What is the best bang for the buck small welder? I looked at the little 110v Miller and it was waaay too high. Thanks!
i too have a 240 miller that was all i had for year's, a couple year's ago i bought a miller 140 -110 volt now i hardly use the big miller. has for being waaay to high i disagree, buy a cheap piece a crap and you will not like it and end up buying better anyway. my big miller is twenty five years old never had a mechanical issue i remember when i bought it hearing the same remarks waaay to high, my friend you get exactly and not a bit more what you pay for
x3....you get what you pay for! I bought one of those cheap Ebay special Lincoln 110's thinking, it's a Lincoln...it must be good! Wrong. I hate it! I too was tired of changing roller and tips. Now I just use my Hobie for everything.
I felt the same way you do......too much trouble changing liners and rollers etc. I'm a Miller guy. Lincolns are pretty good too but my last 5 welders have all been Millers. I have upgraded each time and thats the only reason for so many welders. The beauty of it is that good condition personal use Millers are hard to find and command good prices. So even though you pay more initially, 5/10 years down the road you can get 80% of what you paid for it if you keep it clean and nice.My son got a new Miller 212 about 10 years ago. Paid $1700 shipped to his door. They now sell for about $2200. He could get his money back, but he loves it. I found a really good deal (I thought) on an Esab from the same online dealer I bought all my other welders from. Someone used it one time and returned it. Like New..........I used it for 5 minutes and it quit. Called customer service and went thru a series of tests. Still wouldn't work. To their credit, they sent me a new replacement and so far it has been fine. I can tell you it has smaller and lighter duty components like the rollers and the gun and cable. I actually like the lighter smaller gun for doing .023 wire on sheetmetal. Its easy to manuever. On the other hand I don't really think I would want to weld a lot of .035 wire with it. Here is something to think about. When you buy a cheaper machine it usually doesn't have an infinite control for the amps.....usually a stepped control. When trying to weld thin stuff, the infinite control will be much better. So the conumdrum is this......Buy a quality unit that retains its value, can usually be serviced locally, and has an infinite control......BUT is going to cost more up front OR Buy a middle of the road machine that is more likely to have problems long after the initial cost is forgotten OR Roll the dice and buy an Asian machine that has lots of bells and whistles for the price and hope like h*ll it lasts.The only source (if any) for parts and repairs is shipping it somewhere. So you take the good deal and cross your fingers that you are one of the lucky ones whose machine doesn't give them a problem. Then 10 years from now you are either a genius or its sitting in a corner and worth nothing.
Not a welder here, still trying to learn. I bought a Forney welder. Not sure if it is regional. Here in Texas, every store I go to is selling Forney ... I bought mine from Ace hardware, was a display model. Think I paid $700 for it and sells for $1100. They had cheaper 110 volt models and I am convinced needed 220 for my only welder. MP190, I am setup for mig, stick, fluxcore, If I spend another $600 can do tig. Bottle, pedal, hoses etc... I paid for it with a personal check, and checks at Ace require a phone #, couple weeks later I got a call from the sales rep, he had some items I was missing from a floor display model and wanted to give them to me ... later I had some noobie issues and had to call customer service. wrong size wire and I did not flip the wheel. I am serious, they were all over it. I could not ask for better customer support ... I called, they transferred me to a tech, and he was very helpful, he was going to send me a ups ticket to return the machine and send me a new one ... I'm just a dumbass that loaded the wire wrong ... I think my machine is not as robust as your Miller, while maybe better then you want for sheet metal, Just knowing I have the customer service behind me ... Forney is a brand I just do not hear often ... American made for 100 years
I have been using a Hobart Handler 140. It does great on 18 ga up to 3/16 and even almost does 1/4". I think it was somewhere around $500 from Tractor Supply.
