so i decided its time for me to get a mig. i'm probably only going to use it for small projects like welding a hanger back on my car that broke off and little odds and ends like brackets, possibly a ss exhaust later down the road.

the only 230v outlet i have is for the dryer, which is in the basement. the garage is detached from the house and on the other side, which is probably like 50-75 feet away. so i'd have to get an electrician to do that. not to mention the house is extremely old (seriously built in like 1890 lol) i suppose i could run an extension cord or something.

would a 115v work ok for my needs? of course i'd hook up gas to it. i'm just trying to spend as little as possible, seeing as i won't be using it too often.

 

well once you get it you'll either use it all the time, so as i said on irc, go with a 230v unit, they're much less finnicky to set up and use than the 115v units.
they'll run a line from your breaker to the garage or if the garage already has a breaker and enough lines in it or whatever they will just do it inside the garage.

 

there's no breaker in the garage, sadly. there's still 2 prong outlets in there. either way this is going to get expensive.. ugh

 

I have a 115 miller mig welder and I love it. It works for the little things that I weld. I have welded exhausts,motor mount brackets, and other small misc stuff and never had a problem. It sounds like it would be cheaper and easier if you got a 115v.

 

anyone else have any opinion?

 

Buy a Miller that has the dual voltage with plugs all setup so you just plug in to 120 then later down the road if you get a better setup you swap plugs in two seconds and you now have 230V.

Like this one.http://www.millerwelds.com/pro...dvi2/

If that is not within your budget the autoset migs they have out now would be great the 140 would be more then enough for basic automotive needs.120volt is fine just limits how big you can go is all.

Like this one. http://www.millerwelds.com/pro...oset/

 

I wouldnt bother with a 115V.