what's best all round workshop mig to buy?

[wub]

Hi, just joined. I'm middle aged, and finally got a bit of time on my hands to get in my workshop and start making stuff! I've been welding on and off since my teens, but not professionally, just every now and again, doing cars up or repairing stuff etc, gas and arc in the early days and bought a cheapish small mig about 15 years ago.

Now i have some money to play with and lots of projects to get going on. so my question is, as things have moved on a lot in the last 15 years, what would be a good all round machine? i want to weld mild steel from car panel up to 8mm v weld occasionally, would like to do stainless and even aluminum. I am happy to look out for a good used one, ebay etc and looking for a equality, probably profession build quality, as i like things that are well made and will last me and not let me down, and i don't need to penny pinch.

I have been googling around and looking at reviews etc, but al these tend to focus on entry level machine's, i cant seem to find any "best off" for a garage workshop style machine? i have looked at a used KEMPPI KEMPOMAT 2001, which looks nice quality, and will do the mild and s/s, but is it outdated now?

Also is there a machine that will do all three?

Oh and i want it to run on 240v but i do have a dedicated blue plug circuit, 16amp i think that is.

So gentlemen, can i draw on your experience and get some suggestions?

many thanks John

 

[Arc Tourist]

Hello John,

Just a quick Welcome to the forum, you are in a good place.
I'm confident those with more knowledge than me will chime in shortly.

 

[Radar 3]

Hi, just joined. I'm middle aged, and finally got a bit of time on my hands to get in my workshop and start making stuff! I've been welding on and off since my teens, but not professionally, just every now and again, doing cars up or repairing stuff etc, gas and arc in the early days and bought a cheapish small mig about 15 years ago.

Now i have some money to play with and lots of projects to get going on. so my question is, as things have moved on a lot in the last 15 years, what would be a good all round machine? i want to weld mild steel from car panel up to 8mm v weld occasionally, would like to do stainless and even aluminum. I am happy to look out for a good used one, ebay etc and looking for a equality, probably profession build quality, as i like things that are well made and will last me and not let me down, and i don't need to penny pinch.

I have been googling around and looking at reviews etc, but al these tend to focus on entry level machine's, i cant seem to find any "best off" for a garage workshop style machine? i have looked at a used KEMPPI KEMPOMAT 2001, which looks nice quality, and will do the mild and s/s, but is it outdated now?

Also is there a machine that will do all three?

Oh and i want it to run on 240v but i do have a dedicated blue plug circuit, 16amp i think that is.

So gentlemen, can i draw on your experience and get some suggestions?

many thanks John

Kemppi is good stuff. Depending on the price have a serious look at it.

 

[zzr1200]

Kemppi is a top end manufacturer, but even the top end brands include some machines that are possibly built in the far east.

I've just sold a 30 year old ESAB 160 compact , replaced by an Oxford mig built in Yorkshire by Technical Arc.

Do you have the room for a transformer based machine or do you need a smaller inverter based machine. Also how much (maxium) do you want to spend in total, including mask gas gloves and other tools???

Technical Arc produce brands Oxford, Potramig and TechArc. Well worth a look.

https://technicalarc.co.uk/

 

[Tangledfeet]

I'm middle aged

Sole entry requirement well and truly fulfilled - welcome!

 

[Tom Orrow L]

For 8MM material you’ll want around the 250 amp mark. If you’re MIG welding aluminium you’ll want a 4 roll wire feeder.

a Jasic MIG 252C, a Parweld XTM 252i or a a GYS MonoGYS 250-4CS would all be great options!

 

[wub]

Hi zzr1200

to be honest i dont really have a budget, but say £1000 ish? as said, i want a good machine, but it will only be used evenings w/ends in my workshop, not in an engineering shop.

 

[wub]

Do you have any experience of these you suggest Tom Orrow? Build quality etc?

 

[Tom Orrow L]

Do you have any experience of these you suggest Tom Orrow? Build quality etc?

Yes, with all of them. GYS is probably the best build quality out of the 3.

 

[wub]

The GYS MonoGYS 250-4CS looks like a good machine and as i suspect, the tec has come a long way in the last 15 years

 

[wub]

So welding alloy, (which i've never done before as always scared off by people saying how hard it is), is it the same tecknik as mild steel mig welding, just different wire? Also its been mentioned you need different gas for alloy welding?

 

[zzr1200]

Hi zzr1200

to be honest i dont really have a budget, but say £1000 ish? as said, i want a good machine, but it will only be used evenings w/ends in my workshop, not in an engineering shop.

I purchased my Oxford mig from/via Tom, he will know what brands are available in your price range and their ability...

Ps.

I prefer old school machines, saying that I do own a Lorch T220 Pro ac/dc tig, when I was in the market for a tig, I needed a 220 amp machine that could run off of a 16 amp supply..

Today having access to 16amp, 32amp 1ph and 3ph power, my choice would possibly be different...

hth

 

[Tom Orrow L]

So welding alloy, (which i've never done before as always scared off by people saying how hard it is), is it the same tecknik as mild steel mig welding, just different wire? Also its been mentioned you need different gas for alloy welding?

Roughly the same technique yes, there are minor differences but it isn’t overly difficult to gets to grips with if you’ve got the right machine. Yes you need argon co2 mix for mild steel, pure argon for aluminium and a special tri mix gas for stainless steel.

 

[wub]

Is it the same regulator for all these bottles? So you could have 2 bottles on the trolly and just switch gas and wire? do you need to change the gun or nozzel at all?

 

[Tom Orrow L]

Is it the same regulator for all these bottles? So you could have 2 bottles on the trolly and just switch gas and wire? do you need to change the gun or nozzel at all?

For the most part yes, they’re usually a 5/8” connection in the UK, unless you go with a company that uses integra type connectors.
Ideally you’d have a torch set up for each wire type but the most important thing to do if welding aluminium is use a Teflon liner.

 

[tom2207]

if the aluminium isnt a crucial factor , one of the bigger single phase oxfords brand new would do well , if you had a good 3 phase supply some real sweet deals to be had , but you wont be lifting any of those machines into your car boot ... again if its not used often and not kept dry and warm id be looking at an older transformer based machine .

 

[hotponyshoes]

Is aluminium welding a main consideration or just something that would be nice to be able to do as well?

If you plan to do much of it then you really want a 2nd torch (you can change the liner each time but that's a load of faff)
You also want the correct drive rollers for aluminium and it's a lot easier to get them at the same time as buying the welder that it is to get a dealer to order them in for you afterwards.

The thickness of the alloy will also have a factor in the choice of machine you need

 

[wub]

So for example, i have some 3 mm alloy plate i want to weld and i also have a modified inlet manifold with some pin homes in i need to fill. I guess that is cast alloy?

And coming back to an answer from tom 2207, yes its in a workshop that is not heated all the time and it wont be used for months on end at times, so will a none tranforma machine by effected by the damp and become unreliable? Its a dry workshop, but just not heated when i'm not there, so could go for weeks with winter weather and be 2 or 3 degrees inside.

 

[tom2207]

I would be looking at a bigger oxford , or the likes , un heated shops tend to get condensation depending o the temperature swing and the humidity ,, thats sore on things .
if your not doing a lot of alloy , by the time your kitted up and learned how to do it , its cheaper to pay some one who does it all the time ,, saves a lot of hed scratching and remaking of parts too ,,, dont ask me how I know this though

 

[wub]

So Tom we are getting closer, what do you say to the damp issue?