Alrighty....

So, never did any welding before...

I'm looking at going with an inexpensive 110V flux core welder, but there seem to be a ton of similarly priced 110/220 flux core welders that also do stick. I've been told that stick welders can work with more metals than a flux core welder can, and that a stick welder can do more with less power... is that true? I also see some of them using compressed air or gas?


So far, most of the reviews I'm seeing of the budget (~$100-$200) welders is that they do fine on anything 1/4" or below, and getting good wire and not using what's included is the best route, in addition to a good pair of gloves and an auto darkening helmet....

I won't be doing a lot of welding, but even just one or 2 small things that I want to do, would cost more than the cost of the equipment if I had to pay someone else to do it... and it's all the small stuff that's too small to pay someone to do, as well...

Any suggestions?

220V
https://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/tls/d/tacoma-lincoln-stick-welder/7620668442.html
https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/tls/d/seattle-lincoln-stick-welder/7611476036.html
https://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/tls/d/marysville-stick-welder/7609467765.html

120V
https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/for/d/nordland-hobart-handler-welder/7613760741.html

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=140657

??

A 110V MIG won’t give you 0.250 inch of penetration. More like 0.100 inch. Unless you are only doing sheet metal, a 220V machine is far better. Look for a 200 amp model if you want to work with 0.250 material.

This model is generally well-reviewed by welding publications, can do flux or gas, does stick, and can do tig if you buy the torch. And it is reasonably priced. Lots of other options out there.

https://www.amazon.com/YESWELDER-Digita ... r=8-5&th=1

Unless you have used any of the new inverter welders, you may rethink that statement.
I was skeptical, until I got one.
Mine is a 200 amp and will run on 230/115. It auto senses the input voltage. Im a hardcore 230V welder guy, but Ive used this one many times at my other property plugged into 115V on a 6500kw kubota and Ive welded lots of 6" and 10" well casing pipe with GREAT results.

I don't mind spending an extra couple bucks if it's something I can grow into, but I really don't see myself doing a ton of welding.

I've watched a ton of reviews on Youtube, and it seems even the $120 harbor freight welder can do 1/4", albeit very slowly, and only almost barely.

I would much prefer to stick with 110V for 90% of the stuff, as a 50ft 10/3 extension cord is sufficient to power it, and having 220 isn't something I always have access to. However, a 3KW inverter is something that be used almost anywhere..

For those that do stick welding, have you seen better performance for the dollar? I'm assuming the consumables are more expensive in the long run? Can a 150A stick welder do more than a 150A wire fed?

--Inverter based welders seem to be all the rage recently.. .and are putting out some impressive numbers on paper, relative to what I want to get done... but since I have zero experience on this, and am going in blind, I'd like input from people who have used them.

I have Miller, Lincoln, SnapOn, and Everlast Mig and tig and stick machines. Ive laid miles of beads.
I have been very impressed with the Everlast Mig200 that I have.

Any of the Everlast, Vulcan, Titanium welders are the best bang for the buck. Do yourself a favor and get a bottle and run solid wire. Fluxcore is not the greatest for a hobby welder.

Im not a fan of multiprocess welders. You DONT need a stick machine. I rarely ever stick weld anymore. Ever.

Most of the 130-200 amp inverter welders come with a 230V input cord and an adapter pigtail for using 115V. They auto sense the input voltage, no switches or rewire needed.
The inverter welders also tolerate welding from a generator better too. They accept a wide range of THD/input voltage fluctuations better than a transformer machine. Transformer machine's circuit boards dont always like volatge fluctuations and will let out all of their magic smoke.

If it says "chicago electric" its fucking JUNK.

Only green or orange from HF

Sometimes a 50ft 10/3 extension cord can cost damn near as much as the welder.

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=140657

Here is one in the classifieds

I have an old lincoln 110v and i use it for stuff like frame rails and such. As long as you do good bevels they work well. As for 1/4" or thicker i'd preheat the lead in cherry red with a torch and it should work fine, mabey multiple passes on the really thick stuff

For thin stuff it'll do it, but you atleast want a bottle kit for anything that needs to be pretty(I do o/a hammer welding on sheet metal)

As for stick... For the home guy, stick doesnt really offer much you cant already do with wirefeed.

What do you want to weld?
Where do you want to weld it?
How often do you want to weld?

Not sure why you edited your post, but...

You made some good points...

I want a welder for the WeenieWagun, primarily.

All the parts of the WeenieWagun are mild steel, however the box will be aluminum, and I'm sure there will be some stainless in there.

