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school me on welders.

K

K5dreamer

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ok, so after alot of deliberation, pressure from the rents, and good advice from all here, ive decided to keep my wrecked m1009 for the time being and fix it. rather than getting a whole new truck.

since i cant screw the body up more than it already is, figured id use this one to learn how to weld on. :woot:

dont have a welder, have never welded before. obviously id be looking to score a used one off craigslist or something. but have no idea what brand to look for. ive heard of lincoln, and dayton. what power level? ive seen 120v, 220v, 85 amp, 200 amp, etc. etc.

should i be looking at a stick welder, or wire fed, etc. etc.

edit - and i may be quitting my job and going back to school this spring for EMT certification, and if i do, id probably sign up for a welding/metal working class while i was there.
 
I'd say minimum I would get a 120v (uses 110v outlet) 130-140amp welder.

A 220v 240-280amp can do pretty much anything you ask of it.
 
mig... miller, lincoln, hobart... i'm a miller guy myself.. as much as you can afford... it's always best to go as big as you can... a 110 will get ya by for smaller stuff, but extra prep, double-passes, etc will be needed for thicker stuff... if you can run, and afford, a 220 unit, it's is a much better way to go imo... but a 110 unit will be fine as a learning one, ya just have to know it's limitations...
 
i would assume if i went with the more powerful welder i would need to talk my parents into having a 220 outlet installed in the garage? or does it have its own step up device built in?

Really what id be using it for right off the bat would be sheet metal work. floor pans, quarter skins, and if i can pull all that off, i may be motivated to tackle my passenger side rocker.
 
a 110 is fine for that... look for one that is gas capable... tho doable, flux core (non gas) isn't ideal for sheetmetal work... as long as it's capable of it, you can always add it down the road and run flux core in the meantime...
 
Welders use electrical current and a filler material to bond 2 pieces of metal together.

LMAO sorry I had to take it to the basic level in my current state of mind.
 
original balzer said:
Welders use electrical current and a filler material to bond 2 pieces of metal together.

LMAO sorry I had to take it to the basic level in my current state of mind.
Click to expand...

lol, i have that effect on people on the reg. so no worries, i fully admit to knowing nothing about welding, so im pretty sure it couldnt be dumb'ed down to far for me. :D

so a gas capible, 110v 130-150amp, mig welder, made by miller, lincoln, or hobart, would do me. sounds pretty strait forward... now to find one in my budget.... which is slightly above pocket lint, after buying a pre-loved turbo setup (off a ck5'er), an M1008 driveshaft (of a ck5'er), and SRW hubs (off a ck5'er) :doah:

ah well, no rush, but at least now i know what to keep an eye open for, and get a feel for prices.

thanks much guys.
 
so a quick ebay check showed me miller and hobarts are most likely out of my pricerange for the time being.

searching lincoln popped up a few possible hits... somethin like this...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Century-Wire-Fe...70474526943?pt=BI_Welders&hash=item564200a8df

might not be a bad starter, wadda yall think? also, with the D70HD axle, imma have to relocate the spring pearches, would this be strong enough to handle that? or would i tack them in place with this, and then take it somewhere/borrow a more heavy duty unit to burn those in?
 
If you like the lincoln 140, I'd spend the extra $130 and get the 180 on the same page you linked. It is a 220/240v unit so an outlet would be required but it has heavier duty internals and will be way more versital. I did a lot of research on them and talked a lot with the local weld store. It even welds supprisingly smooth and easy with flux core. Something I never thought could happen. I recently hooked up the gas and went to town. Welds very much like the large industrials I used in the fab shop I worked in. Also the lincolns use consumables interchangable with TWECO (tips, cones, liners, etc.) so much cheaper to operate.

Another small tip if you do get a gas set up for what ever one you buy. Get the 75%/25% argon/co2 and the 125# cylinder is the most economical bottle. They actualy charge an hourly rate to fill em. The smaller bottles last half as long and cost the same basicaly to fill or exchange. this is all IMHO so i hope it helps
 
If you are on a budget look for a used welder seems like you can find the 110 ones for not a bad price usually
 
yup, ill be watching the list of craig, and ebay for used ones. just tryin to get an idea of what it is im looking for.

good info on the bottle situation, for size and mixture. appriciate all the feedback guys.
 
Under your present restrictions for electrical availability, and immediate usage I would go with a 110 used unit, BUT.....if you can take a beginners welding class it would teach you a huge amount of info...more than you'll need probably, but you also get to practice welding on someones else equipment and see what you like. The class I took some 20+ years ago had soldering, brazing, torch cutting, Stick, MIG, TIG...etc. They also had a special offer to students who completed the class with a MIG setup from a local lincoln supplier.
 
I agree with what everyone else has said, I personally am a Miller guy myself, I have an older 130 in my garage and a 251 at my shop, both have been great and replacement parts are easy to find. Buy the most machine you can afford, it's easy to do small stuff with a big machine but not so much big stuff with a small machine.
Watch CL and also check out some local pawn shops, with the slow economy, lots of companies and people liquidate non essential items like tools. Sometimes you can find some awesome deals ! Good luck searching, and if you by chance find one that sounds really good around Baltimore and need someone to look at it for you let me know, I work right outside of the city and live north in Harford Co.
 
From mine and others experience the Hobart Handler 140 is an excellent bang for the buck. They are available from sears for under $500. They can be set up for gas, large or small spools of wire, and are pretty much Millers budget brand.
 
jt512 - thanks much for the offer in checking one out. if im driving up that way to look at one ill definatly take you up on that.

stomis - good to know on the hobart unit, seems that miller is a class favorite, so even its budget brand sounds pretty good to me.
 
K5dreamer said:
jt512 - thanks much for the offer in checking one out. if im driving up that way to look at one ill definatly take you up on that.

stomis - good to know on the hobart unit, seems that miller is a class favorite, so even its budget brand sounds pretty good to me.
Click to expand...

I've had mine for 2 years. Even came with a miller gun on it lol. Love the thing, no issues at all. Still havent hooked i up to gas.

I've made brackets, battery box/tray, my flatbed which I could do 100x better now that I know how to weld and have learned, square tube shaft which is 1/4in steel onto solid yokes that I got awesome penetration and beautiful welds on, and loads of misc repairs for people.

Plus you can turn it down to do exhaust no problem.
 
I'd start with a 110v welder with gas shielding,flux core works but is pretty sloppy. Potomac Airgas is the best place to get tanks gauges etc for your setup,they're close to Potomac yards near the Del Ray section of Alexandria.
I'm in Springfield, I have a 110v welder and some scrap and could show you some basic techniques,supplies you'll need etc. Send me a P.M. if you're interested.
 
Its too bad your so far away and shipping would kill the deal I have a hobart handler 140 I would let go for maybe $300. Might need a few small things cuz it hasnt been used in several years.

But like I said with shipping you could probably find a better deal closer to you.

Edit: I remembered why it hasn't been used, needs a new gun and sleeve.
 
BLIDVL said:
Send me a P.M. if you're interested.
Click to expand...
PM sent

original balzer said:
Its too bad your so far away and shipping would kill the deal I have a hobart handler 140 I would let go for maybe $300. Might need a few small things cuz it hasnt been used in several years.

But like I said with shipping you could probably find a better deal closer to you.

Edit: I remembered why it hasn't been used, needs a new gun and sleeve.
Click to expand...

hey man, appriciate the offer, may very well keep it in mind.
 
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