Which welder is for me? (1 Viewer)

[e9999]

One should really distinguish between DIYer and Pro when talking about the machines I think. For instance, duty cycle is surely critical for a shop but likely not so much for somebody tinkering around in a garage. No big deal if I have to wait 10 mins to finish something cuz the machine got hot. (Never happened yet, actually, I'm old and slow...) Of course, higher duty cycle may also mean more robust overall, but again that may not be an issue for lighter DIY use.

 

[Jetboy]

FWIW - not all duty cycles are measured equally. For example the Miller 211 is 40% at 150ams. The Eastwood is 30% at 130amps. The Lincoln 180 is 30% at 130amps. Hobart 210 is 30% at 150amps. The Northern Tool and similar are usually only 15% at 130amps.

To compare the next size up a miller 252 is 40% duty cycle at 250amps. Probably 100% at 150 amps. You would have to work very hard to overheat a Miller 252.

I have overheated my Eastwood 175 a few times. Not a big deal, but it does happen. The normal way most fabricators build is to tack up an entire project - like a bumper or sliders, test fit, adjust, test fit, adjust, then the final welding is welding the other 99% of all of the weld areas all happens at one time at the end. With something like a 24" weld on a 1/4" plate joint, you can probably expect to overheat any of the 180amp machines. How important is that? It's not a big deal for me in my garage. Might be a big deal if I were trying to weld up a dump truck bed.

 

[KLF]

I ended up ordering a Tweeco 211i, they have educational pricing, ended up being about $700 delivered to my door, couldn't pass that up. I haven't pulled it out of the box yet, but I did get the old Idealarc out of the booth, holy crap that thing is HEAVY. Not sure what it's worth but I'm leaning towards selling it off.

Meanwhile, I had to replace all the hoses and torches on our big TIG units. Turns out the students were using them without turning on the cooling water.

 

[Pin_Head]

That sounds like a great price. The 211i takes a 12 inch 44 pound spool of wire, which is an advantage in school setting and many of its competitors only take an 8 inch spool. The news is that Victor/Esab/Tweco is going to rebrand all of their welder lines as ESAB. They have already released the Thermal Arc / Tweco Fabricator 252i as the ESAB Fabricator 252i in yellow wrap. Same price. The only difference is the brand badges. Maybe the 211i is next. I have my eye on it and I liked the way it worked when I tried it, but I didn't have a chance to try the TIG. I sold my Linde Heliarc HF250 boat anchor, so I have to buy something.

Edit: actually the 211i Fabricator line has already been rebranded ESAB and wrapped in yellow.

http://www.esabna.com/eu/literature/arc equipment/welding packages/0-5422.pdf

I don't know, but I actually prefer the black wrap, especially if I can get it for $700. I work at an educational institution, so I might give that a try.

 

[hsv587]

In the next few weeks im getting what will be the next generation esab/tweco 211i...its the cigweld transmig 220i in australia.Its been out a couple of months here,and replaced the transmig 200i,which is the same as the thermal arc/tweco/esab 211i welders...the new one has a little more grunt,and im hoping the TIG gas inlet has been moved to the back of the welder.

 

[e9999]

ah, interesting, I knew of ESAB as a company that seems fairly popular in Europe. I had seen quite a few of their stuff on Youtube welding vids shot in Europe and I had sort of assumed it was OK but really didn't know much about it. Little did I know. A quick perusal on wiki showed them saying that ESAB is the largest manufacturer of welding products in the world. Goes to show it it's not all about Miller and Lincoln...
So what's the quality of their stuff overall?

 

[Pin_Head]

ESAB is big, but they have primarily been a player in the industrial welding area in the US. They bought out the Linde welding division of Union Carbide in 1987 and later on they acquired the Victor and Tweco brands. They got into the home / farm / small shop area about 5 years ago with the introduction of the Thermal Arc Fabricator inverter multiprocess series. These are "globally sourced" and assembled in China like an increasing number of their competition. They also make welders and components in Sweden, Italy and Florence South Carolina. From what I can tell, they have a decent record of reliability and come with a 3 year warranty. ESAB was acquired by Colfax Inc in 2012, so now it is officially an American Company. Red, yellow and blue.

 

[TRAIL TAILOR]

I was given a 211i and a consumables pack a couple months by my LWS. They gave a couple to local shops to tryout.

I've used it for about 10 minutes since I got it. No real feedback yet... I do like that it is a 115/230 machine and it might turn into a fair light duty fab welder.

I'm extremely partial to my other multi-process Miller.

