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Post by mudwiser316 on Aug 24, 2006 22:28:32 GMT -5
ok! i'm looking to buy a welder. i have been looking at the hobart welders. i'm thinking of the 180 mig welder. i have read any welder over 130amps will do the jobs i'm wanting to do which would be sup mods, bumpers and etc. i just would like to know if a welder like this one would be all i need. i don't want to buy a welder that's only going to make wish i bought the next size up! any suggestions on this topic would be appreciated. thank's mud!
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Post by stucknjax on Aug 25, 2006 3:19:32 GMT -5
i think the 180 would be more than sufficient for ANY home use. but i am by no means a proffessional. i have a hobart 125 i use regularly and absolutley love the qualilty of how it works. i do use my buddies lincoln 225 if i need something real thick. but from what i see the 125 do, i would think the 180 would more than handle home fab. IMHO
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Post by 92rocdoc on Aug 25, 2006 10:09:21 GMT -5
We have a couple of Hobart 210 MIG's, and a couple of Miller 251 MIG's, they all work really good, mostly we use them on 1/8" or 3/16" thick material but it's nice to have that extra POWER when you have to weld something that's really thick like 3/8" and 1/2".
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Post by fourwd1 on Aug 25, 2006 10:36:39 GMT -5
When I decided to build my truck I bought a band saw, drill press, and MIG welder. I had decided on a Hobart 135 but everyone I talked to said go to a bigger 220V unit, because once I got sttarted I would want to go on to bigger things. I heeded their suggestions and got the Hobart 175, and am very satisfied.
Since it doesn't see daily use I went with the Hobart (by Miller). If it was to see daily use I'd have gotten the Miller equivalent, it's more heavy duty.
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Post by Sean on Aug 25, 2006 22:36:51 GMT -5
The little Migs are ok but their shortfall is duty cycle. They have usually between a 10-20%duty cycle at full power. I just fabbed front and rear bumpers, sliders, and rear suspension with a Lincoln Mig Pak 15 which is the 170amp lincoln mini. As long as you stick the small wire the penetration is good. I found with .035 the machine simply didnt have enough juice and the weld would lay on top. With 023-25 it was fine. I found the machine would over heat and start to have feeding problems at full power after a short period of solid work which i would accredit to the short duty cycle. Its pretty simple to work around this by spacing out your work and doing things inbetween.
I borrowed the welder(brand new in box) and though it served my purpose I would rather buy something bigger.
I also used the welder to so some rust repair on a few cars including my 4runner and the lower power settings are helpful there as they really allow you to be careful and not overheat and warp the panel as you weld in the replacement peice of sheet metal. So for the home hobbyiest it does have its advantanges.
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Post by mudwiser316 on Aug 28, 2006 20:23:50 GMT -5
thanks for all the inputs guys. now for my next ?. i have a few co2 tanks at the house. would i be able to use one of these tanks as the gas bottle for the mig welder i'm going to get or am i going to need to buy a new bottle.
would i be able to use one of these tanks as an oxygen bottle if i change out the valve and paint the thing green!
thanks mud!
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Post by Sean on Aug 28, 2006 22:26:10 GMT -5
Usually you want to use an argon/co2 mix for mig. Wether your local gas outfitter will fill your tank with that i have no idea. I bought a little tank as my friend that i borrowed the welder from had never used it in three years owning it so he didnt have a tank. The tank is small and was 120 full and is 60 bucks to refill with a 80/20 mix.
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Post by Forgotten on Sept 9, 2006 22:48:04 GMT -5
up at school we have the miller 215 welders, and i have to say that these are some of the junkiest welders I have ever used. They don't have enough power to weld 3 inch pipe, and the bead isn't the best looking ever. My dad has a Hobart 250 welder that he bought about 12 years ago before hobart was bought out by miller and turned into the junk brand. that is the absolute best welder i have ever used. at high range setting 2 it slices through half inch ratchet extensions faster than the torch. most people wont ever need that much power, but we do. If you are going to buy a welder i would definetly buy a lincoln over a miller. if you are going to weld anything thicker that eighth to quarter inch i would definetly get at least a 215
p.s those miller welders up at school are always jamming, and burning up the tips, it seems like every time we want to use them we have to fix something on them.
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Post by Sean on Sept 11, 2006 22:02:13 GMT -5
I worked in a bus factory for years and all we used was Millers. They are pretty much an industry standard. Lincoln is known for their arc welders, not thier migs.
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Post by fourwd1 on Sept 12, 2006 19:22:06 GMT -5
... if you are going to weld anything thicker that eighth to quarter inch i would definetly get at least a 215 My 175 does 1/4 and bigger with ease. Maybe the problem is with the people using them, not the equipment. |
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Post by 82yota on Sept 19, 2006 18:49:38 GMT -5
We have a Miller Syncrowave 180 SD at home which is a stick and TIG machine that will do aluminum and its a great welder. We have never had any problems with it at all. We also have 2 600 amp Hobart 3 phase motor driven welders which have the absolutely smoothest arc Ive ever welded with. Ive used quite a few different welders. The Lincoln Squarewave 250 is pretty much the same as a Miller syncrowave and it worked well in the shop I worked in last year. We also have a Miller 625 plasma cutter at home and it works great also. But If I were to get a plasman cutter I would get a Hypertherm I believe the name is. Ive used them before and they do a nicer job than the Miller. Most any welder when properly set will do a decent job. And as for what you need for welding thicker materials you could weld up a plate one inch thick with 3/32 rod but it would just take a long time. Its nice to have the power to burn a 1/4'' rod but you dont need it. If I were to buy a welder it would be a stick. You can do pretty much anything with a stick and make a nice job with it and you dont have to worry about getting the material really nice and clean.
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Post by 94cnytoy on Sept 19, 2006 20:00:37 GMT -5
I've done most of my welding with an old 70's miller stick (220v farm welding) and even a dual/triple 12v battery set-up.
It all works well if you are willing to actually do the job.
Take the welder, the weldling/fill material and the materials being welded and do what it take to connect them properly!
Too many people get frusterated beacuae they don't understand the equiptment, the settings and its limitations.
Stew (not a trained welder, just play one on TV)
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