low power arc welder , anybody used one ?

can anybody help? i want to buy myself a welder for my project. i am told that i should get a gas mig welder. i have been looking for a second-hand one but no luck as i have a very low budget.  i have just seen a low power arc welder which is said to be designed for sheet metal ie car restoration. ?60. would it be worth buying or should i hang on, and can anybody recomend a welder ? cheers.

Hang on jim and wait till you can get a MIG welder [i have seen low power ones very cheap] , i have an arch power welder and a standard arch welder .

Both are gathering dust …..Mig is the one to use , it's so versatile . Mine is a SIP 150 turbo [fan cooled] and i can recommend them having had a Clarke and a Sealey Mig before this .

Try Screwfix ? Or Ebay ?
SCREWFIX cheapest click


Cheers……..

Get a MIG, it way eaiser to learn, ARC welding (Stick) takes more practice, especially on sheet steel.

Rob  

mig it is, gas, turbo, power rating ? anyone selling one ?

Everyone says to buy a MIG welder, ARC welding is for thicker metal and would simply blow holes in your bodywork, I think. I had a welder before and I always struggled with it, but I have once again taken the plunge, now I'm older and wiser and I can afford another!

I saw the one on the Screwfix website for ?140. I trawled through previous issues of Practical Classics and sure enough, in Dec 2005, they had a MIG welder group test. This one is only ?10 more and seems better, it has a lower minimum power setting (which apparently is really useful) and longer cables.

SIP Migmate 105 Turbo

this is what I have http://www.machinemart.co.uk/product.asp?p=010110152&r=2029&g=105  does the job for me

I have the SIP Migmate 105 Turbo too. I've had it a few years and its been fine. I've welded new sills on a mini and done countless numbers of patches on other vehicles. If you want to weld anything really thick though like thick chassis beams etc I'd go for a more powerful one.

The low power settings are really useful if you are trying to weld to pretty thin rusty metal. I've added a larger wire reel and bought a refillable
gas bottle (think its 1Kg in size). Its best to get a CO2/Argon mix as it creates neater welds and reduces spatter. Thats something I've got to change as I just have CO2.

I got mine from Halfords! They had a sale on and I got it for about ?140.

Like everything… The more you pay the better welders get. They have better wire feeds and torches. If I bought another welder and had the money and space I'd go for a SIP topmig 150. These always get good reviews too.

I'm buying a MIG soon, FYI I seen on internet SIP MIG 150 Turbo Daul (gas/no-gas) for ?199 - search on www.kelcoo.co.uk and you should find it :wink:

ARC will make you cry.

Sure the low power ones are better, but not as good as MIG.

I used to have a Sip MigMate 130DP which was excelent, but it was stolen and replaced by a Clarke which has been more problematic.

A decent light reactive mask is also a must.

TT

I had the chance to try out my new welder (a SIP Migmate 105 Turbo) and I can thoroughly recommend it. Its nice and controllable. If you're only occasionally going to use one, I'd seriously recommend not spending too much on the welder and diverting funds to a decent light-reacting mask (mine was ?90 or so). It made all the difference!

buy yourself a mig, at least 130 amp model, look for one in the free ads papers, you should be able to pick up a used one for about ?80, most of the welders will have hardly been used, usually bought for a project then left to gather dust, don't even think of buying an arc/stick welder, it'll just blow holes
in sheet metal, another tip is get a small bottle of co2 gas,same as you'll find in pubs (used to power the pumps) costs ?10 for a refill and lasts about 50 times longer than the small bottles you get from halfords.
I've been a welder for over 30 years and I can guarantee mig is the way to go for car body repairs, no question

It's always worth having a look in the auctions section of your local paper to see if any small garages are selling up. You can pick up a professional quality welder for a fraction of the price of a small DIY one new. Cheers.

cheers for the advice, where can i buy one of those co2 bottles minty? will hopefully be buying one soon.

I'm keeping my eye out for 2nd hand MIG but was surprised on the weekend when saw in B&Q superstore whole range of MIGs. They were those yellow 'Cosmo' ones which I believe are re-badged SIP units?

The 130 amp unit was only ?149.99 which seem good value if buying new. Anyone know anything about these?

Hairyarse said

I'm keeping my eye out for 2nd hand MIG but was surprised on the weekend when saw in B&Q superstore whole range of MIGs. They were those yellow 'Cosmo' ones which I believe are re-badged SIP units?

The 130 amp unit was only ?149.99 which seem good value if buying new. Anyone know anything about these?

I don't have personal experience of the actual welders, but I can tell you ?150 for a 130amp welder is a good price! I bought some consumables from a B&Q superstore recently. A bottle of Argon/CO2 gas was ?7.98 from them, compared to ?13.50 from another shop and ?10 + VAT + delivery from www.toolsbypost.com, so I think that's a decent price!

This is something I've been meaning to buy for a while too. The only thing that is holding me back at the moment is uncertainty over the power requirements for the likes of the SIP 150 / 130 / 105 level machines.

My garage currently has no dedicated power, so I have to use an extension lead run through the wall from the house… This means I would be a bit concerned about the current levels required to run a MIG welder going through an extension lead.

At some point I will get a seperate fuse box and wiring put in for the garage, including a 30A style cooker circuit especially for heavy duty things like the welder and compressor. However this is not on the cards at the moment  :cry: on financial grounds.

Anyone else here run any of their MIGs off a normal 13A house circuit or via an extension lead? If I know its do-able I might just scrape together the pennies to get the MIG, auto-dimming helmet and other welding bits and bobs. I haven't done anything for months on my car, and will be dropping the rear axle soon and taking out the fuel tank, so an ideal opportunity to patch some small corrosion spots in that area.

Interested to hear how people get juice to their MIGS  :wink:

Cheers,

Chris

I run 2 strip lights, radio & welder all @ same time off 13A spured socket from house, sometimes blows the fuse 4 times in 8 years so thats not bad, must get round to sorting proper power supply.

Having refreshed my memory a bit with a quick Google on MIG welders it looks like a 13Amp supply should be OK if I make up a decent extension cable using 2.5mm core flex  :wink: .

Searching through newsgroups seems to throw up mixed views on the lower end SIPs (although generally more favourable than the newer Clarkes). Several time people mention that the wire feed mechanism seems a bit cheap and flimsy and the tube to the "handset" (not sure what the correct term is!) is not reinforced and easily crushed….

Anyone care to comment on the above with the SIPs?

The lecturer on my welding evening class recommended looking at MIGS in places like Brown Brothers / Partco - I can't find them on the web - anyone know of them. The MIGS we used on the course were pretty sturdy but well worn Murex and SIP professional units that were very easy to use.

Anyone with the Practical Classics review care to list some of the other models that they recommended?

Chris

1 SIP migmate 105DP       ?179        18/20
2 SIP Migmate 105            ?149        17/20
3 Screwfix 13189              ?200        16/20
4 Draper 72224                 ?225       15/20
5 Clarke MIG 151TE           ?223       15/20
6 SIP HandyMIG                ?157       14/20
7 SIP Handymate               ?125      12/20
8 Clarke MIG 85ENB           ?112      11/20
9 Screwfix 17185                ?140      11/20
10 Draper 72226                ?155        6/20
11 Screwfix 12198              ?110        6/20

Great - thanks Paul