Im looking to purchase a welder in the near future here and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for a decent one in the $300-$500 range. (wire feed) Thanks
My dad had a Miller, I don't know what type, but he liked it. However, he sold it so he could make the house payment. D*** economy...
i would recommend picking up a lincoln electric. i personally prefer a miller but they cost more. if you can, try and get a machine that runs on 220. i use a lincoln 175, it plugs into my 30 amp drier plug and i have yet to pop the breaker. when i bought it i also bought a 20' length of 3 wire and a plug that matched my outlet so i could get it to reach out of the garage. the 175 cost me right about $500, and that was without a bottle. i have seen them on phoenix craigslist from $200. it will be enough power for any truck project. if you want a miller look for the 180 which if i remember right cost right about 750-800.
I just fired up my new 220 volt lincoln 180amp the thing is dynamite. And they go on sale here in canada for about 549.99cdn.$ with regulator and everything but a bottle. worth every penny and you can buy a spool gun for 180$ that lets you weld aluminum
lincoln's have always seemed to hold up well for around the house. But if you can afford it I would get a miller
they also sell a drive roll kit, it has the knurled rollers that can run aluminum straight out of the unit. all you have to do is change the rollers and switch to argon. i think the kit is around $60, not positive since i got mine for free.
I much prefer the smooth feeding from a spool gun. Not to to mention the voltage loss through my 10ft. whip, would not allow me to weld anything thicker then 1/8th. That just won't cut it for what I want to use it for....... and loosing 10ft. off of every spool instead of 6" will pay it self off eventually
Definitely recommend the miller 175 or larger. I own a 175, bought a 135 first and it wouldn't do the job. It's duty cycle was simply to short. Lincoln as far as I know is made by Miller.
At least that was what I was told by the Lincoln rep just before I purchased my Miller. I originally bought the 135 from my local welding shop, thinking that the 120volt requirement would be awesome, I could weld wherever I wanted, and have great control over the current for sheetmetal work while still having enough power to weld frames and tubing. The 135 would weld the frame and tubing, but I found out (about 30 min. after leaving the showroom) that it's duty cycle is about 20% anything over 75 or so amps. That means that to weld my notches, I could finish about 6" or so before the unit would have to sit for 5 to ten minutes to cool. I took it right back and took home the larger unit. (Thank you, Airgas.) While the duty cycle is not supposed to be anywhere close to 100% on the 175, even I have never exceeded it's weldability (and I abuse it). Definitely get an 80 cubic foot bottle or larger, or you will run out when the welding shop isn't open. Worth every budgeted penny.
