I just got home from four days at the Delco Drags in Las Vegas.
Awesome four days. Awesome show. Huge field of cars. Cool blowup by Cruz Pedregon. Force was eliminated. Lots and lots of action.
Went walking through the pits. Lincoln had a semitrailer there with a nice display. Stopped to talk to the nice man about a couple of problems I was having with my SP175+. Then asked him some questions on the SquareWave 175, which I am considering.
He gave me a show price good till Nov. 26 of $1330 no freight and no tax delivered in Las Vegas, where I live.
That's as good a price as I've seen for a new one, and a couple hundred better than I've seen for a new Miller 180SD. I like the Miller better for a number of reasons, but the SW175 ain't bad.
Yes that is a good deal on the Lincoln Squarewave 175, but for $300 more you can get all it's capabilities, and more in and inverter.
Thermal Arc Prowave 185TSW. They run aroundr $1600 and come complete like the Lincoln 175.
You not only get the same output as the Lincoln, but you also get variable frequency AC wave for aluminum, and a pulser. Plus it only needs a 30 amps circuit of 220 volt Single phase unlike the Lincoln 175 which needs 60 amps.
Pound for pound, dollar for dollar it is the best deal in a small AC/DC TIG on the market today. It is a better deal than the Lincoln Squarewave 175, Miller Syncrowave
180SD, and all the other inverter AC/DC TIG machines. The only one close is the ESAB Heliarc 161, but it has a lower range and some funky controls.
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Here it is for $1585
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Trust me you will like it more than the Lincoln, if only because it weighs about 40 lbs instead of 200 lbs.
BTW We bought 2 Lincoln Squarewave 175's for my school about 6 months ago. They are nice simple machines, and are good for us because they are too heavy for somebody to walk away with. Hence why we don't buy small inverters. If I could figure out how to secure them I would much rather have inverters.
Ernie, I am so disappointed. Here you are, the master teacher of all of us weldor-wannabe's, and you didn't spot the obvious, simple solution.
Just weld the inverter to the table (or to a structural beam, or a convenient pipe, etc.). You could put in just a few tacks, but for greatest security, I would recommend running a bead all the way around the base of the machine. Hmmm, let's see -- you may have to cut a hole out of the table if the fan has a port on the bottom of the machine. You'll need to take the feet off the machine so that you can get reasonable fitup. Hmmm ... I think one pass around with 6010, grind off the ridges, and then lay down 10 or 12 passes with 7018 ...
The guy I work with has ThermalArc 300 Amp machines. They're pretty awesome. When you say they come complete, what do you mean? That they come with torch, foot amptrol, etc.?
Andy - this "solution" in a place where they have angle-grinders? And anyone having a quick "grind" will look at a distance like anyone else grinding? Have you made any wooden bridges over a beaver-ponds, by any chance?!
No, see, that is why you do 10 to 12 passes with 7018. I'm thinking the legs of the fillets will be in the 1" to 2" range, so that it not only secures the base of the machine but also goes well up onto the cover. (Hmmm, maybe that will need to be 20 to 25 passes ....) Sure, someone could eventually grind it out, but think how long it would take. Anything can be stolen if the thieves are sufficiently determined, so the goal is simply to discourage them. Nothing like $100 worth of filler rod for discouraging would-be thieves.
Speaking of wood-be thieves, it is odd that you mention the wooden bridge over the beaver pond. I just finished rebuilding it for the 5th time; if I ever figure out who keeps stealing it overnight, they're going to be in trouble!
Went to my local steelyard/welding supplier yesterday to buy some steel. Told them about the Airgas price but that I would like to give them the business, and they said they would meet it.
I get all sorts of deals from the guy I know at the desk. Yesterday, some decorative cast iron items came up at $.15 on the computer screen. He said, "I know they are a lot more than that, but I am going to charge you what the computer says."
Buying continually from one local supplier has its advantages. Getting to know one counterman and dealing with that person every time is a good idea, too.
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