Tim240z Posted May 9, 2002 Share Posted May 9, 2002 It is a factory serviced unit, but still a really good price. I bought one (also factory recon) a couple of years ago (very similar to this one, but 230V instead of 110V) and am very happy with it. Here's the details...$199 Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted May 10, 2002 Author Share Posted May 10, 2002 RX, Yes I am using FC WIRE.The penetration is excellent,esp. welding with high amps on thick materials. I have to be careful and really take my time on the really thin stuff (like the roof line when I cut off the drip rails). I have been very happy with it,esp for the $$$ (I paid a little less than $300). Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted May 10, 2002 Share Posted May 10, 2002 You can get mig welders on ebay that do 85 amps for cheaper than that. You can get 135 amp ones on there for about $400 The Lincoln 135amp claims to be able to do 1/4" steel in a single pass Of course with flux core you can still do steel but no aluminum or stainless steel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bang847 Posted May 10, 2002 Share Posted May 10, 2002 dewzenol,... Really??? I have been looking every once in a while... they usually ask 400+... for that price you can get a hobart at harbor freight... hey if you see some cheap mig welders let me know!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike C Posted May 10, 2002 Share Posted May 10, 2002 Cheap welders are like cheap hookers or lawyers. You wonder why they can't command the same price as the others. The more money you spend, the higher the duty cycle, the more you can weld when you are ready. Even if 85 amps is all you need right now, before long it will be 110 then 140. Actually, 140 amp welder is sufficient for darn near everything. I've had my 230v 145 amp Century for about 7 years now, and for the most part I'm happy as a clam. BUT I still run into duty cycle problems on occasion. At 120 amps you are limited to about 24" of weld. This is more than almost anything on a car, but you never know when you may have another project (24" by 84" barbecuer on wheels for me!) or want more power for doing chassis mods or building a car trailer, etc. You could always buy a Ac stick welder for about $200 that would take care of the big stuff, but that takes up more floor space... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted May 10, 2002 Share Posted May 10, 2002 Flux core wire gets the job done, but I would highly recommend getting a system that can be upgraded to use a shielding gas. Flux core wire costs more than plain wire, the welds are not as pretty and the smoke flat kills me. The only real smoke from gas welding is from any residual paint or when I drop a glob of molten residue on my shoe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted May 11, 2002 Share Posted May 11, 2002 i don't really like that flux core wire myself either. my welder is a craftsman 120V MIG setup to use gas. i was doing some exhaust work on my car a while back but i didn't have enought cash t go get a bottle of gas to use. i still had the solid wire in it though. so i figured what the hell the stupid exhaust will rust anyways (this was my daily driver car not my ZX) so i just used the solid wire without gas. i didn't have any problems really. i am fairly new to welding and am still learning so i'm sure there were a few that i didn't notice. anyway i run out of wire and had to go buy more. i bummed some money form my parents to get the spool and went for the FC since i din't have gas right. when i used theFC wire it welded crapier than the solid did ad splattered everywhere. i think next time i'll buy the gas and do it up right Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted May 11, 2002 Share Posted May 11, 2002 Your Craftsman has a short duty cycle is only welding good for a few minutes at a time. When the duty cycle expires it still welds but very poorly. I have learned to weld with my CRUDSMAN with the .023 wire only.It cannot weld with .035 wire. I can tell when to stop by the eerie buzz when the cycle ends. NOW Owen has a sledge hammer cure to tune A Crudsman up and put it out of your welding misery. I had a Lincoln but it got stolen and if I ever get another it is staying in the bedroom with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikelly Posted May 11, 2002 Share Posted May 11, 2002 My Lincoln SP125 is highly adjustable (No clicker switches, they adjust infinately) and uses either flux core or gas (Which I highly recommend!) and was a great deal brand new for around $500 shipped. I know a couple of guys who have seen my welder and made comment that they wished they had spent the extra few dollars to get it. I can run it all day long (And have, making control arms) without a problem. I ran a single 30AMP circuit into the house from the garage to run it, and I've had zero problems! Unit has probably 100 hours or more on it without a single problem... Mike Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted May 12, 2002 Share Posted May 12, 2002 After much shopping around, I finally drove to sales tax-free Delaware and purchased a Lincoln SP-135 at Lowes. There web site is www.lowes.com. I came with the gas regulator, face shield, Video tape, 1lb. of .035 flux core & 1lb. .025 solid wire. It is easy to convert to Mig or F/C welding. I have had no problems with it. $427.00 It was less than buying another welder, then having to buy the gas set-up. Home Depot now has the CH welder 130 amps 120 volts, with gas stuff and the latest version also has the power switch built into the wire trigger. Until a few months ago the same model was always live at the tip, and the trigger only fed the wire out. It is $299.00 complete. I justified the price diff ($128)to myself based on experience with Lincoln. I believe that the new CH unit is fairly substaintal for the $, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Locutus Posted May 15, 2002 Share Posted May 15, 2002 I have the CH unit from Home Depot. I used to own a Lincoln as well, and it was stolen. I didn't have the money to replace it with a Lincoln and needed something in a hurry. All in All the CH unit has been good to me. I have not ran into any duty cycle problems, but my style of welding is to weld a little then check to make sure it is going as I planned. So my welder gets frequent breaks. It does not weld as clean as the Lincoln did, and it is harder to get it set right. If it is all you can afford it will do most of you right. If you can afford the more expensive Lincoln get it. Just a note I have not done any sheet metal welding like body panels with this unit. All I have done is roll cage tubing and thicker metals on my stock car, but like I said for what I have done it has been a good unit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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