Is this a decent MIG for exhaust fabrication?

[youngm]

OK, I can't seem to find a retailer who will ship a Clarke 180EN to Australia, so I've had to look at local suppliers of MIG welders at a price within my budget.

Since I'm only intending to do occassional exhaust work on my own car, does the specifications of this welder look OK to you more experienced guys?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/BRAND-NEW-Kr...ryZ11774QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Main features:

- It's amp rating is between 35A and 165A.
- Duty cycle is 15% at 165A, which is OK because I'd be using much less current to weld thin exhaust tubing anyway, thus increasing the duty cycle.
- It has 8 power settings
- It does GAS and GASLESS, however, I only intend to run Argon/Co2 GAS only.

As I said, I'm only a newbie hobbyist, so I will only use it occassionally.

Advice please?

 

[shenion]

That has the same wire feeder as a Clarke.

8 settings is good. 35A minimum (21V) is a bit high, will need 0.6mm wire for bodywork. Duty cycle is a bit low, but for DIY use should not be a big issue.

 

[youngm]

Thanks for the feedback, shenion.

Since I only plan to weld mild &/or stainless steel exhaust tubing around 16 gauge / 1.5mm thickness, the "MIG Calculator" on this site shows I can use settings 2 - 3 on the MIG for such metals.

I'm hoping it'd be suitable for occassional DIY use. I'm no fabrication shop. Just a DIY backyard fabricator

 

[youngm]

That has the same wire feeder as a Clarke.

8 settings is good. 35A minimum (21V) is a bit high, will need 0.6mm wire for bodywork. Duty cycle is a bit low, but for DIY use should not be a big issue.

Well, I thought "What the heck!", I just went ahead and bought one of these welders. Specs look OK for what I want to do with 16 gauge exhaust tubing and leaves me a bit more grunt if I want to do anything thicker than that.

I also bought one of those auto-darkening LCD type helmets to go along with it. I need all the help I can get to laying down proper welds quickly

Now all I need is some serious practise time. I figure a whole weekend on some scrap sheets should be enough to get me confident enough to tackle my first exhaust project. Will post pics of my progress