i would like to weld mostly steel(reinforce car frames for hydraulics), intercooler piping, stainless steel, and aluminum would be nice but not necessary. wondering what type of welder i should get..... harbor frieght has a good deal on a 90 amp 115 volt mig gasless which i think you can use at home without rewiring~ 100 bucks

also they have a 110 amp 210 volt mig/flux welder that uses gas and would require me to rewire for 210. ~150 whats my best bet?

 

Don't.

 

is that some type of sarcastic response? ******* internet kids.

 

No. For $150 you will not get a machine capable of welding a vehicle frame.

 

basically dont waste your time or money on a crap machine.

get a miller or lincoln, dont use flux for car stuff, and youd be best off with a tig.

 

For 150 you'll just get junk.
Minimum for a 220V mig I'd say is 400bucks. I got my 220V gas mig for 450 on discount and its not the greatest by any means... I'm planning on getting a Kemppi Kempomat 180 for body work probably this summer.

 

I don't think you need a tig....

I am in your situation, but would like to weld alum.

I am looking at (pretty set on it actually) a Hobart handler 187....220v...Just make sure you have a 220v outlet, and you can run a heavy duty 220v extension cord to wherever you need it.

 

he should definitely get tig if he wants aluminum.

 

$150 ?!?!?!? Last time I checked, good welders that can also handle aluminum run about 2 grand. Good mig welders are about $500

 

My new 650 amp Miller Mig Welder & Wire Feeder was about 4k. You cant buy a decent mig gun for $150. $150 might get you a bottle deposit. I just sold some Miller Spoolmate 30Amp Spool Guns and I got 800 used for it. If that give you a ballpark on migging aluminum and that didnt include the welder

If you ever welded with a 220v Single Phase then went to 240 or 480 3 phase the smoothness of the arc and weld is simply great. All Im saying it buy the most expensive welder you can afford

 

Definatley don't get that Harbor Freight crap. Always remember "you get what you pay for". Goes well for just about anything out there. I realize that yo can make a decent weld but you won't be able to use it for all the different materials and thickness that you have in mind.

If you care at all about apperance/strength and you have some skill or willing to learn you need to get Mig and Tig. Yes it will cost you but by what you wrote there really isn't a good all around welder for what you want to do. You can weld Aluminum, Stainless, and Mild steel with either one. The problem is that each machine requires different combinations of equipment to acheive a good weld.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dfoxengr &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">he should definitely get tig if he wants aluminum.</TD></TR></TABLE>

what's wrong with a mig like the one I posted? It's about half the price of a decent TIG

 

I dont think you realize you need a spool gun to weld aluminum those are about $1200 new and sell for about 800 used and for those prices you should seriously consider buy a used tig machine

If you really need a mig my old one is on ebay

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...&rd=1