Topic: Welders Thread

[projectile]

OK Take a deep breath.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1816-HONDA-CB750-Hondamatic-CHOPPER-Parts-Bike-NR_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ35599QQitemZ4565271152QQrdZ1

The guy in the picture with it can't even keep a straight face.

[projectile]

From the same seller.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Four-4-LONG-PEANUTS-GUINESS-Material-Its-A-START_W0QQitemZ5604129851QQcategoryZ1467QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

[kghost]

G wizz, only three separate posts on that one bike.

[iandux]

I just can't imagine what sort of hallucinogenic drugs you have to be taking to even conceive something like that, let alone build it. And don't even get me started on who would be crazy enough to even contemplate riding it. Seems like the boys at OCC have nothing to fear yet
Ian #2676

[eldar]

Thats because the boys at OCC dont make their own bikes! Everything gets fabricated for them and they just put it together will dad #$%*es that nothing is getting done(other than his big mouth using up air)!

[the_genrl]

ugh again!  that thing really really sucks. 

"Top notch stuff" my ass! 

[pmpski_1]

I want to get a small 110v MIG welder. I've been looking at the small Lincolns, but I'll probably go to a local welding supplier and pick up a used one. Mostly I'll be using it for small jobs - autobody work, light fabrication, etc.

I'm partial to MIG because I've done it before and my first project involves some patch panels and my old Blazer, but I'd like to hear from some others that have been there and done that.

Any recommendations or experiences,  good or bad? MIG, TIG, Arc?

[gtyler5]

I have a MIG welder that I bought at Harbor Freight it's the flux core type. It does ok for the price I paid for it. I would like to get into TIG but they are pricey. It would be nice to be able to weld Aluminum I think you can do it with TIG, but I am no expert. Welding sheet metal is hard, if that is what you will be working on you should talk to a "welder" before you make a purchase.

[Terry in Australia]

Here in the land of Oz, we only use 240V stuff, so I don't know if there's a difference in performance between a 110V mig and a 240V mig, but I have a 220 amp mig in my garage and it's probably my favourite toy.

I did a lot of car panel rust replacement work up until a couple of years ago when I decided it was not worth my time to continue, but I still give my mig a workout regularly, at the moment for frame bracing and fabrication on my 750 racer frame, (Ducati still use mig welding to assemble their beautiful trellis frames, so you can't get much better than that as a recommendation) and I'll be doing some aluminum welding soon when I fab up my seat to match my alloy tank. (you can weld alloy with a mig as well as a really expensive AC/DC Tig welder with alloy wire and pure argon gas)

The flux cored wire is crap, so spend the money and get a gas mig (the gas is just a shielding gas, but it means you don't need flux) and rent/buy a bottle of gas, and you'll be happy. I sold my arc welder and just use my oxy/acetylene for bending and cutting nowadays, the mig is easier to use, and kinder to thin car panels than anything other than Tig. Cheers, Terry.  

[dusterdude]

a friend of mine has a kickass miller mig,i think its the 135 amp model.thats what im going to buy when i decide to get one.he welded all kinds of #$%* on my racecar with it and it never missed a beat.

[ElCheapo]

Here in the land of Oz, we only use 240V stuff, so I don't know if there's a difference in performance between a 110V mig and a 240V mig, but I have a 220 amp mig in my garage and it's probably my favourite toy.

Aussies weld with the sun  Gee, surprise.

In shop, we keep

1. 220V 200a old school full stick welder for heavy duty welding. Nothing beats the penatration.
2. 110V flux core for mock up and lighter stuff, so Terry  there is a place for flux core.  Works kick ass on thin walled tanks with a thin wire.

I really want a Heli Arc and a Plasma cutter, just no money for it.

[ohiocaferacer]

I weld everyday using either my MIG or TIG.....depending on the job at hand. If you have the extra cash.....get the TIG....you wont regret it.

I had never done any serious welding, until about 1.5 years ago....didnt know anything about it. Went out and got a small 110v MIG. Tried to do some welding with the flux core......what a waste of time!! Horrible welds....constantly fought with getting the bead run. Finally...went out and got some gas to weld some steel....much better results. Its a must to run with gas!! Mostly use the MIG for small steel welding projects.

Moved to welding the aluminum tanks.....tried it with the MIG......HORRIBLE!! Finally threw down some money and bought a nice 240v Hobart Tigmate(foot pedal control)......BEST THING I HAVE EVER DONE....PERIOD!! Had never welded with a TIG(except for once at a friends).......picked up on it really quickly. Best thing about the TIG is you have direct control over everything......you control the heat and wire. If you have ever sweat copper pipe in a home plumging project.....you can TIG weld....its very similar. One thing is for sure......I will never be able to live without a TIG welder again. I wouldnt miss the MIG.

Knowing what I know now and if I had to do it all over again........I would have used the money I spent on the MIG and put it towards the Hobart TIG. If you have the finaces to swing the cost of a TIG......buy it.

Also....mine came with an instructional video....helped out alot.

Later,
Greg
 

 

[cbjunkie]

something like this?

http://store.cyberweld.com/ho150stidcti.html

[ohiocaferacer]

Nope...this one:
http://store.weldingdepot.com/cgi/weldingdepot/500425.html


.....I purchased mine from WeldingDepot.com, as they were the cheapest....even with delivery(local welding store couldnt beat them in price). Excellent transaction....fast shipping....would deal with them again.

Later,
Greg

[pmpski_1]

Yeah, I borrowed a friends flux core for a sheet metal repair, but I know that it'll be challenging to do it nicely. It's on the roof of my Blazer so I really don't want to burn any holes in it I was thinking about buying the MIG conversion for it, but the more research I do, the more I'd like to just put the money toward a better setup.

