UPS just dropped of an HT 190c (the same as the Miller 125c). The unit is light to me, fine for carrying one handed room to room. The compressor is VERY quiet. The unit blows through 16 ga brass and stainless. It cuts, in my twitchy hands, 1/8" aluminum at 6"/min just fine. Very good cut. 1/8" steel at 10-12"/min great cut here too. 1/4" steel at about 3"/min, knock off the slag, same quality cut. 3/8" steel cuts at 1" to 1.5"/min. This is its true severance cut. You WILL need to tap/rock the steel apart a very little when done, but it's a very tig-able cut. 1/8" aluminum at 6"/minute is about all I'd be willing to cut. The tip/shield tens to stick to aluminum, and the slower you go, the more it sticks. 1/4" aluminum cuts at 1" to 1.5"/minute, but you will have to rock the aluminum apart, and, with aluminum, it kind of rips and, IMHO, the bottom 3/32" is unexpectedly bad/rough/uglyugly.
3/16" aluminum is probably (untested) the max aluminum thickness you can just presto cut and weld. The torch is smaller than the 1250 torch, but every bit as solid. The ground cable however is a thin spaghetti thin speaker wire. It, however, is connected to the best small ground clamp design I have seen yet anywhere. Weird, huh? The unit will run on a 20 amp breaker, but will blow a 15 amp very frequently. Also, if it has been a couple of minutes since you finished your last cut and before using it the first time after you plug it in, you need to hit the trigger (pointed safely away from body parts you are fond of) to get the compressor to run before you begin cutting, otherwise, you'll blow the breaker even if its a 30amp. Make sure its turned off before plugging it in, or that will blow the 20amp breaker and arc to the plug blackening it (this I found out trying my third outlet searching for the ever elusive solitary 20amp branch...its in the kitchen after all). It does have an appetite. However, the 20amp wouldn't blow during the cutting of any thickness up to five minutes straight. I have a little 60lb generator I drilled out the throat jets on which should run this just fine giving at least 23 amps at 120v since I pulled the tree huggers out of the carburetor. I initially got it to cut 1/8" aluminum sheets into thirds so they'll fit in my Civic, but it will take about 8 minutes for each 48" long cut. I suppose it's possible to put the sheet on 4x4's in the parking lot and use the generator. 20.00/cut is a bit much I think for shearing 1/8" aluminum.- posted
19 years ago