Recommend me a welder
- Thread starter karlj
- Start date
Big bottles are only really a good idea if you do a fair amount of welding, I would deff go for gas though you dont hear very good things about gasless and the wire is much more expensive. i got my mig from a boot sale for 30quid (but it is a bit of a toy one) its just runs off little disposable bottles (expensive at 10 quid each) but not that bad. ebay or gumtree i say, should be able to get a half decent one for 150 if you hunt about a bit.
Renting a gas cylinder isn't that expensive. Air products (Who we use) do different sizes of bottle.
Apart from being pants, remember that gasless welder wire costs more so they probably cost you the same in the long run.
Get the most expensive welder you can. The higher the amperage the smoother the weld and the less preperation you need to do.
If you get one with 'turbo' in the name it means it has a fan so you can weld for longer without overheating the machine.
Better machines have a metal liner too. Have a look at the wire feed where it feeds into the liner. If the wire feeds into a springy tube it will be fine. Cheaper welders have a plastic liner which melt and wear causing wire feed problems.
Check the minimum amp setting too. I saw cheap mig welders in Aldi that only go down to 60amps which is too powerful for thin body panels especially the tin foil they make Micras from!
Apart from being pants, remember that gasless welder wire costs more so they probably cost you the same in the long run.
Get the most expensive welder you can. The higher the amperage the smoother the weld and the less preperation you need to do.
If you get one with 'turbo' in the name it means it has a fan so you can weld for longer without overheating the machine.
Better machines have a metal liner too. Have a look at the wire feed where it feeds into the liner. If the wire feeds into a springy tube it will be fine. Cheaper welders have a plastic liner which melt and wear causing wire feed problems.
Check the minimum amp setting too. I saw cheap mig welders in Aldi that only go down to 60amps which is too powerful for thin body panels especially the tin foil they make Micras from!
I had a SIP 90 amp Migmate for several years and just couldn't get on with it. I've now had a Clarke 150 turbo for the last 6 or 7 years and it's the best money I've ever spent. It does body panels fine and will happily glue 6mm plate together.
I use the disposable bottles (the higher capacity ones from machinemart).
Iain
I use the disposable bottles (the higher capacity ones from machinemart).
Iain
OP
OP
thats why i chose mig (Y) problem i've got is i haven't a clue what to look for although what getaway said is very helpful
Another reason to get a decent machine - a cheapo one will be harder to get decent results with and probably just put you off. Checking out the local colleges for a short course is a very good idea too.
There's a couple of second hand Clarke 150's on ebay at the moment - one at £50 (mega bargain).
Iain
Put your money towards buying a decent mig rather than going for night classes!
As Frank said MIGs are pretty easy to use. Its like a hot felt tip pen!
If you get stuck there are loads of free tutorials on the internet.
As Frank said MIGs are pretty easy to use. Its like a hot felt tip pen!
If you get stuck there are loads of free tutorials on the internet.
OP
OP
Tbh I don't need to worry about going college a friend has both mig and stick so I can get him to teach me, it'd just be nice to do my own work rather than getting him to do it all the time that and I work nights so I don't think work would be to happy if I skipped work to go college lol
