Which MIG Welder?? advice anyone?

Noddie

Noddie

right, i have decided to get a mig welder as i think it will save in the long run, and i will be doing a 2.0 conversion when i get back from traveling in may. so it would be mighty useful to be able to weld myself (i dont plan on doing the shafts:D, just mounts and chassy ect). so, question is.. which mig welder to get? i have an auto factors down the road from me who have some for sale so i went there to have a chat with the bloke who works there about them, i came away a bit confused but half decided on a 'supermig' 150A one that works with gas. (there wire for the non gas ones was quite expensive). the bloke said that he could do it for 240 inc VAT. but i have no idea if that is a good price really. could anyone please give me some advice (what to look for and what to avoid) as its alot more complicated than i first thought:doh:
thanks in advance for any help.

OR should i forget about getting a new one and go second hand? its all a bit confusing so any help would be great.
 
noddie

240 v migs are great for body panels and "light" chassis jobs, but for engine mounts and the like you need an industrial mig (3 phase) or arc welder imo
 
Think about the cost of renting a gas bottle and also refilling the gas bottles.

Also think about the costs of materials learning to weld.

Also, do you really trust yourself welding engine/gearbox mounts and the chassis with a low level of skill?
 
does anyone know how much it is to rent/refill a larger gas bottle (as i think that the dissposable ones will get expensive quick) i hear you have to get a licence, anyone know anything about that? i'm not sure i would do the mounts myself, my dad is pretty good at welding (but we only have arc atm) and i know a pro if i think i need him to do some. i was thinking more for sills and such like.
 
It's fine for low grade mild steel, plus it's really cheap (in my case free) and most of my welding work is never seen. When welding stainless I buy the proper stuff.
 
And you can always grind the welds smooth when finished lol. I dunno where I'd be without the angle grinder, solution to all life's problems.
 
240 volt welders are fine for ALL car work. I have sucessfully welded stuff much much thicker than anything youll find on a car with a single phase welder.

Either get a large gas bottle from BOC they are £50 year rental and £50 refill. Or use disposable. Pure CO2 will probably lead to weak welds.

May as well do it right rather than pointless cost cutting (which is being encouraged too much on here recently, does anyone not have any pride in their work any more?).
 
Ed said:
240 volt welders are fine for ALL car work. I have sucessfully welded stuff much much thicker than anything youll find on a car with a single phase welder.

Either get a large gas bottle from BOC they are £50 year rental and £50 refill. Or use disposable. Pure CO2 will probably lead to weak welds.

May as well do it right rather than pointless cost cutting (which is being encouraged too much on here recently, does anyone not have any pride in their work any more?).
Click to expand...

do you think a 150A welder would be enough? it will do 5mm mild steel apparently, cant see how i will need more than that.
 
150A should weld upto 5mm-6mm steel, so that would be fine. All I can say is get the best you can afford and it will last a life time. Some of the cheap ones have horrid wire feeds and are very hard to control.
 
i have an ARC a.k.a Stick welder. its very cheap to run but i think a bit harder to use. welding the thin stuff is pretty hard but the thick stuff is easy and i think results in a stronger weld than a mig. (also no gas to use and can be used OUTDOORS unlike mig/tig gas welders)
 
ARC or MMA welding as its known is not generally suitable for car work. Its almost guaranteed to result in holes in the metal work, and is not good for precise work on thin metal at all.
 
MIG welders will always say their welding is better and stick welders will also say theirs is better. Find whichever one works best for you.
 
courior

i agree
arc welders are very underated for heavy jobs imo
once mastered they give a high penetration, strong weld
 
Yes MMA welding IS used for real hardcore welding, but its not good for car work, its too much.

Olly you are wrong different types of welders suit different applications. Thats why most welding places will have all three (MMA, TIG, MIG).
 

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