recommend me a welder!

[jonny]

hi, i'm looking to buy my first welder, i'm thinking of either a cheap mig or an arc welder. what are the advantages/disadvantages between the two? can anyone recommend me a easy to use cheap welder (under £150) suitable for welding 2mm steel box section? Also i have never welded before (although have been checking out guides on internet) does anyone know any books/dvds about welding?

[mattsdragons]

Re: recommend me a welder!

you will need an ark welder if you want to weld steel really, thats what i used and they work a treat

[jonny]

Re: recommend me a welder!

a mig welder will weld 2mm steel aswell providing it has enough amps. what arc welder do you use by the way? need to go to machine mart soon to have a look at there mig welders, the problem with there arc welders is that they're all around 48 ocv unless you go over £200

[mattsdragons]

Re: recommend me a welder!

I have no idea, the things 25 years old and was not used for 15 years till I broke it out

[blazerbotics]

Re: recommend me a welder!

Get a 2nd hand MIG, dont buy the cheap machine mart ones (or Sealey), your better off with a good 2nd hand one, rather than a new cheap one. MIG is easier than arc, but you will need gas (don't bother with the gasless stuff, wires expensive, welds are not as strong and produces so much smoke you cant see what your doing). Good makes to look out for: Kemppi, Murex, Esab, Miller, Hobart, I have a 180amp Esab Smashweld and i've done 20mm plate (at a push :P ), but is actually rated to about 6mm.

[jonny]

Re: recommend me a welder!

thanks, i heard clarke is a good make is that true?

[blazerbotics]

Re: recommend me a welder!

not really, especially the small stuff. The big industrial gear isn't too bad, but I don't like their little welders.

[jonny]

Re: recommend me a welder!

ok, thanks for the advice!

[maddox10]

Re: recommend me a welder!

I have the Clarke 140 amp TIG (bought that second hand from the Tornado guys), and it does the job beautifully. Steel(also Hardox), stainless and Titanium no problem up to 3mm in 1 pass, and if thicker has to be done, just keep building up.
But in the end it's a simple inverter with fancy wires, made somewere in China, and sold under a lot of names. The color and the Clarke brand are just marketing.

A cheap MIG is about the pricetag of a useable inverter, what can be used for ARC welding ,or with some changes as TIG. I know where I would put my money.

On the other hand, with a budget of only £150, I would look for a friendly welder who likes beer. Just learning to ARC weld will consume about that in rods alone.

[beast]

Re: recommend me a welder!

jonny Madox is about right on that,
1 where do you live
2 if near the midands im always here to help any one!!

ps i have a 250amp ark welder forsale BUT YOU NEED A 16 AMP PLUG as it keeps blowing the fuse which does me head in

[jonny]

Re: recommend me a welder!

thanks, i live down in surrey so quite a way from west midlands. i've been having a look at the electrics in my workshop and annoyingly it seems to be all 13 amp plug sockets i'll have a look for someone who could do some welding for me cheap. had a flick through yellow pages and i've found a welding company willing to do it but i assume it'll cost >£200 if i get a company to do it

[maddox10]

Re: recommend me a welder!

Going to a firm specialised in welding will yield mainly overworked firms that don't have time for small work. Or they'll just tell you no, or will add such a pricetag that it will make your head spin.

Better bet to find a welder that will exchange skill for other stuff than money. And those you can find in repair/maintenance departments of larger firms. (I'm judging on myself in this case)

I can't help directly with welding stuff, I'm a tad out of range. Like the next country over the sea.

[widow_twanky]

Re: recommend me a welder!

Going to a firm specialised in welding will yield mainly overworked firms that don't have time for small work. Or they'll just tell you no, or will add such a pricetag that it will make your head spin.

Better bet to find a welder that will exchange skill for other stuff than money. And those you can find in repair/maintenance departments of larger firms. (I'm judging on myself in this case)

I can't help directly with welding stuff, I'm a tad out of range. Like the next country over the sea.

I only sort of agree with this but not completely. I found a bloke down the road from us and took dtk down to see him. I caught him just as he was shutting up but he took a look at what we wanted doing (just some repair work from the uk champs) and said if I was happy to clean it up and set it up myself he'd do it for a tenner.

Sometimes if you are lucky people will take some time to do stuff which interests them. If it doesn't interest them, refer to Marios comment above

[swanaldo]

Re: recommend me a welder!

I picked up a 2nd hand Sealey 150amp mig......never let me down...welds a treat for what i need and its now converted to an ali welder. For a first time welder a sealey or clarke 120 to 150 amp will do you just fine. Welded up every version of thor and envy with one and not had a problem. the better you get then go for a high end welder but then only if you make the most of it....a lot of money for a kemppi if its sat doing nothing. I now use a Lincoln weld Tig to do all my welding but that is what i wanted as i can now weld stainless steel and titanium as well as mild and hardox. Use the Sealey mig for ali welding.

[typhoon_driver]

Re: recommend me a welder!

Got myself a new tig off ebay.great welder but it wasn't cheap.you also have to factor gas into the cost aswell.best to stick to an arc welder initially.mine cost me 30 quid when I got it a few years back before selling it to jamie recently