A Question for You Welders

 2X on getting with you local vocational school, that way you can get a little more safe/correct training. I’m not saying that you can’t do it, but getting a little direction from someone with experience will go a long ways…..It will give you better information and better understanding on what tools and equipment you will need to do what you want……See if they would allow you a few hours of practice time with there equipment, that way you know what to expect when you are looking to buy your own……

RdKnB said:

I agree on the mig welding, also check the adult ed schools, many have welding classes

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Rabbit,

Sorry to hear about yer infection... Bad enuff to go to the hospital??? That IS bad. Just gimme a few days notice and we will make it happen...

I'm still going with the MIG to start out with... So much easier than TIG... As Dave said with the TIG both your hands are occupied.. with MIG you have a free hand to hold a piece with while you tack it in place... just my petty 2 cents

That's TOOOOOOO funny... still trying to figure out what he said

"" I don't have much money to spend but I don't want to waste it on cheap stuff that doesn't have enough juice to use satisfactorily."""

I was going by what you said about price range and what you wanted to do with it.    Tig is cool , but ours rarely gets used,   Mig is the most practicle welder to start with. 

boykjo said:

 

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I'd hire him !!! I'd bet he's done it twice before he's ever seen the job.......LOL

RdKnB said:

I agree on the mig welding, also check the adult ed schools, many have welding classes

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What he said.  Definitely take a basic welding class at your local vo-tech.  I took a course in the evenings last summer; for $250, I learned a heck of a lot.  Definitely kept me from making a lot of expensive mistakes.

Incidentally, MIG, TIG, and stick are all types of arc welding.  Argon is a shielding gas used in MIG and TIG; the other major kind of non-industrial welding is oxy-fuel (oxygen-acetylene, oxygen-propane).

Definitely get the 220VAC welder.  110VAC just can't provide the power to penetrate in thick metals, which is what you want to use in a smoker build.  You don't need something that will weld full-thickness in a single pass; a unit that will do 3/8" single pass is expensive.  I know, I bought one.  Making multiple passes is an option.

Most importantly, 90% of a good weld is in the prep work.  If the fit-up isn't good, or the metal is dirty, or you choose the wrong kind of electrode, you're not going to get a good weld, no matter how much money you throw at equipment.

...and I completely forgot to answer one of your questions.  Check out http://www.weldingweb.com; I've learned an awful lot there.

yep 220 mig with a mixed gas c02/agron is the way to go.  I have a hobart 180 that I have used and abused and it still runs like new.

Mig is the easiest to learn and user friendly.

I have a buddy who purchased a Hobart 180 years ago, and he did NOT treat it too gentle and it is rock solid.

IMHO ---> There are 3 brands of welders I would buy without concern about the quality AND have parts/accessories readily available. 

In this Order.

1. Miller (High quality, but a bit too pricey for what I do)
2. Lincoln (High quality, solid machine)
3. Hobart (Not quite the quality of the Miller or Lincoln, but a solid machine)

RH, I'd take BS up on his offer. I have a 220v Lincoln stick welder and was having a hard time with it because I only had a book for reference (no Youtube back then). A friend came by and laughed at my "mud daubing" and said that since he "could weld water" he'd give me some pointers. Thirty minutes of watching and listening to him was all it took. After that it's just practice. Hope this helped

Lot's of good advice here- I started welding about 2 years ago now, and went through a lot of the same questions- first machine that I got rid of was a little 110v harbor freight special- did flux core only and was pretty messy- I moved onto a Lincoln MIG setup- great little welder, but then I decided I needed a plasma cutter   As others have mentioned, it's pretty addictive once you get rolling.  Did some digging around on that front, and found a machine on ebay that did 110v or 220v, plasma, TIG, and stick- picked it up primarily for the plasma capability, but after messing with it for a few months, really started to dig TIG and stick, which led me to sell the Lincoln.  Would have liked to keep both machines, but just couldn't justify the sunk cash into the hobby, or the space in the garage!  

Not saying it's the right way to go by any stretch, but if you want to have a small, non-production shop, it gets you a fair amount of bang for the buck.  I definitely miss the MIG setup when I'm running longer welds, but you get to where you can move pretty good on TIG or stick once you get used to it.

