is it true you cant do think metals with arc welders because they will "burn" right through the metal? Or can this be solved by using a diff type of metal stick that burns at a lower temp? I was reading about them and they said it can be done but Im wondering how many have accomplished something like this?

"...I looked at the princess auto catalogue and they seem to have some cheap Mig units. With mig though do I need gas or can I just run it without? I coulda swore Ive seen some mig units run off AC without them using gas or maybe it was a diff machine..."

As you have probably found by now, many 'wire feed' welders can be used with simple flux core wire that needs no gas. Often they come with or you can buy a kit that will convert them to full MIG welders by adding the gas component and using solid wire.

Definitely go for a wire feed unit - whether you use it with the gas or not.

I have both. They don't realy get a lot of use these past few months. I like the mig/ wire feed for small fast jobs, the stick is for heavy jobs.Yes practice practice practice. Both have there good/ bad points. Keep your rods dry ( no not that one ) and fresh.

if you get a m.i.g. get one that works with argone(don't think i spelled that right)gas, it is much easier to learn with, there is a hell of lot less spatter(if you wish to learn to weld upside down this WILL come in handy) the wire is cheaper and worst case senario if you want you can use the fluxed core wire; all you have to do is change the polarity.

over head welding is a pain in the ass ... have the scars to prove it.. [img]graemlins/headbang.gif[/img] .. but once you get good at welding you done get burnt as much [img]smile.gif[/img]


loud - what do you want/need welded ?

[ November 20, 2003, 07:20 PM: Message edited by: johnson ]

"if you get a m.i.g. get one that works with argone(don't think i spelled that right)gas, it is much easier to learn with, there is a hell of lot less spatter(if you wish to learn to weld upside down this WILL come in handy) the wire is cheaper and worst case senario if you want you can use the fluxed core wire; all you have to do is change the polarity." Post from Northernextreme

This is not true when you want to do light tubing work such as exhaust ect, argon makes everything hotter, you will want to use C02 ( Carbon Dioxide) gas for that type of work. As for the welder you are looking at, stick with a mig machine, that will do you fine, you will not have to worry about duty cycle ect, seeing as how you are just new to welding in general. I am a welder by trade, have been doing it for a living for 9 years now, if you need any more help with anything let me know Ill halp ya any way I can

Knowledge is power man, Learn both methods of welding, stick and wire fed...it could come in handy someday.

thanks everyone for the help, you all have been great.

Its something I was thinking of taking up, and adding to my collection of tools. Theres been some times when a welder would have come in handy. Im just looking for one to play around with and do light duty jobs for now, like weld on exhaust, or make some seat brackets for new seats for my car etc, small applications, nothing huge.

I also want a 110v machine as 220v is too much work to wire for my garage, and my dad woulnd't exactly be helpful to lend a hand or payment if I wanted to get it done to the garage.

Ive got a compressor now and tools and been really doing alot of work on my car and others over the summer and decided it was time to take on welding to add to my list.

I will probably look into a cheap mig to start off with. What amperage should I be looking at? I heard 100 amp is good for most jobs.

thanks alot.

If your going to be sticking to the small stuff like that, then a 100 amp machine will be perfect, depending on what else you will get into, heavier stuff can be done with a 100 amp machine, and when I say heavier I mean to about 1/4" max, those little machines cannot handle to run more than their 20% duty cycle on heavy stuff. So I hope you find what your after and it works for ya fine. Check eBay for a small wire feeder, you can get a good deal on a small mig there.

Cool, thanks. I wont rush into this decision like I had first planned to, I think I will save up and buy something pretty decent to start with.