buy a MIG welder or farm out the work?

[KBScobravert]

I have used the hell out of my Lincoln 140 mig. It is gas and 110. I bought a bottle from home Depot and they exchange it out for about $18. I love mine and have used it a lot more than I thought I would.

[Labora]

i just got a new hobart 140 with gas set up and some accessories for ~$700 on amazon. i think the welder itself was $559. the bottle set up (40 cu.ft.) was 128 for the bottle, and 24 for the gas. historically a 40 cf bottle gives about 2 hours of continuous welding. the 80 cf bottle was only 160, but they were out, but when i need to step up, i can turn my 40 in and only pay the $30 difference.

i wouldn't spend $1000 if you are just learning to weld. go buy a cheap stick welder and blow through rods like it's going out of style, if you really want to learn to read a weld. MIG is cheating and it wont be a good weld if you cant read it.

This. I got a Hobart 140 8~ years ago, for similar reasons as the OP. I bet I've had that thing switched on less than 30 hours. The 110v with a gas bottle has been fine for all my projects in the garage when/if I ever actually use the thing.

OP if you don't think you will use it save your $$. Mine has been handy for when I am in a rough spot and need something done ASAP. But otherwise I haven't gotten alot of use out of it. For sure on your first machine don't spend too much.

[lowthreeohz]

Buddy of mine built his business in trophy trucks and hot rods with a couple handler 140s. I like the idea of a 110 welder so you have options on where to use it. Also I think the 140s will do 3/16" or 1/4", which seems like plenty for house and shop use.

[bird_dog0347]

Buy a name brand (I'm partial to Miller - have 3 now) You will LOVE welding. It's one of those tools you will always find a use for. And you can do stuff for your buds. I bought a Millermatic 140 last year for sheetmetal work. It would be a good choice for you. It's a 110 model. There was one on craigslist the other day. I bet you could get a deal on that.

I was planning on Lincoln just due to the 140 or 180 I saw at HD but I'd be open to a deal on a Miller, no junk for me, do it once and do it right.

And if you buy a welder, let me know. I have a TON of good scrap you can have to practice on. You can have what you want.

I'll take you up on that offer! Thanks!

also to the OP if you have an electric dryer you have a 220 outlet

I do, but it's not in the garage and eventually I want a large air compressor to run better air tools for when I decide to start the body work/sanding and prep on the fox. I'll farm out the paint but I can get a lot of it done myself on the body work and save a bunch of money there. Thus I'd love to have the outlet in the garage and I also need a 25amp circuit put out there for a large power strip I want to use.

I have used the hell out of my Lincoln 140 mig. It is gas and 110. I bought a bottle from home Depot and they exchange it out for about $18. I love mine and have used it a lot more than I thought I would.

Exactly, I've been thinking I'll always be able to use it for something and no one else in my family has one. I didn't know HD sold the bottles and filled them but that's good news, I'll go that route.

This. I got a Hobart 140 8~ years ago, for similar reasons as the OP. I bet I've had that thing switched on less than 30 hours. The 110v with a gas bottle has been fine for all my projects in the garage when/if I ever actually use the thing.

OP if you don't think you will use it save your $$. Mine has been handy for when I am in a rough spot and need something done ASAP. But otherwise I haven't gotten alot of use out of it. For sure on your first machine don't spend too much.

I too think mine will end up with low hours, but at the same time, if I add up the cost of having the things welded that I know I need done, I think I'd be close to the cost of a Lincoln 140 (the one I'm mainly leaning towards) and having a new skill. Even if it just takes up room, it's a nice tool to have I think. I haven't gotten quotes on what it would cost for the things I want to do, but I'd imagine the floor pan wouldn't be cheap and I figure the SFC install would run me at least $100?

[Baron Von Crowder]

Call OrangeChevyII ( Bryan) at Muffler King and get a price for doing all three of those things you talked about. You can use that as a good base for your decision.

I love having a good welder around, it makes my life easier.

[4EyedTurd]

Look on cyberweld.com, I bought my Miller 211mvp from there with free shipping and a rebate. It was just about $1000. The best thing about it is it'll run on both 110v and 220v which will work for you until you get a 220 plug. It'll run a spool gun if you want to try mig welding aluminum. I agree with everyone else and that after you get it you'll find stuff to use it for. Much like a truck after having one I wouldn't want to be without one.

Don't cheap out on one for sure, you'll regret it.

[bird_dog0347]

Today I picked up a Millermatic 135 with a cart and #3 bottle for $550 and saw it work. The cart is dirty so I'll clean it up and get the bottle filled. I just need to buy a helmet/gloves and some nozzle lube/spray then start playing with it and learning. I was just gonna get a Lincoln 140 but it was roughly the same price with no cart or bottle and doesn't have the fine tuning of the wire speed/voltage knobs. This should be good for me to learn on for a while, and if I want to upgrade I've considered eventually getting like a Lincoln 210 MP for tons of flexibility.

[lilvega]

If you decide to upgrade in the future watch Eastwood.

I bought their Mig 175, plasma versa cut 40 and combo cart all for $1k delivered.

I love them both. I use them all the time.
Plus paypal will do 12 months zero interest which is very handy while you are restomodding a 69 coupe.

[Tremor14]

yeah i think in large what welder you buy depends on the project you're really working on.. now that im getting more into the sheet metal of mine, the more i really wanna switch back over to tig and stitch it up like that

[Tremor14]

congrats on the welder though!

[dcs13]

Good deal. Buy a quality auto darkening helmet. Best money I spent. PM me if you want some of that scrap.

[bird_dog0347]

Good deal. Buy a quality auto darkening helmet. Best money I spent. PM me if you want some of that scrap.

PM Sent.

Good gloves and helmet are first on the list. Where is a good place to get my bottle filled, or should I just exchange it for a full one at the home depot (fairly close to my house)? I don't know if HD only does exchanges if you bought there stuff or it's like a gas grill bottle and as long as you already own it they will exchange for a full one in the same size?

[bird_dog0347]

I really want to clean it all up, but eff this cold weather. The cart is nasty but should wash off just fine. Should I keep and refill this bottle or exchange it somewhere like HD? I will also need some new consumables like tips and such, before I can get started practicing. Also after closer inspection it seems my pressure gauge needle broke off on the flow rate gauge, how much should I expect to pay for a new gauge/regulator?

Also I have a compound miter saw, should I get a steel cutting blade or a metal cut off disk for it in order to cut things like square tube to make a firewood rack and my H-Pipe in order to put the cats in it?

[ceyko]

I've bought welders for others (110V, usually Northern Tool one) and they love them. It's like a lot of those pricey tools - hardly ever need it - but when you do ya love having it.

[bird_dog0347]

So today I got a helmet, auto darkening with grinding mode from Lowe's, as well as their gloves which I think fit me well and are comfortable. I also got MIG pliers, a 4.5" angle grinder and a few cutting wheels and flap disk for it. I would have gotten the 10" cut off disk for my mitre saw but they were out.

My Miller has .024 wire in it and the correct tip for it, but I need to pull the wire out of the gun and feed some more as there's some kinks in the wire that I know about that are causing the wire feed issues... worst case it needs a new liner too, but whatevs. I still need to get my bottle filled/exchanged and I'm hoping someone on here can provide input as to fill/exchange as this is my first time with 75/25 mix bottle and not sure what is the proper thing to do here. I've got a few pieces of scrap to practice on when I get some gas... looking forward to learning something new.