Also, make sure you get the next size bigger tank than you think you'll need if you go MIG or TIG- never fails that you start to run low late on a Saturday afternoon after the shops closed and you can't get anymore gas to work the rest of the weekend- that's also where you'll want to have some flux core or sticks on hand just in case!

E

Rabbit, visit your local welding supply store, tell him your plans and I'll bet he has some used machines that he will let you try before you buy. But stick with the big three Lincoln, Miller, or Hobart and preferably in that order. For a beginner, mig is the way to go. Also if you later want to weld aluminum as well as steel get what they call a push-pull machine, more money but incredibly handy. With tig also you can weld aluminum, but heavier steel is a real pain. I have owned a fabrication shop for the past 25 years and in my early years worked as a boilermaker, and my order of preference as to welder type has always been mig, stick, and then tig. That is since mig welders came out, prior to that was only stick.

Good luck at whatever you decide.

On small Mig units , cant beat the Lincoln.  What am I basing that on? Well, lets just say my company is the largest consumer of welding products in Florda!

Here's a site I've liked and have referred a number of others to.  Lots of good videos and articles.  He has a weekly video you can sign up for.

weldingtipsandtricks.com

One thing I don't think I saw in any replies yet is anything about where you are going to work.  MIG (GMAW) and TIG are not very easy to use around breezes due to the shielding gas blowing away from the weld puddle.  Flux core wire and stick welding are far more forgiving in drafty work spaces.

TIG is a lot harder to use out of position than MIG or stick welding, especially for beginners, due to needing to be in a posture that lets you maneuver two hands, the torch and filler rod around the joint.  If your project is small enough to flip around to get the joint flat (or close to flat) it may not be a big deal but picture yourself laying on your side reaching up at angle to weld a seam. 

If you are going to have to run a new electrical circuit to power the welder go bigger than you think you need if the budget allows it.  Just like sizing the welder, nothing is worse than having to abandon the new circuit in a year or two because it is too small for your growing needs.  And they will grow...(don't ask)

I know enough about welding to know that I don't know enough about welding but as others have said, the little 120V suitcase MIG welder we have that has been great for auto body work and light fabrication is too small for bigger projects so I'm shopping for a bigger MIG unit.  A lot bigger.

For stick welders we have a Lincoln Ranger 8 (gas engine), a Lincoln AC-DC 225/125 (AKA the buzz box or tombstone) and the oldest son had a Lincoln SA-200 pipeline welder for big stuff.

The buzz box is a good starting point if you are looking for a stick welder.  With a bit of patience you'll likely find one on Craigslist in the $250 range and they are pretty bulletproof. Just be sure to get the AC/DC one for the extra versatility.

For a MIG welder I'd be sure to pick one for which you can get local parts and service.  With only one machine any parts or service related issue means you are at a standstill and it is a lot easier to grab what you need locally that wait for the slow boat from China for a part.

Good luck and thanks for the tread.  I'm sure others are learning from it, too.

Lance

I was trying not to overwelm you with too much info, But just steer you into the right direction for what you said you wanted to do. Most of the people that have posted on this thread have given you very good advise. Its all a lot to think about. Most of it can not be understood until you actually start welding and try to do a fender patch with .035 flux core or try to weld in the wind on a rusty hitch back on a trailer just to get it up to your shop and all you have is .025 solid.

There is not one machine , one type of wire, or one welding process that is perfect for every application.

But a good quallity welder, and the most versatle set up, and the easiest to learn on, and easiest to get parts for, and has the ability to add shielding gas down the road, or a spool gun to weld aluminum, is the little lincoln welder I told you about, and with it being on sale with a free auto darkening hood at the price they are showing,  I really cant see how you could go wrong. You can plug it into 120 outlet and start welding right away, or convert it to 220 for more duty cycle and up to 1/2" steel. Go from flux core to solid wire in just minutes,  If you need tips or leads or anything, just run up to Home depot on sunday and get them. And they are cheap. Everyone sells parts for them. They make and sell more of these type of welders than anyone out there.