Differences in MIG,TIG and Flux welders - contemplating learning to weld

[Keith Outten]

Mig, Tig and Stick welding from one small machine. $1,958.00
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[Ryan Mooney]

Mig, Tig and Stick welding from one small machine. $1,958.00
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Keith, that link didn't work for me, but I think this is what you were linking to? http://www.millerwelds.com/landing/multimatic/

That's a sweet machine although I think the TIG kit adds another ~$400 if I'm reading it correctly, but there is a 15% rebate on miller equipment right now so that would get you back into the ballpark. Luckily I'm not a good enough welder to justify a new machine

[Dan Hintz]

Would you guys stop posting this stuff! I'm trying to save money for bigger toys...

[Scott T Smith]

Keith, that link didn't work for me, but I think this is what you were linking to? http://www.millerwelds.com/landing/multimatic/

That's a sweet machine although I think the TIG kit adds another ~$400 if I'm reading it correctly, but there is a 15% rebate on miller equipment right now so that would get you back into the ballpark. Luckily I'm not a good enough welder to justify a new machine

That's a pretty sweet machine! With the optional TIG kit, it would do everything that a home user would need.

[Scott T Smith]

My apologies. It has been a few decades since I did anything with oxy-acetylene. As Ray inferred, I was thinking of brazing with dipping the welding rod in the flux crystals. Could picture using the torch and dipping my rod in the old coffee can of flux - but got mixed up on what I was actually doing.

<grin> Your comment about the "old coffee can of flux" brought back some memories!

[Keith Outten]

Ryan, sorry about the link I guess it is too long for vBulletin. In order to qualify for the 15% rebate you have to purchase at least $150.00 in accessories, the tig torch kit qualifies.

That's a pretty sweet machine! With the optional TIG kit, it would do everything that a home user would need.

Scott, I ordered the Multimatic 200 with the Tig kit. I am scheduled to pick it up Wednesday A little gloat there I guess but its part of a shop machine upgrade that I have been working on for several months. Three weeks ago I purchased a Miller Extreme 625 plasma torch and two new Baileigh metal working machines for my shop in an effort to upgrade the sign hanger side of things.

Roger, I started welding using a very old Miller Thunderbolt AC buzz box stick welder. My Dad bought it over 30 years ago for 50 bucks used and I gave him 50 bucks for it about 20 years ago. The welder has a copper transformer and it takes two men to lift it but it is still in my shop and it works fine for a buzz box. I had a Hobart Handler 140 mig welder, sold it three days ago when I decided to purchase the new Miller Multimatic 200. Years ago almost everyone started welding using stick welders but I expect most people today start with mig machines.
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[Thomas Bank]

<grin> Your comment about the "old coffee can of flux" brought back some memories!

I can't say I've ever seen brazing flux in anything BUT an old coffee can...

[David G Baker]

When I was using oxy Acetylene for brazing if I ran out of brazing rod I would switch to coper electrical wire and it worked fine for light fastening. When I ran out of steel rod I would go to the closet and grab a hangar. I didn't use the gas welder too much because it got stolen and I bought a stick welder to replace it and eventually bought a MIG outfit. I wish I had bought a 220 MIG set up instead of a 120 volt unit. I have never used TIG but I worked around it and loved the neat little weld that it made on stainless steel.

[John Aspinall]

Lots of good advice here, Roger.

Let me just emphasize one point mentioned above, but you may miss it in the flood of info: get an auto-darkening helmet. Especially when you're starting out, the ability to go from looking at your work in daylight, to looking (safely!) at the arc in fractions of a millisecond, is a huge help. No head nodding, no poking around blind.

[Eric DeSilva]

The one other observation that I'd make is to check your power options. I looked at TIG, and the problem was that for the range of metal thicknesses I was looking at, the TIG machines were considerably more expensive and required significantly more amperage than the MIG machines. I ran a 60A circuit to my garage for the MIG I've got--I think I would have needed 90A for the TIG.

[Scott T Smith]

Ryan, sorry about the link I guess it is too long for vBulletin. In order to qualify for the 15% rebate you have to purchase at least $150.00 in accessories, the tig torch kit qualifies.



