$89 welder

[rok-the-boat]

Saw an $89 Welder in the Warehouse today. Anyone buy one? Do they actually work? How good are they?

[doc]

Saw an $89 Welder in the Warehouse today. Anyone buy one? Do they actually work? How good are they?Two rods and the thermal cutout cuts in and thats just welding tinfoil. Save your money and get semi pro stuff betta in longrun.

[Shadows]

You get what you pay for.

[degrom]

Saw an $89 Welder in the Warehouse today. Anyone buy one? Do they actually work? How good are they?

Mmmm.... Cheap welder's can sort of go but if you buy shitty welding rod's not even a good welder is going to help you out!!!

I bought a Bunning's $100 Welder and it's fine. Depends on what you want to do.... (I bought BOC welding rods and they work like a charm.. I think they were called Easy-Weld...)

If you want to weld on your bike it's going to be not so good. (Arc ain't the nices looking weld's around!!!)

[Henk]

I have a baby MIG that I hardly ever use, bought second hand for $300. I was tempted by an ARC TIG caddy at field days last year for $1000 but didn't bother. Was a nice piece of equipment though. Biggest hassle is paying the rental on gas botles. Suspect you'd be better off hiring a welder rather than buying a $100 job.

[degrom]

I have a baby MIG that I hardly ever use, bought second hand for $300. I was tempted by an ARC TIG caddy at field days last year for $1000 but didn't bother. Was a nice piece of equipment though. Biggest hassle is paying the rental on gas botles. Suspect you'd be better off hiring a welder rather than buying a $100 job.

Now you are talking!!!

If you are going to use it a lot... Buy the expencive one. If you don't know, rent one and try it first... :)

[JMemonic]

You get what you pay for, look at the duty cycle of the welder it measured in a percentage of 10 minutes, and at a certain current rating.

I have a very cheap mma (stick) welder here, 25% @ 47 amps which is 2.5 minutes using a 1.6mm rod, fine for light work but come time to use 3.5mm rods and forget using a complete rod once the cutout operates it takes forever to cool down enough.

If you are serious take the $100 put it on a semi decent welder with say 60% @ 130 amps and fan cooled, or one of those newer inverter units that can give 100% @ 130 amps.

[degrom]

What about the Mitech unit's?

180A Tic welder for $800 (http://www.trademe.co.nz/Business-farming-industry/Industrial/Manufacturing-metalwork/Welding/auction-86723239.htm)

They have a duty cycle of 60%....

I have also looked at the AC/DC model for TIG welding Aluminum
They are $2300 for a 200A unit... (http://www.ezitools.co.nz/products.php?func=14&DPT=p&DPI=99&S=5ead1fea905b65963a6e82425f6e087b)


You get what you pay for, look at the duty cycle of the welder it measured in a percentage of 10 minutes, and at a certain current rating.

I have a very cheap mma (stick) welder here, 25% @ 47 amps which is 2.5 minutes using a 1.6mm rod, fine for light work but come time to use 3.5mm rods and forget using a complete rod once the cutout operates it takes forever to cool down enough.

If you are serious take the $100 put it on a semi decent welder with say 60% @ 130 amps and fan cooled, or one of those newer inverter units that can give 100% @ 130 amps.

[The Pastor]

How much is the gas rental? How much is it to buy a bottle and refill it?

[degrom]

How much is the gas rental? How much is it to buy a bottle and refill it?

Renting the bottle is $10 and filling it is around $60... (Can't remember if the $60 was for one or two bottles,was from BOC)

[JMemonic]

Renting the bottle is $10 and filling it is around $60... (Can't remember if the $60 was for one or two bottles,was from BOC)

Be careful there I used to rent of BOC, was around $130 per year per cylinder, and you are locked into that one cylinder size and gas type, I was using the mig on CO2 and wanted to change to argoshield and the cost was not pleasant, I would have had to have 2 bottles if I wanted to use both gases and pay the rental for a minimum period, cant remember the full details, thankfully there is an option on suppliers here. Don't go of what the folks at gas and gear tell you with regard to the rentals their info nearly got me in trouble re swapping gas types and bottle sizes, ring BOC credit and get the info from there.

[JMemonic]

What about the Mitech unit's?

180A Tic welder for $800 (http://www.trademe.co.nz/Business-farming-industry/Industrial/Manufacturing-metalwork/Welding/auction-86723239.htm)

They have a duty cycle of 60%....

I have also looked at the AC/DC model for TIG welding Aluminum
They are $2300 for a 200A unit... (http://www.ezitools.co.nz/products.php?func=14&DPT=p&DPI=99&S=5ead1fea905b65963a6e82425f6e087b)

Both look good, if you need to weld alloy then the second option is ideal, there are some units around that also act as a plasma cutter, I have yet to find someone who has used one but they claim up to 6mm steel cutting.

