Welder?

[12,000 RPM]

I have a project for my gym I want to do and I'm thinking about getting a welder. Looks like a stick welder is the move for the kind of little odds and ends I want to do. Anybody have one? What should I look for?

[MrH]

Do you know how to weld?

[Soup DeVille]

I have a project for my gym I want to do and I'm thinking about getting a welder. Looks like a stick welder is the move for the kind of little odds and ends I want to do. Anybody have one? What should I look for?

Stick ain't for beginners.

What you want is a decent gas (not flux core) MIG welder that runs on 110 and uses a range of wire sizes (but .030 is the most common and useful)

Okay, flux core might be easier to get set up with, but I've never liked 'em and get much cleaner welds using gas.

[12,000 RPM]

I'm not looking for clean, just quick, easy to learn and cheap

[MX793]

Stick welding is one of the most difficult types to learn.  I needed to do some welding for my college design project and I asked my dad to teach me to weld and the only welder he had was a stick..  A couple of hours in and all I'd managed was to burn holes through parts and fuse the stick to what I was welding.  I had an easier time acetylene gas welding.  The machine shop at school had a MIG welder and after a 15 minute overview of basic welder operation and an hour of practice on some scrap pieces, I was laying down functional welds on fairly thin (no more than .125) sheet metal without burning through it.  Wasn't pretty, but it held up to impact testing.

[MrH]

Yeah, I've tried welding.  I'm not good enough to warrant buying a welder.  If I need something welded, I take it to a friend who's an expert.  His welds are pretty.

[CaminoRacer]

Mig is easy. Not as pretty as Tig, but it gets the job done. Buy a grinder too.

[Soup DeVille]

Yeah, I've tried welding.  I'm not good enough to warrant buying a welder.  If I need something welded, I take it to a friend who's an expert.  His welds are pretty.

Only way to really get good is practice: and the easiest way to practice for most people is to buy a welder.

Then most people learn that it's a messy, hot job that leaves little burn mark on you no matter how careful to are, and decide there are better ways to spend their time.

[12,000 RPM]

Alright, looks like I'm gonna just find someone local. It's not really something I will use on a regular basis.....

[giant_mtb]

Get on the Harbor Freight train.

$110

http://www.harborfreight.com/welding/mig-flux-welders/90-amp-ac-120-volt-flux-cored-welder-61849.html

I've always kinda wanted to buy a cheap welder.  Whether it gets used a lot or not, it would be fun to have and convenient for those times when you think "if I had a welder..."

[Byteme]

Get on the Harbor Freight train.

$110

http://www.harborfreight.com/welding/mig-flux-welders/90-amp-ac-120-volt-flux-cored-welder-61849.html

I've always kinda wanted to buy a cheap welder.  Whether it gets used a lot or not, it would be fun to have and convenient for those times when you think "if I had a welder..."

I've got that HF flux core welder.  Wait for the sales and use a 20% off coupon and you can get one for under $90 and you get a free multimeter or whatever.  I've welded everything from 3/16" stock to thin wall electrical conduit.  Solid but not pretty but that's what grinders are for.  I don't weld enough to justify buying a Hobart, Lincoln or Miller

If you get one ditch the HF flux core wire that came with the machine and buy some Hobart flux core wire.  It will make a difference.  An autodarkening hood is also a must these days as are a leather apron and glove combo, also available from HF and pretty darn cheap.

Buy or beg some scrap and practice, practice, practice.  I know several people who also have taken a basic welding course at their local community college and they said it was extremely helpful.

[68_427]

I'm not looking for clean, just quick, easy to learn and cheap

Again stick is not for you.

And to everyone saying HF Welder... Again no

The BARE MINIMUM I'd recommend is something like a Hobart Handler.  Even look on Craigslist for a full setup including welder and cart (You can always get your own small gas tank but some people will include these too)
or something but you'l definitely want a gas MIG welder.  Just trust me on this you'll get tired of cleaning flux, and you'll get pissed off at the terrible wire feed mechanisms of the HF welders.  Also you will be that guy with all the "booger welds" if you go that route.