I'll second this. I've used both types, and having infinite control on the amps is the only way to go on thin material. I've got a 25+ year old Century MIG/FCAW unit (90/105 amps) that's never missed a lick that I paid around $400 for 'back in the day'. But I'll also note that I've never used this to weld material any thicker than 3/16", so I've never worked it 'hard'. Of course, this model is NLA and finding an 'entry level' MIG welder with this feature is tough these days. My personal experience is having a small MIG welder for thin material and a good AC/DC arc welder for thicker stuff is cheaper than trying to have 'one machine does it all' big MIG welder. As hobbyists, we rarely need to weld anything thicker than 1/4" in any case, so why pay for capacity you'll never use? My Miller AC/DC arc welder was under $400 at the time, even back then a MIG that would cover the range of these two units cost considerably more than the combined price of both of them.
Mig weld bead is too hard for sheetmetal welding. The sheetmetal has about 50 to 60 thousand psi yield strength. Mig wire welds are in the 70 thousand psi yield range a hole lot stronger than the sheetmetal. Also that big lump of weld bead is many more times thicker than the sheetmetal. I recommend oxy acet welding with zero gap in the two pieces being welded. The filler rod if any is needed should be soft tie wire also a low yield material. Welds completed with this method will planish out with minimum effort. Make a no gap fit up, tack every 2 inches allow to cool then planish the tack as you go. After tacks are finished and seam is planished start to finish weld continually with out stopping from one end to the other. Allow seam to cool by itself to room temperature. Planish the seam by hitting the seam with a slightly convex headed hammer while holding a panel curve matching dolly on the other side. Planish the seam to match the panel contour. The weld seam shrunk as it went through the weld heat cycle. The weld will be soft and thin and easy to shape since the materials are soft to start with. Soft weld beads are what is desirable. Hope this helps and of course the metals to be welded must be bare metal no rust, paint or dirt on the seam. Mike Rouse
I had a Cebora, Italian made, for a long time. One of the controls went bad and I managed to get the very last one in the world, literally, to fix it. I asked my son in law who is a manager at Princess Auto if they ever have a deal let me know. He called about a week later saying they are getting rid of their Century line of welders, 220 volt. Listed around $600 and bout two for $300. Gave the second to my nephew who is a body man. He has a miller but said he was very impressed with the Century which I believe is a Lincoln house brand. Neither he or I have had any problems. So if you are budget minded keep your eyes open and look into some of the less, though reliable, other brands. My son was looking for a Tig and he priced about four different brands and loves his offshore unit. Can't remember the name but it is green.
I bought a Lincoln SP100 35 years ago. Never a problem! Buy a good name brand. Lincoln, miller ,Hobart.
My turn!! 40 yrs of working in the auto field I've got to play with many kinds. at home i have a miller stick, its fine no complaints (bought used 10yrs ago), a lincoln 175 sp 110-220v mig that I just love (again used around 8 yrs ago) and a Primeweld 225 tig that I love. At work we use a 220v lincoln 200 mig (its old..), a 110v miller 110 which I hate (bought new) and it just sits and collects dust, my best guess is 3 yrs the last time it was plugged in. Lastly a small lincoln 180 110-220v to take the place of the miller and I love it too. I've welded everything from sheet metal to 1/4" plate, same as my lincoln 175 sp. I've used a miller 220, hobarts etc. and my preference is Lincoln. The miller at work is, to me, worthless for anything more than sheet metal. What I really hate with it and honestly most 110v welders is no initial heat when spot welding, they and this particular miller have a hard time building heat in a spot weld. By the time the welder is actually melting and fusing metal the plug is filled. On longer stitches its fine as it has time to build heat and actually start fusing metal, but you end up with the beginning of the weld without much penetration. So to sum it up, first and foremost no matter what its going to be 220v, IF I couldn't find a decent used welder close I'd look at, and I wouldn't say this a year ago, I'd buy a cheap 220v primeweld mig. Primewelds customer service is awesome, they have excellent reviews and I personally don't care about resale value, I buy tools to use not to resale. Now understand we are talking about a second welder, other wise it'd be lincoln. The primewelds are very reasonable and again I don't care about 10 yrs down the road, I can buy 3 primes to 1 lincoln or miller so IF something happens in 10 yrs I'll just buy a new one with updated technology and all new parts and pieces.