Any tool should be looked at as an investment and you need to think about how much use you will get out of it, 2k-3k is a lot of money if you will only use it this year and then nearly never again.

Best bet for those reading this and wondering if this kind of thing is for you, pay the money to go to your local tech and do a course (if you have not used a welder before) and then decide based on good advise and your own knowledge, as always sales pitches and pamphlets are not always going to be your best source of information, or tell you all the details.

[degrom]

Yes... It's hard to decide what to buy. I am not sure how mush I will be using it.

I am going for a Tig welding course at weltec so after it I might know what I want to do. I did a short course and it introduced me to gas welding and I loved it. I don't do it a lot but I really like the welding. Tig might just be the same...

If I think about it,welding on chopper's will mostly be mild steel so you will not really need the AC/DC Tig welder.

Thanks for your input!!! ;)


Both look good, if you need to weld alloy then the second option is ideal, there are some units around that also act as a plasma cutter, I have yet to find someone who has used one but they claim up to 6mm steel cutting.

Any tool should be looked at as an investment and you need to think about how much use you will get out of it, 2k-3k is a lot of money if you will only use it this year and then nearly never again.

Best bet for those reading this and wondering if this kind of thing is for you, pay the money to go to your local tech and do a course (if you have not used a welder before) and then decide based on good advise and your own knowledge, as always sales pitches and pamphlets are not always going to be your best source of information, or tell you all the details.

[The Pastor]

Yes... It's hard to decide what to buy. I am not sure how mush I will be using it.

I am going for a Tig welding course at weltec so after it I might know what I want to do. I did a short course and it introduced me to gas welding and I loved it. I don't do it a lot but I really like the welding. Tig might just be the same...

If I think about it,welding on chopper's will mostly be mild steel so you will not really need the AC/DC Tig welder.

Thanks for your input!!! ;)

Yeah but if you want to put some ali fittings/exhaust or somthing on it...

[degrom]

I know.... But if I think of every thing that might happen then I will never start.

At the moment I need to get a tube bender going,tube notcher and frame jig.Luckily by the time I have made the most of those tools I will have saved enough money to buy the welder I need for the frames.

Then the Sheet metal work starts and the paint... :gob:


Yeah but if you want to put some ali fittings/exhaust or somthing on it...

[Motu]

Be careful there I used to rent of BOC, was around $130 per year per cylinder, and you are locked into that one cylinder size and gas type, .

I had no problem changing bottle sizes a few years ago,I got rid of my big bottles as we don't use gas much anymore and use smaller bottles.The rental system sucks if you don't use the gear much....there are a couple of places that will fill any bottle so long as the test date is current.No problem changing between CO2 and argoshield either.

[JMemonic]

I had no problem changing bottle sizes a few years ago,I got rid of my big bottles as we don't use gas much anymore and use smaller bottles.The rental system sucks if you don't use the gear much....there are a couple of places that will fill any bottle so long as the test date is current.No problem changing between CO2 and argoshield either.

Yeah I thought the same until I got a bill for 2 different bottle sizes for the same gas, I went from a D to an E about this time last year, I stand by the ring up BOC credit and get the info, also as if folks did not know this take a note of the name of the person you spoke to and the date, it saves a lot of time on subsequent phone calls when you have this info.

[ManDownUnder]

Stick welder? Hit Trademe and save a serach for "Youngs" in the welding sections.

They're old, heavy as hell - and generally bulletproof....

[JMemonic]

Stick welder? Hit Trademe and save a serach for "Youngs" in the welding sections.

They're old, heavy as hell - and generally bulletproof....

Shh I am after one and the seem to be like rocking horse nuggets:innocent:

[Ixion]

Model 'C' used to be negoitiable currency north of the Brynderwyns.

[geoffm]

Warehouse welder - it is overpriced and to light for an anchor. THermal cutout will go off every time you use it fo rmore than a quick tack, and they don't have enough current and open circuit voltage to do a decent job. Stick welders are simple and have few moving parts- buy second hand with confidence. Look for 160A+ IMO. Anything less is to light for any sized work, and will be very frustrating. If in doubt, buy by weight...
I sold my Youngs Model C for $100 a couple of years back - I should have asked for a bit more. The 3ph monster that replaced it is much better, but that is because it runs 60 VOC not 24VOC so there is more penetration at the same current. The heavier transformer also makes the arc much nicer.
My Father in law has a fan cooled 160A welder (new for $350 I think) which works well. The fan makes a big difference to the duty cycle, and if you get a cheap welder you could add a computer fan to it.
Stick welding is limited use for most bike work where TIG, MIG or oxy is better suited.
Geoff

[Edbear]

Saw an $89 Welder in the Warehouse today. Anyone buy one? Do they actually work? How good are they?



Pretty much agree with what everyone's said. If you are interested in new, PM me, we've got a good Arc/Mig combo unit at a good price.