Inexpensive but worthwhile wirefeed?

Lots of inexpensive MIG welders out there. With your specs almost anything would do fine, possibly even the cheapo HF no-gas units. Unless all of your welding is going to be outdoors, in-situ, and it's windy, I'd go for the gas kit and get a bottle. They only advantage of the flux-core that I know of is when your worksite is so windy it blows away the shielding gas.

But if you want a 110V welder that is worth keeping, look at something like the Hobart 140. I am using a FirePower FP120 and it works just fine.

See what brands your local suppliers carry. My cheap MIG has a Tweco torch and parts are easy to find for it, not that it has needed much. It was a trade-in at the welding store, as was my TIG. Decent machines, but not big enough for someone, was the story. The TIG also needed a little adjustment with a file to make the the front panel connection seal properly, so it may have been returned as broken, and the MIG didn't have any way to reverse the polarity for flux core. It does now.

Readywelder

Mart> I asked this question on s.e.j.welding, and for the most part (with one

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I have a Lincoln SP125 Plus welder. It is a great machine that I bought used for $250.00. I think the welder that Lincoln now makes that is equivilant is the SP140 Plus. Anyway, if you can find one used, either the SP125 Plus or the SP135 Plus, that might just be the way to go. Make sure they are the PLUS model. Cheers, Eric

It sounds like you just described my Clarke 130EN. Inexpensive, and for the six months I've had it has worked just fine.

--Yea verily I say unto you avoid 110V MIG rigs like the plague! You can't stick anything together without 220v. FWIW I stuck a ReadyWelder onto my EconoTig and it's a good fit. I'd love to have a dedicated MIG machine, but there's only so much space and so much money, heh.

Nonsense! I have a 110 rig and I do plenty of welding with it and the only time I've had a weld fail is when I didn't do it right (didn't make contact with both pieces because of a wierd angle, or something). In fact, I just finished welding up a five plate target rack made up of

3/16" diamond plate with 1/2" pivot pins and it is functioning as designed and has NOT lost a single weld. Granted, a 110 vac rig can't do 3/4" plate, but then again, neither can most of the home hobbyist/small shop stick rigs either. For the occassional, light duty welder 110 rigs are just fine.

Jim

--Well I'll confess I'm a noob; I had better luck with the bigger machines when I took the class... ;-)

I had better luck with bigger machines in class, too, but afterwards I could also weld better with my little 75A Century, and the instructor could weld 3/16" plate with it. There is no gap between its capacity and my stick welder's.

On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 02:31:43 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, snipped-for-privacy@whidbey.com quickly quoth:

Why only the PLUS model, Eric?

-- Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile I caught hell for. -- Earl Warren

I don't know why he said that, but I think the plus models have the continuous variable voltage control where as the standard models have a few (5?) switched voltage settings to pick from. I think both have continuous variable wire speed controls.

I've not used these small machines (but they have been on my wish list for some time now), but from the people I've talked to that own them and use them, they are all happy with them for the type job you are looking at doing. The cheap HF units are fine for a few simple jobs but won't last long and generally can't be fixed. It will get your gate fixed, but won't be a good long term investment. To invest in a machine that will last a while and that you can buy parts for, get one of the 110V Lincoln, Miller, or Hobart (Hobart is made by miller now so the quality is the same either way).

Tractor supply is having a 10% off sale and they carry Hobart welders. You might compare their price to other prices you are looking at...

Lincoln SP125+ or later version (135+, 140+ whatever). Avoid imports. These little red boxes really do work a lot better than the similar-looking imports, and you can get parts for them.

Greetings Larry, The PLUS model has the infinite voltage and wire speed adjustment. At least the 125 Plus model does. And that makes a HUGE difference in welding capacity. I can adjust to get the most out of the little machine. From the thinnest to the thickest the machine will weld. I currently run 5 types of wire. They are inner shield, mig, ss mig, aluminum mig, and silicon bronze mig. Eric

On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 16:21:42 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm, Don Foreman quickly quoth:

Are Clarke products imports? I've seen them on eBay for considerably cheaper prices than Lincoln and Miller.

-- Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile I caught hell for. -- Earl Warren

On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:42:34 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, snipped-for-privacy@whidbey.com quickly quoth:

How thick is the plate you can weld with it?

Are you MIGging bronze statues together? Cool! Pics, please.

-- They also serve who stand and weld.

--David Weber, On Basilisk Station.

Yes, but (last I heard this was still true) from Italy, not the far east.

What is it about "Buy Miller, Lincoln, or Hobart" that you don't understand?

If you insist on buying a piece of shit welder, just get one with a large handle, as then it makes a better boat anchor.

Steve

I had one of those Italian MIGs. I was flat amazed at how much better

*I* could weld when I tried the Lincoln SP125+ at the store one day. The wop wire welder still "worked", but it went in the shed and hasn't been touched since. I may find a use for the xfmr some day.....

That little red box is still my "go to" for steel from .090 down to about .024 (24 gage). It'll do heavier, up to 1/8" with gas or 3/16" with fluxcore, but the bigger machine (Millermatic 210) does the thicker stuff quicker and better.

Greetings Larry, I have welded 3/8 steel plate but I pre-heated it first. Otherwise 1/4 is what I consider the maximum. I know my 1/4 plate welds are good because I tested welds in the press. I use silicon bronze for brazing steel if brazing makes more sense than welding. I have brazed silicon bronze sheet too but it was only 1/16 thick. The thickest aluminum I've welded with the machine is 1/8. I dropped my camera in the sand and now it has a stuck lens system. When I figure out how to get the last few parts out and cleaned I'll run some beads for you. Cheers, Eric