Hey guys, I'm a junior mechanical engineering student in the SAE baja club. We are writing a proposal to get a student run welder, and i'm pushing to get a TIG welder. More versitile, more control, and a better looking bead, are just a few reasons why i'd like to buy one. I learned how to weld at my summer job, starting on aluminum tig and mig. I always have preferred tig. Steel is even easier than aluminum.

Another student would prefer a mig welder, because he thinks that tig will be too hard to teach students. I feel I could easily do so. I would only have to teach <5 students, and we have until June 2010 to have the car completed... There will also be several machinist and professionals there.

 

I'm also in SAE (Formula though) and we have both TIG and MIG at our shop. I learned on TIG, and we use it way more. Actually about the only time MIG is used is for quick repairs at the track, or welding stuff on the car that would be to difficult to get to.

 

This is an easy answer. What can do it all??????????? TIG any material any thickness

 

Tig for sure.

 

thanks a lot guys!

 

They do make machines that do both TIG and MIG, would those be within your budget? I wouldn't want to do long seams with a TIG torch as you would have to stop and start more often to get more filler.

 

Sometimes these projects like SAE require someone just doing the work. TIG=practice. MIG=get it done. For a program just getting a welder now, I'd get a MIG. Welding the frame will have the MIG pay for itself in a year. If things get better every year, you will have no issue getting funding for a TIG welder.

 

MIG. none of the students will ever be proficcient with a tig welder without taking PLENTY of welding courses before hand.

frankly without help the lot of you will never be able to mig weld either so...

 

I think you guys should actually have a mig & tig setup, but watch if you buy a combo machine. Alot of the ones I've seen the tig unit will only output dc current, which means you cannot weld Al with it.