WHAT:


As far as what I'll be welding? For starters.. on the immediate list.. I want to make some steps using channel and expanded steel sheeting, weld some hoop steps onto the bumper, weld handles/latches onto the door panels, and small stuff like that. If I could weld aluminum to repair the box, that'd be great, but not required..

The dog bone bushings are known to fail at the worst time, and they're retained only by friction, so if they fail, the dog bone slips off, and you're pretty well stuck, so worst case is I'd want to be able to weld a steel plate over the dog bone to keep it in place - which could be done by welding a small plate to the inner ring. I could drill small holes and do a bunch of fill welds.. That'd get me off the road and last long enough to reach where I need to be to fix it.

I may want to modify the exhaust/intake, but I don't need a welder to work on that. Plenty of clamps designed to do what I was thinking of, and would probably work better as clamps = flexing vs breaking if tweaked too much.

Spoiler: show

Attachment:

M923A2AX_02.jpg

I do not want to run ANY gas, other than compressed air, if needed. I already plan on an entry level plasma cutter, and that will use compressed air as the shield gas.. I don't want to dick around with Argon, Co2, etc. If that limits what I can do, so be it, I'll work within the restrictions.

WHERE:

Initially, it's going to be run at a fixed location - outside - albeit with 110V power available, and possibly, maybe 220V available (but doubtful). The flexibility and ease of use of just plugging it in to a 10/3 extension cord, instead of an 8/4 extension cord..or god forbid, 6/4.... is paramount. I want this to be an easy thing to pull out, not a whole setup and carrying 100 lbs of gear and cables/cords JUST for this one thing.

After that, it's gonna be in the Weenie Wagun, on the road, in just about any weather. In inclement weather, I'd do my best to cover the work area.. I do not know if there's gonna be 220V available, as the only thing that I'd really need to run 220V would be a more efficient mini split, but that 220V capability just about triples the cost of the electrical... So, I seriously doubt I'd be running 220V... although a dual voltage machine is probably a good investment, just in case...

When:

Initially, probably for about 5 hours total..... just a guess... sporadic though, not all at once... maybe 10 mins here and there, just random projects... I have a feeling if I had it, and learned how to use it, I'd find things to use it for... if that makes sense. A lot of stuff I just design around nuts/bolts/fasteners, etc but if I had welding at my disposal as well it would change how I tackle some projects.

A good example of this would be bumper markers. Nothing more than a rod attached to the extreme edges of the bumper to indicate where it is, since you can't see it from the cab.

Currently, I'd drill a hole, use a bolt underneath, and a coupler on top, thread the bolt through the bumper which secures the coupler, then use threaded rod screwed in, locktited, and double nutted, to secure it in place.. With the welder, I'd weld a collar to the bumper, then weld around a piece of rebar into the collar.




After that, rarely.... maybe 2-3x a year... which is why I think a smaller entry level setup would work for me.

Are welders like gun safes? The one you pick will almost certainly be too small; as your familiarity with the subject increases, so will your activity?

Ill only say it once more in this thread.

GET A BOTTLE of co2/argon mix and run solid wire.

That dogbone photo looks like a miniature version of Chalmers style bushing without the cover plate. My OCD wants to drill and tap that and bolt on a plate, but I digress. So I know you love details and apologize if this gets too long or steps on anybody. No bad info has been presented, just saying stuff out loud.


So, 'arc welding' is any of the below; these are the big 4:

SMAW = Shielded Metal Arc Welding = stick welding = using a consumable electrode aka "rod" of the correct material for the application either precoated in flux (most) or dipped in a flux (older style but still used), sometimes both. (Many people, even in the industry, when they say 'arc welder' they're referring to a stick machine.)
GMAW = Gas Metal Arc Welding = MIG = Metal Inert Gas = wire feed = consumable solid wire with a shielding gas, normally 75/25 (75% argon/25% CO2) or 100% argon.
FCAW = Flux Core Arc Welding = gasless MIG = flux core wire feed = consumable hollow wire with flux inside it and no shielding gas.
TIG = Tungsten Inert Gas = using a consumable tungsten electrode in one hand and (usually but not always) a filler rod material in the other, melting it all together. Will leave TIG out from here because it's an expensive toy that you won't need at this point.

