Help me pick a mig welder

[Cord]

Guys, I'm in the market for a mig welder. I currently have a stick welder, but it's a big mother and doesn't do anything thinner than 1/8". The arc tends to become unstable at the low amperages and if you don't book along you'll burn through. Generally I'm comfortable with anything over 3/16". Although the 7010 rod is multi-position, I really have a tough time with anything other than horizontal. Sometimes this has forced me to rotate the piece so I can keep my weld horizontal. With bigger pieces this can get entertaining... and dangerous. For these reasons, I really want to get into a mig welder. I'm thinking that I'll keep my old welder for hardfacing or nickel rod. I'd really like to get a Miller or Lincoln 250 amp mig, but they're just too expensive for me. I've found a couple of options locally and would like to have your opinion as to which is the best choice for me.

#1 Ltec 225 $675
Just your basic mig welder with 4 heat ranges, a adjustable heat control and wire feed dial. The welder is not spool gun ready, but WeldMart has the panel. The spool gun is obscenely expensive, so I'll probably never own one. As I understand it, the Ltec was a really good welder, but the line has been since discontinued and the company has been sold. Parts are not available from the mfr. but WeldMart advertises that they parts for this unit. I don't know if I can find a owners manual. I believe this welder will handle anything from 16g to 3/8"+. That'll cover most of the material that I weld. When I stick weld thicker sections, I'm already doing multiple passes as I don't have a rod bigger than 5/32".

#2 Lincoln SP-150 $500 w/a tall cylinder
Although this is a older model, it is full featured. This welder has burn back, spot, stitch and it's spool gun ready. This spool gun is about $220 new. But at 150a it is only 20% duty cycle (130a/30%). With that short duty cycle, I doubt if the welder will handle anything over 3/16". Looks like this welder might be comparable to a new 180a unit. One thought is that I could keep some rods on hand for thicker sections, but I still won't be able to do anything but horizontal work. It's my understanding that this welder comes with a short 7' gun and has trouble feeding the wire with longer cables.

 

[mjncad]

I'd stay away from the Ltec for the parts and service issues you mentioned. Even if WeldMart claims to have parts; do you want to be the guinea pig to find out if their claim is true?

I don't know anything about the specific Lincoln model you mentioned.

How about a MIG in the 210 amp range? I have a Millermatic 210 with a range of 22ga to 3/8" in a single pass (manufacturer's claims). I've welded as thin as 16ga to as thick as 3/8". Mind you I have trouble on anything 1/8" and below, which I attribute to the operator, not the machine.

Stick with a name brand if you can afford it for parts and service.

 

[RickB]

A cheap welder is just that. There are several good welders out there, but you absolutely will not be disappointed with a Miller. Whatever you buy, choose a model with 220 volt input.

 

[stub]

I bought this one. Great deal and welder.

FREE SHIPPING — Hobart Handler® 210 Wire Feed MIG Welder with 10-Ft. Spoolgun | Wirefeed Welders | Northern Tool + Equipment

 

[gauthier]

You don't need to weld anything in one pass,so....

.035 wire uses what,about 120 amps 19 volts? so you would have better than a 30 percent duty cycle burning .035 wire.

You can order millers and lincolns from welding supply places,you should go to millers and lincolns sites,see what all they sell,as far as what needs you might have and than see if you can figure out prices.

 

[BlacknTan]

My vote would also be for the MillerMatic...

I was in AirWeld yesterday looking at them. Never go wrong with Miller... the quality remains long after the price is forgotten.
If you get a Lincoln, get it from a Weld Supply rather than a big box store.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have both a Miller and a Hobart. Both are great units but I tend to use the Hobart more. Mainly because its sized right for most of my work. I would not be afraid to buy a Lincoln either.

For the home owner a Hobart is plenty good.

Chris

 

[Bill Hoffman]

Lincoln 180 from a welding supply house, not HD.
They had the "same" welder, but it was 15-20 pounds
lighter. Corners were cut somewhere.

Bill

 

[gauthier]

You mean you can't weld flat? ,just horazontal?
And if you can't weld with stick anything but horazontal[for some strange reason],than you won't be able to with a mig either..

Maybe I'm missing something??

