welder for a novice??

[gemini5362]

Your going to really like that DVI welder. It is almost as good as the Miller 210 running on 240 and if you are going to weld lighter stuff you can change to 120 and it does great in thin metal. I got mine because it was on special and the guys at the local welding supply store recomended it for home and farm use. It is much better than the stick or mig welder it replaced that were stolen. I would buy one again without question.

Al

Thank you for your input. I have been debating with the DVI and the MIller 210. I chose the DVI because there are times when I might need to fix a gate or something at one of my rent houses and with the DVI I can just plug into a regular outlet and not have to worry about it. I was a bit worried about the 40 per cent duty cycle. I noticed in the manual after I got it that at 125 amps it has about a 90 per cent duty cycle. I am just going to use it around my farm and for small projects I think it is going to be great for my use. My wife went ahead and bought the spool gun to go with it. I did not think that I needed one of those but I would not want to disapoint her by suggesting I did not need it. Besides that was what made all my friends at work jealous. . Have you used yours hard enough yet to trip the overheat relay and shut it down ?

 

[GreenMtns]

Thank you for your input. I have been debating with the DVI and the MIller 210. I chose the DVI because there are times when I might need to fix a gate or something at one of my rent houses and with the DVI I can just plug into a regular outlet and not have to worry about it. I was a bit worried about the 40 per cent duty cycle. I noticed in the manual after I got it that at 125 amps it has about a 90 per cent duty cycle. I am just going to use it around my farm and for small projects I think it is going to be great for my use. My wife went ahead and bought the spool gun to go with it. I did not think that I needed one of those but I would not want to disapoint her by suggesting I did not need it. Besides that was what made all my friends at work jealous. . Have you used yours hard enough yet to trip the overheat relay and shut it down ?

I use it quite a bit and have never tripped the relay. I replaced a HH180 and a Miller Thunderbolt. I can’t say I miss either one of those now. The DVI welds 3/8" with no problem and I rarely need more than that. The few times I have I did multiple passes and it ended up very good.

Al

 

[rutwad]

I probably spent no more than 3 or 4 days on a welder "old crackerjack box" growing up. EVERY time ended in frustration. Instead of welded steal, I usually ended up with a piece of steel that looked like a porcupine with stuck rods all over it.

Well, determined that it can't be that difficult and I wanted to try it again. I got is back out Friday and within a few tries I had some welds that actually held. I was working on a small project and was concerned about it not holding, but it worked. I was pleased.

Anyway, I figure if you once could weld, you should be able to pick it back up relatively quickly. Start with a cheap rod welder before dumping money into a wasted project.

Now for those experienced guys, I was burning 6011 rods on 1/8 steel. I had to be carefull or the steel would melt back. Should I turn the machine down or weld, stop, weld, stop, etc.

Thanks

 

[davemhughes]

I have a Clark 110v 125amp Mig welder that I have used for several years now and have run several spools of wire through it. I just used it last night welding exhaust on my Harley Ultra and plan on using it today to weld up a tool box mount on my tractor using 2x2 angled 3/16 steel (saw the idea here on TBN) then weld teeth onto my Fel blade. I have found I can weld almost any reasonable thickness with by turning up the power to max and slowing the wire feed down. I bought a 110v instead of a 240v beause I wanted to be able to do field repairs with it using my Honda 2000eu generator which is very light weight. Plus I wanted something cheap. I have welded all different types of metal and thicknesses with no problems including aluminum. Using your welder is your best teacher......my dad who has been a welder for 35yrs simply told me its not rocket science at my level of things I want to do.....he was right. I bought mine for under $200. Yes you can buy better ones but why....for light duty and intermittant use a Lincoln or Hobart is pricey. Plus after you buy a welder you will use it more than you think....All you buddies will be dropping by with small welding projects for you....you get to practice on their stuff....lol

 

[john_bud]

I probably spent no more than 3 or 4 days on a welder "old crackerjack box" growing up. EVERY time ended in frustration. Instead of welded steal, I usually ended up with a piece of steel that looked like a porcupine with stuck rods all over it.

Well, determined that it can't be that difficult and I wanted to try it again. I got is back out Friday and within a few tries I had some welds that actually held. I was working on a small project and was concerned about it not holding, but it worked. I was pleased.

Anyway, I figure if you once could weld, you should be able to pick it back up relatively quickly. Start with a cheap rod welder before dumping money into a wasted project.