Scott, I ordered the Multimatic 200 with the Tig kit. I am scheduled to pick it up Wednesday A little gloat there I guess but its part of a shop machine upgrade that I have been working on for several months. Three weeks ago I purchased a Miller Extreme 625 plasma torch and two new Baileigh metal working machines for my shop in an effort to upgrade the sign hanger side of things.

Roger, I started welding using a very old Miller Thunderbolt AC buzz box stick welder. My Dad bought it over 30 years ago for 50 bucks used and I gave him 50 bucks for it about 20 years ago. The welder has a copper transformer and it takes two men to lift it but it is still in my shop and it works fine for a buzz box. I had a Hobart Handler 140 mig welder, sold it three days ago when I decided to purchase the new Miller Multimatic 200. Years ago almost everyone started welding using stick welders but I expect most people today start with mig machines.
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Sweet! We expect some tool reviews in the near future. I have a Miller plasma torch and really like it. The only thing that I wish that I'd gotten with it was the curved head for torching out welds. I use a carbon arc torch for that but the plasma would be much nicer (and quieter).

I still have my old Miller Thunderbolt AC/DC buzz box - it gets used about once a month (more often if I don't want to pull the Trailblazer Pro down from the barn). I think that mine has the aluminum transformer though.

[George Carlson]

You're probably getting tied of all this advice, but here's mine anyway. My advice to someone who wants to learn about welding is to buy an Oxy-Acetylene rig. With the gas rig you can weld, braze, silver solder, heat things and bend them, and cut steel. Since the heat and fillet material are fed seperately, you have a lot of control. You can even weld aluminum with practice. I do a lot of TIG welding, mostly aluminum, so I'm a little biased toward the torch and rod method. The nastest welder I ever used was a flux-core 110V job. Those are awful. But sometimes they even have a use.

[William M Johnson]

In another life I was a certified welder. I currently own a Lincoln Square Wave TIG, Miller 211 MIG, Hypertherm Plasma and an Oxy Actelylene rig. When it comes time for the bill collector to haul everything off the Oxy Acetelyene rig will be the last to go. The mig will be the first. MIG is the easiest to do poorly and the hardest to do well. It is best used in a production shop where the setting don't change and relatively thick steel. Oxy can do anything including aluminum and cutting.

[George Carlson]

In another life I was a certified welder. I currently own a Lincoln Square Wave TIG, Miller 211 MIG, Hypertherm Plasma and an Oxy Actelylene rig. When it comes time for the bill collector to haul everything off the Oxy Acetelyene rig will be the last to go. The mig will be the first. MIG is the easiest to do poorly and the hardest to do well. It is best used in a production shop where the setting don't change and relatively thick steel. Oxy can do anything including aluminum and cutting.

Amen I haven't used my MIG in years. Everything gets done on TIG (I have an Aerowave, wonderful machine), or gas. In fact I just sold my MIG to a bodyshop. They like to use a MIG to make those crappy little stitch welds they cover with Bondo.

[Keith Outten]

I have been working around welders most of my life starting with nuclear pipe welders when I was young. When we were building nuclear power plants in those days it was extremely rare to see anyone using a Mig welder. I would guess that 99% of the welding was either Tig, Stick or a combination of the two for pipe welding. Structural welders rarely used Mig but that was probably because these were very large construction projects because I know Newport New Shipbuilding does use Mig welding in the shops frequently. They also used a lot of sub-arc for carrier decks in those days, I expect they still do but I have been away from the yard a long time.

For home welding I have always felt that stick welding was the best way to go, its not too difficult to learn and the weld quality is usually pretty good for round the house projects and farm stuff. It does seem that these days people who are just starting up prefer to purchase Mig machines although I'm not sure why.

I started my career as a Non Destructive Testing Inspector so I know a good weld when I see one. The truth is if I was welding professionally I would reject 95% of the welds that I make I have found over the years that welding for myself and my shop projects my welds are fine but I would never weld on a trailer hitch for someone or anything that was pressure boundary related. I build farm implements, tables and a host of other stuf like wrought iron hangers and such so the quality of my welding work doesn't have to meet any code related specifications.