What's a good Welder

[Seraph]

Howdy fellows

I was wondering if anyone could suggest decent compact welder to use for DIY stuff.

Thanks

[exurbia]

Well, i'm a welder.
I do it for a living, if you want a good welding machine my choice would be the Lincoln 155 caddy welder, it is an inverter type and happily runs Low Hydrogen rods. This is a seriously good little machine it will even allow you to run a touch start TIG torch. Buy some Argon and some stainless rod and weld like a pro.
Well almost.

[Seraph]

Cheers! Thanks for the practical advice. Will look into that. That would be the way to go. Something worthwhile to help develop some real life welding skills as well for bigger jobs that should naturally follow.

[Seraph]

Exurbia,

Is this http://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Cat...t.aspx?p=55733 the model you mentioned?

If so that's a tad over my budget. Any other recommendations bit more affordable?

[mpmarino]

I have a Hobart Handler 120 which works quite well. I don't think they make that particular model anymore but it seems the new ones are very similar.....

[dangus]

It depends. What are you going to weld? MIG (with shielding gas, not flux-cored wire) is versatile, but it won't be as good for sheet metal as TIG or oxy-acetylene.

I have a German-made [K] MIG/MAG 155W that I bought used; a previous owner changed the gun to some industry standard type, so replacement parts isn't an issue. (230V, and duty cycle is 100% up to 100A) I'm still getting the hang of doing sheet metal with it. Ordinarily it's safer to avoid the imported stuff, but this one seemed to be a couple steps up from the rinky-dink 120V machines.

Here's an eBay guide to MIG welders that looks helpful: http://reviews.ebay.ca/BUYING-A-MIG-...00000001233749

[Moke]

I'm a hobbiest / garage welder.
I bought this thing, ReadyWelder, because it operates off of two deep cycle 12 volt batts, and can be used in off road circumstances.
It will weld thin metal at 18v (a 12v and 6v batt), or, weld thick metal at 36v
I've welded extensively with it, and am most pleased with it.

Its about $500'ish USD for the unit + batteries (extra)
http://www.premierpowerwelder.com/re...readyweld.html

[dangus]

Maybe I should add that my first welding machine was a 120V "buzz box" arc welder... $15 from a swap meet. Only setting is on or off, which corresponds to a choice of 0 or 30 amps (measured with a shunt while welding). I pimped it out with a proper electrode holder and better ground clamp, and got a used welding helmet from a want ad for another $15.

I've done some very ugly welds with it, but it was enough to fix a broken drop-out on my bike frame, fix a lawnmower handle, and to stick some 1/4" bar stock together to make an alternator bracket for my truck. (That took multiple passes, grinding it down to solid metal before doing another one.) Last job was sticking a bar to the end of some scrap pipe to screw a mailbox to after the wooden post rotted.

This kind of welding machine is not worth buying new (tends to be around $100 for similar machines), but for under $20 it's a good supplement to duct tape and baling wire for crude repairs and fabrication.