Welder.

[Snowboy]

Think this was covered before by Olde-Jim but couldn’t find where it was posted and not sure if it was the same question. If you find the link let me know.

Looking at getting a small welder not sure what kind yet. I've seen a few at my work (Home Depot) and other stores in the $100CDN range. Wouldn’t be doing any heavy duty welding just light duty projects Angle Iron flat stock.

Don’t know a clue about welders and the different kinds. Haven’t decided if I want to put a 220volt outlet in my garage but that would be best if I had one more power for the welder not as limited to what size material I can weld?

Dave.

[Joey D]

Buy the best unit you can afford I guess. Look at Miller and Hobart online and decide what thickness you will need to do and how much will you be doing.
I have a Snap on 120v unit that does the job fine. It will do any vehicle welding I need to do and on the plow as well. Snap on is expensive for a red case though.

[wyldman]

Don't even consider the cheap Century and other brands.Miller,Lincoln,or Hobart are the way to go.Not the cheap economy versions in the big box stores either.The big box versions are sometimes stripped down versions,with fewer features and performance.They also tend to be overrated.

The Hobart Handler 140 is one sweet little unit,that will weld 1/4",and still runs on 120V.I suggested one for BRL,and he seems to be real happy with it,a big improvement over his now dead Century welder.

[BRL]

:weld

Ditto!!

:notworthy :notworthy
Thanks again to both wyldman & snowjoker for independently suggesting & talking me into getting the Hobart Handler 140. This thing kicks butt & I haven't even gotten it up to half power yet.

For what Snowboy describes as wanting\needing the Handler 125 should also be plenty good enough I would bet. Click the NorthernTool.com icon at the top of this screen (helps LTS.com ;) ) and then type "Hobart Handler" in the search box at the top left of the link you land at. These are real welders & well worth the extra couple of hundred bucks vs the cheap welders. I wouldn't buy anything at the Home Cheapo type stores for the reasons Chris posted. If you still want to get a cheapie try getting one at NorthernTool.com or a real welding supplier as they should be the real the version vs the stripped down version you would get at the big box stores.

[Snowboy]

The 140 looks like something I'd want get. Sound pretty powerful. I will add that to my wish list for later on in the year. For my small projects at the moment I’ll use Epoxy /JB Weld. Just a little stop light that goes into my 2" receiver. I can get stuff welded usually for $30hr.

Have to find a store up here in Igloo land :Canada that sells them. Maybe when the Ice melts and before the winter sets in again, I will see who sells them here and price it out.

What do you use the Gas for and what type of gas do u run in these?


Thanks.
Dave.

[wyldman]

Gas is for shielding,to protect the weld from contaminents.With out the gas,you must use flux core wire,where the flux melts,and protects the weld.The flug will leave slag behind,which needs to be chipped off.The flux core wire process is very similar to stick\arc welding.

Argon,Co2,and various other mixes are used for shielding gas,depending on what type of welding you are doing.

[synner]

TSC sells the Hobart Handler line. Praxair carries the Miller and Lincoln units. We have a Lincoln 120 volt mig. Not bad, definitely could do to add the gas kit for cleaner welds.

[wyldman]

We have a Lincoln 120 volt mig. Not bad, definitely could do to add the gas kit for cleaner welds.

Make sure it's running reverse polarity if your using flux core wire.It will great improve the weld quality and visual appearance.

[Snowboy]

Where do you get the gas from? Do you have to use it? Just makes life easier useing the gas?

Matt, I will have to take a look at The TSC store when i come up this week to get the mower. Tuesday or Wednesday looks like good days to come up to London.

[Scuba875]

What type of welding are you going to be doing? The type gas you will use depends on the weld position and material. If you are just welding mild steel in a horizontal position than you will use what is called 75/25 (75% Argon 25% CO2)

You can pick the stuff up at any professional welding supply shop. I would use the gas over the flux core wire for several reasons. Gas will give you better arc stability, lower spatter, and better bead structure. It also will greatly reduce time spent on weld clean up.

