Any thoughts on Hobart Handler 210 MPV?

[AaronS]

We have an old Lincoln stick welder on the farm, along with bunches of old welding rods of various sizes that have sat out in the open for years and years. It came with the place when we bought it and I haven't had the time to try it and see if it works and how well. I'm assuming the welding rods may not be much good anymore.

I have several welding projects stacking up around the place and would like to buy a Mig unit. I haven't welded since welding class in high school over 25 years ago but I remember having a much easier time with Mig then.

Does anyone have experience with the Hobart unit, or reviews on the company in general? The main reason I'm leaning toward them is convenience of buying it close to home.

http://www.ruralking.com/hobart-welder-115-230v-mig-handler-210mpv-500553.html

 

[kencunningham]

I have two hobart wire feed welders and both have been trouble free. Although i would point out the the mig gun that came with the 190 doesnt have any type of trigger guard, so you have to watch how you set it down. The 210 probably comes with the same one, but i dont know that for sure.

 

[bandaidmd]

I have two hobart wire feed welders and both have been trouble free. Although i would point out the the mig gun that came with the 190 doesnt have any type of trigger guard, so you have to watch how you set it down. The 210 probably comes with the same one, but i dont know that for sure.

Boy ain't that the truth about lack of a trigger guard. Seems like every time I pick up the gun It (accidentally) spits out some wire.

 

[bandaidmd]

We have an old Lincoln stick welder on the farm, along with bunches of old welding rods of various sizes that have sat out in the open for years and years. It came with the place when we bought it and I haven't had the time to try it and see if it works and how well. I'm assuming the welding rods may not be much good anymore.

I have several welding projects stacking up around the place and would like to buy a Mig unit. I haven't welded since welding class in high school over 25 years ago but I remember having a much easier time with Mig then.

Does anyone have experience with the Hobart unit, or reviews on the company in general? The main reason I'm leaning toward them is convenience of buying it close to home.

http://www.ruralking.com/hobart-welder-115-230v-mig-handler-210mpv-500553.html

I'm a realative noobie at mig but really like my HH190, mostly 1/8" mild steel with .030 solid core with C25 gas.

 

[olllotj]

My 210 has been trouble free. I set it up with gas on day one, and have only used it with 220 so far. Its got some good power for me. Of course it doesn't have the duty cycle that the big boys have but it's fine for what I do.

 

[oldpilgrim]

I got a HH last year and have gone thru a couple of spools of wire so far. Seems like a good machine to me.

 

[Thats Hot]

That is a nice welder.

 

[bindian]

My 210 has been trouble free. I set it up with gas on day one, and have only used it with 220 so far. Its got some good power for me. Of course it doesn't have the duty cycle that the big boys have but it's fine for what I do.

What are the pros and cons of using gas instead of using the gasless flu cored wire?
hugs, Brandi

 

[sw99]

What are the pros and cons of using gas instead of using the gasless flu cored wire?
hugs, Brandi

Fair amount of spatter with the flux wire means more clean up. The flux wire is great if your out in the wind too.

I love my HH210MVP.

 

[yomax4]

Any welder is a good welder if you don't have one. No question there.. Some are just better than others due to option or spec. Personally I really try to avoid Flux Core Gasless wire if at all possible. That's the main reason I would suggest a Mig / Stick unit. Mig indoors, Stick outdoors. Others run nothing but Flux Core. In welding, everyone has their favs.

 

[Shield Arc]

Building bridges, container ship docks, ferry docks, we were pretty well stuck with running self shielded flux core.

 

[Rocky J]

I personal do not care for the flux core because I do some multi pass welding and would have to clean the welds before the second pass, also I have had the flux bleed out through my paint job when finished. I have the Hobart 180 Handler and am happy with it. Machine not intended for aluminum welding, even the regulator say mixed gas only.It must have been after Miller bought them because out of the box it had Miller gun and liner on it.

 

[yomax4]

I personal do not care for the flux core because I do some multi pass welding and would have to clean the welds before the second pass, also I have had the flux bleed out through my paint job when finished. I have the Hobart 180 Handler and am happy with it. Machine not intended for aluminum welding, even the regulator say mixed gas only.It must have been after Miller bought them because out of the box it had Miller gun and liner on it.

Mixed gas only just means the CGA isn't right for CO2. You can still run Argon for Aluminum and with an adaptor you could run CO2 all with your regulator.

 

[m35techa2]

I purchased a number of years ago a miller 210 setup and then purchased a spool gun as well, best setup I have used next to my old tried and true lincoln buzz box ac/dc stick

 

[LightningCamaroGuy]

I've had my Hobart Handler 210 for about 6/7 years and it's a good little mig IMO. I look at Hobart as a budget Miller as Miller owns Hobart and I feel that they weld pretty similarly. Hobart is just not as fancy with a few cheaper parts and not as many bells and whistles. I haven't compared the Handler 210 directly to a Miller 210 though. I've only used it with gas.

 

[joeu235]

I've had a Hobart 210 for 3 years. Only issue is that it doesn't work on 120V, but that might be my fault because I plugged it into an underpowered gas generator once and it might have messed something up. Always welded with FCAW and never hooked up a gas bottle.

 

[ModMech]

The OLD Hobarts were top notch machines, but weighed a TON, if one man can pick it up it is not one of the goodies

I have owned and welded with Hobart, Miller and Lincoln, engine driven and plug-in of the MIG, TIG and Stick varieties - I am NOT a qualified welder by any means, just a hobbyist.

For stick I prefer a Lincoln, I have never figured out why, but they just seem to weld better than the Millers I have used, Including my current Thunderbolt XL 225 AC/DC.

My former MIG rig was a MM252 and it was a MONSTER, as others have posted tho, NO WIND or no weld MIG just does not perform well in the wind, even a slight breeze will cause you fits, yup that includes your shop fan

I have never settled on a TIG rig, but based on those I have used, if two people or fewer can lift it I don't want it. Brand does not seem as important here as weight, really do not understand why other than that old copper really does a good job.

Having gone around the block a couple times on welding rigs, I have settled on an engine driven for stick (lots of fencing to keep fixed) and a suitcase for stick/tig in the shop. When I find an OLD Hobart or Lincoln engine driven I will buy it, then replace the Thunderbolt with a suitcase. I am done with MIG because I do not want to deal with the bottles or whips any more.

 

[Clay45]

I'm not a welder but when I first began to fool with it I bought a Hobart Handler 135. Discovered I could run a beautiful bead on 1/8" aluminum coupons but not on tubing. Purchased an HH175 240v machine and could when the wire fed properly thru the whip. Parted with both about the time the HH187 came along so I purchased one of those. Built a steel utility trailer with it. Man was steel so much easier to fiddle with and that machine so nice that I enjoyed every minute of it. But after a couple of back surgeries I again sold the 187. Now years later I moved to the country and decided a welder might be handy so I acquired a Hobart Hander 190 when I learned its essentially a HH187 with plug-in spool gun capability. Only fired it up a couple times to make certain it works. Used 75/25 and a scrap bed frame. Runs nice. Miller does NOT own Hobart. ITW owns both of them. Hobart was the giant of the two initially but had to divest itself of its larger operations as part of the acquisition. On these small machines the quality is the same and no one offers better product support than Hobart expecially to non-pros.