Now for those experienced guys, I was burning 6011 rods on 1/8 steel. I had to be carefull or the steel would melt back. Should I turn the machine down or weld, stop, weld, stop, etc.

Thanks

1/8th is thin for a stick welder (at least with MY small skill level). It sounds like weld, stop, repeat is the way to go. Tack it in a half dozen spots, let it cool, then do 1/2" long welds 8-12" apart and let it cool. Stitch it up that way. Take longer than you think you should to let it cool so it won't turn into a pretzel.

jb

 

[Glowplug]

I have been eyeing a Lincoln Power MIG 180T myself.

 

[IslandTractor]

I have been eyeing a Lincoln Power MIG 180T myself.

Nice welder from what I have read. So is the new Hobart 187. I'm still trying to justify an upgrade from a Lincoln 135T. The Miller Passport is singing a siren song to me.

 

[gemini5362]

I dont think it can get much easier than welding with a tig. Basically you just put the tip near the metal and pull the trigger. move the metal side to side a bit to make smoe nice puddles so the real welders wont laugh at you too much.

 

[wushaw]

I have been eyeing a Lincoln Power MIG 180T myself.

Now wait a minute here Chuck, Your gonna get this BIG tractor (according to many)....I never joined in on that one....but when it comes to welders your just gonna limit yourself to 1/4" maybe 5/16" single pass machine.

With all the Cat II implements your gonna gave you need some power to weld the thick stuff (fix what you may break) 250amp machine is more in the ball park for what may/will arise....

 

[kenmac]

Now for those experienced guys, I was burning 6011 rods on 1/8 steel. I had to be carefull or the steel would melt back. Should I turn the machine down or weld, stop, weld, stop, etc.

Thanks




How large is the 6011 rod 5/32- 1/8 - etc.? 1/8 steel isn't very thick so, you'll have to be careful if you are (just learning )or you will burn through . On the box of most rods they will give you a setting( heat range ) for the rod . If you are just learning to weld, you could try this chart.Try to keep the heat set for the size rod used or don't go so slow( move the rod a little faster ) .If it's a large piece of steel you may want to stop & let it cool to keep it from warping

 

[JimR]

I've had a Lincoln Tombstone since 1976. I finally sold it last year to pick up a used Sears (Miller) AC/DC unit for less than I sold the Lincoln for. I also bought a mig welder for the first time about 8-9 years ago. It was a Lincoln Weld Pak 100. I bought the gas conversion for it also. Last year I found a great deal on a used Lincoln Weld Pak 135HD and bought it. I sold the Weld Pak 100 the next day for more than the 135HD cost me. The 135HD still wasn't what I wanted. My next welder was a used Lincoln Weld Pak 175 Plus. So far this unit has done evertyhing that I have wanted to do with it. The 135HD was also sold to help pay for the 175 Plus. You won't lose money on a used welder if you buy it used for the right price. Look around before buying one. They are out there for cheap money. I bought the Lincoln 175 Plus off of Ebay and saved hundreds of dollars on it.

 

[Bugs]

I have been welding for years and taught my son to weld also, I had a Lincolon 225 that I bought at a pawn shop around 25 years ago and it still works but my son talked me into going with a Mig because i guess he got sick of me calling him every time I needed thin stuff welded, he has a Miller Mig and uses a Hobart at work, I did research on welders for about a year and found what I thought was the best, It is a HTP Mig 160, I had never used a mig before I got this one, always had my son do it with his, well I got mine, a tank of gas and went to town with it, you would think I had been mig welding all my life from the beads it lays down, my son came over and he did some heavy welding on a car dolly with it and said it made his Miller seem like a peice of junk and it is a lot better than the Hobart he uses too, you can weld with or without gas with it, just when you use flux cored wire you have to reverse the polarity on it

It has a good duty cycle too,20% at 160amps and 100% @78 amps, I have done some long and heavy welding with it and have yet to have it shut down on me and that's welding 1/4" and 5/16th" metal, I also got the kit for it so I cane weld aluminum, you just have to go to 100% argon gas and change to a teflon liner, it's a bit more tricky than welding steel

But if you want a fine welder HTP is the way to go, the folks I bought it from don't come any nicer either, I bet I emailed the head salesman 30 time asking questions before I finally bought it and he never once acted like he was getting sick of me