I just bought 2 - 3 phase production units and I picked up 2 80 cubic foot tanks last week and it was around $400 bucks for both tanks. You might not need the big tanks but the cost to refill the bigger tank is only about $5 bucks more for twice the amount of gas that the small tank will hold. So if you do a lot of welding what you stand to save on refills will pay for the extra cost of the bigger tank.

This is based on welding mild steel only. If you are planning on welding aluminum you would need a different set up all together from the type of welder you would use to the type of gas. As long as the welder is capable of producing AC current you can add a spool gun and Hi Freq unit for aluminum down the road and then you would use straight Argon for your gas.

I hope this helped you a little. Good luck and enjoy your new welder.

[synner]

Praxair quoted me 135 bucks for the smaller tank filled and I own the tank IIRC. Then approx 50 or 60 bucks to fill it. Probably once a year for my usage.

Dave, Tues or Wed are fine with me.

[wyldman]

Gas cannot be used outside,or if it's windy.If you working at the front of your garage in a snowstorm,trying to get something fixed,you will have a hard time.

Flux core does better with dirty,rusty,and painted steel.A lot more suited to plow repairs.

[Snowboy]

So gas makes my weld look pretty on clean metal and reduces slag? I saw on the northern website that there is a welder which uses gas that can be used outside, think it was the model below the 140.
Any good books on welding one could recomend? I think i might know how to read still. :geekboy

What are they useing on OCC where he has a small stick of metal in his hand and the welder in the other?

Dave.

[wyldman]

The unit on OCC is a TIG welder.A Tungsten torch creates the arc,and the heat.It also uses a shield gas,just like MIG,but you add the filler metal by hand.Gives you the best control of the arc,and filler metal.Very nice.neat clean welds,even on very thin and fragile materials.

[snowjoker]

Gas produces NO SLAG!! But when mig welding you must do good prep work before hand. Gas can be used outside if it is not windy or you should shield the nozzle. But you could alway have a spool of fluxcore on hand if you need to weld outside too.

[Pickering Snow]

Chris

I couldnt help but laugh when you talked about century years ago i bought a 240 century from quailty farm and fleet was welding a trailer having a grand ole time when the pos quit well like you said overrated cant remember know what the duty cycle was but needless to say wasnt even close to the bs they said i smoked that puppy in short order :grinz

[wyldman]

Chris

I couldnt help but laugh when you talked about century years ago i bought a 240 century from quailty farm and fleet was welding a trailer having a grand ole time when the pos quit well like you said overrated cant remember know what the duty cycle was but needless to say wasnt even close to the bs they said i smoked that puppy in short order :grinz

Yup,the duty cycle sucks.Now they just shut off by themselves,and you can't do anything until they cool down.Very frustrating.

[Scuba875]

I made a mistake when I posted the tank size. I don't know what I was thinking it is a 145 CF tank that cost 400 for 2 not 80 my torch tanks are 80's. I just had one 75/25 refilled today and it cost $51.00.

You made a good point about the prep work I just took for granted that would be done automaticaly. You should prep regardless if you want a good weld that is. You have to chamfer the area to be welded so as long as your in there doing that clean up the area around it and then rusted metal, paint, grease ect isn't a problem. Even with stick you need to prep. I spend more time on prep than I do actualy welding with most repairs. I get called to clean up a lot of other peoples messes when they don't prep properly. It costs them more to repair also because not only do I have to fix the original problem but I have to clean up all the mess that was made by laying a weld over a crack that wasn't preped properly.

As far as a good book go check out your library. They have all sorts of beginers books on welding. I can't remember the name of the book I used but that is how I started 17 years ago. I am certified now but that is not really something that you would need to do if you are only doing work on your own equipment. I do a lot of work on Amusement rides so for insurance reasons I need to be certified.