I've been lookin into getting a welder for some time now and was lookin for some recomendations. It will be 220V. Was looking at Lincoln and millers. If i'm doing fab work meaning chassis stuff brackets and what not, should I go with a mig or tig? Is it good to have both? I eventualy will be getting a plasma cutter too. Sure would be nice if they had one that would do everything. What do you recomend?
Back in NC I used a mig for just about everything, but if you can afford the unit that has both mig and tig that is the best way to go. I had a Miller but you can get great deals on the Lincon stuff and you may be able to work some kind of deal with them at Lincon. They are very cool people. I had a Lincon Plasma cutter and it was totally auwsome.
The guys in WV used Arc welders for everything.
Jim
Back in NC I used a mig for just about everything, but if you can afford the unit that has both mig and tig that is the best way to go. I had a Miller but you can get great deals on the Lincon stuff and you may be able to work some kind of deal with them at Lincon. They are very cool people. I had a Lincon Plasma cutter and it was totally auwsome.
The guys in WV used Arc welders for everything.
Jim
Is there a unit that has both? I can get a better than average deal on miller stuff thru my dad's company.
I love the mig. Get a powerful one it's worth it. I built Snow ski lifts for a couple years. I could weld anything with those babies. Stainless steel was one of my favorite to weld.
Get a good Lincoln. That can run a pretty penny for good one though.
Mig, Tig, Arc, and a plasma. Just get all of them.None of my Miller equipment has ever broke if thats any help.
http://www.schoutenranch.com/mike/welders.JPG
That's quite a collection!
I also have a portable welder/generator thats also miller on a trailer. Spend the money the first time and don't worry. Some of the cheaper welders have plastic gears and crap that just don't last. I bought the plasma for 500 used, its 50 amp. The little mig is a 185 that is 220 and was around 1700 bucks. That big one is a water cooled 300amp Tig/Arc that would cost around 4k to replace. Its a mid 80s model thats why its so friggen big. All the new stuff is half the size.
Here are some of my opinions/thoughts on welders. I like the versatility of tigs because you can do steel and aluminum. Tigs are pretty expensive. Migs are easier to use when welding in awkward positions. I can weld much faster with a mig. I havea 115V Miller and a 220V Lincoln. The Lincoln can obviously weld thicker material, but I think the Miller is built better. Hope this helps.
Personally from would get a TIG for anything where its gonna be very visable. If you get good with a TIG its a beautiful thing. MIG is great when you need something quick.
Something else to consider... a TIG weld is whats considered a hot weld where as a MIG weld is a cold weld. Your hot weld is gonna be stronger.
I think youre best bet is to get a MIG first and get your fabbing skills down. Then eventually get a TIG. A TIG is alot more complex... but it makes welding a variety of metals very easy. My next purchase is a Plasma cutter and then a TIG.
BTW... I have a Millermatic 175 MIG. Its an amazing little welder. No issues at all! That thing will lay down some whoopass on 1/4" steel no issue. if you really know what your doing and bevel your edges well, you can sucessfully weld half inch steel with it. So for autowork or boat work.. itll do more than youd ever need.
Welding is a ton of fun bud. I have a little Lincoln MIG welder now. In the future if you want to do chassis welding or Aluminum. I would get a TIG now. They are a lot more money then a MIG but you can do tons more with a TIG. I programmed Fabrication Robots which used MIG welders. We used Lincoln on all our Robot Cell, but we welded only Steel
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