110 or 220, your opinion please??

[Unoman]

LOVE my lincoln 110v. Put a downey p/s conversion in 9 years ago and is still in great shape. I'm locked with 37 baja claws. I would put the largest diameter fittings and hoses you can get for the saginaw box. It really makes a difference. Power steering is the BEST thing I have ever done to my cruiser. Good choice.

He's got a Lincoln 100v 3500 HD.....for what it's worth. The lid of the welder says it can safely do 1/4" thickness, but still not going to chance it. We'll use it for tube fenders, sliders, rear swing out....stuff like that.

Yeah, I can't wait to drive the 40 with PS. It is going to be a completely new ride especially with the amount of slop I had in the stock steering.

 

[rusty_tlc]

110v welder will work fine with 1/8" thick steel. I don't believe it will penetrate it 100% like the poster said.
I have a problem with people who think having welding experience will allow them to weld any thickness with a 110v welder.

Why can't you weld thicker material?
I've welded thicker by making a v cut and three or more passes. Basically multiple 1/8 deep welds. Since I have very little faith in my welding ability I made a test weld then cross sectioned it. You couldn't tell that the result wasn't a solid piece of metal.
I see no reason you couldn't weld material of any thickness with this method. Consider the welds they use to repair heavy equipment, those guys weld proportionately* much thicker materiel with many passes. * I realize they are using truck mounted 220V units but the materials they weld are measured in inches not fractions of inches so it's a good comparison.

 

[AKcruiserfreak]

Why can't you weld thicker material?
I've welded thicker by making a v cut and three or more passes. Basically multiple 1/8 deep welds. Since I have very little faith in my welding ability I made a test weld then cross sectioned it. You couldn't tell that the result wasn't a solid piece of metal.
I see no reason you couldn't weld material of any thickness with this method. Consider the welds they use to repair heavy equipment, those guys weld proportionately* much thicker materiel with many passes. * I realize they are using truck mounted 220V units but the materials they weld are measured in inches not fractions of inches so it's a good comparison.

Very true and I couldn't agree more. I've seen some crazy welding up here on heavy equipment. Imagine trying to pre-heat a 2" thick dozer blade to weld on. Multiple passes are mandatory. Anything is doable as long as you have skills, and spend some time prepping the material. That being said, even some good 230v mig welders have a hard time with the little stuff like 24 gauge. I know my little 110v Miller will come close to fully penetrating 1/8" mild steel in one pass, however I always use multiple passes with 1/8". I don't think that anyone is arguing that 110v is better than 230v for thicker stuff, but saying that a 110v can't weld 1/8" is just silly.

TK

 

[fj40charles]

Why can't you weld thicker material?
I've welded thicker by making a v cut and three or more passes. Basically multiple 1/8 deep welds. Since I have very little faith in my welding ability I made a test weld then cross sectioned it. You couldn't tell that the result wasn't a solid piece of metal.
I see no reason you couldn't weld material of any thickness with this method. Consider the welds they use to repair heavy equipment, those guys weld proportionately* much thicker materiel with many passes. * I realize they are using truck mounted 220V units but the materials they weld are measured in inches not fractions of inches so it's a good comparison.

Didn't say it can't weld thicker metal. Don't think it would fully penetrate 1/8" steel in single pass. Try welding a bead on 1/8" flat stock and see how much penetration you get. I'm betting they don't use little 110v wire feeders to repair heavy equipment. If the 110v welders work so well and does everthying a 230v welder will do, but only slower, why would they not use it on heavy equipment repairs?
I guess you could take a 110v welder and make a 100 pass weld?

The problem I have is when people think they can weld 1/4" to 1/2" thick steel in a single pass without any metal prep like beveling or pre-heating with their 110v welder.

I don't see why a good 230v wire feeder would have any issues with 24 gauge sheet as long as you had low enough voltage range and proper size wire to weld with. I would not want to try 24 gauge sheet on a 250 amp welder with just 7 voltage taps.

 

[fj40charles]

I don't think that anyone is arguing that 110v is better than 230v for thicker stuff, but saying that a 110v can't weld 1/8" is just silly.

TK

Never said it would not weld 1/8". I stated that is probably would not fully penetrate 1/8" in a single pass. Realistic limit of 110v wire feeder welder using solid wire, single pass, no metal prep, and no preheat is 1/8".

 

[rusty_tlc]

... If the 110v welders work so well and does everthying a 230v welder will do, but only slower, why would they not use it on heavy equipment repairs?
I guess you could take a 110v welder and make a 100 pass weld?

The problem I have is when people think they can weld 1/4" to 1/2" thick steel in a single pass without any metal prep like beveling or pre-heating with their 110v welder.
...

Did you actually read what I said?

 

[fj40charles]

Did you actually read what I said?

Yes, but I don't believe the part where you say you can weld metal of any thickness.

 

[Splangy]

Doesn't matter..

He is using a wire feed welder. That's like using a scratch start tig setup on a AC/DC stick welder and calling it SMAW.

Also, the polarity of the welder itself is set up different for MIG vs FCAW.

Mig is a process, not a machine.

I was pointing out that we all knew what he was talking about, regardless of whether or not he chose the correct words to describe it.