I am looking at both of these machines. Is there any difference in them or one you would buy over the other one?

I have heard lincoln machines make better tig machines. Now this is just what I heard please no flamming.

What do you guys think?

 

just about every fabricator i know uses a Miller

 

I use Miller (they are both good machines, i think the lincon has more features)

 

i have a tig 185 and i love it, i havent welded with a miller before so i coulnt tell you if there is a difference. but yes the lincoln is a more feature full machine for the money. i reccomend http://www.weldingsupply.com thats where i got mine, quick shipping direct from lincoln ,and a good price.

 

That was going to be my next question. Where is the best place/ best price to get the welders? I see this one guy on ebay sells the millers for about 250 less then I can get the welder locally with free shipping and no tax. I also see miller is raising their prices tommorow I think. I will check out that website.

Thanks

 

I have the miller 180 and it is great!... no complaints on it what so ever. but i have also herd the lincoln 185 is also a great welder...plus i think the lincoln one has the ablility to be upgraded with a water cooler.. i know i cant do it to my miller.
which is why im getting the miller 250

 

both basically the same machine.

I'd go blue though.

 

It seems like everyone around here only sells miller.

Does anyone know if I buy a miller machine on ebay or from cyberweld, can you take anywhere for warrenty work? I hinted around at that question today when I was at a place that sells miller and the guy said most likly they will make you wait to fix it b/c you did not buy it there.

 

Miller and lincoln are both good machines. I chose the lincoln over the miller because it came with the square wave and pulse function standard and the miller it was an option. I have the lincoln 355 square wave tig which I bought in 1994 after I retired from the air force ( metals technologist , machinist/welder) I have had no problems whatsoever in 10 years of use. You won't gwrong either way lincoln or miller.

 

Okay another question. How thick of metal can both of these machines weld? I asked the guy at the welding store and he said the miller can only weld up to 1/8 inch of metal. Is this correct? That sounds really thin. Arn't most roll cages/manifolds thicker then 1/8

 

all my welders are miller, i'm a die hard miller fan, i have a miller dynasty 300dx with a cooler and it kicks ***.
but i have tried the lincoln electric products and they seem to work well too. it all most comes down to which paint color do you like better, red or blue.
i would recommend the miller, great warranty and quality

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by underpressure02 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Okay another question. How thick of metal can both of these machines weld? I asked the guy at the welding store and he said the miller can only weld up to 1/8 inch of metal. Is this correct? That sounds really thin. Arn't most roll cages/manifolds thicker then 1/8</TD></TR></TABLE>
not exactly true. i think he means that's the thickness it will do on a single pass, and the type of the metal aluminum, steel, etc, you are welding on will also affect the thickness you can weld in a single pass. the thing is there is no real practical limit to what you can weld as far as thickness because as long as you get a good weld bead (meaning good penetration, no porosity, inclusions,etc) have good joint prep, you can make multiple passes and weld whatever thickness you want. the machines your looking at seem to fit the bill for what you want to do. i wouldn't worry too much about what the guy at the welding store told you.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by harryzx12 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Miller and lincoln are both good machines. I chose the lincoln over the miller because it came with the square wave and pulse function standard and the miller it was an option.</TD></TR></TABLE>
I have the lincoln 185 and i knew that it had pulse and square wave technology, but i didnt know the miller wasnt square wave. funny, if i were still in the market for a tig machine having the above info would make my buying decision even easier.

 

the miller is a squarewave machine, its just not an advanced squarewave machine, meaning that the wave isn't adjustable.

 

oooohh zach, i heard you were talking about going to the dynasty

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mixed motorsports ek &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">oooohh zach, i heard you were talking about going to the dynasty </TD></TR></TABLE>
well the best price ive found on a dynasty 300 with all the bell and whistles is around 5,000$. Buy a welder , Buy a house, Buy a welder , Buy a House ,decisions
decisions.

 

well it looks like the Miller and the Lincoln are now the same price.

It still seems like a toss up between the two. Some of you guys seem to like the added controls on the lincoln and others seem to say go with the miller. I don't think the miller you can get water cooled until you go up to the next machine. The lincoln one you can which could be nice way way down the line.

Would you get the tig runner package b/c it comes with almost everything you need to get started using the machine?

 

yes, definatly get the runner. you dont want to be lugging that 250 lb thing all over the place, the runner comes with wheels


-matt

 

Before you make your decision check out the Thermal Arc 185TSW. I have this TIG unit and love it!! A couple of others here also have this unit also and I have never heard a complaint about it. The TA-185 has more features than the Lincoln PT-185 and can be compared one on one with the Miller Dynasty 200. Also since the TA-185 is an inverter machine it consumes less power, because of this you only need a 40 amp 200 circuit instead of a 60 amp 200 circuit for the Lincold PT-185

http://www.thermadyne.com/news...d=220

You can buy the unit here for an awesome price...ask for Bill he is real nice!
http://aaaweldingsupply.com/

John

 

Here is a pic of my unit



My first welds with it while back

 

That machine looks nice and small. Can it weld aluminum? Also do you think it is a better machine then the two I was comparing besides the reasons you have already listed? And if so why, what makes it a better machine? Thanks for your help.

 

Yes it is better than the two machines you have listed. Like I said before it is the main competitor for the Miller Dynasty 200 with is a $2000+ inverter TIG machine. It will do aluminum very nicely!! This machine has allot for features for the money. Its does AC & DC with HF start and has a built in pulsing unit. I added some extra specs below directly from the Thermal Arc website. Oh and just to add the guys at AAA Welding supply gave it to me a little cheaper than what is listed on there website.

John

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The new PRO-WAVE 185TSW from Thermal Arc® handles just about any TIG welding job while generating True-Square wave AC/DC output with full range capability from 185 amps down to 5 amps.

Weighing less than 42 lbs., the PRO-WAVE 185TSW packs outstanding value and performance into a highly portable, surprisingly compact design. Standard features include Current Sloper, Current Pulser and variable frequency, wave balance control, and Lift or HF assisted starting. The 185TSW also has a digital AMP/volt meter, gas solenoid valve and remote control capabilities. Thermal Arc backs the 185TSW with a three-year warranty.
-------------------------------------

 

I also think the thermal arc is a good machine, but again no option for a add on water cooler, smallish buttons to push with welding gloves on kind of a pain, no way to attach the sheilding gas bottle to machine, which is kinda nice to know that the bottle is supported by something, and if you need to move the machine, you dont have to go back and move the bottle also cause it attached to your machine already. but for the money thermal arc is very nice!
also no filler rod holders.

 

dam you guys make picking a machine very hard.

 

fulldragcrx....you havent learned yet that the official newby project is building you welding cart for the machine. Bottom line os the TA-185 is allot of welder for the money. Oh and you can add a water cooler onto it with no problems at all. Water coolers are not controlled by the welder unit, thus making them universal. Though most people I have seen prefer to build them from old parts lying around the shop or scrap yards.

John