Welder

[Trayner]

Hey guys thinking of buying a welding
as im wanting to learn abit of welding and that

Going to start just practicing on spare pannels and doors
till im confident to do it on my rodeo


mainly going to be used to shave door handles and stuff like that


now my question is what type of welder would be best im leaning towards a MIG

and what sort of price range am i looking at ?

thinking of spending $100-400

[Pub247]

LOL first off its a welder

Seriously mig is best for beginner what you want.
Personnally a el cheapo welder that take mini spools wire and disposable bottles are absolutely useless if you ask me they go for around 200-600 if remember what my mate paid i wouldnt buy one. But for the sort of money thats what you'd probably get.

Unless you can find a decent mig either cigweld unimig or similar brand secondhand new these going to cost about $1200 but theyre worth every cent take a full 15kg spool which cost twice as much as the tiny spools but last 1000times longer take a proper gas bottle which cost twcie as much but last 1000 times longer.

Having said that you can make do with the elcheapo gas/gasless style. just dont buy gasless wire its terrible for panel work leaves pinholes everywhere. My mate we rigged up a proper bottle to it so you can actually afford to use it

[Pub247]

Something like this may be good better than what supercheap sell least you can use a proper spool and bottle
NEW INVERTER MIG WELDER 250AMP, WITH REMOTE WIRE FEED | eBay
I never used an invertor mig like this so cant comment how good they are but invertor tig kick arse

this is prolly best ive seen having a quick browse good brand has low amperage but as much as you'd need
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/CIGWELD-T...item1c1bd3a20f

I have one of these at work basically a kick arse mig for 240volts. never stuffs up i can go through a whole 15kg spool without a single issue good quality welds no burn back no wire jams
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/TRANSMIG-...item1c1bd88f4c

[vkberlina]

something secondhand at that price a decent mig new is going to cost you about a grand

Scott

[VT-565]

Too big.

I'd roll with something like this: CIGWELD MIG WELDER 150 AMP 240 VOLT ALUMINIUM STEEL | eBay

0.6mm or 0.8mm wire is good for panelwork.
Patience is the key, learn to appreciate and understand how materials deform when exposed to heat and you'll be on the right track.

[Pub247]

how they too big all those welders take .8mm you could prolly go smaller on the better brands the cigweld one is basically same as the link you posted.

What im getting is consumables a min spool cost $25 on average a bottle of disposable gas if about $44 and technically at 60lt and flow rate of 14 l/min itll last 4mins.
A big bottle cost $90 plus 15 month rental and will last 30 plus hours of welding
A full spool at 15kg cost $50 and will last as long as as the big bottle if not twice as long depending on what your welding

What i'm getting at in the end you better of buying a welder thatll take a proper bottle and spool as you save all that money buying disposable bottle and gas plus theyre work way better
The cigweld you posted VT 565 should take a proper size spool otherwise i dont think it worth buying

[scott-95]

Have a look at WIA, comapred to the UNI mig's they will blow your mind but then again your budget isnt going to pick up much of a welder.
i know ours were 3-3.2 each new and was 20% off so thats a no no..
and i cant reccomend a second hand one, you dont know what life theyv had
Try a welding supply shop? or repairs shop if your keen on a used one thats still "ok"

[Pub247]

I use to use a WIA 3 phase 400amp water cooled tig for cylinder head welding that was a top quality welder your right though not cheap but like anything you want quality you got to pay for it

Miller, kempi, lincon, WIA all come with premium price tags

At work i got a fronius watercooled invertor tig price tag is about $7000 but its absolute magic to use. I have an allmax water cooled invertor tig cost about $1500
And its actually pretty good for what i paid but nowhere near as good as fronius at work

[scott-95]

as you say there Qualty is price..

If your going to spend a max of 400, Expect a lot of stuffing around to get it setup properly and never keeping same heat/ wire feed

[ari666]

im still on my first roll of wire. done every panel on the impala, a LOAD on the VK and quite a few other jobs, and i swear i have a full half roll left

[detox_nath83]

get an inverter so u got some decent grunt and dont get a gasless they r poo.
hire one would b better, get a good one.
Remember Relax your torch hand and watch the pool..
i weld everyday and quite frankly i enjoy it. small adjustments till u get a nice wire speed and good penetration. not the weld sitting on top.
thin material spot weld and slighly overlap. heavy material create and pool and work it along even torch strokes... either push the pool, or pull it. i weld nicer pulling the pool but everydody is different.
this is CEA 240M mig with 1.2 safra wire team binzel torch.. Its Beautiful for what i weld at work $3700 :P

Goodluck man u will enjoy it but get a decent one

had one of those transmig 250 at work.. Setup for steel they r excellent but setup for Ally they r poo as there is no backburn feature so u jag tips all the time

[Pub247]

im still on my first roll of wire. done every panel on the impala, a LOAD on the VK and quite a few other jobs, and i swear i have a full half roll left

what size spool are you using?
i.e. .5 kg 1kg 5kg 15kg?

Detoz i prefer pushing the pool so speak depends on what im welding and position. With tig i always prefer to go forwards as you get a better finish as the sheilding gas keeps the weld from oxidising of coarse depends on what position and what your welding too

[Trayner]

ah k thanks guys

so this one
NEW INVERTER MIG WELDER 250AMP, WITH REMOTE WIRE FEED | eBay

so you bang it straight into the power point and its good to go? doenst need gas?
thinking might get this just to work out how to and muck around and that , and see if im confident to have a go at my pannels


ive got a really shit welder Arc welder here from my grandpa and im alright with that , but its really shit to use .
Is it the same sort of principals for the MIG one ?

[detox_nath83]

heaps different migs are..

go slow as the heat buckles/warps panels so b prepared to panel beat

u need gasless wire....splutters like crazy as it is fluxed
but get a small bottle of gas and propper wire u may be fine with what u need it for as u r not welding 10mm plate probably good for up to about 3-5mm plate
then u burn your local power grid out
:P

[Pub247]

arc is really no good for panels

its easier to mig than arc its pretty much point and shoot but having your setting right is the key.

Sheet metals work is a different ball game you want minimal heat into your workpeice to avoid distortion which means low amperage short welds consisting or say tacks to 5mm runs depending on what your doing with cooling time before continuing. Warpage is the enemy when it comes to sheet metal.

That welder is the link i posted earlier seems alright you'll need to use gas but its better than gasless wire higher quality welds no pin holes (usually) and gas can help with cooling to some degrees