dylan Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 im startin to really feel the burn of not having a welder of some sorts so before i buy something ive got a couple of questions 1.as tig welders are pretty cheap(well cheaper than migs)are they alright for sheet metal stuff 2.found a 120 amp mig thats a reasonable price is that enough ampage for car/sheet metal stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonny Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 120's sweet, what brand is it? Gas or gasless? Personally i would't bother getting a tig for panel work, migs all good and as long as you get your setting etc right you can get some nice work, just don't put to much heat into the metal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaMpylobacter Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 go for gas, makes alot better result. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 Was a thread similar started a few day's ago. Think you use small as amp for panels so 120 is heaps. 120amp MIG is good for home use I think. Prob do upto about 7mm plate. Can always v it and fill for larger anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonny Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 It says it'll do 7mm but in reality your looking 4mm-5mm, but fuck your not gonna need it for that much heavy shit automotive wise, unless your making mounts etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burntrubber Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 120amp mig is all good for panel work not really much good for anything above 3mm although most are rated to do thicker they tend to struggle to actually do it. Use it with a shielding gas coreshield wire is a bit tricky on thin stuff but its sweet on 2mm+ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylan Posted March 25, 2007 Author Share Posted March 25, 2007 120's sweet, what brand is it? Gas or gasless? Personally i would't bother getting a tig for panel work, migs all good and as long as you get your setting etc right you can get some nice work, just don't put to much heat into the metal. it sais jiali european quality on the side and its a gas one found it on trademe the guy has a few of them the cheapest was $300 met the reserve and there brand new too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isnowi Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 Just be aware that some of the cheaper migs cannot go to a low enough amperage in order to weld panel, a lot of the cheaper ones only go down to 40 odd amps which is still too much for nice welds, tig is nice, but takes a lot of practice to get right, and car panels don't always weld nicely with tig. I tigged the panels on my lancer and ended up replacing twice what i thought i'd have to due to blowing holes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thminiman Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 tigging is best for stainless and ali from what ive heard, mig = good for most steels except stainless and arc is starting to go out of phase but it's still a mean skill to learn... thats the way i see it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cute wee gem Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 120mig will be fine, can get a higher amp as you can always turn it down You can weld panel with gasless, its just messier as its flux stz and splats like arc does You CAN arc panel steel, but don't do it unless you're retarded like me Tig is fancy/expensive generally, no need for that just get a mig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike-e Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 oxy/acetylene FTW wherever applicable, use as much as possible as offen as possible. my arcs are always shit <- n00b just bought a mig, cheapie with CO2 bottle. havent used it yet, do like the "point 'n squirt" factor though edit: for the sheer "poosing" of stuff up like diffs etc, arc ftw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mk1Mad Posted March 25, 2007 Share Posted March 25, 2007 Been looking around for one for ages myself. This is what ive found out. The MIG's always state their maximum ampage, this is what you need to do heavy stuff like mounting brackets etc. For panel work idd recomend around 35amp maximum, but 30 amp would be best. Other stuff to consider: The main one is the amp setting dial/switch. You can get MIG's with a switch to switch between maximum and minimum ampage, this means only two heats (crap). Idd look for one with a dial that lets you chose a range of amps, say, 30, 35, 60, 90, 120. Give you more flexibility. Check the gun/cable to the gun. Is best to get one that can be unplugged from the machine as you may need to replace the lead and gun (the nylon inside the lead can wear out from the wire travels through it). Make sure you have somewhere to plug it into in your shed/workshop. You can get 3 phase( the big orange plugs) or single phase welders (the normal appliance plug). So considering your probably looking at single phase, you will either have a 30amp wall socket (like the one for your oven in the kitchen) or 10amp wall socket (all normal wall sockets). These look the same but the 30amp will be supplied by a large gauge wire from the fuse box and will be fused for 30amp. The others will be supplied by smaller wire and fused with a 10amp fuse. So if you have a 30amp socket in your shed you can get a big single phase welder and run it no sweat. If you have a 10amp socket you may be struggling to run a big one. All that will happen is the fuse (or rcd) will blow at the fuse board. But I wouldn't recommend continual resetting of the fuse tho. Note. The ampage settings when talking about the plugs don't relate to the ampages of the welders generally. Also, lead length is important cause you dont want to be lugging the welder around all the time when you working. Idd reccomend you spend at minimum $500 on one on TradeME. Get a gas/gasless one, a regulator included would be good. If you planning on alot of welding, hire a bottle from BOC otherwise use disposibles. Get a good helmet, although I cant vouch for this, the cheap electronic ones may be good for a while but i've heard they arnt fast enough to dim and thus you may get arc eye. Does anyone reccomond any? Idd just stick to the flap down $50 helmets from protector saftey. This is just what ive taken in over the last year or so. I have experience in Oxy, Mig and Tig. Oxy is nice but you can get warping if your not careful with the panels heating up. Tig is best for stainless and aluminium, and expensive for the machine. Mig is a good all rounder for steel. There are new inverter welders are kinda like Arc, they are just really light weight so good for transport etc. Feel free to correct me if ive written anything wrong or you have had different experiences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dylan Posted March 26, 2007 Author Share Posted March 26, 2007 ^ thanks for that looks like i might give the one on trade me a miss then and save another $200 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidian Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 just pay 799 at mitre 10 and get everything you need bar gas. ryobi 135e/150e Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raizer Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 If you planning on alot of welding, hire a bottle from BOC otherwise use disposibles. Get a good helmet, although I cant vouch for this, the cheap electronic ones may be good for a while but i've heard they arnt fast enough to dim and thus you may get arc eye. Does anyone reccomond any? Idd just stick to the flap down $50 helmets from protector saftey.Where do you get the disposable bottles from? MillerWeld make very good auto darkening helmets, there not cheap but well you pay for quality Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raizer Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 just pay 799 at mitre 10 and get everything you need bar gas. ryobi 135e/150eEww, if you know any one who can get trade at BNT you can get a BlueWeld combi 135(?) for about $800 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dell'orto Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 just pay 799 at mitre 10 and get everything you need bar gas. ryobi 135e/150eEww, if you know any one who can get trade at BNT you can get a BlueWeld combi 135(?) for about $800 Yup, I rate those Blueweld machines too. I think retail they're still sub $1k, which is pretty damn good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thminiman Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 dont use auto darkening helmets for anything other than tig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sentra Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 too much talk of gasless wire. dont even think of using it. it is the most unworthy shit crap in the world, its made for farmers who cant arc weld to pretend to fix diggers in the wind and rain so they can sound hard at the pub on friday whats wrong with auto helmets? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mk1Mad Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 Yep, gasless is pretty crap. Umm, good quality auto helmets are worth their money. Bad quality ones can expose you to the arc. The electronics in some cheapies are too slow at detecting the arc strike and thus your exposed to the arc for a small period each time. Too much of this and you'll get arc eye... Not very nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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