I found out I can get a very large (400a i think) ac/dc stick welder from my grandpa.
The thing is older than I am but it's still kicking.

I'm buying a Hobart Handler 140 (or 180) for christmas as an all around welder but i figure the big *** buzz box would come in handy for BIG metal and w/ an hf starter and tig torch i could weld aluminum.

problem is i dont know where to buy an hf starter. there are a few on ebay for ~ $200 but i dont know what to buy and weather they'd work with ac or not.

anyone care to shed some light on this buzbox-tig conversion?

 

bump

 

If you will only be welding aluminum seldom, and you don't have to have the absolute nicest welds possible, you CAN actually weld without high frequency...just the arc will be a little more unstable. A high freq box is usually pretty expensive. Ebay would be your best bet if you have to have one. I'd reccomend getting the stuff in the link below, try it and then decide if you want to add the cost of a high freq box.
You must also make sure that your machine will run on AC. Something that many of you may not know is that you can weld aluminum on DC, with helium gas.

http://www.az-zbum.com/welder.upgrade.shtml

 

hmm; i did not know you could scratch start w/ ac and tig; I may have to try that with a borrowed torch.
But i've seen hf starters for ~ $150-200 (ac and dc) on ebay and i didnt pay anything for my buzzbox so if it'll just do aluminum i'll be happy. I'll probably start doing more aluminum than mig if i wind up getting it.

I dunno; i'll have to see how the scratch start ac works.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ComputerJLT &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I dunno; i'll have to see how the scratch start ac works. </TD></TR></TABLE>
It's not the preferred method, but on a budget, it CAN be done.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Engloid &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
It's not the preferred method, but on a budget, it CAN be done.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Hmm; ok.
Thanks for your help! your posts are always informative