 

[travis potter]

I bought a Lincoln at HD itwas on display and missing the tip for the gun. The welding houses don,t sell ANY parts for the big box welders thty are made over seas just for HD and the only place I could get the tip was for HD to special order it. At first they were only going to sell the complete gun for almost what I paid for the welder. Now I know why someone took the tip. After much discussion they ordered the tip. I have only used the welder 22 or 3 times not very good.

 

[lostcause]

if your budget is in the $500 range, then you're going to be looking at something new in the 120v/150a max range (or less). if you look at refurbished / discontinued / used units, you may get something closer to a 240v/210a max range. to get that same class of welder new you're going to be getting closer to the $1000 range. if you want something in the 210a+ range with a duty cycle over 20%, then you bump up to $1500+.

there's a lot of welders available in that $500 price range, and to be honest, i couldn't give any useful advice, since i've had an old century unit that fits that description for about 15 years - i haven't had any interest in looking at new ones.

in the 210a range, there are a couple of popular machines at the current time: the hobart 210 and miller 211. the hobart can be had from northern for $899 including a free spool gun ($200+) value and free shipping. the miller can be found for about $950+ and the spool gun is another $200. there is a current promotion that gets you $100 back for buying the welder and spool gun, so you could be into it for around $1050 with a little luck. the noticeable differences in them are that the miller has swappable 120v and 240v plugs, while the hobart is 240v only. the miller also has infinite current control, while the hobart has 7 steps. other than that, there are always rumblings about the miller having metal drive parts in places where the hobart has plastic. i can't verify this, or determine whether it matters. i'd think that both of them are good units and i've done a lot of research and i can't say i've seen any real complaints about either machine. only thing is that the price may be a little more scary than a lot of homeowners want to swallow.

 

[Jim in ICT]

Cord, I've got a lightly used Millermatic 175 that I'd like to sell. Comes with an 80 cu.ft. cylinder of 75/25, cover,& cart. It will weld up to 1/4" steel on a single pass. Heck, I'd even throw in a new set of gloves, weld sleeves and a 30 ft. length of input power cable that you can make an extension cord with.
Asking $700.00

Your profile didn't say where you live. I'm in the Wichita, Kansas area.

 

[jch445c]

I have used the Hobart handler 140 at my work for the past 6 years. Although it isn't designed for heavy industrial use, it has taken a lot of punishment. We have even used it with a portable generator. Around me the Hobart welder's are very popular and any of the consumable parts are easy to get. The 140 welds mild steel and stainless but not aluminium. If you plan on welding aluminium then I would go with the Hobart 210 with the spool feed stinger. The 210 from northern tool seems like a great deal. To me it seems like a lot of these small mig welders look the same, just painted different colors. Thats just my opinion.

 

[rjmack]

mine's a millermatic 252.

 

[Cord]

Well, I pulled the trigger on a welder... got a ESAB 250 with spool gun for $1700.

 

[gauthier]

You got to splain this horazontal thing,,come on,,you can weld flat as well???

 

[Cord]

It's a limitation of my welder and the rods that I'm using. A 7010 rod, although listed as multiposition really isn't much but a horizontal rod. When I turn the machine down to pull some heat out, then the arc becomes unstable. A fast freeze rod would probably do the trick, but I haven't tried them with this welder. Using a 5/32" rod to lay down 3/8" beads is what that welder really lives for.

 

[Kubota-guy1911]

I wonder what Miller has done to cheapen up the 210 so it can be sold for less than $1000. I paid over $1100 for a 185 over 10 years ago. It has been a great machine. Look at output voltage, current, and duty cycle carefully.

kj

 

[Cord]

250a @ 50%, 27v

 

[gauthier]

Cord,,,I want you to take this the right way,,,its the welder,,not the rod,,if somebody else can do it....

A 7010 rod is about same as 6010 maybe a few more snaps/sparkes,,,,,it is an all postion rod,,I have welded over head with it,[alot],like 6010 better,like 6010 plus a lot better[6010+],,but ,,,,,what kinda rods have you run??Why have you been using 7010 rods,,they are called hipy rods,,[high yield point],,hippy rods ///high yield point rods,,,get it???,well,,they are pipeline rods,,why are you using 7010 rods???

You need to get you some 6010 + rods,lincoln,,good rods,,

You turn your machine up,not down to make arc more stable[if you are having trouble sticking or maintaining arc],,,wish I could show you,but I can't.