blue edge Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 I have a Miller 250 (220 volt) love it ! I used to round track race and it was great for that, It helped me to a track championship in 1995 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 Biggest difference in the 110 v 220 machines is duty cycle. Having a 20% duty cyle means you can only use in 20% of the time. Try welding 18" of filet weld and having the machine stop on you is annoying as all get out. But yes, if you can't get heavery power, then it is a burden you must bear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schmitz Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 Overhere we use 380V (3-fase) weldingmachines, they perform well. I don't know if 380V is available in USA. Warpspeed, Mettalit, Bielefeld Germany sells perfect wire to weld on old metal in 0.8 mm used in automotive and sheet. Grz, Henny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IPSCDRL Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 Yep, I come from a long line of welders. My father helped build most of the power plants in the northeast US. My oldest brother dropped a Lincoln and a set of Oxy-acetlyne torches into a pickup truck the day after he finished high school and started his own business. Dad taught me and my three brothers how to weld and we have all made a living from it at some point in our lives. I used to put up structural steel (buildings) and do a lot of heavy equipment repair. Somewhere between lying under a bulldozer with sparks running down my collar and walking an eight inch beam a couple of stories up with a hundred feet of cable looped over my shoulder, I realized that there HAD to be a better way to make a living. Now I drive a desk and teach computers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 http://store.cyberweld.com/millermatic175.html How would this thing work for welding up steel plates and "thicker type" plate steel for targets and stands? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFD Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 I use mainly Miller at work, although I'll occasionally use ESAB if I have to. At home I have a little 110 flux core Century that works quite well. Of course it's crap compared to a gas mig welder, but it will get the job done if you know what you're doing and are very patient. I pretty much limit myself to nothing thicker than 1/4", with most of my welding being 11 - 16 GA tube. I get 10 lb spools of wire free, as well as the steel, so it's a great way to add props for the club and/or myself. I've welded swingers, floppers, plate stands, clay pigeon holders, a running man apparatus, a hand cart/trailer for setting up stages, and who knows what else around the house. If I do have a heavy job, then I just take it to work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimel Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 L2S: Yep, that one will work. Be careful when you go get the gas cylinder. Everyone will want to sell you a nice, shiny, new cylinder. You may not want to go that way. Basically, there are 3 ways to go. YMMV according to regional differances. 1) Buy a cylinder and just have the welding gas supplier fill it. This generally isn't a "While you wait" type thing but more of a "come pick it up in a week" thing. This sucks when you are out of gas half way through a project. When your cylinder goes "out of hydro" then you get to either buy a new cylinder or pay for a hydro check which isn't exactly cheap but not horrible. There is a date code stamped on the cylinder and a supplier generally will not fill a cylinder that is past its hydro date. 2) Buy a cylinder and just hand it over in exchange for a full cylinder. You will probably never see "your" cylinder again. Don't go buy a new cylinder if you are going to do this! Just go to the gas supplier and "buy in". You just pay for the gas this way and you will eventually forget what you paid for the cylinder. This also means that when you run out of gas you just go trade the empty for a full one and a bit of cash and you are off and running again. The company that you buy from takes the hit on the hydrocheck. Some companies don't give a damn if the cylinder you bring in has their sticker on it or not, some do and will charge you a small fee to take the competitor's cylinder. 3) Rent a cylinder. Fees can be a killer here but it is the lowest initial outlay method. The fun part is that you get to pay the rent when you want a full cylinder and if you have had that cylinder for a couple years the outlay can be killer. Not all gas suppliers did this even 20 years ago and it is quite possible that it is no longer available. The only gas I use any more is for pushing homebrew out the tap (CO2 usually) and I went with option #2. Hope that helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 L2S, That is a great machine. I've got the 135 - it runs on 110 instead of 220 but can use gas as well as fluxcore. I've only ever run flux core. And yes, cyls are a pain in the backside. They are the Cash Cow of the industrial gas business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 So, the consensus is that if one bought the Miller L2S listed or an equivalent Lincoln/Hobart/Insert Brand Name here with infinitely variable voltage, that one would have a suitable machine for general purposes? Would you feel comfortable with getting strong welds in up to 3/8" mild steel with such a machine? I have no problems with stick welding, but would prefer wire feed for versatility. But if all my structural welds snap, there isn't much of a point.. Hmm..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 L2S,That is a great machine. I've got the 135 - it runs on 110 instead of 220 but can use gas as well as fluxcore. I've only ever run flux core. And yes, cyls are a pain in the backside. They are the Cash Cow of the industrial gas business. Thanks for all the input, I've already wired for 220 for my ancient stick welder, but I hate cleaning the welds, so I was thinking about getting the wire with gas. Would the 220 be better to get than the 110? The price seems pretty good if it can weld the thicker stuff too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 L2S, Definatley get the 220 machine over the 110. I got the 110 so I could take it anywhere and plug in. If it were a dedicated machine for home, 220 would be the trick. Eric. I would not worry about the welds snaping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted July 16, 2004 Share Posted July 16, 2004 Just got back from Norco. For anyone with a Norco in their area, they're having a sale that ends tomorrow and it is seriously a smoking deal: Miller 175: $605 out the door Complete Miller 175 setup with Gas bottle, Cart, and Welder: $745. If you can swing it, the Miller is the way to fly. The feed mechanism is drastically better than the Lincoln. All metal in the Miller versus plastic. The Hobart has the same guts as the Lincoln, but has a voltage control with only 4 steps IIRC. Miller is infinitely adjustable and has nicer short circuit and overload protection features than the other welders. To my uneducated mind, the Miller 175 looks like THE do-all welder for the average person who can only justify buying one welder. Also, for farm / range equipment welding there are other fluxed-type wires available that behave similarly to the farm rods Kimel talked about. So, I probably don't have to worry too much about weld quality when I tear the tractor down and reweld the snowplow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted July 29, 2004 Share Posted July 29, 2004 Thanks guys!!! I went with a Lincoln 3300 (I think, I'm bad with stuff like that) setup, 110 w-gas and it rocks!!! It work great on the thick stuff even, and I figured I'de go with the 110 so I could take it to the range in case we need to repair stuff there. It is so much cleaner and easier and for 1k I got totally set up with MIG/gas/torches and tanks. Now I'll have something to do this winter when it is dark and cold Funky new targets here I come!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Tactical Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 I use a Miller 251 XL in my daily production. With argon co2 mix shield gas the weld quality is GREAT. The new electronics in these machines boost the performance and quality to a new level!! Consistant penatration and strenght is a must for my target system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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