Sawce:  I'm a welder.  I can do MIG steel/stainless/alum/flux Tig stainless, steel, alum, chromoly etc  But stick is something I still look at like "Do I realllly have to?  "

All my good pics are on a borked phone but I can't wait to get a TIG welder of my own. 

Thinking of either an Alpha TIG like this:



Or a MIG/TIG combo like this:

[VTEC_Inside]

I'd prefer a proper light duty MIG as well, but they can be expensive.

Stick sucks, but its still better than nothing IF, you've done it before.

[12,000 RPM]

Agh I would love to do this but it's too fucking expensive. Too much other shit to spend money on right now.

[CaminoRacer]

Agh I would love to do this but it's too fucking expensive. Too much other shit to spend money on right now.

That's my conclusion every time I need something welded. After 3-4 times, I've spent as much as a decent welder.

[MX793]

That's my conclusion every time I need something welded. After 3-4 times, I've spent as much as a decent welder.

But if you buy the welder and learn to weld, you can have your friends pay you to weld their stuff.  So it can pay for itself.

[Byteme]

I'd prefer a proper light duty MIG as well, but they can be expensive.

Stick sucks, but its still better than nothing IF, you've done it before.

We learned both stick and oxy-acetylene in high school.  I got pretty good with gas but sucked at stick welding. I also got pretty good at brazing. 

[Byteme]

Again stick is not for you.

And to everyone saying HF Welder... Again no

you'll get pissed off at the terrible wire feed mechanisms of the HF welders. 

My personal experience differs.   

[FlatBlackCaddy]

It's heating metal and adding some more metal to the heated metal.

That's it, how hard could it be.

[Byteme]

It's heating metal and adding some more metal to the heated metal.

That's it, how hard could it be.

It's like learning any other skill, practice and technique.   The best, most expensive equipment helps, but like in many other endeavors that require equipment a skilled person can do more with average equipment than a less skilled person can with the best equipment.  The person using the equipment brings more to the party than the equipment. 

I liken this to golf.    The best equipment in the world won't add much to the game of someone who doesn't know how to use it (hasn't learned the basics) while at the same time a good player will be able to function well with lesser equipment. 

Disclaimer, I do not consider myself a skilled welder not do I play golf well (haven't picked up a club in 20 years. 

[CaminoRacer]

Idk, a welder with bad settings is gonna be a PITA no matter who's using it.

[Byteme]

Idk, a welder with bad settings is gonna be a PITA no matter who's using it.

Someone who know what's what will know how to adjust the feed and amps.

Early on my welds sucked because I was feeding the wire too quickly.   The best machine in the welding world wouldn't have helped me at that point.   Some practice and experimentation, plus a ton of Youtube viewings and web pages, led me to better results. 

[Rupert]

I am so bad at oxy-ace welding. Soldering too. Something about that kind of process doesn't work with my brain. Yes, I know it's simple.

[VTEC_Inside]

We learned both stick and oxy-acetylene in high school.  I got pretty good with gas but sucked at stick welding. I also got pretty good at brazing. 

I learned stick, oxy, and MIG in high school.

Once I got the knack of starting the arc down it was just a matter of getting the settings right for the thickness of the metal.

Oxy is the one I have the least experience with. I've done stick and MIG since a couple times. I'm sure my "technique" is shit, but its served me for what I've needed to do.

[68_427]

I learned Oxy and brazing after I had already gained a semblance of TIG welding technique, and I think that made it a ton easier to learn.  Oxy is just a slow motion process of that, but brazing is definitely tough to grasp.  If you keep the heat on for a fraction of a second too long you'll blow the filler away like nothing.  Of course almost all I do now is brazing....

[AutobahnSHO]

I would totally say go take a class or two if you get time, and you can then buy a tool that you've learned about already.