another perspective mig

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rusmannx

rusmannx

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I'm also looking for a welder and am totally new to it, but trying to educate myself. This looks close to what I need/want. Now do I understand this one does not need gas, runs solely off 220V?
 
Personally, I'd stick with the brands like Miller, Hobart, Lincoln etc. That said, if you are not going to use it often and/or for anything serious, then something like this would be ok.

Hobart is now rolling out their new HH180, so the 175 has been marked down by about another $80 for clearance. The HH does not have the same drive train as the Miller, and if you are going to use it or want it to last for a long time, then I'd stick with blue (Miller).

That said, suckass welds are more often the fault of the weldor and not the welder.

If you want to weld on your junk then 220V is almost totally mandatory.
 
yes it does really matter, if it didnt all the production shops in the country would be saving $$ buying cheap machines. that said, there are many, however subtle, differences in machines. to name a few , steel vs plastic rollers. copper vs alum windings. good liners for smooth feed, even infinate adjust controls help.
the moral of this story is simple, beginner or not if you plan to do any serious work with a welder on a regular basis, the more reputable and expensive machine will always perform better and last longer.

oh, and i dont have any personal exp with the clarke machines, however, knowing it is a british company and seeing miller and lincoln in alot of production shops in england tells me clarke is just a hobbyist quility machine. its like hobart to miller, even though hobart is a good machine it is a downgraded version of miller for the less used hobbyist garage.
 
that thing looks like the crap they label as chicago electric and sell at harbor freight. look closely and you will see. note the gun is a binzel type they tend to foul quickly and the diffusors are poorly designed. also tips and diffusers will be harder to find than say a tweco(will fit all lincol product or miller product if you know what you are looking for)
also note the voltage regulation is through three solid tabs on the front. way cheesy. even the old mm185 had more than that. personally I like using the rheostat type voltage controls as it is easier to fine tune with. I know you can adjust with wire speed as well but for beginners I think having the infinite control is a good thing.
my vote is pass on it.
Dave
 
thanks for the info guys.
that said, i'm looking at a lincoln promig 175 now.
any thoughts or opinions on that one?
 
Or look at good used welders, usually get a large mig for little money.

Make sure it has enough amps to weld the thicknesses that you might need.

pre buy out hobarts are really good, after buy out they are not worth a crap.
 
You are talking apples and oranges, okay with that said I have run that little Clarke from Italy and it does me well.

I have to say you may want to weigh out your needs, body work it is perfect on light sheetmetal with the gas. I have used a nicer machine like the Miller and yes the controls are much finer and less sensitive when making changes.

Otherwise this little machine has done me well, we have run quite a few pounds of wire through it without a hitch, when you start trying to pour out full 1/4 pass you can hear the machine cycle.

If you are doing continous fabrication on heavier coponents such as bumpers etc you may want a larger machine.
 
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