TIG - I've never done it, but I've come across a couple of posts elsewhere saying that it's pretty difficult to set up, get started, and get good results. Not the case? The link CbJunkie sent mentioned that the welder shown can't do aluminium. More $$ to get one that can? What's different about welding aluminium?

MIG- Done it in the past, good for sheet metal, nice price point, I can get one to run without doing any wiring (Terry, all my outlets are 110. I'd have to do some wiring to put in a 220 outlet, and I don't like wiring).

All roads lead to MIG, but TIG sounds more and more interesting. I started looking for some Community College classes around here to see if there's any welding courses, but so far I've only found "Welding Ornamental Garden Art". It's not too expensive, so I may end up taking it just to learn a few things and get access to the shop welders to see what I can learn without sinking money into a super expensive setup that I don't know how to use.

[78 k550]

Mig, is cheap and easy. I never tried tig. All depends on what your needs are. I do mods on my 4x4 so I went with a miller 175.

[ohiocaferacer]

TIG - I've never done it, but I've come across a couple of posts elsewhere saying that it's pretty difficult to set up, get started, and get good results. Not the case? The link CbJunkie sent mentioned that the welder shown can't do aluminium. More $$ to get one that can? What's different about welding aluminium?

Actually......the TIG CBjunkie list is about the same price as the one I purchased......and mine can weld aluminum. No real difference in price. The thing with aluminum is its tricky to weld, due to how quickly it heats up and if not careful can warp or burn quickly. You have to watch the weld pool and know when to back the heat down and keep a steady molten pool. Like I said earlier.....I had never done any real welding up till 1.5 years ago....no classes...nothing. Just read the operating manual about million times, watched the training video that came with it......and played in the garage welding stuff till I learned. You know that old saying something about the right tool for the job? Well.....the TIG will make your welding sooooo much easier.

As for wiring in the 220........cost me about $100 in wire and a new dedicated 150A breaker.  Took one afternoon and had it all wired in and welding that day.

Later,
Greg

[JSGAuto]

I Mig all the time.  Miller is hands down the best, I use a 175 and 135.  The 135 is nice because it is 110 volt.  THe 175 has the better duty cycle which is nice.  At home I have a little Lincon electric with flux core.  It is good for small jobs, and with practice I have gotten the welds to look compareable to the bottle.  But it is limited with the thickness it can penetrate. 

Also, welding without gas is as strong as gas.  Gas just makes a cleaner weld, and prevents corrosion.  Which isn't an issue if you properly paint the weld. 

For a first timer, pick up a little flux core.  It is cheap, will get you started, give you practice, will work on 110, and is small and portable. 

I think my lincon was $250 from sears.  The 135 miller was 500, and the 175 was close to 1K. 

Also get yourself some good safty gear!  Don't skimp!

[78 k550]

JSGAuto,
I picked up Miller 175 new and never plugged in, with optrel auto mask for $500 from the people behind me. There was no way I was passing that up.

Paul

[Terry in Australia]

I've got a seperate torch and hose with a different liner specifically for aluminum wire and a bottle of pure argon gas when I weld alloy, and have had good results. Obviously, the thicker the material the better the weld, but this applies to tig welding too.

I do like the idea of having a TIG welder, but up until recently the cost was too prohibitive, a good AC/DC tig was around the 5K mark here, but thanks to those great guys in China, you can now buy one for under 2K here in Oz, and I've seen them go on Ebay for less than that again. I'll see if I can "snipe" one! Cheers, Terry.

[pmpski_1]

Greg - hooking up the 220 isn't that big of a deal. I have an outlet with heavy duty wire coming straight from the breaker. I think all I would have to do at that point is swap out the outlet and make it a single 220 instead of a dual 110 (?).

hmmm...TIG is getting more interesting...

Thanks for the input guys.

[JSGAuto]

Paul that is an amazing deal.  We actually got ours for around that.  Miller offers a discount (at cost!) to schools participating in the SAE program.  Just didn't want to misslead anyone with the price. 

TO bad I couldn't buy one for myself!!  I had to prove it was for school use!!


An issue that I ran into with the 220 welders isn't the 220 part, but the amps required.  It is 40 amps!!  We had to run a sub pannel to the shop for that kind of power!  And buy a new generator!  (for the pits)

I think someone mentioned it above, but take the local VO-Tech courses on welding, they are excellent and level out the learning corve a bit!  Anyone can weld, but it takes practice to weld well.  Especially if you are going to start welding things that go fast!

Enjoy,
Jim

[Tim.]

Ok - so I'm interested in learning to weld.  I've never welded before.

Ultimately I'd like to be able to weld aluminum, which I know is tricky.  There are a good number of courses offered by the local colleges which are reasonably inexpensive ($400 for 12 x 3 hour classes).  The question is what should I be looking for in terms of welding methods in order to progress towards aluminum welding.

Obviously welding other materials is valuable to me as well - I need to make up some brackets for a fairing etc.  I have aspirations of welding my own aluminum tank / seat in the far flung future though (yes, I'm rather ambitious).

So if anyone has any input, I'm happy to hear it.  I fully expect it to be years and years before I'm good enough to do anything I'd be really happy with in terms of aluminum welding, so don't worry - I don't have unrealistic expectations.  Just want to get the basic skills so I can start tinkering and practicing in the garage.

[dave.leemartin]

tintin,
I would suggest stopping by one of the said local colleges to talk with a welding instructor.  Just stop by their office and tell them what you wish to be able to do.  They should have recommendations for techniques and skills needed for welding aluminum.
When you get around to welding up one of those tanks, you can make me one as well. 

[Bob Wessner]

Keep us posted on how it goes, I would be interested to know. Welding seems like you could get downright creative. Reminds me of one scene in the Worlds Fastest Indian where he was forging his own pistons in a shed in the backyard. Just a little out of my league.