Best type of welder for a rookie

[flmont]

I have a small a mount of welding to do,...I am curious whats the best kind of welder thats Idiot proof....so to speak....Thanks Frank

[962porsche]

there is no such welder like that !
how ever your 1st welder to learn on would be best of it were not a flux core wire welder .
flux core is good for out door welding but the down side to them is the slag they leave behind .
if your looking to do body work over the welds with flux core you would have to remove every little bit of slag of it will show later on after your finished with all the body and paint work .

you can find good 110 welders at good prices . how ever the better welder you get the longer they will last .
all the adjustment for welder are about the same . wire speed , heat range and so on . so no matter what welder you but you will have to play around with welding things to learn .

[bpu699]

Definitely start with a gas mig. Pretty easy to use, though getting quality results takes lots of practice. Eastwood has some nice kits for $400 or so.

I went the other route and got a TIG first, as I kept hearing they were great for autobody. I find that the TIG is great for welding large chunks of metal, as it forms a great bond. The welds look neat too. But the metal better be surgically clean, and perfectly upright, to be able to weld it. If its just a bit dirty, contaminated, on an angle, etc...then its a complete bear to weld.

[962porsche]

most body shops don't have tig welder for many reasons .
I can't see who nor why any one would ever tell you to buy a tig welder 1st for doing body work ?
the only plus to a tig for body work is you can move the metal around after your finished welding as a tig weld is a softer less brittle weld then a mig weld .

[sballard]

I have a Millermatic 175 mig welder. It is great for general sheet metal welding as well as heavier duty work. Quite easy to learn and use.

[cebotech1]

Buy a mig. 110 or 220V it doesn't matter. The important thing is that the welder you buy is capable of welding at low amperage ( lowest heat setting somewhere around 22 or 25 amps). Stay away from a welder that uses strictly flux cored wire. Flux cored wire is too heavy and too hot for automotive sheet metal. There is a reason why none of the car makers use tig welding in fabrication nor recommend it for their collision repair programs. Tigs are great but require a lot of skill to produce good welds.
Buy a mig, use Argon/Co2 gas mix with .023" diameter wire. Get some scrap metal and practice. Remember, fit is important. You cannot weld over gaps easily.
good luck and enjoy your welding results.
By the way, there are idiot proof welders, but they are very expensive.
Bill.

[socuriouso]

I have both mig and tig in my garage. I have been welding for longer than I care to say and each has its application with regards to metal fabrication/replacement.

For the rookie, a bit of advice. Do NOT run long beads in the same area. Start out by tacking your parts together and use the "lug tightening" approach around the entire piece to be welded. Too much heat in one area will produce warping, and more devastating to the beginner, blow through. Take your time, use damp rags to keep temps from spiking or employ heat sinks around your work. A big chunk of copper works well to sink the heat and keep your beads penetrating fully without the worry of blow through.

Best of luck to you, once you get the feel and rhythm of welding, its quite satisfying going for the "roll of dimes".

[flmont]

Thanks for that Info,...Iam about to do something on a purchase,..which Rig would you buy,..knowing you wont use it but a few times,..50hrs or so,.. Thanks Frank

[3D914]

Frank,

I researched a lot of welders before graduating from my flux-core welder and chose the Longevity 140 welder. Like you I'm doing mostly body work - which means 16 to 20 gauge sheet metal. I went with this gas welder because I also wanted try welding aluminum and it has a spool gun option. This welder also goes low enough (30 arc-amps) so you can do short segments on thin metal. As others indicated, there is no substitute for practice - regardless of the welder.

Here's some links:
Longevity 140 specs
Longevity 140 product page

Good luck

[dicklague]

Originally Posted by 3D914

Frank,

I researched a lot of welders before graduating from my flux-core welder and chose the Longevity 140 welder. Like you I'm doing mostly body work - which means 16 to 20 gauge sheet metal. I went with this gas welder because I also wanted try welding aluminum and it has a spool gun option. This welder also goes low enough (30 arc-amps) so you can do short segments on thin metal. As others indicated, there is no substitute for practice - regardless of the welder.

Here's some links:
Longevity 140 specs
Longevity 140 product page

Good luck

have you tried welding aluminum? Would be interested in your results.

[tharbert]

I suggest a MIG, 110v. The MIGs rated 140 are typically the largest 110v units. Some may be dual voltage. When I was shopping, I chose the Lincoln 140 (Home Depot) for a simple reason. All the other units had graduated voltage and wire speed knobs. The Lincoln wire speed is infinitely adjustable, no detents, so you can get it just where you want. The Miller and Hobart 140's each had detents on the wire knob. That said, you can't go wrong with any of those three manufacturers.

Basic kit will come with a crappy hand held mask and a regulator with no bottle. So, right off the bat, you will need both. Get an auto-darkening hood. It's worth the money. New bottles are expensive! It makes no sense to me that you go buy a brand new bottle only to swap it out at your local welding supplies store. Watch craigslist or yard sales for a used bottle. You'll want a 94 cf bottle, typically about 40" tall. The alternative is to rent a big tank from a welding supply store, those 5' tall ~300cf monsters. One of those will give you 50 hours of welding. Then, when you're done, just return the tank.

The duty cycle of these entry level welders is about 15-20 minutes of pulling the trigger an hour. As someone mentioned above, you should be stitch welding, keeping heat to a minimum. That's perfect for these 140's. Give them and your work plenty of time to cool.

If you want quality results, just take a community college welding course. That way, you can use their materials and consumables and save wear and tear on your own unit while learning to use it. I took a MIG class and got about 60 hours of practice. It certainly helps!

Good luck!

[Cajundaddy]

I'm not much of a welder but my dad welded everything from body work and exhaust to structural steel and alloys. All I have to offer is second-hand advice.

His words roughly:

"light work and quick repair jobs- 110v Mig"
"heavier work and alloys- Big ass Tig"

YMMV

[3D914]

Originally Posted by nada_book14

I think welding of Aluminum is difficult task if we have not enough experience of welding Aluminum plates and sheets.

Not that much more difficult than other metals - just requires more knowledge and experience - just takes time.

In my experience, most 110v welders don't go low enough to do the kind of work you're wanting. Not saying there isn't one - but you'll have to dig into the details to know for sure. Every welder out there has specs for min/max arc volts - you don't have to take anyone's word for it (mine included) - verify for yourself.

Good luck