You better read what this place is about. No Camaro. No street rod, not really Harbor Freight friendly! Never saw Camaro and the words street rod next to each other in the same sentence before!
The only thing good to walk outta HF with is the cash register Posted from the wooden crank phone in my bathroom
Well, the question really is, has anyone used a HF spot welder and are they any good. There are about a million HF threads on this board, so to state that the HAMB, as a whole, is anti HF is patently wrong. So, the "Camaro Street Rod" comment notwithstanding, are the spot welders any good?
They work. It's definitely not a high dollar uni-spotter but it gets the job done, just make sure the metal is super clean. Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
Austin..... after a while you will learn how to not stir up the old crab asses on here. edit your posts down to only one thing that you know will piss them off- RE. camero or HF, not both in one post. you should have said the camero was a 64 chevy II or something similar. Just learn to play the game and you will find lots of great info here, some you might be able to use on your Honda or Toyota.
i'm not sure i understand. your shop your talent your tools and you don't own a spot welder? hf really? buy a good one it makes you money.
I've used the shit out of mine. I have the 220 unit. One of the few HF tools I've been happy with. If it failed tomorrow I'd go buy another.
The way Ive done ''spotwelds'' in the past. First I plug weld the panel on with a mig/tig welder just like you would if you didn't care about the spotwelds. Then I come back with a tool I made,pair of c clamp visegrips with a short 5/16 bolt welded to one side. I go inbetween the plugwelds where the metals still softish and give them a good sqeeze everywhere I want a spotweld make. makes a mark just like a spotweld. plus you dont have to worry about blowing a hole in it like a spotwelder.
^^^ Thats a good idea I have also heard to just use the spot welder for the look not to hold it together use your plug weld for that.
My decision process on HF stuff: 1) Anything from HF that is electrical you should buy the warranty unless the cost is so low it's not a big deal to toss it in the trash. 2) Anything from HF that looks like cast metal - beware and avoid. Some stuff works ok. Some stuff is junk. Depends on how frequently it gets used whether it's a buy or no buy for me. FYI - There's a youtube video for making your own spot welder and it didn't look that hard.
Not very deep. Maybe 6" I use it for pinch welds. Bottom of rockers and things like that. Like anything else , you have to practice with it. I do test welds now and then just to make sure I'm getting good penetration. I also weld bond when I can. Can't get any better bond or corrosion protection than that. Not to mention it's fast, and NO grinding! I'm not a fan of HF, but this tool has paid for it's self many times over. That said, a "good" one would be well worth the price too. Just depends on how much you'll use it. I wouldn't mind stepping up myself. It's on the list!
We tried to use one on my son's 67 mustang (110 volt) and it didn't work well, we ended up drilling the outer panel and doing puddle welds.
A buddy of mine bought one to use on the same type of project. After returning a HF one for the 2nd time half way through the project, he went to the local welder store and bought a GOOD one! He builds and works on lots of cars, and has bought a bunch of tools there. He has found if it is something he'll only use a few times, he'll just buy HF. If it's a high useage item, He'll buy a good one from the start.
I am old but not a crab, Take HF on an item to item basis. At 69 I do not need things to last for 50 years. I am sure the spot welder is OK for occasional use, a 35 year old with a body shop needs better. Good advise is not everything needs 100% effort, you need the wisdom to decide how much effort things need.
I use the heck out of their air angle grinders. You can pay$100+ for a good one just to have the gears strip over time. The replacement gears for it cost more than 2 HF angle grinders so why not use em and pitch em when the gears go. They seem to last long enough and if you watch,you can get em for around $15.
The Jalopy Journal
