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more TIG questions, more info needed please.

running into a purchasing decision , these things are not cheap and the dealers not always honest, so I am turning to this group for an unbiased answer.

looking for a low end TIG 150 -160 amp would do.

my choices are Thermal arc PWee 160 and miller maxstar STL or STH

here are my thoughts; every dealer i call say thermal arc/thermaldyne parts and service hard to come by , parts are scares. they all favor miller ...saying best TIG machines come from miller parts readily available.

my view, thermalarc has more features for less I don't like the lift-arc on the miller it seems to stick to the work piece, would prefer High freq. option.

don't like miller wind tunnel technology, where the fan only comes on when the unit gets hot. I was thought that heat and temperature fluctuation is the mother of all electronic failures.

what do you guys think?

Reply to
acrobat-ants
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That is the same thing I have heard for years from the repair guys I know. They say Thermal prefers to just exhange machines rather than fix them. Still Thermal has quite a chunk of the inverter market.

I agree that Miller hasn't really matched the Thermal machines in features, but they have far exceeded Thermal in output power, especially if you plan on running 6010 or 7018 rod. And Miller is much better about multiple input voltages.

Actually I love fan-on-demand. If you aren't welding for long it is pleasantly quiet.

Reply to
Ernie Leimkuhler

Ernie,

the maxstar 150 being very portable, if switch to stick mode, could it be used as a power source for the stainless passivating method as we talked about earlier, using citrisurf sulution with a wand ? the voltage is right , and the amprage can be set low enough 10amp or so, it would make a perfect tool for mobile passivating power source.

I am aware that this is an expensive game to play....

what do you think is there any potential harm to the machine ?

secondly i was just browsing through some catalogs, and saw an HTP invertig 160 DC at a reasonable cost and full of features.

what is yout take on that? quality, serviceability ? have they been around ? pro, cons?

thanks

Reply to
acrobat-ants

Oh I am sure it would work fine for passivation. Just dial it way down, like 5 amps.

None.

The Invertig units are made by Stel in Europe. They seem to work fine, and HTP is very attentive to their customers.

Where the Miller Maxstar 150 wins is in engineering. They have fewer features than the other inverters on the market, but higher output amps, and dual voltage inputs.

Reply to
Ernie Leimkuhler

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