welding machine advise needed....

I have a Lincoln Pro Mig 135 I have used with flux core and with Argon / Co2 for small projects but I am about to start welding on a ch***is and would like some advise on a unit capable of this job at a reasonable price.

Thanks,

Mark

 

Lincoln 250 unit with .035 wire, has a good range for about everything.----Don

 

If you would like to try and get by with what you have, you could try innershield wire.
Your unit is good up to 1/4" with innershield.
If not, I am very pleased with my Lincoln 250.

 

i'm running a lincoln 180c 220v machine.. its small, dont weigh alot, and welds great..

i got it from indiana oxygen 2 yrs ago for $750 with a cart shipped to my door...

 

I've got a Lincoln 175 which is the predecessor to the 180 and it does just about everything I ask of it. I picked mine up off Craigslist still looking like brand new. I paid 450 for it a year ago and saw a 180 for 550 with bottle, cart and good helmet the other day. As long as you stick with a Miller, Lincoln or Hobart you can get parts and service for it at just about any welding supply store. There are some others like Esab that are great too but usually priced out of the do it yourself guy's budget. Some of the other stuff like Clarke, Century and other off brands may and can be hard to get repaired or get parts for and if you have to ship a welder off to the manufacture's repair center every time it needs work (and they all will need work at some time) it delays your project way too long. If you have a favorite welding supply store that you like to frequent I would probably go with the brand that they sell.

 

Had you used the search you could have found a LOT of threads with loads of information.

what mig welder should i get

Buying a welder, need tips

OT Which Welder To Buy?

Which wire welder to buy

First Welder help

What kind of welder ?

and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

 

thanks.... well I have a know-it-all neighbor that is an expert at everything yet I haven't seen him work on a damn thing. He told me "my cracker jack welder" wasn't worth a ****. I had been using flux core and no gas and the welder does just fine. I changed to gas and now I am getting no penertation.

question: With flux core on the 135 unit I have would you guys feel comfortable welding on your ch***is?

Thanks!

 

No.

 

Ok... so I found out that my problem was that I didn't have the correct nozzle on my machine for running the gas setup. It works bad*** now. On heat level D and speed 7 the penetration is excellent. I am going to for it, it seems to me preforming great. Ten times the weld I was getting with flux core.

 

135 amp lincoln or miller can handle 3/16 thick.. just grind and bevel/chamfer and clean all the joints very good..

put the welder on a dedicated circuit will help also, one receptacle on one breaker, keep the extension cord as short as possible and make it heavy duty...

when i was younger i tubbed out/back halfed an s10 with a 125amp snap-on welder on co2.. its still roaming the streets

 

flux core is good for out side work when wind blows remember wind will blow your gas away.

 

If careful, it should be no problem, i use my lincoln 100 a lot, but it's dirty and nasty and probably worth it just to get a bigger 220 volt job

 

If he doesn't know the difference between a "cracker jack" and a MIG he's just proven he's talking out his exhaust port.

Just tell him you're using the new 8096 (or whatever sounds good) wire and it's the newest thing etc etc.

If you can't feed him a line of BS you're not a REAL rodder

 

I use a 220v lincoln 175HD with .30 wire. Burns in nice.

 

I have a Miller 250X MIG...it's a good machine, I also have a Lincoln TIG... Miller or Lincoln both have given me great service.

 

I bought a Miller 175 a few years back and it kicks ***. It's small enough for a small shop and powerful enough to weld anything a car. I also have a huge older linde 250. It's a more powerful machine obviously but I rarely need the top end of it, even when we do drilling equipment it's usually at 1/2 power. I always say buy the biggest and baddest you can afford and you won't be disappointed but for home shop on cars the 175/ 180 machines will do just fine.

I had a 135 for years and it held it's own but 110 just didn't have the punch that a 220 machine has. The flux-core issue need not be discussed any further. It has it's place in some industries, this isn't one. Get on the bottle.

 

i use a hobert 210 hander. not much i cant do with it... just picked up a lincoln TIG 175 for stainless.

 

ESAB is the ****...

 

i have a lincoln 220v 180c with a spool gun, a 120v sp-135 and ac-225 stick welder .. can't really go wrong with lincoln

 

flux core ; makes a good welder [ both machine and operator] look bad .I used a linde 100 amp 110 volt welder for years at my shop using shielding gas. clean the metal, slow speed down, climb the hill,and rock side to side.this will build the heat.

 

Get an American brand. I bought an Airco "Dip stick 160" 35 tears ago
and just last winter I had my first problem as I needed a new wip.
It's always better to buy big then little.Tom (Tired Old Man)

 

I have a Lincoln 175 that I bought at a discount when the new 180's came out, I've been REALLY happy with it. Running mix and .035 wire, it could blow holes in 1/4" if you're not careful. Also handles sheet metal with .025 just as well, although I've been gas welding all my lighter gauge stuff lately.

 

I have a buddy that has a Lincoln 175, and I have to agree with those who say that they're awesome little welders.