Mig

[buzzy bee]

Hi

I want my own Mig, I don't have alot of money, but would like a gas one with the big bottles.

How much do the big bottles cost, do you rent them?
Do you need any licience to have big bottles in your home garage?

I have welded for years, (mig), done it for a job for a year or more, and am pretty confident, but never had my own welder. I have left my previous job, and got a better one, Boiler making. So I don't have regular access to a welder, hence wanting one for myself.

I don't mind new or second hand, as long as it is good and works well, what do you sugest?

I restore classic and vintage cars, and also do heavier stuff, probably up to 4-6mm, wouldn't have thought I would need any thicker. The ability for the bigger wire spools would be good too.

Any ideas?

Cheers

Dave

 

[irondarren]

for 4-6mm i would say 180amps maybe 200amps,, it does depend on what you are will to spend. And how much use it will get, the portamig 211 will easy handle 6mm and thicker, the portamig 181, will handle 6mm but you are right at the machines top end, both machines take industrial cyclinder on the back of the machine.
you can get a lorch 2060 (210amps) for about £650 + VAT. you can get a clarke 205te (185amps) for a bit over £400.
It does depend on what your willing to spend, or you can trawl ebay for a second hand machine and see what comes up

 

[buzzy bee]

Hi

Another question to add to the list is, how should I supply power tot he welder, I have standard domestic wiring in the garage, is a 13amp plug ok?

That is what we had on the big welders where I have previously worked, we used to blow the fuses every so often, but a 13amp fues, I have hundreds!

You never really think of any of this when working on it, it is all there waiting for you to use! hehe

Cheers

Dave

 

[Wozzaaah]

Hi
I restore classic and vintage cars, and also do heavier stuff, probably up to 4-6mm, wouldn't have thought I would need any thicker.

Any ideas?

Cheers

Dave

If you want to weld 6mm on a regular basis you'll need a pretty beefy machine. I weld mostly 5 to 6mm but made the mistake of buying a machine which, according to the specs, was suitable (Butters 211). I soon realised it wasn't suitable after two breakdowns and many lost hours. End of the matter is that I now have a machine that will weld 6mm ALL DAY without batting an eyelid . You need to spend good money to get good performance .

 

[Wozzaaah]

Youn CANNOT run a 200A plus machine on it's higher settings for long without blowing a 13A fuse. More than likely it will need a dedicated 16A or even 24A supply. Not a great problem to do but worth it to get the most from your machine.

 

[buzzy bee]

Hi

How do you go about getting a dedicated power suply in a domestic garage then 16A or 24A?

Do I ned a different plug, or can you use a 3 pin plug with a bigger fuse?

Cheers

Dave

 

[Wozzaaah]

You'd need to take a seperate feed from the garage CU to a 16A or 32A socket if you want to be able to unplug it or you could hardwire it in to an isolator if you don't need to unplug it. You just need to make sure the cable from the CU to the socket or isolator is big enough to handle the current.