I'm looking to make a major tool purchase with my income tax refund, and I'm torn with 2 nice options. I have an Econo Tig right now, and have been using it more and more. I thought of upgrading to a Synchrowave 250. Of course on of the welders at work had to mention that he just bought a Dynasty inverter TIG, and that might be a better choice, if you do aluminum and exotic metals. I've been doing steel and stainless, but would love to learn doing aluminum. What are your opinions on these 2 choices? Of course it does not stop there! I have been contemplating buying the tooling for the Tinman (Kent WHite) version of a planishing hammer. Build it myself. The tooling he makes does way more than just planish. He makes shrinking, flanging, and reverse curve dies, as well as quick forming ones. As I get better with metal fab, I find I'd like to be able to form panels better, and faster. I might be doing an entire car body from scratch in the future, for a friend/customer. I already have a Wheel, and love it! So, for anyone who's worked with these tools...TIG or planishing hammer? If TIG, Synchro, or Inverter? Decisions, decisions!
Hey Chopped, I can't tell ya a thing 'bout your tig selection, but I'll coment on Kent's tools..... Wile his tools are top drawer in quality his bed side manner (customer servise) needs work. A buddy of mine, a big time sheetmetal /old Jaguar restorer purchased Kent's shrinking dies, the round stippled ones. When he had some problems with getting then to work, as sold, Kent got a 'tude with him. I'm hoping this isn't the way Kent handles all of his business! Good luck on your choices, S****ey Devils C.C.
I used the Eco, didnt impress me much. And the syncro.. the syncro 250 DX was a nice running machine. Once my work got the Dynasty 300DX though id have to say i was sold.. Eco just didnt have the right freak on certian metals... in certian positions.. Money wise.. syncro 250DX is a better deal.. but if money isnt the main focus... the Dynasty is the way to go i think anyway.. Chick out the miller guide if ya havent already. http://www.millerwelds.com/products/tig/productguide.html
I do not have a plannishing hammer but, own a Lincoln 255 squarewave and Lincoln v205-t invertec and use both to weld steel, aluminum, stainless,etc. Both of the this welders have advantages and disadvantages when compared to one another, I do know in my own personal experience the bead ran on aluminum with the inverter is more narrow and focused arc on the piece being welded. Are they worth the money, I would say yes if you are getting into allot of aluminum welding where the apperance of the weld has to be perfect. In my own opinion I don't care if you use a inverter or syncrowave, both machines will perform great in the hands of a good welder and a person who takes the time to fitup/prep the aluminum before welding. Again the most important part is cleaning the aluminum and when you think it is clean-clean it again. Good luck and no matter what a man can never have to many tools.
i have to agree with pimpin paint about his bed side manner, i own most of his pullmax tooling and its like pulling teeth to get an anwser when you need it but his tooling is first cl***
I've gotten good support from Kent when I had a problem with an air hammer that I bought from him for my fabricated air hammer. He may seem a little rough when you first contact on a problem, but he will come through. He fixed my gun and returned it no charge. Regarding shrinking dies, are you talking about the shrinker tool or the shrinking dies for the air hammer? I can't comment on those for the shrinker machine, but the shrinking tools for the air hammer work great when you work out the technique. I have made new fenders for antique tractor pullers and for my brother's chopper.
Buy a mill and a lathe and make your own tooling. <grin> TIGs.........inverters sure are nice, but I've get along OK with the old standby IdealArc 250/250 OTOH I'm just an amateur tinkering having fun - time isn't money for me - time in the shop is about having fun - so my opinion may be a bit jaded.
Why can't you weld aluminum with your Econo tig, I do with mine all the time. A big tig is great if your doing heavy work like a lot of frames but I love my econo for sheetmetal and small work, 95% of my welding is done with my econo. Portability is a big plus. I'd go for the planisher, You can tig now but not air planish.
I bought a complete Syncro-Wave 250DX TiGRunner setup last spring, along with the pulser and sequencer options and the setup was close to $4500, and that was the best deal I could find after looking for about six months. The Dynasty machines give you more control over pusling and stuff like that, which is very helpful if you're doing a lot of non-ferrous stuff like aluminum, magnesium, etc. The two downsides to the inverters are cost and durability. On the cost side, the Dynasty 300 is about $6k for a complete setup, which is obviously way more than the Syncrowave 250. On the durability side, the inverters aren't going to stand up to a lot of abuse, like bouncing them around, getting a lot of dirt and **** on the boards, etc. I've know people who've bought inverters in the past and hand very bad experiences. I should also mention that I was able to use a Dynasty 300DX for about 5 months before I bought my machine, and I ended up with a Syncrowave 250.
I researched TIGS for a long time too. Focusing on the Thermal Arc, Miller, or Lincoln inverter styles. We had a thermal arc 185 at a job and it definitely proved its worth when jumping from aluminum to steel. Had used a friends Lincoln 175 squarewave for at first, that was actually a good Tig start, but had aircooler so would get hot. When it came time to buy, (took about 6+ months to save up the dough!) thermal arc had made a 200 and 300 version http://www.thermadyne.com/evolution/productselectionguide.asp?div=tai#TIG Than of course I ended up buying the MILLER DYNASTY 200, with all the bells and whistles, water cooler etc. over $4G's... The welder is beyond my Tig needs, it makes *****in welds and makes me make excuses/projects to weld more! I ended up getting the big watercooler, #4 that looks like a turbine, it is awesome but loud, probably would go with the #3 which looks like a blue box,holds less coolant but is made for lighter duty. Make sure you alot that $$ it is worth it. The drawback is sometimes i'd rather have the $2000 TA185 and a nice plasma cutter! TP
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