Lincoln AC- 225 AC vs Hobart AC-205

[n2666s]

tough choice and need some input; have an option to purchase a lovely USED Lincoln AC-225 or a new Hobart AC 205; have never used either one and cannot try them before purchasing; need a stick welder to back up my mig and gas BUT am ignorant and need help on which one might be the "better" option as they both seem to spec out pretty close.........personally tend to lean towards the used Lincoln ........TIA

Lou

 

[fj40charles]

I'd skip both of them. Stick welding with AC is not very desirable. I'd get a DC stick welder.

 

[n2666s]

Darn....and I have always loved the AC-225 since I was a kid............well will have to rethink things........thanks again fj40charles

Lou

 

[n2666s]

rethinking things to a stick welder with DC ability.......... any recommends between the Miller 225 Thunderbolt AC/DC stick welder vs the Lincoln AC/DC 225?........ TIA

Lou

 

[n2666s]

OK, this the deal am looking at;a used Miller 225 AC/DC Thunderbolt arc welder with 2 years use at around 400 from a private person or a NIB Lincoln AC/DC 225........at $434.13 + 9% tax at HD; 70 $ is a significant amount .....need some guidance on these as have not experience with a stick, only small amount OA and a bit more with mig.......TIA

Lou

 

[fj40charles]

OK, this the deal am looking at;a used Miller 225 AC/DC Thunderbolt arc welder with 2 years use at around 400 from a private person or a NIB Lincoln AC/DC 225........at $434.13 + 9% tax at HD; 70 $ is a significant amount .....need some guidance on these as have not experience with a stick, only small amount OA and a bit more with mig.......TIA

Lou

Lou,

Thunderbolt IMHO is too expensive. This should sell used for around $200 - 250. Does it come with any leads?

Charles

 

[n2666s]

Charles; it comes with 12 foot leads.........cost is 300$ BUT the freight/shipping is going to be around 105$TIA

Lou

 

[fj40charles]

Charles; it comes with 12 foot leads.........cost is 300$ BUT the freight/shipping is going to be around 105$TIA

Lou

I'm not sure if it is worth it. When you start getting near the $400 price range, you might want to consider a used Miller CST 250 instead.

 

[n2666s]

Charles; PM sent
Lou

 

[Pin_Head]

You can do some serious welding with an AC buzz box and they are pretty easy to buy and sell at about $100 used. Having said that, the only thing I weld with AC is aluminum because I don't have to.

 

[n2666s]

think I have a buy on a Miller CST 280; keeping my fingers crossed...the 250CST was gone before the owner was able to get me the serial numbers?

Lou

 

[fj40charles]

think I have a buy on a Miller CST 280; keeping my fingers crossed...the 250CST was gone before the owner was able to get me the serial numbers?

Lou

Even Better.

 

[n2666s]

OK;what questions do I need to ask? and what do I need to look for?....it comes with a tig set up also that I know nothing about to make things worse........... know next to nothing about Arc welding and am amazed again at the ability of members here on the forum like Pinhead who can weld aluminum with a stick.............one of my failures in shop many years ago was trying to weld Aluminum with OA...mig was easy for me but the other stuff TIA

Lou

 

[fj40charles]

OK;what questions do I need to ask? and what do I need to look for?....it comes with a tig set up also that I know nothing about to make things worse........... know next to nothing about Arc welding and am amazed again at the ability of members here on the forum like Pinhead who can weld aluminum with a stick.............one of my failures in shop many years ago was trying to weld Aluminum with OA...mig was easy for me but the other stuff TIA

Lou

Lou,

Check serial # and stock # of the unit to make sure it is not stolen and IF there is any warranty left. Make sure it has the proper input voltage that will work for you.

CST 280 is an DC only machine. This means you can tig weld steel with it and stick weld with it. DC is generally not used to tig aluminum these days so I would keep that in mind if you plan on tigging aluminum.

What is your plan for this welder? Or put another way, what are you wanting to do besides have a DC backup stick/tig welder?
BTW, DC stick welding with an inverter based power supply is VERY VERY VERY VERY NICE. Did I say NICE?????


Charles

 

[n2666s]

Thanks for the advice; got the serial and stock numbers; will check with miller in the morning and make sure it is not "hot"

Lou