J

 

[hsv587]

This is the new Australian spec unit,its 240v.theres more specs on the website.The new models that have been released this year have the dual cigweld/esab branding.Im just waiting on getting my tax return,and ill have one of these puppys next to my welding table

 

[Pin_Head]

Free is an even better deal!

The only significant difference in the US and AUS models that I noticed is that the US ones use the Tweco #4 MIG gun socket, while the OZ version uses a Euro plug. You can use a lot of different MIG guns with the Tweco #4 plug without an adaptor.

 

[Weber Sarge]

I still love my '07 Miller Dynasty 200DX , but totally wanting to upgrade to the newer 280DX and different waveforms/software adaptability . Wish I were closer, I'd snatch up the Idealarc in a heartbeat .
Sarge

 

[TRAIL TAILOR]

Free is an even better deal!

The only significant difference in the US and AUS models that I noticed is that the US ones use the Tweco #4 MIG gun socket, while the OZ version uses a Euro plug. You can use a lot of different MIG guns with the Tweco #4 plug without an adaptor.

I wasn't going to pass up a free machine. Figure it'll be a decent tack up machine if nothing else.

 

[ryanwk628]

Looking at getting a small MIG set up for home and was all settled on the new Miller 211. If I need to do anything big Ill do it at work where we have other toys like a waterjet . My shop (rail maintenance equipment OEM) runs all Miller equipment so I wanted to stick with that brand and several of the guys recommended this new machine. I used the one it replaced and loved it. Id run it on a bottle set up. There is a rebate available. Its dual voltage and portable....

Then I see online Miller is coming out with the new 215. Seems like the 211 plus you can TIG with it. Anyone know anything about this? Is it worth waiting for or its gimmicky and don't spend the extra money.



Side note - Camburg is a website I used to drool over when I owned a Taco, though I knew I couldnt justify buying it. In my broke college days.

 

[Tapage]

Finally .. !!! damn now I need to put my 211 on sale to buy this one ..

 

[KLF]

I finally took the new Tweco 211i out of the box, hooked it up, and ran a few beads with it the other day. Very nice machine! I am impressed with the overall build quality, especially on the inside with the feed roller mechanism.

I do have to say it's not as easy to use as my Autoset 211, but it's a minor thing to open the cover, look up the proper settings for the voltage, wire size, and steel thickness. The Miller makes this very easy by just setting the wire diameter and thickness on the 2 knobs and it does the rest.

Overall I'm pretty pleased with the Tweco so far, I have a few small projects coming up that I can give it a try with.

 

[Weber Sarge]

I've ran a couple of the multi-process welders and they all work fine . There is a trade off - to be able to do the different process a lot of the "finer" settings and adjustments are not available . Maybe someday someone will really take the plunge and make a true all-in-one machine . I've asked Miller more than once to make a reliable ac/dc cc/cv unit that can handle at least 250 amps and make a simple system to add each process for mig,tig and stick with full range adjustable settings . Miller's current multiprocess units are fine , but just be aware when it comes to finer work they are not made for adjustments like hot start , preflow , dig ect - just general setups .

Honestly, if you are wanting more than just a mig machine and do some tig look around and pick up a small dc only Maxstar - they get dumped on the net a lot when folks upgrade to an ac/dc machine like the Dynasty series . Otherwise, go find an older tombstone Lincoln Dyna and learn to run scratch-start - they are dead smooth and with the fine adjustments they can do amazing work .

Sarge

 

[98 SNAKE EATER]

Once you go tig, you won't want to weld any other way

I picked up this gem on CL a while back for only a grand

It was only a few weeks old, barely used, still under factory warranty for the next 3 years and came with cart, bottle, and a sh!t ton of consumables

I hardly ever use my mig rigs anymore unless I'm in a rush or welding in a tight space overhead

Currently looking for an inverter rig for home use

Been debating between Lincoln's Square Wave Tig 200 and AHP's Alphatig 200x

 

[Pin_Head]

Once you go tig, you won't want to weld any other way

I'm kind of thinking the opposite. The more different ways you have to join metal the better. While I appreciated the ability of my Heliarc to weld aluminum and many other kind of metals and the fine control it has for welding some steel parts, the deposition rate is very slow compared to stick and MIG processes. I have very little experience with MIG, but I am impressed with its ability to produce high quality welds rapidly.

 

[KLF]

Another welder I want you get rid of:

Is it worth anything?

 

[TRAIL TAILOR]

They range from 50-125$ at the pawn shops and CL.

Good little AC machine. Like the Lincoln 225 Tombstone they are/were a nice light duty machine.

The new Thunderbolt XL is around 450$ new. I saw one at the LWS this week and it brought back old memories from the ranch.

J