Welding, Part One: Gear Selection

I've only tried welding twice in my life and it was with a TIG welder (Miller 225 and Lincoln 225). I have to say, after a 5 minute introduction I was on my way making what the instructor called very good welds.

I haven't tried Stick or MIG yet, but I think I'm gonna skip them alltogether and go the TIG route.

My only issue is that TIG welders are not cheap. A good, solid entry level one can run you up to $2000. There's no such thing as a cheap TIG welder (it just wont work or last).

So I'm trying to save up a little cash :-)

This was great breakdown of your welding process. It's also good to see how you've developed your welding skills and gear over time. It looks like you have a nice set up in your shop, so I was curious as to what sort of plan you used to organize your workspace to fit your welding projects?

Gladiatorgw.com

MIG is like a hot glue gun, but with metal. It's super easy.

I TIG'ed pressure vessels for years. A really good book is "How to Weld Damn Near Anything" by Jessie James. Read it before you buy a welder so you can understand what the different types of welding are for.

Cool article. Ive been welding for over 6 years now, with over 3 years TIG welding aluminum and stainless steel professionally. I find that while TIG is the most difficult to master, it is very satisfying when you lay down that perfect bead. Only thing I find dissatisfying is getting shocked when you accidentally feed the filler wire into the electrode!

blaxpear wrote: "There's no such thing as a cheap TIG welder (it just wont work or last)."

I have to disagree, at least from the DIY POV.
For professional daily use of course, you would want a Miller or Lincoln, and pay over $1000.

I've taught myself to TIG weld to fabricate go kart racing parts and to restore or modify frames, and have been doing it for about a year.

I bought a new 'Hutai' (cheap Chinese) 220v TIG machine on eBay, which is pretty basic. It's DC only, (ie can't weld Al,) and doesn't have provision for a foot pedal, but it was only $350, it does have pushbutton (HF) arc start, rudimentary pulse features, and a current/gas ramp up/down delay control, and I find it quite adequate. Knowing it's Chinese "junk," I baby it, and NEVER leave it outdoors or in the (unheated) garage overnight. You'd want to bring your consumables (filler, tungstens) indoors overnight anyway.

I do plan to get a better (smaller) swivel torch, but being retired I doubt I'll ever be able to afford a "good" welder.
Do I miss Al capacity and a foot pedal current control while welding? Sure. But it works quite well for steel, and IMO was a huge bargain. You just have to choose VERY carefully and educate yourself RIDICULOUSLY well before buying. Remember you will pay and pay for consumables (like gas, and tungstens, which you'll burn a lot when learning,) with TIG - but it's worth it as the process is incredibly versatile and controllable. You can make a neat weld on anything from the thinnest sheet (tin can) or tiny firearm parts, to 9/16" 4130 steel -as long as they're clean, and not contaminated (say, with bronze brazing,) or cast iron, which WILL NOT weld.

I got one of those chin strap-controlled hoods and (not ever having acquired the "neck nod" technique for flipping down a manual hood,) find that jaw control convenient. A weldor who has acquired other hood habits would find it difficult to adjust to, even annoying (as they also would hate the pushbutton type torch,) but having known only this, I like it.

Ony thing I would never try is buying a cheap MIG unit. Too mechanically delicate to do on the cheap. A MIG welder must have a well designed, very high quality, precise and durable wire feed mechanism, or it would be unusably annoying and waste lots of wire. It would tangle MOST of the time. And I would never do without the shielding gas function. There are many "flux wire only" MIG welders being sold out there for less. I'd steer far clear of those - even if they were "good" brands (like TS's Hobart.) Flux (gasless)welding is just too messy for me after seeing TIG, which is so clean and safe you can do it on the dining room table (as long as it's heat protected, LOL. Your 'work' will still get RED hot...just no sparks.)

As for interim price, "quasi-good" brands, check out HTP. Sometimes their sales produce decent intermediate pricing, and their support (something that's nonexistent with a Chinese welder) has a good rep.

A cheap TIG is actually a MUCH better choice an a fluuuux wire MIG, though you'll have to put in your time practicing to get good with TIG. Personal instruction would be great if you live where it's available.

Be VERY careful with eBay. Make absoilutely sure you tal to the supplier and establish a DOA return policy you (somehow....?) trust. I was lucky I guess. But MANY Chinese welders are either shoddily assembled, and/or almost all are mistreated in shipping (welders are HEAVY and can destroy themselves through their own weight in shipping. The Chinese do NOT pack well, and you can expect what you would, of cheap labor in assembly.)

Uh, oh....

The original post forgot a very important type of welding, the earliest, from which all else (including cutting) was developed -flammable Gas (as opposed to MIG/TIG's inert gas shielding,) or "oxy-acetylene" welding.

My mentor (who, being an experienced pro, has always been right except for his "cheap welder" prejudice) keeps telling me I WILL want a torch setup as well as the TIG I use.

He insists there are times you just need to heat metal (VERY hot, not just "propane hot,") to bend it, or to cut lots of it fast and rough. And yes, I have seen the wisdom of that statement recently. He also claims there's nothing like it for lighting BBQ charcoal ;)

Anyway, for oxy-acetylene welding, you need the two gas tanks, ling hoses, and a safe torch setup (with the proper flashback valves and different tips for heating, cutting and welding - which is somewhat like TIG, but not as clean.) I still avoid it, as keeping high pressure 02 around is IMO prohibitively dangerous for sporadic use (and TWO MORE gas tanks, with regulators, are expensive to buy and keep full.)

My mentor of course pooh-poohs that, but he uses it often, has a huge shop space, and has transported tanks to and from jobs all his life (and even witnessed and survived a number of fires.)