Learning to weld & equipment

My 90 needs some work , i knew that before i bought it .

id like to do at least some of it my self - i have 1 month off work to learn and repair the worst of the bits and pieces

What would you reccomend for the job , rear cross member needs a bit of a patch and the passengers footwell needs some attention !

mig or arc

I have used arc before - and gasless mig in the past - neither were my own equipment - looking to buy and accumulate my own kit now !

if it was your money what would you buy ? budget = sub 200 quid !

hi. i have both , picked up a snap on one at car boot needed new wire liner £10.00 and a ark for £20 with some bits and bobs ,
i did some work on a bench to get use to them, i like the ark nice and strong if you got the wright rods? and make a good earth.
mig for the lighter stuff floors etc.
the more you do the better your get .
good luck and think of the money your save and make?

i got both...
mig cost me £250 but its a big one as i hate the small ones,as pete says good for most welding and very good for light stuff,easy to use...

Got a small 190 amp arc gives me enough power for any chassis work i need to do but alot harder than a mig...

If you can get a half good mig then you should be ok for the floor and the chassis but with a small mig you wont touch the chassis.

If it was me and i didnt know arc very well i would go mig but get one as big as you can for your cash..

For under £200 I think he would be best off with a hand drill, a pop riveter and spend the rest on Schutz

on that budget you can get pretty good MIG.

I bought my MIG for 70 off ebay, its only a SIP100 but been doing the job... welding loads on my ex-disco.

but im upgrading it soon as the poor thing has to stop for a break often...

dont buy gasless MIGs they are ****e.
If you have welded with ARC before, MIG is a lot easier,.... buy an auto-darkening mask too, they are fkin brilliant, its what I use.

This has been done to death, a clarke hobby mig such as en 151 will do all you need. Avoid kende migs as sold by screwfix-total ****e.

I have a full size clarke 205te and for money hard to beat. Otherwise your into ESAB OR similar money

[JP];1314349 said:

on that budget you can get pretty good MIG.

I bought my MIG for 70 off ebay, its only a SIP100 but been doing the job... welding loads on my ex-disco.

but im upgrading it soon as the poor thing has to stop for a break often...

dont buy gasless MIGs they are ****e.
If you have welded with ARC before, MIG is a lot easier,.... buy an auto-darkening mask too, they are fkin brilliant, its what I use.

Click to expand...

How's the gas?

lol maybe....
I got a good deal on mine for £250.
I still wouldnt waste my cash on a cheap mig.
Cheap arc is ok though...

have a look here MIG Welding - The DIY Guide

been using arc for years got a 180 amp fan cooled jobby, use either 2.5 or 3.25 rods... its about the biggest you can run off a 13 amp socket... the thicker the extension lead the better, had a 140 amp without a fan before that... used to take the cover off when using the bigger rods on rsjs and heavy angle.. eventually melted the transformer....the fan cooling is a must imho..ive never had the fan cooled one cut out on the overload.... replacing the welding leads , electrode holder and earth clamp with heavier duty ones is money well spent... it will transform a cheap arc welder.

having got a 200tdi ive recently bought a small wolf mig... its gas and gassless.... most of my welding will be done outside so ill be using it gasless most of the time.... but the kits there to go gasless if i want to weld ally or whatever. ive stuck some patches on the cills with it.. need to find the time for some more practice... but it seems to be adequate for bodywork.

fanatic said:

How's the gas?

Click to expand...

Not used it yet!

the regulator on my little SIP100 wont take the big bottles, but im going to upgrade the MIG, as I intend to build some custom roof racks, that's when the gas is going to be put to the test

As already said don't get a cheap mig better off buying good quality second hand other that ****e new, and £200 ain't gonna buy anything worth having new,

problem as i saw it was ... though i know what im doing with arc... id never used a mig... amateur migs on ebay make silly money compared to a new one which has a warrentee, having never used one i wouldnt know the difference between a used one that appears to work and one thats working properly.... i only need a mig for thin stuff , if i found i didnt get on with it a nearly new one will sell well on ebay. not having a dedicated workshop i want something small enough to carry... and its got to be gassless for working outside and able to run on a normal domestic socket.

with a £200 budget id aim for £150 on the mig and the rest on a used arc set.... if you cant arc weld maybe spend the lot on a bigger mig

possibly a stupid question... but what does the co2 actually do when welding? I was doing a bit the other day and forgot to turn it on... still welded fine. Practise really does make a difference, done qutie a bit now over the last few months and def. can tell the difference between when i started and now.

Bump said:

possibly a stupid question... but what does the co2 actually do when welding? I was doing a bit the other day and forgot to turn it on... still welded fine. Practise really does make a difference, done qutie a bit now over the last few months and def. can tell the difference between when i started and now.

Click to expand...

It removes the Oxygen from the weld pool and prevents the weld oxidising. and introducing impurities into the weld.

redhand said:

It removes the Oxygen from the weld pool and prevents the weld oxidising. and introducing impurities into the weld.

Click to expand...

Thank you

cheers guys lots of food for thought !

im inclined to agree that a fairly powerful arc and a cheaper weaker mig for the thinner panels is a good idea

i can arc on a bench - never done it vertical or over head so lots of learning needed

Any opinions on sealey welders ? was on that mig welding website suggested above and there are mixed opinions although nothing model specific - seemed to be their older stuff that was guff - the mighty mig 150 gas no gas was the one i was looking at for 150 + 25 for the gas conversion kit. No gas ability would be handy as i have no workshop at my house although i could just set up wind shields - but do have access to a workshop for big jobs.

other wise im looking at

clarke 190 ezi weld arc welder at 105 quid for the bulk of the welding and given ive used arc succesfully before it seems like a good place to start. then try and pick up a baby mig in time

does that sound like a reasonable plan

In the end I bought the Clark 151turbo managed to get it for 210.

Think it will get plenty use - certainly glad I chose to learn rather than pay - this vehicle would cost me a bomb in welding haha - just little bits and you probably wouldn't bother taking it to a garage . But if left then it will just rot to death !

Not attacked the car yet just been joinin 1mm plate on my bench

Much easier than arc welding for sure !

Cheers guys - stay tuned for my first fire !

There is a good second hand market about - from people who try it and give up! I picked up a brand new one which some guy had tried some stainless welding on his boat - for £80. That was over ten years ago! It is a mid range one (between hobby and pro) and new cost was about £300 - like I said, £80 after someone gave up. Best money I spent!

Apologies if folk are sick of commenting on this subject.

I bought a 150 amp Clarke mig years ago. I didnt use it that much, but when I did, the poxy gas bottle was always empty !.

I always ponce my bro,s welder now, as £ 8 a time for a gas cylinder is a pain !.

Is there a larger bottle you can get for these small welders ?.

Cheers

Del.