mig welder advice wanted

[irmscher]

replacing this weekend i have a gas mig but thinking of going gasless ??? what do others think and reccomend

[chickenjohn]

Don't go gassless! Gas mig is much better for car bodywork. The advice from the Migwelding.co.uk is that gassless is suited to thicker metal like arc welding- and will blow through and give poor looking welds on thinner steel. You really need to be doing Gas mig welding on the gauges of metal used on car bodywork and underside.

A busget welder I can recommend is the Clark 150TE.

[Dryad]

I wouldn't recommend SIP welders! I bought mine new 2 years ago and it arrived broken, so I had to fix it before I could use it. Then I found that the wire delivery was erratic when I started welding, and having looked on the internet I discovered that many other people had the same problems with their SIP welders. It quickly developed another problem; the trigger would not release when I stopped welding so I would end up losing lots of wire. It's just about usable now, but only after I modified it by adding a second transformer for the wire feed, and dismantling the torch to modify the switch.

[kennatt]

why don't you get a gas/gasless one Machine mart do various types.then If you need to weld outside on a windy day (Gas ones are useless outside)then you can and get the benefit of gas inside/its also handy when you run out of gas in he middle of a job at least you can finish it off with the gas less wire.but yes gas less is a bit savage on thin metal and also it gives of smoke and fumes which are hard to see through and probably not very good for you.All you do is swap over the polarity at the terminals on the outside of the case.

[StaffsMoggie]

I bought a cheap gasless mig a few years ago just for one job. I still use it now, its handy being able to use it outside. The usual mig welding rules apply, the metal needs to be sound and clean.

[irmscher]

thanks for the help very informative might keep my gas one and just buy a cheap gasless for outside but not SIP

[moredoorconvertible]

Funny that some people are having trouble with SIP welders. I have had my SIP 130 for nearly 20 years and had only one repair done 5 years ago when the transformer went. Other than that it has been a dream and it had not had a particularly easy life either, even used it to build a full chassis for my hotrod!!!

As people have said for car repairs you need gas as it keeps the area around the weld cooler and as such you get less problems with panel distortion!

[Dryad]

Funny that some people are having trouble with SIP welders. I have had my SIP 130 for nearly 20 years and had only one repair done 5 years ago when the transformer went. !

I think you've answered your own question there - I bought mine just under two years ago, so maybe build quality has deteriorated because of cost cutting in order to remain competitive on the world market.

The problem I find most annoying now, having modified my SIP 105, is that the wire feed speed seems to be different every time I switch the welder on. It's not that I've accidentally moved the speed control, as I mark the control with a felt pen, but it always seems slower for the first few minutes of use. Very annoying as I have to keep resetting the control. I'm thinking of selling it and buying a Clarke.

[irmscher]

dryad i have had a snap on mig for about 10 years but just had it fixed and opened it up and its made by cebora which are a third of the price

[dellerie]

i purchased a gasless mig not that long ago. as i don't have a garage, i have to do my welding on my driveway. i bought the gasless as i was informed it would be better for outside use. years ago i have a gas mig and that worked a treat.

one thing i have noticed is that getting the gasless set up, is a little tricky. anyone have any idea's?

[moggyminor16]

i have a gasless one and have no worries at all with it i evern do the exhauslt with it as well and cheaper in teh long run

[rayofleamington]

Funny that some people are having trouble with SIP welders. I have had my SIP 130 for nearly 20 years and had only one repair done 5 years ago when the transformer went.

I used my SIP130 for 18 years before getting a Clarke 150 a few years ago. Every time I use the Clarke I curse myself for having kept the SIP so long. To avoid commenting directly on my SIP 130, I defer to the really good mig welder site listed.


I found the site before getting a clarke and it made the choice so much easier. I had thought all my problems were related to my limited skill and not the equipment but as I read and subsequently confirmed, it is worth knowing which welder is a good buy. I really like welding with the Clarke 150 - even though the difference between the 4 settings is much bigger than between the 6 settings on the SIP 130

[heathy12]

Ive a Clarke 150turbo with two bottles wire and a mask if anyone reading this threads interested.

Located in Bristol but can post without the bottles.

Reallt good rig only selling as ive a 200amp industrial rig in my unit now.

[Dryad]

Ive a Clarke 150turbo with two bottles wire and a mask if anyone reading this threads interested.

Located in Bristol but can post without the bottles.

Reallt good rig only selling as ive a 200amp industrial rig in my unit now.

AARRRGH! I just bought the same welder new from an online shop about three hours ago! Shame you didn't post this earlier.

[ZanderJay]

Just I thought that, MIG welder gas was better than the no gas MIG. I could believe to that because I have some work and I do usually use it. The MIG welder with gas was work into that best time that you needed because it can give such a fulfillment.