This is what I have and I love it, I bought it used and have been piecing together sheetmetal projects with it for the last 20+ years. It's the only welder I've ever owned. But if you want one, you really want one of the older SP100's, not a Weld-Pak 100 or one of the new cheapie ones. The older ones have fully variable settings instead of the pre-set click style settings, so they're harder to dial in. Also, (mine at least) likes the smaller spool better than the bigger spool, for whatever reason, the big ones like to drag. Maybe too much weight for the drive rolls. With proper preparation, there's no reason you couldn't build a frame with one of these things. And for sheetmetal and body repair, it's more than capable. I think a lot of guys assume they need a 220 powered unit for everything but on clean, properly prepped surfaces, the Lincoln works great.
I was in the same situation 2 or 3 years ago and I picked up an Eastwood MIG 135 for $300 shipped to my house. It works really well and i find myself using it a lot and its small enough to throw in the back of my truck and bring it to small jobs around town.
Most of the time, I use my HENROB torch for welding sheet metal. Too much to grind with the MIG. Sent from my SM-T350 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
@Beautiful Iron - Tell me more about the Eastwood. It looks like a good deal for the money and that they designed it for sheet metal/patch work. Anything you don’t like about it?
I have one but I really have to get going and practice! Even bought one of those gas saver valves from Princess last fall to go with it...
Miller 130 or 140...check FB Marketplace..I picked up my last one for $250.00..guy bought it to fix a trailer, and sold it..had everything it came with..hell he threw in a cheap welding helmet and some gloves, gave the helmet to a BodyShop apprentice ..welders still going strong.
A couple of guys recommended using O/A ......and a lot of guys did it successfully in times past. The thing about welding with O/A is that you need a SMALL torch on the order of an aviation type that allows you to keep the heat input to a minimum. Thats the thing that gives people problems, too much heat input before you can begin to weld and constant heat input while welding. Then the panels can/do buldge and get out of shape causing more problems. Its not impossible but it does need the proper torch, and application to produce those softer welds. A mig will give harder welds, but it gives instant heat in a concentrated spot that is less likely to warp panels......but you can still warp them with a Mig if you get carried away. Whatever you use when welding sheetmetal you need to input minimal heat into the panel.
Fortunateson, Id like to know a little more about that gas saver valve you mention in your post #19. Is this only for Henrob torches or any OA torch? Where would I look for it in the stated? Goldmountain, I've been OA welding about 60 years, on & off, always with conventional torch. Always wondered about those Henrob torches but never actually talked to anyone who actually owned and used one. Considering I already have a good conventional torch and tips, are the Henrobs enough of a benefit to consider one? Especially now that I'll turn 83 in 3 months?
Hobarts are good for what you are talking about....made by Miller for the most part with solid support.... and consumables available from box stores and tractor supply type places on the weekend when you run out of consumables and your local welding supply is closed. No overload on bells and whistles, just solid welders that will work for what yer looking for. Plus they are as good as your skill level and will go hand in hand as that develops,( unless, of course you are already good....then you'll just like the welder for whar it is, like any quality tool. This is based on long term usage of Hobart equipment( along with the red and blue guys ) and is only opinion. Hope it helps.
I have Lincoln SP 125 for 30 years . changed one trigger switch . I would tell you dont get one that has 4 heat range switch you will always want to be in between . an adjustable wire speed and adjustable heat range has worked the best for me .
So far so good- ive had it close to three years with no issue. Just understand it is limited as far as metal thickness goes but if your looking to play around with sheet metal it is a good deal for the price. If you find yourself doing a lot of patch panels I would suggest looking into a budget entry level tig machine. It is so much easier to work with in my opinion. My tig machine is also an eastwood product as well- ive had it even longer than the 135 and i love it.
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