New Welder

[Ollie1]

Hi, I am Ollie and I have just turned 15. I thought I would say hi! I chose this section to post as I have a few questions. I have been looking at tutorials on youtube on MIG welding and they have made me very interested. I am wanting to restore a classic Austin Mini. I would like to buy a Welder and have seen a few kits on Ebay but don't know if there any good? I am looking for one under £200 that I could restore a Mini with, so any reccomendations would be great!. Hopefully just bodywork! Also I live in York and I am finding it hard to find a course that isn't level 2/3. If you know any places around York or Hull that would be great!

Thanks, Ollie.

 

[slimjim]

welcome ollie, the clarke 130amp model is a good starter set, dont forget to budget for a auto darkening welding helmet, and some welding gloves

its easier to weld well if you use a refillable bottle of argon/co2 mix, but you can use a pub supplied co2 bottle, its just more difficult to get it to work well, forget the disposable bottles, to expensive and if your rebuilding a mini, will soon cost more than the refillable option.

your best off doing some practicing, on scrap first, its not that hard to learn the tecnique on bodywork, you will soon pick it up, look at a car restoration course, probably be ideal if you can find one.

 

[Ollie1]

Hi, I spotted that! I will look into it cheers. I would definatley get a good helmet as I heard it was really annoying to keep flicking the visor up and down.

 

[PaulMcElhinney]

Ollie,

May I recommend a DVD that I bought from the USA. If you go on youtube and search on Mig Welding Automotive you will find a clip of a guy named Craig Hopkins. His DVD is fantastic. It'll cost you £25 quid but is worth every penny. Follow his advice and you won't need a course.

Regards,

Paul Mc.

 

[Ollie1]

Hi, I've watched a few of his vids I think! He's got the best tutorials i've seen on youtube. Thanks for telling me about the DVD I'll Check him out.

Ollie.

 

[Ollie1]

Hi, I have been Looking at the Clarke 130 and It doesn't seem to be as good as the http://www.weldequip.com/clarke-160tm.htm (Clarke 160TM) I was thinking this because the 130 doesn't have reusable gas canisters it has disposable ones which can run out in minutes. So would you still say the 130 would be best or the 160. I was saying £200 but I don't want something thats not going to do the job properly.

Ollie.

 

[shenion]

Here, the 130EN comes with no regulator, others sell it the same way. Weldequip includes the reg for disposables; so you must consider that when comparing other seller's prices.

I started with a 130EN, purchased with a reg for refillables (disposables are ot even available here.) It was a great machine and worked well and I learned a lot with it.

I did want a bit more power and ended up getting a bigger welder. If all you expect to weld is 3mm or less, it will do fine. It can do a bit more if you add a gap to the work.

The 160TM would be a better choice as it comes with a reg for refillables. Many here have the 160 and no real complaints.

I sold my 130 for a good price after getting a bigger one. They hold their value. If you choose either one, you will do well with it. If you are on a real budget, see if weldequip will swap the disposable reg for one for the refillables.

Disposables get real expensive. The CO2 disposables have half a chance of being cost effective as they last longer.

 

[Ollie1]

How much roughly do Refills cost of Argon/CO2?

Ollie.

 

[Robotstar5]

How much roughly do Refills cost of Argon/CO2?

Ollie.

Have a look in the shield gas section, there is a spreadsheet with all the costs

 

[Jammy James]

I am also looking at the 160tm at the moment there is a deal on weldequip (£30 worths of extras free) this is cheaper than machine mart.

 

[Ollie1]

Yes, It seems to be the best Hobby welder I've seen so far and it has a lot of spares and a good reputation by the sound of it! I am probably going to buy it when I get some Christmas money.

Ollie.