Looking for a new welder (multi-process)

So does the 6011 give you a different result as far as the finished weld goes? If so, how does it differ in your opinion, and what difference do you see when running it?

 

It's like splitting hairs..
I learned with 10 rod so I'm biased.
It's like having that one machine in the shop that runs 7018 perfectly and another guy hates it.
But I think the shielding composition allows for more arc length and more controlled gouging and weld deposit. Imo 10 rod is also more forgiving when running really hot.
I think weld appearance between the two is nill.

I missed reading the mower deck and implement part.
Technically..
A 110 MIG would do most stuff like that. Something like a thunderbolt xl with dc would handle most stick welding jobs too.

Anything better is icing on the cake

 

I have a Miller 135 now (if I remember correctly). I omitted this to save from the... ("You cant do anything with a 110 machine.. blah blah...). If a guy knows what hes doing, they are exceptionally capable. Limited? Yes. But as you said, you can do a lot with them- and I have. It has more than paid for itself.

I used to weld with a Lincoln Ranger, with a ln-10 (iirc) wire box at work. 26-28V and 325-350ipm. I don't remember exactly, but I used 600 pounds of Esab over shielded wire in a few month period. Yes, welding with a smaller machine is different... but to be honest it has done everything Ive asked of it. If I needed something heavier, I have this old Dayton arc welder and a few pounds of 7018 left. Its been a few years since I've done a lot of welding, normally it's odds and ends for family or friends.

 

I was hoping you would chime in here Kevin. Thank you for the input! I'm aware of the duty cycle, I just can't lay $4k+ on something at the moment. I'll do my best to get the most machine I can for the money though...
Did that Hypotherm dealer honor his price to you? I know it was BS for that other guy to be selling in that territory, but that would pizz me off for that dealer to "use" me to catch the guy.
I know Hypotherm is pretty popular in the plasma world, but have you looked at any of their welders? I haven't talked to anyone who has, or any of this Tweco branded stuff... but I am curious.

 

I can't reply to everyones post, without cluttering the wealth of info you guys have provided- but thanks to each of you for all of the input.

 

always a way with words my friend lol

 

That Vulcan has me curious, know anyone who has used one?

 

They did honor their word. It was worth it to them to have a corner on the market in our area. LOL I didn't know that Hypertherm made welders. I like my plasma but they did something cheesey and dirty as well with the machine. As soon as I bought it tehy kept sending literature to get a new "upgraded" torch head. They were offering a discount and I think it was around $400.00. I passed. About 6 years later it quit working one day. I took it to the dealer and they were amazed. The repair guy was a straight shooter and told me that they had a huge problem with those torch heads. He said most lasted about a year and I must have taken really good care of it and been gentle to get it to last that long. ended up having to by the whole 50 ft lead and torch. VERY dirty of a company to know there is a problem and not replace them. I now know why they wanted me to "Upgrade". For that reason alone I will not look into their welders.

On a sidenote, I guess you do know that the Syncrowave can be used to stick weld too? I've done it but I've never been able to get "pretty" welds like I do with the old tombstone. Tried numerous settings but finally just went back to the tombstone.

I also have never heard of anyone who likes their spoolgun with a MIG. I've been told they are hard to work with and VERY dirt sensitive . Replacing a lot of things to get quality welds. No experience myself, just what I've heard from guys. I was going to go that route(spoolgun) with the 250x Miller and was convinced not to by a guy who welds for a living. I saved my pennies and put all the money I made with the MIG towards the TIG welder fund.

Stick with a brand that will have parts in 5 years. A lot of these smaller companies and start ups can close down and once that happens you have a broken orphan that no one can help you with. Ends up costing you more.

 

People who talk about penetration and machine capability often don't even weld correctly to get proper penetration.

I've challenged my self and my machines doing stupid projects. Water tight stainless maple syrup pans to lower unit cast aluminum boat parts with my Hobart 140 and no spool gun...fun can be had saying I'm going to oxy weld the next project I get regardless of what it is.

If your time is money bigger machines pay for themselves.
If I wanted a budget mobile setup my first thoughts would be inverter. Light small smooth and some balls.
The inverter machines are awesome to run. A Miller maxstar can do stick and Tig very well for it's size. Then a miller mutlimatic 200.for mig.
Then if you wanted to upgrade they should be worth about what you paid for them.

My syncrowave runs stick especially 7018 better than any buzzbox I've run. A buzzbox looses duty cycle in it's first rod. I've been jammed with using 1/8 inch rod and small machines and it's no fun.
Spool guns are awesome when you need one.
Building aluminum trailers.... I rebuilt one usimg Tig...never again. Aluminum truck parts..spool gun please. High volume production environment. Spool gun.
That's why I suggest a good Tig machine, and not worry so much about aluminum capability with a mig.

 

No I don't, but they are pretty nice looking in person. There is a guy on YouTube who has done some good reviews with them. Harbor Freight carries them, but I don't think they are a harbor freight brand... I think the company that makes them has been around a while (unless there are two Vulcan companies making welders).

 

I bought the spool gun with my 251. My only real complaint is it's bulky, can be a bit of a challenge to get it in some spots . Doesn't seem to be any more dirt sensitive though.

 

I've never used one, but would like to try one. The place I used to work for did mostly heavy equipment and construction fabrication, all aluminum was done with a spool.

 

I wish my mig welds looked consistently like Kevin's. Seems I'm always fighting cold starts, especially on aluminum.

 

I welded some buss duct with a spool gun. 1/2" and 3/4" thick stuff with full size fillet welds. They worked good and a lot easier to use than the push pull gun setup. Pulse mig was awesome with a push pull gun but it was a $20-30k set up

 

Would you mind explaining this to the uninitiated in the room? What is a "buzzbox" and when it looses duty cycle doe that mean if the machine has a 50% duty cycle the minute you use it it'll essentially be damaged and have a 30% or 40% duty cycle? Or does it just drop as the machine warms up and then recover when given time off?

Then as far as the spool gun on TIG goes, what is the difference between running a spool gun on a MIG and a TIG where the function of the machine goes?

And since this is turning in to that sort of party, anyone else do any laser welding? I've been running a Bego Laser T Plus at work. The "rod" I use is .35mm and everything is done looking through a magnifying scope.

 

Buzz box is what a lot of people call the simple transformer welders, under a good load a most of them emit a rather loud electrical hum. Duty cycle varies depending on the amps you are using, limiting how much welding you can do before it shuts down to cool off. I don't know much about multi process machines but spool guns need a constant voltage machine and Tig is constant current. The laser welding your talking about is interesting, any chance of getting some pics ??

 

This is about as good a pic as I can get:



That's .045 wire welded to cast.

 

New certified welding procedures in NYC have come out using DCEN for 6011 and 7018

I have:
Millermatic 250 (MIG) with spoolgun attachment
Synchrowave 350lx
Bobcat 250 (twin Kohler)
Spektrun 875

And I wholeheartedly agree that duty cycle is critical in selecting your welder. I went larger than I thought I should, and over the years, I am sooo happy that I did.
Spoolguns have their place, and knowing wether to TIG or spool is critical to getting the best results

Carbine , if I could offer any advice at all, it would be to continue to save for the bigger machine.
My Synchrowave welds 6011 better than my Bobcat does, and the 350lx welds 7018 just as smoothe as the Bobcat

 

I know that I was fine with the syncrowave 250 for years, now a new steady customer comes along and I sure wish I bought the 350