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Mig welder suggestions under £200
richardh - 5/4/11 at 05:09 PM

Hi,

Looking to get a home welder, ideally under £200 for using to do box sections/range rover chassis plating/general work on automotive stuff.

Been looking at so many i've no idea what i should actually be looking for.

Gas
Non Gas
Combined gas/no gas option

size of amps/tip etc

Any ideas folks
cheers
Rich

cliftyhanger - 5/4/11 at 05:34 PM

http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=152908

100a should do 3mm steel, and panelwork. Cheap and near you.

Gasless not as tidy as gas, BUT much more forgiving for repairing anything that is not perfectly clean (eg repair work on chassis etc) and better if used outside when windy. Can produce fine welds too, been using mine over the past few weeks repairing my spitfire bodytub. Welding is getting neater all the time

Johneturbo - 5/4/11 at 05:39 PM

Having a SIP gasless welder i would go for gas or one that can do both

I'm no expert in welders, i don't know if gasless they are wired differently but mine is always live, the trigger only feeds the wire, it's right pain when you are trying to get where you want to weld before putting the mask down = plenty arc eye

sdh2903 - 5/4/11 at 05:43 PM

I can reccomend the clarke welders. I have a 150A gas mig welder and its been great, I had never welded before getting this and am getting closed to respectable looking welds now.

I run a pub gas co2 bottle as I dont weld that often and couldnt justify the cost of argon mix, granted you will get more stable weld pools and a better finish with the argon but for my welding skills its negligible.

This will be a bit more than 200 new but I got mine second hand with a big bottle regulator, the gas, spare bits and pieces for 200 quid. All i have bought since is an auto mask ( an absolute must have.)

Gasless mig welders can be invaluable if you do a lot of welding outdoors and its windy but the welds are bloody messy and there is a definite knack to getting it right.

Another tip don't go for the disposable bottle they will cost you a fortune. My pub bottle costs 20 quid to fill from a local fire extinguisher place and i've still not used a full bottle in over a year. As for amps if your doing 3mm steel, without any serious material prep 100A will seriously struggle, I would be looking for 130A as aminimum to get any sort of decent penetration.

Have a look at http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/ there are some good vids on there and loads of usefull info on products etc.

big_wasa - 5/4/11 at 06:25 PM

gas and 150a +

Peteff - 5/4/11 at 06:54 PM

quote:
Originally posted by big_wasa
gas and 150a +


and a good minimum of 30 amps or less for thin metal or you will be blowing holes in bodywork if you try any repairs. I think you will be very lucky to find a machine that fits your needs in your price range. I got £230 for my 170 amp when I sold it last year.

[Edited on 5/4/11 by Peteff]

britishtrident - 5/4/11 at 07:38 PM

SIP (also sold branded as Cosmo) is best avoided particularly at the cheaper end --- you will spend more time fettling the wire feed mechanism on your welder than actually welding.

Clarke welders perform better than most and have a lot of satisfied users.

richardh - 5/4/11 at 08:09 PM

Cheers fellow locosters!