Hi Everyone, nice to be here.
I've recently gotten into metalworking... Grinding, cutting and sanding... The only thing I don't have is a welder. I've been doing a fair bit of research into buying a relatively inexpensive one but there are some questions/advice that I think I need to ask people in the know (such as yourselves) about.
Okay, so I want to buy a MIG welder. I will be using it for a variety of things, from small detail work all they way up to welding thick bars or plates together. I will be working in both mild steel and stainless.
Important things:
1. Most material I work with will be 3-10mm thick.
2. I will be working outside and running off a 5Kw petrol generator. (Does anyone have any experience of this?)
3. I was hoping to pick up the welder and accessories for maybe £350, but my research indicates that I might have to push that up to £4-500... Any recommendations in that bracket? Are 2nd hand ones better than new? (I recently bought a new Wolf generator and it is just not well built compared to a 20 year old honda one.)
4. How easy is it to adjust a MIG welder to do relatively fine detail welds?
5. How much does the gas cost, on average? How long does it last?
6. Any other advice would be much appreciated!
I've recently gotten into metalworking... Grinding, cutting and sanding... The only thing I don't have is a welder. I've been doing a fair bit of research into buying a relatively inexpensive one but there are some questions/advice that I think I need to ask people in the know (such as yourselves) about.
Okay, so I want to buy a MIG welder. I will be using it for a variety of things, from small detail work all they way up to welding thick bars or plates together. I will be working in both mild steel and stainless.
Important things:
1. Most material I work with will be 3-10mm thick.
2. I will be working outside and running off a 5Kw petrol generator. (Does anyone have any experience of this?)
3. I was hoping to pick up the welder and accessories for maybe £350, but my research indicates that I might have to push that up to £4-500... Any recommendations in that bracket? Are 2nd hand ones better than new? (I recently bought a new Wolf generator and it is just not well built compared to a 20 year old honda one.)
4. How easy is it to adjust a MIG welder to do relatively fine detail welds?
5. How much does the gas cost, on average? How long does it last?
6. Any other advice would be much appreciated!