I found a guy that has a Millermatic CST250 TIG welder for sale. Looks to be in good condition. It was used as a stick welder and doesn't have the TIG gun or the foot control.....he wants $600 for it.....and said he'd allow me $250 for a really nice model A frame that I don't have a whole lot in.. To be honest, when I took my welding cl***, we pretty much only used stick. So I don't know, well, anything about TIGs.... Do I need a liquid cooled TIG? This is a DC machine, do I really need to weld aluminum (I know it would be nice)? Don't they all have to have a shield gas? At the very least, would this be a good starter TIG to learn on fairly cheaply? Anything else I should know? It's basically the same as the cst280 now....I can't really find much info on it.... Here's a link to an article about it http://news.thomasnet.com/fullstory/8683
All tig needs shielding gas. Liquid cooled torch is nice, it keeps the torch cool so you can weld longer, but you dont need it. Looks small and portable, so thats a plus. Does it come with a tank? I figure youd have $700 - 800 in it, including your frame, before your ready to weld. If thats worth it to you, then go for it. Personally, the DC only would be a deal breaker for me, but I like aluminum.
No DC only is kind of a bummer, but that being said, welding aluminum is only one of many things a tig is handy for.
Yeah, if I'm gonna spend the $$, I'd like to be able to weld aluminum. It need the gun and the foot control but which would put it up around $1000 but since I'm trading the frame in on it.....I'd say I'll be in it for about $800.... It doesn't come with anything but the welder and a couple of quick disconnects for the stick welder. I don't think I really need liquid cooled. If I can't let it cool for a while than I'm in too big of a hurry....
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