Thinking of getting a newer gas mig - is there one that has controls on the torch?

[zakthor]

I'm a terrible welder. Self taught. My goal is to get truck back on road asap, not going to pebble beach. You can look at my posts to see my awful work. I'm fine with it.

I'm butt welding patches into metal that often have some paint and rust and when I'm done theres no pinholes and its super strong. I've stopped even grinding them because I just don't care.

My mig is an 'astro mig 90' that I got on craigslist for $125 including a bottle. I upgraded to a 125 bottle.

One thing I really like is that my torch has a two step button, squeeze lightly the gas starts flowing, squeeze harder and I get wire and arc. This lets me hose an area with gas before welding, also to keep the gas going after the weld to put out fires and keep the weld away from oxygen while it cools. With whatever centrashield solid core wire I'm using the welds are nice and soft. Stopping the welds from insta-rusting makes cleanup super easy. Also I can just keep the gas going and stitch beads together about 0.75-1.5 seconds apart, really nice especially when chasing down and filling a rust patch in a footwell that I didn't see until too late.

Apparently all migs used to have valves in the torch but now they don't. I guess because good welders don't need it because they know that the most important thing is prep.

Problem is my current mig is weak and unstable, at higher settings or at lower wire speed. I tried my friends miller 211 and its just so much better to weld with, the wire doesn't hang up, the spark is always so consistent even if the metal isn't. Made me realize something is off with my device. Its so easy to weld with his machine.

But... a thing I hate about my friends miller is that I can't flow gas independently of the spark, on his machine they go on/off together and I freakin' hate it.

I've read about fancy welders that have a pre/post purge that can be programmed in but I just don't want to deal with that, I just need to give a little gas while the bead is cooling, wait until the area cools enough that the sealant won't ignite again.

I've read about all these welder innovations, pulse/etc, really these amazing new machines are digitally controlled today. With all this abstract control, why aren't there torches with wire speed control, a gas valve, etc? Id love to have a torch that let me adjust settings without de-contorting out of whatever confined space I'm in. Is this a thing? I'd love to control gas and also adjust wire speed without having to move my hands.

Seems like there ought to be a young hungry mig maker that has innovated in this area?

Whats going on? Am I just completely incompetent? Is what I'm doing so strange? Why doesn't this exist?

 

[Waorani]

I'm self taught and never used anything other than a standard torch. First was a flux core Hobart that I never could master and gave away. Second was a Millermatic 251 that I still have. Didn't take long at all to get the hang of it. Couple years ago bought a more modern Millermatic 211. Much smaller machine and even easier to use than the 251. You may be overthinking it based on experience with what I assume to be a cheap, low-end machine. Look at entry level machines from name brands like Miller, Lincoln, etc. They also make much more expensive expensive machines that can control pre/post flow, etc. But I doubt most need that kind of stuff.

 

[AirheadNut]

I'm also entirely self taught, but have been welding for a living for a couple of years now (all mig). In my experience the only time more than a fraction of a second of pre- or post-flow is necessary is when welding aluminum or stainless steel. If your workpiece is dirty enough that catching it on fire is an issue you should really be cleaning it prior to welding, simply running more gas won't help nearly as much as a moderately clean substrate. Make sure your regulator is set high enough too, usually 25-35cfh is plenty for lighter stuff on mild steel.

On many newer machines it is possible to set pre flow and post flow, pre flow isn't necessary on mild steel but a little bit of post flow doesn't hurt, just long enough to keep the puddle in the shielding gas until it isn't glowing any more. I have an older style Millermatic 211 that doesn't have that option, but have never found it to be an issue. At work I use a Millermatic 252, 215 and 255, all of which can do pre and post flow.

 

[zakthor]

I'm also entirely self taught, but have been welding for a living for a couple of years now (all mig). In my experience the only time more than a fraction of a second of pre- or post-flow is necessary is when welding aluminum or stainless steel. If your workpiece is dirty enough that catching it on fire is an issue you should really be cleaning it prior to welding, simply running more gas won't help nearly as much as a moderately clean substrate. Make sure your regulator is set high enough too, usually 25-35cfh is plenty for lighter stuff on mild steel.

On many newer machines it is possible to set pre flow and post flow, pre flow isn't necessary on mild steel but a little bit of post flow doesn't hurt, just long enough to keep the puddle in the shielding gas until it isn't glowing any more. I have an older style Millermatic 211 that doesn't have that option, but have never found it to be an issue. At work I use a Millermatic 252, 215 and 255, all of which can do pre and post flow.

I know I should clean everything better. I usually grind the edge up to an inch away. Even then some stuff gets too hot and burns, especially above a vertical joint. But it’s sometimes impossible to get good access to the back side and sometimes stuff catches fire. I guess it’s no excuse and not a good reason for a welder to double as a fire extinguisher. If I really care I can split a line after the regulator and have a separate gas dispenser.

I do feel like I get a better more consistent arc on my machine with pre flow. With my friends miller it will sputter a bit on first bead before it makes a good buzz. Post flow his machines welds are darker and harder and take scrubbing, gassing the bead until cool keeps them shiny. I wipe with isopropyl before primer but it seems lots easier to have the choice to post flow. Also I’m welding outside but try to keep wind blocked.

Still the bigger question is why there aren’t cheap machines with controls on the torch? Doesn’t that seem like an obvious feature in this age where light bulbs have Bluetooth? Once machine is digital it’s pretty easy to make a controller. I figure a big part of my getting so tired is from having to unpack myself from whereever I am to scootch the wire speed, turn anmps up and down. All that climbing in and out of a raised truck for a 1 second adjustment.

I spoke with everlast yesterday and they touted that their new Parker push pull 25 ft aluminum torch has wire control on the torch, but it’s $2k, and I understand why push pull might be difficult. So the company admits that someone thinks it’s useful but not willing to push it down into the cheap machines.

I don’t design these machines but they sure seem simple. Seems like a ripe opportunity for some hungry welder company to differentiate itself - but maybe hungry doesn’t exist and theres just no more competition now that they’re all one company. Demographic of people trying to badly weld rusty dirty sheet is just too small.

A year ago I bought a dc power supply for a project instead of using a car battery. $80 from china and its features blew me away. Fully programmable, scrolling graph of watts, amps and volts. Super nice to use and would have cost $5000 only 10 years ago. Not an ac signal generator but almost and it made my job easy (cycling through dimming points for led.) Some of that power supply innovation needs to leak over to welding machines. Yeah my astromig is old and crappy but I’m surprised how similar the new machines are.

I was sort of hoping you guys would know of a company in Asia that’s mass producing the goofy thing I want.

Edit:

Ok I just searched and miller has ArcReach. Sarcasm on: Super innovative, etc. Just apparently that sort of extremely advanced technology comes at a premium price.

Remote Control Welding With ArcReach: Elevating Productivity, Quality and Safety | MillerWelds

Integrating Miller ArcReach technology into your fleet can transform your welding operations and enhance welding workplace safety. Learn more!

www.millerwelds.com

At least they’re doing it. I wouldn’t call it innovation it obvious. Now sell it to me cheap.

EDIT #2:

Just found the ArcCaptain 205 Pro. It has bluetooth and an app to control all settings. This is the sort of thing I'm looking for but I'd still prefer tactile controls on the torch. Can't really use my phone with welding gear on.

Arccaptain MIG205MP All-in-One Machine | Welder and Cutter Combo

Arccaptain MIG205MP All-in-One Welder and Cutter featuring multi-process capabilities, app control, real-time parameter adjustments, dual voltage compatibility. Perfect for both beginners and professionals.

www.arccaptain.com

Would be pretty sweet to have a plasma cutter.