I'm partial to Lincolns myself. You're not going to get much out of a 115v for doing frame work. Most 115s go up to 1/4" thick, but the deeper the penatration the better. They'll be great for sheetmetal though.
a man what up .i wouldent use a 115 v for welding a frame . i wuldent even use a mig for a frame its a more brittle weld .for frames you should use a stick or tig .but im sure other people will tell you other wise here .but thats just my opinion.later
That's kind of like wanting a 8.90 1/4 mile brackett racer that you can also drive to work and the grocery store. The guestion I have is "what is it you are actually qualifyed to weld"? It can be done but part of it will be difficult. I own 5 different welders. All have there specific jobs but can overlap some. I like Lincon brand but not all of them are. The Wizzard
I'm not qualified to weld anything, but I'm hearing some conflicting opinions on the subject which is why I asked the question.
OK, That's a good place to start. Welders use heat and fill rod or wire to make a joint. The power source is limited by the electricity going in as to what it can put out. The thicker the metal the more power you need to make a good joint. 110 volts rarley creats enough power to make a good weld on 3/16 or heavier material and that is generally where frame material starts. A 220 volt machine is difficult to get turned down far enough to weld 18 gauge with and not make a mess. Does this help any? The Wizzard
thanx for the info., was told by someone else that a 115v mig ("don't need that much [100amps]") was good enough for frame work...I was skeptical
Hey Flatrat , I've been looking into this myself and doing a bit of research on the subject.Although I know little about it I have found and heard from people using them that it is wholly worth the extra that you spend in order to obtain a 230 volt unit . I see mostly Millers being used for their versatility and fluxuation in amperage for different applications but for solid heavy work such as 1/4 inch and up work , the lincolns seem more popular . Hope this helps with some insight .I'm going for a little of both so I'll be getting the Millermatic 180 in september. Goodluck . swaZZie
[ QUOTE ] was told by someone else that a 115v mig ("don't need that much [100amps]") was good enough for frame work [/ QUOTE ] Don't let him do any welding on your frame...
I've got a SnapOn mig I'm trying to sell.Biggest 110 unti they make.Plug it in and start welding,comes with EVERYTHING,even the TIG attachment....$1500.00
FlatRat: Bigger-is-better when it comes to Welders and fabrication. Without getting into Welding 101, stay with the largest unit you can put the funds togather to buy. Personally, I have a Viking Mig made by a very old company named Thermal Arc and it is a 250 AMP machine with power door locks, AC, PS and a CD player I scares the shit out of me to hear of guys welding chassis with these little buzz-boxes, the duty cycle is so short, that the machine over-heats in a matter of secounds. AHotRod (building chassis and HotRods for 30+ years)
There have been a lot of interesting threads in recent months r.e. welder recommendations, beginner welding tips, etc. Do a search and you'll find out more than you hoped to know. Hope this helps.
You can "cheat " a little with a 110 mig. Use the smallest wire and it will have a little better penetration.See I said smallest and penetration in the same sentence.The 110 welders are basically for sheet metal only.
flatrat; One more thing I'll through in here. Striking an arc and laying down a weld bead is the easiest part. Making a good weld means understanding the machine your using, what material your going to weld so you can make the proper choice of filler to use to get the best union of the 3 products you can get. It's kind of like Asprin verses Viariga. Both will get rid of a pain but it's two totally different processes. The Wizzard
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