I think some of you need a refresher course in electronics pricing these days. Would you have believed this price even two years ago? https://www.amazon.com/Roku-Brilliant-Automatic-Brightness-Streaming/dp/B0CCBYJQ7D/ref=sr_1_5?crid=RQLGKZ9MQZI6&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.UC16iYSCk6_x09X35WEC8i1RrF609tvdfVkJAEzu25nZFnf0mojRR-ieMHuwWV8tzBnrZGy4Uxy9VYzmww_vytRd7rdlPv-mMYQq9Sbu1cvFuUg1970ZtNk8XlmYORbAmO6Jqd0gGx84gyoY7hwoD70EjTJAnuWwn4yMCT24bKR_9A7AKL4iPYg8h1ZH9WnasNRh_a5wEzMFwkzhTy9wrf-ter2I1jB7AWDGmXLw1fY.Twu38UGYNrqXH0EajHCA9mjCYzgLnChobZrc34lzVk4&dib_tag=se&keywords=55+inch+smart+tv&qid=1734394098&sprefix=55",aps,295&sr=8-5&th=1
We have a laser welder at work. I assure you that it was more than $100. We are looking at it to replace MIG in our production processes. Sheet metal fireplaces, thinner gauge cold rolled and some stainless.
Invertor technology is the future, the Chinese have been messing it for years and now to the point where they produce and sell it cheap. It's smaller, lighter and definitely more efficient. Lincoln is now starting to produce smaller inverter welders but their starting point is 1800.00 ...
I had 1 of their 110 benchtop welders and used it quite a bit. I made a clutch slave cylinder bracket for my 1st engine swap and it never failed. I think I was still using it when I built my engine stand. You had to use small rod. Gary
Magic Welder ..... hunert dolla magic tig welder....you betcha ...... I wanna getz me one fo sho ..... LOL !
Even if that welder works, those little rods will be frustrating. They weld about 3 inches at a time. Most of us weld for miles on a car.
Need I remind you that there is a huge difference between Consumer Electronics and Industrial Products. Production quantity makes a insurmountable difference. When I did my 12 volt to 6 volt tachometer driver, we had a unit cost for a run of ten of $150 resulting in a market failure. My partner (who has been in more than a few joint electronics ventures) tells me that the cost would have been less than 1/10 our cost if done by a commercial operation in reasonable quantities.
These inexpensive welders aren't intended for serious jobs. I used to carry baby Oxy/Acetylene tanks when we went out 4 wheeling. People dismissed the little alternator ran welders when they first came out. Now days, there are more generator powered welders than you can count on a rock crawl. This welder running on an inverter would do just about the same level of field repairs. I wonder if they make a chinesium plasma cutter so I can leave the blue wrench home when I take the car out to play.
Back in the 60"s the back inner cover of guy magazines use to advertise a welder for something like 9.95. My cousin bought it. Saved me 9.95. You couldnt get it to start a bead. I see that modern miracle welder to be the modern version of beating a guy out of 100 bucks. See if you can get your cousin to buy one.......
If it’s actually a little stick welder, the inverters are quite powerful. The drill style would for sure be awkward but for sure would ‘work’. No it wouldn’t be worth $100 tho. https://www.ebay.com/itm/1766315092...LbHiqsvR--&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY This is what I have and on 220v, it’s actually a really nice machine to use. Other than needing to buy longer leads for it which were another $30. I only paid $62
There are lots of "reviews" of them on YouTube. I watched 5 or 6 of them. Of those two commented on the unit continually tripping breakers and one the machine smoked itself. None produced welds that didn't look like crap and they all looked like the struggled handing the unit which may explain the weld quality to some extent. A couple tested it's output compared to stated rating and they were quite a bit lower than what the manufacturer claims. The units tested topped out at about 95amps compared to rated 120. I would imaging the same would be true for its duty cycle which they claim is 20%. Like I said in the beginning it looks like you get what you pay for. It would probably work in a pinch for an emergency repair like on a trail with a generator but not something to relace a day to day welder.
I looked that welder up. It's battery powered arc welder with a little battery like what runs your cordless drill. Arc welding uses a lot of power. You could probably get an inch, maybe an inch and a half of weld before you had to change the battery. In an a video on YouTube, you never see them weld more than an inch without cutting to a different scene. I suppose that is when they are changing the battery.
bout 30 plus years ago I made a couple welders..... wasn't that hard,... in fact I thoroughly enjoyed it and did it again...
This made me laugh - classic, I could visualise the solder melting in the feed tube and the drop in shoulders that would have followed . We’ve all been here in some way shape or form….
Update on the $50 hand held welder. Yeah, I bought one, figured that if it worked at all it might be handy for small quicky jobs. Hey, it actually works! Tops out at 122amps but does not like 1/8" 6011. Runs 3/32 just fine so I'll keep it for the odd jobs offsite when a 20A circuit is available.
Would I buy it to replace my mig and stick welders in my shop (ok, garage)? No. But would it be handy to throw in the trunk for a multi hundred or thousand mile trip "just in case" to fix something at a hotel or anywhere else with an extension cord just so I could keep going? Hell yeah. Probably get one just for that, because I drive my shit. A lot.
I have bought Saker products and or had been gifted this brand in the past. Everything that I have had first hand is CRAP. I will not purchase anymore of their products even if it came with a Genie Vic
3 Millers in my shop. Funny thing is, they've been there for over 35 years. All work exceptionally well for my needs. I don't care what video, sale, endorsement, net topic comes up I'm not changing. This whole gig reminds me of that "miracle" rod they sell you at swap meets where they weld pop cans together, and when you get to the shop it doesn't stick to a fuckin thing. Yes, I bought some once, still have it laying around to remind me, NEVER AGAIN. There may be more than 1 way to skin a cat but there will always be only 1 way to do it right.
Intriguing as a trail repair welder for the 4x4 crowd. If I'm home, I'm using a real welder. And when I say real welder, I mean my Harbor Freight Vulcans lol.
Without addressing whether the welder is any good, I have to agree with @K13 that the way the tool is held is not conducive to controlling a weld pattern. Add to that the bulk (weight ?) of the unit and I just don't think good welds will be possible . I have 2 Mig welders. (I know this isn't a Mig) The point here is that one is a larger industrial welder capable of 300 amps, while the other is also a name brand that I bought for doing thin or sheetmetal welding, maybe exhaust pipes. I like using the smaller (but 220) machine because the cord and the gun are much lighter and easier to control than the heavy cord and bigger gun of the other machine. Also, the shape of the guns allow your hand to be closer and angled more conveniently. This tool might be OK for making small short welds (I don't know), and that could be handy in some situations where someone is tacking things together for finish welding later. Maybe tacking something together at your buddies house so you could take it home to finish welding it. It could have a niche that it fills so to speak. I doubt that anyone is going find it as a replacement for a decent welder..........and most of us don't stick weld these days anyway......most is Mig or Tig.
The Jalopy Journal