Pros/Cons; quick n dirty

"Stick" Pro: can weld nearly anything, at any time, in any conditions, with correct consumables, polarity, and ability. Dirty metal, rusty metal, dissimilar metals, overhead, vertical, flat upside down, upside right/left, sideways, in a hurricane, tornado, underwater, however you want. That photo you posted can be done with a 110/120VAC stick machine, one 3/32" 6010 rod, and nothing but a wire brush to "clean the surfaces" in less time than it has taken me so far to type this. Perfect repair? No, but it will be a permanent repair and similar is performed all the time, every day. Someone somewhere is probably doing it right now. The welding leads are giant copper cables coated in heavy rubber that can be (not recommended but can be) driven over, rolled up, tied in a knot, electrical taped back together, spliced, thrown into a bin and forgotten about until next time. The ground clamp is usually heavy copper or other type of highly conductive material, equally as stout, and the 'stinger' aka electrode holder are normally equally as stout. You can also use heavy gauge battery jumper cables in a pinch, and can use your chassis batteries as the power source to stick weld in a real pinch.

"Stick Con: not easy to learn, you'll waste a lot of consumables learning to strike the arc without sticking, you'll break off a lot of flux on new rods, rod storage must be dry and kept from freezing (the flux loves moisture and moisture is bad for it), and did I mention it's not easy to learn?

MIG w/ gas Pro: easiest to use, much better on thinner material (sheet metal, etc), easiest to use. With correct wire, clean material, inside or outside on a nice day, super easy peasy make you feel like a pro, lemon squeezy. You can get a spool gun and run aluminum or other metals, albeit with a 110/120 machine it's not the perfect solution.
MIG w/ gas Con: not easy to weld with any sort of breeze/wind/draft. Outside, in a shop with a draft, with a cooling fan moving air, etc etc can disrupt the shielding gas flow and make things difficult. Materials need to be a LOT cleaner than most any other process (except TIG or brazing) and the machine itself is more fragile. The grounding clamp and cable is fine, but the machine's rollers, drive mechanisms, feed liner, and 'gun' have a lot of small sensitive bits than can create havoc in a "less lethal" environment. Doesn't like to burn much thicker than 1/8" on 110/120VAC unless you know how to fillet (grind a groove) and make multiple passes, and properly preheat. Vertical aka "uphill" and overhead with a MIG is not easy, in fact, vertical "uphill" MIG is one of the harder cert tests to perform. Vertical downhill is technically not a proper procedure but it does work on thinner materials.

Flux core MIG pros: kind of in between gas MIG and stick. Cheap. Can weld material not as clean as it should be for gas MIG and also weld better in the weather that a gas MIG cannot. Doesn't like water but will tolerate it more than gas MIG. That's all I've got.
Flux core MIG cons: dirty, messy, looks like shit, sounds like shit, makes a mess, is NOT as easy as gas MIG, hard to switch back and forth between on the same machine, as the wire drive rollers are NOT the same and shouldn't be used on same. Flux core wire is fragile, easy to squish, so the drive rollers have grooves help grab the wire to push it through the liner without squishing it. Most machines are setup with smooth rollers under higher pressure, and using grooved rollers on solid core will push little marks in it that can hang up on the liner, etc etc etc. Big PITA to switch back and forth. Buying a flux core rig and swapping it over to gas is many times more costly than just buying a 110/120 rig pre set up for gas.

There is a reason most everybody is telling you if you go MIG, go gas. Small cylinders aren't that expensive, you only need one, and with a proper transport cap on it can be hauled in nearly any position and dropped on the valve end from height without a ton of risk. Storage of the wire feed gun and regulator need care, though.

Based on what you've described, you want an AK47 welder. That's a stick machine.

There is also Dual Shield FCAW where the flux cored wire is used along with a shielding gas. Game changer for sure, probably the best overall method but also expensive to set up with and has all the cons of MIG for storage, but can compete with and many times beat stick machines on time, speed, etc for thicker materials. A great option when that time comes for you but at this point, no.

Machines:
Miller, Lincoln, Hobart. Miller and Hobart are owned by ITW, Lincoln Electric owns a hosts of brands including Century, who had been around a very long time and built machines for other brands like Snap-on, Sears, etc.
ESAB big yellow is another very high quality machine from Sweden but available all over this country you just don't see them as much outside of heavy industry/assembly line work. They don't market as hard to one welder Johnny as big blue (Miller) or big red (Lincoln...although they have an identity crisis as their top of the line Pipeliners are brushed stainless steel or grey...but digression)

Watch the duty cycles on many of the other brands. I prefer being able to walk in to any welding store and get parts for my 42 year old Lincoln and my 21 year old Miller without a problem. Many parts are probably the same as any other brand built in Taiwan or China lately but knowing Lincoln, Miller, and ESAB back their product without going on an adventure is nice for my OCD. Many brands weld fine, besides that though. I prefer blue, red, and yellow