spend and what thickness you're likely to want to weld before we can advise.

those are difficult questions when it comes to DIY

i'm thinking of around £250 budget, flexible. about 6mm thickness max?

cheers, j

 

[shenion]

those are difficult questions when it comes to DIY

i'm thinking of around £250 budget, flexible. about 6mm thickness max?

cheers, j

Double your budget if you want to do 6mm with a decent machine.

Look at the Clarke MIG's in weldequip's store at the top of the page. Those are as low-end most on this forum recommend.

150A will get about 5mm.

 

[jaynana]

cheers mate, what's the process and how hard is it to go for refillable gas as opposed to disposable?

also these are inverter based, is that an issue?


j

 

[shenion]

Refilliable is just a different regulator. The hard part is finding a supplier.

Check the Shielding Gas section, there are threads on finding suppliers including no-rental ones.

Inverter or transformer is mainly an issue if you go with a cheap one. Inverters are more complex so you need a supplier that will honor a warranty locally (rather than shipping to China.)

 

[keith19]

cheers mate, what's the process and how hard is it to go for refillable gas as opposed to disposable?

also these are inverter based, is that an issue?


j

What's inverter-based?
Weldequip's site contains both transformer and inverter migs. The price is the big factor.

 

[jaynana]

thanks, i think i'll stick to disposable gas for now.

plus reluctantly will have to go for an inverter based due to the price factor.

Clarke 135TE or a 151TE seems like a decent enough deal?

Where are Clarkes made? (hope its not China!!)

also any recommended sellers, with great aftersales?

cheers guys for all the support

j

 

[Wozzaaah]

You're getting your inverters and transformers mixed up.
Transformer - big metal windy thing - cheap and heavy, pretty much bomb-proof.
Inverter - little electronical thing - light and a bit more expensive, more to go wrong.
The Clarkes you've listed are transformer machines and I believe are Italian made though they now do a cheaper range which are made in China.
Take a look in Weldequip's shop.

 

[shenion]

The Clarkes are transformer machines.

Inverters are more expensive.

Most of the Clarkes are made in Italy. Some of the new, low-end models are Chinese.

I started with a Clarke 130EN and it was a nice machine; no complaints.

Weldequip's shop at the top of the page is recommended for good service.

The disposable Ar/CO2 canisters last about 8 minutes of use and are expensive. The CO2 ones last about 40 minutes so are not as bad.

If you can get a pub CO2 cylinder filled, it will be cheapest.

 

[Wozzaaah]

^ If I was still a kid I'd shout "Jinx" and cross my fingers and you wouldn't be able to talk until I'd uncrossed them.

 

[jaynana]

Thx, i knew that.. well i knew what transformers were and what interters were, just didn't realise transformers were teh cheaper ones! anyways if the Clarkes are transformer based that's relieving. cos i don't want high tec i want reliability. don't mind the weight as it'll live in the garage mostly.

Weldequip has only the 160TM (and higher). and that doesn't do disposable gas. any other options?

cheers

j

 

[keith19]

Take a look at Machinemart, who have a wide range of Clarkes, but be careful with the cheaper ones, check the spec because some do not go down to 30A, which you'll need for panelwork:
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/s...g-welders/type/any/module/shopcategory/page/1

Or check this place, where I got my 151EN from; I found them very helpful:
http://www.wilstar.co.uk/sections/2/mig_welders/

 

[jaynana]

thanks, 151EN is a no-gas.. i think reading through so far, its best to go for a gas welder?

is this a disposable gas model or refillable gas model? (i think as i'm at teh entry level disposable gas is best for me..?)
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/135te-turbo-mig-welder?da=1&TC=SRC-mig welder

j

 

[weldequip]

You're barking up the wrong tree looking at small MIGs like that if you want to be welding 6mm. If it's mainly thicker type material, angle iron etc, and you don't need to be welding any very thin sheet, go for an Arc Welder. Not as easy to learn, but less to run (no gas involved), more versatile on thicker materials, and you will get a set within budget that could weld well over 6mm.

 

[shenion]

thanks, 151EN is a no-gas.. i think reading through so far, its best to go for a gas welder?

The 151EN is gas or gasless.

is this a disposable gas model or refillable gas model? (i think as i'm at teh entry level disposable gas is best for me..?)
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/details/135te-turbo-mig-welder?da=1&TC=SRC-mig welder

j

It is set up for disposables. Will do up to about 3mm, a bit more with some joint preparation.

 

[jaynana]

You're barking up the wrong tree looking at small MIGs like that if you want to be welding 6mm. If it's mainly thicker type material, angle iron etc, and you don't need to be welding any very thin sheet, go for an Arc Welder. Not as easy to learn, but less to run (no gas involved), more versatile on thicker materials, and you will get a set within budget that could weld well over 6mm.

that actually seems like a good point! thanks!! this is why i came into this forum!!

having said that - all your weldequip arch welders seem to be inverter based? can you recommend a reasonable transformer based arc welder pls?

 

[weldequip]

If you've never done any Arc welding before you will find an Inverter 100% easier to learn on compared to a standard AC transformer based machine.

 

[Wozzaaah]

^ wot 'ee says!
I've got both and tbh, after getting my inverter I don't think I've burnt a rod on the transformer one, it's horrible to use in comparison.