I'm thinking of either asking for a MIG/TIG welder or a portion of the money for one (if it's expensive)...
What is a good/decent mig/tig welder that doesn't cost too much? I know there are some for $99 from harborfreight but, those obviously suck...what about something in the $300 dollar range?

 

Not sure you'll find one either MIG or TIG for $300, especially not brand new.
I bought a Lincoln Arc Weld Pac 100 wire feed welder for about $350 form Homedepot. It has done good for me so far.
I just recently bought the MIG conversion for $100 plus I had to buy the gas, another $150.

 

Buy the Welders Handbook, then decide what type of welder you want. You can get the Handbook at HomeDepot last time I looked. It describes welding process, the equipment and will give you a much better idea of what you want. It's a pretty easy read as well.

For most needs you probably just want a gas welding rig.

 

Sorry but you are def. not gonna find a new TIG welder in the $300, and it takes a lot of experince to weld nicely w/TIG. It is my dream also to one day own a TIG welder. Like the others said, get a wire feed welder, Lincoln are one of the best, and then upgrade to mig when you can afford it.

 

You will find TIG/stick machines and MIG machines, but not MIG/TIG machines (typically). The reason is TIG and stick are constant current, and MIG is a constant voltage process. They require different power supply topologies.

The price of entry for this one is a little steep, around 2.5K, but you will never outgrow it. It is a great TIG/stick machine. I use an older version of it. http://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Cat...8&isolocale=EN Enjoy browsing the base web site at http://www.lincolnelectric.com It has a lot of educational info, and you can drool over machines.

If you get into TIG expect to go a few $K, or go the used machine route. Cheap TIG's don't work.

I'll let others speak to the low price MIG market. Make sure you get a personal recommendation on the under $1K MIG's. I know a number of folks that have gotten burned with pure junk. Including a buddy at work. Understand the difference between flux cored MIG and cover gas MIG, and decide which is right for you. You can read a lot at the lincoln site and the miller welding site.

Some folks have had good luck with the low cost units.

Regards,
BigMoose

 

Thanks for all the info! I'll check out that book, soon. I'm sure that even $1000 is too much money for me to spend on this. I'm not expecting to use it everyday, so it doesn't have to be the BEST quality, but decent enough to last a while...anyone have any suggestions? I'll admit I don't know much about welding...maybe I do really want an Arc welder...?

 

If you are planning on doing exhaust work or body work or anything comparable, then you dont want an arc (stick) welder. I used an an arc welder on my truck when I was having to weld the frame, but anything thinner and it will probably be too hot.

 

If you are looking for a every once in a while welder I would suggest the Lincoln Electric Pro-MIG 135(its a rebadged Licoln SP-135T http://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Cat...5&isolocale=EN )...it cost $427 at Lowes...it runs of a 110 volt outlet and has enough amperage to get most jobs done...it comes setup for flux-core welding...but it does include the gas regulator and solenoid to do MIG...you just need to buy the Argon or Argon/CO2 gas cylinder...usually a small one will run you $99...stay away from the cheaper welders...the drive systems suck compared to the Lincoln...oh and one last thing...the Lincoln setup here also comes with an instructional video that will teach you the basics you need to get started...good luck!!

 

this is kind of off topic but i was thinking of removing the strips from the side of my car and read somewhere that its best to have the holes welded shut. by this i assume that they meant to have a small/thin piece of metal welded to the inside of the door as a base and then just smooth it over with bondo or fiberglass...

1. am i wrong in my assumption
and
2. if im right i dont want to have my door f*d up by someone trying to weld on such thin metal so what should i expect to pay and who should i seek out for the job?

 

I think the way to do it is to weld over a strip of metal and grind it down smooth, then maybe use a TAD of bondo if it's not smooth enough. you want to stay away from the bonda because instead of a small ding you will end up with a nasty crack, you thread-*****. not sure where one could get it done, though I'm sure every large city has some places that do body mods.

 

kind of related...I've also been Jonesin' for an Electric Die Grinder...any suggestions for an economical one?

 

Thats about right. Its a major pain in the a$$. I would wait until you want the entire car painted though, if at all.
You might take it to a body shop that has a lot of experience with custom work or street rods.

I would leave them on.

 

The best way is to clean the paint off the area around the hole, place a copper or brass bar behind the hole and plug weld it with a MIG welder. The filler metal will not stick to the copper or brass. You then remove the block, grind the weld flush and smooth it with a light coat of glazing putty if necessary. If you do it right you don't even need any filler. You can also braze the holes shut. Unless you have a lot of experience welding though take it to a pro or you will warp the **** out of it.

I'm only a so-so welder but I am a Quality Engineer for a company the builds truck and ag equipment cabs and bodies for JD, CAT, CNH, etc. Many of the guys here do body work and build street rods, etc. on the side and they all tell me to stay away from flux core wire for body work, it leaves residue that is a bitch to remove and can cause paint adhesion problems if you don't get it all off.

 

awesome info guys. thank you.

btw. didnt mean to jack the thread. i figured some of the responses would relate to which welder the original guy might want