Newbie here

[Ryy]

Hi guys,

I've not welded anything before, I really want to get into doing my own welding though as I have a Nissan 200sx (S13 model), which to be fair, aren't renowned for their non rustyness...

So I will be looking at getting a cheap(ish) welder, that's able to cope with bodywork, suspension turrets (As shown on Paulpens thread) and other things like Sill's and random holes that appear here and there on the thing...

I also want to start making things, such as cold air feed boxes and battery boxes, out of stainless.

So any advice in which welder would be best for the above and recommended settings/techniques etc will be welcomed on this thread.

Cheers guys,

Ryan

 

[JayRS4]

Whats this, another from the drifty gang lol, welcome. IMO the bodywork and turrets would be best done with MIG, whilst your stainless stuff, although possible, would be far better with TIG. I`m by no means n expert, but i do have a habit of making shiney underbonnet things myself, and when there on show they just have to be pretty

 

[Wozzaaah]

Ideally you need two different machines Ryan, a smallish (around 130 amps) mig welder for general stuff like the sills, turrets etc and a DC tig welder for the stainless stuff. You can weld stainless with a mig welder but you get much nicer results with a tig and can often weld without using a filler so the welds are very small and neat, just what you want for stuff that's on show. The downsides are two machines and two lots of gas, an argon/co2 mix for the mig welder and pure argon for the stainless and also TIG has a fairly steep learning curve, it's not 'point and shoot' like mig.
Even if you used the mig for stainless you'd still need the 2 different gases, pure argon isn't really suitable for mig welding mild steel and argon/co2 can't be used for tig.

Regarding settings/technique, let's not run before you can walk eh?
Get the machine(s) first then we can advise on the rest .

 

[Ryy]

Haha, Cheers Woz, yeah, you're right, I was just speaking for the future really.

And JayRS4, I saw the link posted in a thread on the SXOC (200sx Owners Club) so I kinda drifted (pardon the pun) over from there earlier this evening.

So would you recommend this?

Ry

 

[JayRS4]

Ryy, have a look over this section http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=19 you should find loads of useful bits of info, i`ve no experience with the Clarke but there a helpful bunch here so i`m sure someone will be able to tell you, and as soon as the do they`ll point you in the direction of "weldequip" on here who`ll give you the best price.

I`m familier with SXOC, you probably know Honey and Bubble from there, well i`m over on SOC with them too.

Jay

 

[Wozzaaah]

Haha, Cheers Woz, yeah, you're right, I was just speaking for the future really.

And JayRS4, I saw the link posted in a thread on the SXOC (200sx Owners Club) so I kinda drifted (pardon the pun) over from there earlier this evening.

So would you recommend this?

Ry

Further to Jay's suggestion, try also using the custom google search box in the top right corner, it throws up this and
this which should help you decide if that Clarke is what you want

 

[Ryy]

Cheers guys!

Jay, Yeah I've spoken to Bubble before, is it Geoff? Maybe the wrong name, but he has a really nice R34 GT-T?

I know some folks from SOC too, Festa, James R33 and I am on there aswell, don't post much, just keep a look out for cheap RB25's.

Ry

 

[JayRS4]

Yup, you`ve got the right guy, RB30 GTT, awaiting new pistons at the moment though, he had a head gasket go pop. Im Jay on there too. Shorty has a 25 for sale cheap, although it`s possibly only a DE. Is Mamabstu`s still running, i`ve been thinking of doing the same.

 

[Ryy]

Hi dude, I do beleive Mambastu's is still around.

Whats your user name on SOC? And what have you got?

Ry

 

[JayRS4]

Jay on SOC, Stagea RS4, makes a much more practical workhorse than the old 33

 

[Ryy]

Heh, I was hoping you had a Stagea when I saw the username.

Proper sweet, R34 front end?

But yeah anyway, back to topic, I had a look at the threads about the different manufacturers, So which one would be best, the Clarke 135TE or 151TE? And what would be the immediate benefit of the extra £30 or so quid?

Sorry to sound dense...

 

[weldequip]

So which one would be best, the Clarke 135TE or 151TE? And what would be the immediate benefit of the extra £30 or so quid?

You'd get a bit of extra top end grunt from the 151 for thicker stuff, plus the ability to be able to weld for longer periods before the thing cuts out under thermal trip. Another model you might consider is the 160TM. Still only 150amps output but designed to run from refillable gas cylinders with a carrier on the rear. The main draw back with the smaller models is the disposable gas canisters only lasting around 10-12 minutes ; fine for very occassional use but expensive if you have much to do. You can convert the smaller models up to refillable cylinders for around £40 but if you anticipate doing any amount of work I would go straight for the refillable option...more initial outlay on the gas cylinder but you will soon realise the cost savings compared to expensive, throw-away canisters
weldequip

 

[jazzbob]

I really want to switch to a refillable canister (can't due to space in student residence ), but in defence of the little 110L cylinders, I managed to weld a load of roll cage plates an exhaust join and some practising as well as losing some to a duff regulator... I couldn't believe how long it lasted tbh.