Which TIG should I buy?

I think you have just removed yourself from the equation. I'll be surprised if you find much under $1K. Don't forget to factor in the cost of the gas bottle too. You may also want to check available power in your house/shop as the tend to run in the 30A++ range.

The cheapest AC/DC TIG would be a used Miller Econotig. They tend to fetch about $800 on eBay. They work fine for simple stuff.

The best buy on a new one would be the Thermal Arc Prowave 185TSW. It is an AC/DC inverter based TIG, comes with a full setup, and goes new for about $1700.

Check carefully when considering a used Econotig. With the earlier models the max amperage setting on the dial didn't affect the foot pedal operation. In other words, the foot pedal ALWAYS had the same range, from minimum to machine's max amperage. The pedal range could not be scaled back to reflect the max amperage setting on the dial, the dial's reading only worked with stick welding.

I know this because I had one of of the first series that came out. Apparently, they changed this on the later models. Another thing I didn't like about the Econotig, the sales literature and the machine's manual said there was an inexpensive accessory that would allow an amperage setting below the facory minimum of 15 (or was it 20) amps. Such an accessory never was available from Miller.

I sold the Econotig while it was still bright and shiny, got a Lincoln

175 in place of it.

How do you like it? I have chance on buying one.

Regards,

Boris Mohar

Got Knock? - see: Viatrack Printed Circuit Designs

My new Miller Syncrowave 180SD "Tig Runner" package was just under $1,600 delivered to my door, even though they list it at about $2,000 on their website:

David

If you've got more time and room than money you can start searching for an older used machine. It could take months to find, it will be much bigger than a new inverter based machine, but it will be cheap. Aluminium takes a lot more power to weld than steel so don't buy a machine based only on your steel needs.

why do you like the thermal arc over the miller or Lincoln in that size?

It's OK. Since then I got a killer deal on a Thermal Arc inverter,

200 GTS. The Thermal Arc was new, never used, still under warranty, $700. Got it from a pawn shop about a mile from Ernie's house. Love that little machine.

So that's whats wrong with my EconoTig! Other than that it's nice to know that the Tig I'm generally disatisfied with is worth less than a 1/3 of what I paid for it :-(

I found an old Miller 330 for $300 with cooler. At 800 pounds, that's probably less than scrap price. I had to clean out the cooler and repair the range switch ($10 in parts) and I ended up swapping out the selenium rectifiers for silicon (this one was ancient, the later ones use silicon rectificers). But it will put out 400A when you need it (or go down to 10). One of the first things I did with it was to weld some 16ga jump rings for the gas bottle chain. It's not nearly as nice as a Sychrowave, but even I can do a tolerable job of aluminum welding with it. It does want a 100A breaker though.

Pros: cheap, built like a battle ship, really really hard to kill, not too hard to find.

Cons: big, heavy, power hungry, limited adjustments, no fancy dodads, the hf may wipe out your neighbor's radio reception.

Paul

The Thermal Arc Prowave 185TSW is an inverter, so it only draws up to

30 amps , rather than the 50 - 60 amps for the Miller Syncrowave 180 or Lincoln Squarewave 175. It is smaller, lighter and gives you variable output frequency for aluminum TIG. It also has pulser,sloper, sequencer built in. It comes complete just like the Syncrowave 180 and the Squareweave 175. Just add a bottle of gas and weld.

So for about the same price as a Syncrowave 180 you get a much better machine.

The comparable Lincoln and Miller Inverters end up about $1000 more once you add in all the parts you need.

So right now, the Thermal arc Prowave 185TSW gets my vote for best deal in the business for a small AC/DC TIG.

Mind you, if you need multiple input voltages, the Miller Dynasty 200DX wins hands down. It will eat anything from 80 volts to 500 volts, single or 3 phase.

I bought an Econotig a few months after they came on the market. I wrung every possible limit out of that machine until I just had to upgrade. Along the way I got the motherboard replaced under warrantee to the one that reactivated the dial in TIG mode.

For $1200 it was a great little machine. To get the most of mine I was running it with a Helium/Argon mix gas and a water cooled torch.

I had mine for 6 years until I upgraded to a Syncrowave 250, and a year ago I upgraded again to a Syncrowave 250DX.

& from another post:

You seem quite keen on this welder, Ernie.

Do you have any comments as to the quality and durability of this machine?

How about the kit that comes with it?

I've been looking hard at the maxstar 150sth, but wouldn't mind AC as I will probably _eventually_ want to do aluminum.

The cost of a Dynasty200DX is hard to justify at this point, but the Thermal Arc is cheap enough to warrant serious consideration.

I can live with only being able to use 1ph 230V power.

Jeff Dantzler

The guys who have bought them seem to like them a lot. I have yet to try one myself. The stores selling them in Seattle have yet to have any complaints. They have been out for about a year now.

Once again it all seems to be OK stuff. The flow gauge is a litte cheap but I don't know any company that gives away good ones in kits.

The Maxstar 150 is a very nice machine, and with the new features it has it would be a really nice portable TIG for stainless steel repairs, however since they are now feeding the gas through the power connector it is very difficult to do DCEP aluminum TIG with it.

What does the Thermal Arc cost?

About $1700 complete. Just add a bottle of gas and some filler rod.