inverter welders

[yomax4]

The sad part is, you read their machine will run those rods, and the seller you're buying from says their machine will run those rods. Then you buy based on the info you've been given, and their machine won't rum them, you're just screwed !
I've basically got a $1700.00 tig only machine

Thanks for your time. At least you understand my frustration and my gripe with this machine

It's not just the low cost Amazon machines either. Some time back Miller put out a Maxstar line of Stick/Tig machines and some wouldn't run the Cellulose rods. They had sold thousands before the word got out and there were many unhappy campers.

 

[California]

I bought an inverter welder from Amico and I find it much easier to use.
I hadn't welded in a while so I wanted a small unit I could use to fix equipment and build some projects on my property.
The DC inverter welder is absolutely perfect.

Amico stick welder, no? This guy (below) just did a YouTube review. Overall he said instead of this $189 welder, the $30 additional for a similar Harbor Freight welder would be his preference due to simpler warranty replacement if needed, and in particular the Amico's dials and displays weren't well coordinated - not linear. He wants to just set the welder to settings on the package of rods instead of trial-n-error to get zeroed in. This might be important so some, and irrelevant to someone who always welds at the same settings.

In favor of the Amico, he said its unusually high open circuit voltage made using 6010 simple, unlike most other inexpensive welders. He liked this. Far less rod sticking. And I found a poster who owns several for his construction crew who likes them, no problems.

I bought a $150 Amico dual-voltage flux welder a few years ago and I like it. Same complaint of nonsense screen/knob dis-coordination. But it welds nice, seems well made, and dialing in the proper settings is no big deal. In summary I think Amico is worth their cost, in the cheap end of the market.

 

[kenmac]

It's not just the low cost Amazon machines either. Some time back Miller put out a Maxstar line of Stick/Tig machines and some wouldn't run the Cellulose rods. They had sold thousands before the word got out and there were many unhappy campers.

Well, that's the reason I didn't go with the cheapest unit at $1700.00, and IGBTS when most others were using less expensive MOSFITS .
I understand it's not the expense of a Miller machine, but as cheap as some others .

It's too late after the purchase and you rely on those that are selling the unit and what's printed in their manual and still get screwed ...
I could have gotten the same subpar results with one of the less expensive machines

 

[chim]

The weather was nice enough to get back on my blade project and as promised I tried some 6010 & 6011 with the Everlast 200STi. I am NOT a weldor, but a hobbyist who sometimes welds stuff. I didn't take a lot of time, but did give 'em a try. To use these electrodes it is a matter of pushing a button (more of a touchscreen), bumping the hot start intensity and duration and the arc force. With a little adjusting of the amps, the machine did run both 6010 and 6011. Maybe they'd work better with some more time spent on experimenting and adjusting, but the 7014 has me spoiled. The 6010 & 6011 seemed almost violent when they were burning. The slag stuck much harder than it did on the 7014.

The picture of the two caterpillar-looking welds are 6011 on the top and 6010 on the bottom. Starting the 6010& 6011 did require more effort. It could be bumping the hot start and arc force some more would help. The picture of the fillet on the 4" channel are both 6010. The right side was with the amps set higher. I may be able to improve on the 6010 beads with more practice and different adjustments. But why bother? 7014 already works.

The 7014 pictures show a butt joint with a single pass on each side of 1/2" plate that had been beveled on both sides for the blade project, and the side view shows how much easier slag removal is (it mostly removes itself). That slag in that picture begins where I restarted for the second half of the weld where the 7014 rod is laying across the weld. The last picture shows the plate after the drilling process. The 7014 filled the groove almost perfectly to the top so it could be taken to flush with a flap disc. That plate still needs trimmed a little and welded to the "wallered-out" existing plate.