- Thread starter goldigger
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Thanks for the advice Mike, there are 8 pages of posts and no mention of a Sip 215 turbo so I think a little help???? would be better than a blanket response.have a look through the SIP section of the forum...
If this is the kind of help to be expected from this forum it would appear to be a waste of time.
Nige
malcolm
& Clementine the Cat
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Few more words might have been better - I suspect the implication was to see if you can find anything positive said about SIPs in the SIP section. There's not a lot. Mostly the ones we hear about are the smaller ones though.
The Butters are reasonable so I would suspect a SIP would be worse. What's your budget like and what sort of things are you welding? Perhaps we might be able to suggest alternatives.
The Butters are reasonable so I would suspect a SIP would be worse. What's your budget like and what sort of things are you welding? Perhaps we might be able to suggest alternatives.
Hi Malcolm,
Thanks for the reply,I didn't understand the "shortness" of the previous reply and responded accordinly, I appologise if I was a bit "short" myself but when there's a chance of a cheap welder and you don't have info on it you try and find out.
Anyway the Butters is as you say a good welder, but it's only on loan so I am looking for an alternative . I am building a hot-rod at the moment so there is chassis work etc before I start on the bodywork, that's why I want a fairly powerful welder, and this Sip could?? do the job but I would like to be sure before parting with the readys.
Nige
mike os
just a little insane.....
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sorry... i rarely use 2 words when one will do
as an ex sip owner and from the thread here I can say save your £££ for something better, in this case almost anything
It may be that a decent one slipped through, but based on the experiences shared here I doubt it ( very old sip/migmate were OK but we are talking 20years+)
as an ex sip owner and from the thread here I can say save your £££ for something better, in this case almost anything
It may be that a decent one slipped through, but based on the experiences shared here I doubt it ( very old sip/migmate were OK but we are talking 20years+)
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The larger SIP machines have a better reputation than the smaller, rubbish ones, it's just that whenever the name SIP is mentioned, most of us shudder. 
I believe those machines have the better, all-metal wire feed unit rather than the flimsy plastic one shared by many of the smaller models. That's the weak point on the smaller ones and people buy them only to struggle to get the wire feeding consistently.
That 215 will also have a euro style torch which is a great advantage.
I'm assuming it's a used one, what sort of money is it going for?
I believe those machines have the better, all-metal wire feed unit rather than the flimsy plastic one shared by many of the smaller models. That's the weak point on the smaller ones and people buy them only to struggle to get the wire feeding consistently.
That 215 will also have a euro style torch which is a great advantage.
I'm assuming it's a used one, what sort of money is it going for?
malcolm
& Clementine the Cat
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For a hotrod the welds need to be neat - I'd avoid the SIP even if it is cheap (unless it's a whole lot better than the 185 version).
I'm guessing the chassis will be less than 5mm thick? A 180 amp max welder would do that. If it needs to be secondhand have a look at decent makes like Mures, BOC, Eland, Esab, Migatronic, Miller, Lincoln etc. I'm running a Portamig 185 for automotive work which works very well, but is difficult to find secondhand.
I'm guessing the chassis will be less than 5mm thick? A 180 amp max welder would do that. If it needs to be secondhand have a look at decent makes like Mures, BOC, Eland, Esab, Migatronic, Miller, Lincoln etc. I'm running a Portamig 185 for automotive work which works very well, but is difficult to find secondhand.
The larger SIP machines have a better reputation than the smaller, rubbish ones, it's just that whenever the name SIP is mentioned, most of us shudder.
I believe those machines have the better, all-metal wire feed unit rather than the flimsy plastic one shared by many of the smaller models. That's the weak point on the smaller ones and people buy them only to struggle to get the wire feeding consistently.
That 215 will also have a euro style torch which is a great advantage.
I'm assuming it's a used one, what sort of money is it going for?
Hi Woz,
Yes it's used (but only "moderately?") price £90.00 ish.
Nige
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That is a good price for any machine of that size.
Personally I think I'd go for it, if you don't like it you can set it afloat in the Bay of E and you shouldn't lose anything on it, in fact, you may even make a few quid.
Test it fully before buying it though, previous posts on here suggest they're prone to PCB failure causing inability to control the wire speed and the PCBs are fairly pricey by all accounts.
Personally I think I'd go for it, if you don't like it you can set it afloat in the Bay of E and you shouldn't lose anything on it, in fact, you may even make a few quid.
Test it fully before buying it though, previous posts on here suggest they're prone to PCB failure causing inability to control the wire speed and the PCBs are fairly pricey by all accounts.
That is a good price for any machine of that size.
Personally I think I'd go for it, if you don't like it you can set it afloat in the Bay of E and you shouldn't lose anything on it, in fact, you may even make a few quid.
Test it fully before buying it though, previous posts on here suggest they're prone to PCB failure causing inability to control the wire speed and the PCBs are fairly pricey by all accounts.
Hi Woz,
Just got an answer to my question to the seller, "It's not wired up so I can't check it" this one I'm leaving alone!!
Nige
