The one ChopPop left to me gave up the ghost a while back (it was a Harbor Freight special... ChopPop was..... frugal ). so now I have several projects that need some welding... and I'm not big on borrowing tools like that... I'm going to need to fill some holes in a frame, do a little sheet metal work and add some tabs to a frame to mount an Air Ride Airpod. 120 vs 220? Lincoln vs Miller?
I roll with the Lincoln 185. I've used one for forever. I've had great luck welding sheetmetal and various thicknesses of steel. I've heard good about Miller.
Really, you won't go wrong with either. I like red meself. For me, find the dealer you like around where you live 'cause that's the guy you'll be getting supplies and advice from. They will sell red or blue, check the functions of each and see which works for you.... Then BUY IT! I like my 255 but a 185 will perform well. The smaller 110 portable units will work well for 3/4 of what you've got to do.
I love my lincoln 255, best suggestion is to buy the most you can get with the money you have. I bought mine used on craigslist for 1000, the thing is like brand new. I liked my mig so much that I went with a lincoln tig also.
Miller. Schools out Seriously, true blue is the way to go. Any of the small Millers are great machines. I have the 115 volt Miller 140, great machine and welds very nice wit .023 70- S6 wire and C25 gas.
I bought a used HTP200 that is a great machine I wouldn't trade it for anything and all the consumables are the standard stuff you can get anywhere. Check out the insides of the machines and large the coil windings are and how they feed wire and you would be surprised in the differences. I have a Lincoln also and there is no comparison to the HTP. An Old Man told me once you want to buy the heaviest welder you can afford, Has to do with coil winding and transformer capabilities I guess.
Got me a Millermatic 211. Best tool I have ever owned. I got the welder with the aluminum spool gun kit, an 80 cu ft tank of 75/25, a miller pro hobby series auto dark helmet, gloves, a cart, extra tips, and a large spool of .30 wire for 1600 out the door from Praxxair!
dont go cheap, you'll be sorry! we have a snap on mig at our shop and it works very well. we also have a miller at the dealership i work at and it also works very well.
Nothing beats a 220V Miller. I have an older one that works great. Don't even bother with cheap 110, flux core machines. Nothing but disappointment
Miller 211. Bought mine 2 months ago and I will never have to buy another welder. It works fantastic and is backed by the best customer service in the biz.
have had a millermatic 200 for about 23 years now, no troubles and does everything i want to do. heavy metal fab to sheet metal fab.
I'll have to agree with krash, my 180c is a very nice and versatile mig welder. i would say either lincoln, miller or hobart, WHATEVER YOU DO GET A 220VOLT WELDER.. you also want, preferably, a metal drive assembly, i believe the lincolns and millers are metal, my lincoln is anyways, i think the hobarts are plastic now. i like my lincoln... out of the 3 brands hobart will be cheaper.. i bought both my lincoln 180c and my thermal-arc 185 tig welder from indiana oxygen on the web.. great place to do business with and both welders were delivered 2 days later. their consumables are about the cheapest i've found. http://www.weldingsuppliesfromioc.com/servlet/the-1882/LINCOLN-POWER-MIG-180C/Detail
In spite of what all these guys have been saying, do not be afraid to buy a good quality 115 volt mig like the miller I mentioned. Sure the 220 volt machines will have more capacity and better duty cycles etc., however the small miller 140 I have has been very good and will surprise you with its abilities. Plugging it into a dedicated circuit running on a 20 amp 115 volt breaker will make it perfom even better. I have been a professional welder and welding instructor now for many years. I've done work with my little miller 140 that would surprise you. It has never let me down for any home or rod related project I have ever taken on. Many spools of wire have run through it.
Miller, Hobart and Lincoln all make great machines. In my opinion the Miller's are the better welder though, and their service and support are excellent. I bought an old Millermatic 35 a year or so ago and have had no problems with it, despite it being well over 30 years old. I went on to Miller's website and downloaded a complete manual and parts list for it though, and they still provide a lot of the parts for it should I ever need them. As far as 220 vs 115, you'll do better with 220 if you can afford it, especially if you're doing a decent amount of frame work. Probably the most important thing to consider is duty cycle. My MM35 has a 60% duty cycle at 150 amps, so I can weld 6 out of every ten minutes at 150 amps. Drop down to 115 amps and I can weld all day long. Start getting lower duty cycles than that and you have to be careful not to exceed them and melt the welder's coils down. If you're just doing some minor frame repair and tabs, this probably isn't a big deal. But if you've got a lot of welding planned it can be a problem.
I have a Unimig that is 250amp. Not sure if they are available in the US but this thing kicks ass and was the suggesstion of a friend that has a lrage engineering shop and thats all they use. Im not so good at welding and just tack stuff together and then get mates to stitch it up and they all love it.
Got a Lincoln 140. Not a bad machine. I prolly should have gone with a 220 machine, but the price difference made the choice for me. Got the 140 for just over $500, not too bad... and considering I needed a new bottle (Ar.CO2), a auto darkening mask and all... its was still quite a bit out the door. It worked great so far for what I needed to do, fill some holes in a frame. And I'll use it mount some tabs for an air compressor in a while. I'm not going to be doing any frame construction any time soon... and if I do I'll go grab a bigger box and let this one go.
I purchased a miller 211 as well. It's been great to me, at first I bought it thinking in the event I move and don't have a 220 outlet I'll still be able to use it, but lately I've been using it in 110 mode for alot of light body work stuff where I can run an 50' extension out to the driveway. I've been really pleased with it, and being a novice welder I know I won't out grow it for a long time if ever. I wanted it to be something that I could would buy once and be done with.
I vote for a Millermatic 200 also. Bought one for $300 cash, looks ugly/works great. If you can find a deal on a MM200 that is the one you want!
I am a Miller guy of over 30 years, I am retired now an have a Hobart Ironman 210, sister company of Miller, does everything I need. The red team is fine too. The biggest mistake is when you buy a small 110, and 6 months later you wish you had 220 power. Blue, Beige, or Red, you cant go wrong, just get enough power, more power in is more power out. Get a rig, and practice, practice, practice. Definately look at the NEW Ironman 230, if your not a full time big shop, it will give you everything us Miller guys praise, and save you a few hundred bucks to buy momma something nice too.
always was a red guy, but bought a miller 211 a few months ago and LOVE IT. Kept the old Lincoln for flex core work. Get the 211 w/ spool gun and you'll be a happy camper
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