They have them in all price ranges too, I paid around $1100.00 for mine but that inclueds the tank and the aluminum welding kit, plus I went ahead and got a box of extra tips and sheilds for it, if anyone wants to check them out and are thinking of buying a welder and if it is allowed i will be happy to pass on their email address, like I said , it is without a dout the best we have ever came across, I just love mine, I used it for a couple of hours today building an air powered can smasher, fun fun

 

[gemini5362]

I have been welding for years and taught my son to weld also, I had a Lincolon 225 that I bought at a pawn shop around 25 years ago and it still works but my son talked me into going with a Mig because i guess he got sick of me calling him every time I needed thin stuff welded, he has a Miller Mig and uses a Hobart at work, I did research on welders for about a year and found what I thought was the best, It is a HTP Mig 160, I had never used a mig before I got this one, always had my son do it with his, well I got mine, a tank of gas and went to town with it, you would think I had been mig welding all my life from the beads it lays down, my son came over and he did some heavy welding on a car dolly with it and said it made his Miller seem like a peice of junk and it is a lot better than the Hobart he uses too, you can weld with or without gas with it, just when you use flux cored wire you have to reverse the polarity on it

It has a good duty cycle too,20% at 160amps and 100% @78 amps, I have done some long and heavy welding with it and have yet to have it shut down on me and that's welding 1/4" and 5/16th" metal, I also got the kit for it so I cane weld aluminum, you just have to go to 100% argon gas and change to a teflon liner, it's a bit more tricky than welding steel

But if you want a fine welder HTP is the way to go, the folks I bought it from don't come any nicer either, I bet I emailed the head salesman 30 time asking questions before I finally bought it and he never once acted like he was getting sick of me

They have them in all price ranges too, I paid around $1100.00 for mine but that inclueds the tank and the aluminum welding kit, plus I went ahead and got a box of extra tips and sheilds for it, if anyone wants to check them out and are thinking of buying a welder and if it is allowed i will be happy to pass on their email address, like I said , it is without a dout the best we have ever came across, I just love mine, I used it for a couple of hours today building an air powered can smasher, fun fun

I looked at the specs for this welder and to be honest I thought the specs on my Miller DVI were better and the price difference is not that great.

 

[JimR]

Here's the specs on my Lincoln 175Plus
Rated CV Output Amps/Volts/Duty Cycle
130/20/30%

Output Range
25-175A DC

Wire Feed Speed Range (IPM)
50-400

Wire Feed Speed Range (M/MIN)
1.2-10.2

Solid Wire Size Range
.023-.035"

Cored Wire Size Range
.035-.045"

 

[patrick_g]

Since the original issue was doing some light welding himself instead of taking everything to a pro I don't think stick or heavy duty welding is an appropriate issue.

A wire feed unit with flux cored wire instead of shielding gas is probably the best solution and certainly the easiest for a DIY once in a while situation. (AKA MIG, Metal Inert Gas where with flux cored wire the flux provides the shielding gas)

I have been abusing my Lincoln Weld Pak 100 for over 10 years and have changed only the contact tips and spools of wire. It just works. With practice you can make GOOD multipass welds on material up to 1/4 inch thick.

I do not recommend getting a brand X MIG to save a few bucks. All welding power supplies are not created equal. In the small sizes welding machines are not so expensive as to warrant buyiing brand X and the name brands are name brands for a good reason, good stuff. You MIGHT find a GOOD bargain machine but it is a sure thing with a name brand. Hobart, Lincoln, and Miller are the ones I recommend. NOt much diff between those brands, just good solid machines.

My little Lincoln "lunchbox" takes a 20 amp 120VAC outlet and runs terrific on my smallish portable generator (5000 Watts) I have just abused the heck out of it for over 10 years and it just keeps on ticking.

It is NOT GOOD PROCEDURE but the way I know when I exceed the duty cycle limits is when the welder goes into thermal shutdown from running too much power too long. So far in over 10 years it hasn't caused a problem.

I am a self taught welder and can do stick (including aluminum) but prefer the MIG for any job in its capabillity.

Pat

 

[JimR]

I'll have to agree with Patrick on the reliability of the Lincoln Weld Pak 100. That was my first mig welder also. I used that welder at least 8-10 hours a week for over five years making bolt handles without ever blowing the reset or having any issues with it. The only reason I sold it was I needed a more powerful welder.