What is a good entry level welder that can run off of 110 and wont break the bank. Some cage building will be in my future possibly so i figure nows a good of time to learn as any before i tackle such a thing.

hobart handler 140



but i wouldnt weld a cage with a 110v welder.

As long as he uses flux-core wire, he'll be fine. Travis, you buy the welder, and I'll show you how to use it

This subject.... has been covered.... 2,857 times.... on this forum.
Not to bust your balls, but please search the site using "welder" and you will likely find the help you need.

Good luck,
Andrew

110v welder :uke: but it would be an opportunity to learn. Oh and flux core sucks too

my welder is a mig and can flux weld or argon gas weld. to start off with this is a good setup i now on my 5th pound of flux core wire. i made a hose holder and an airhose/ extension cord holder out of some scrap and the welds are looking better. i finally getting the speed and heat down some. no stacked nickle wels but i can do a mini stack 3-4 then it puddles and stacks and poddles.............mike

Todd, I'll try to get a couple pictures of my flux-core welds, and you can decide for yourself. I'll show you those stacked nickels cp mentioned :goodfinge Unless you just don't like the flux core at all. The reason I even brought it up, was that flux core burns hotter, and gets a better penetration

Millermatic 135.......but i am a miller man......and i don't like flux core......sorry David

I dont have a problem laying a bead with flux core but I always seem to get cleaner welds and less spatter with gas. On a 110v welder you may get a better weld with flux core but only because it lacks the power needed to run a decent sized wire. Comparing a 220 mig with gas to a 110 with flux is useless.

Absolutely, I agree, but when it comes to working with what you have, and what your budget allows, a flux core on 110 is going to give a far better weld than gas on 110. And spatter is easy to overcome, with - hang on now - anti-spatter spray. I swear by that stuff. Spray down your weld area, lay the bead, and leave it alone til it's almost completely cooled, and the whole weld area can be cleaned up with just a rag. Even welding with gas should get wiped down also

Flux core sucks ass. :-)

personal opinion, that's all it is. However, keep in mind, that kemical doesn't have the luxury of purchasing a 220V welder right now, and/or ay not be able to justify it, and may not be able to justify buying into a bottle rental and having to keep filling it. That's why I keep mentioning the flux core

Flux core sucks ass. :-)

:goodfinge

:goodfinge X2





















:histerica

if you want cheap get a stick welder, one of them AC Lincoln Buzz Boxs, they are plenty cheap and will weld pretty thick. but won't weld thin.

Millermatic 135.......but i am a miller man......and i don't like flux core......sorry David
:stupid My little MM135 has long since paid for itself, even if it's a little more expensive than "equivalents" you can get from other manufacturers. It's great for sheetmetal work and exhaust, and will comfortably do up to about 1/8" in a single pass. You can weld heavier sections with it, but you will have to prep the joints very carefully and do multiple passes (try and do a big weld in one slow pass and you get nice puddles of snot with no penetration).

Plus, the MM is infinitely adjustable for voltage, unlike the equivalent red box, which if I remember right is a tap-based machine (in other words, you pick the closest voltage from a finite number of choices).

This is a triple pass 3/16" fillet on the vertical face, with a 1/8" deep bevel horizontal butt weld up top. I could have done multiple passes up top and a slightly deeper bevel to get full penetration, but didn't really need it in this application.

http://www.supermotors.org/getfile/277928/fullsize/DSC00520.JPG

I've got a much bigger stick/multiprocess machine I can use for this stuff, but honestly I haven't had time to learn how to be good on stick. It takes longer to prep, but I trust my multipass MIG beads more than my amateurish stick work for now. So far I've been sticking with less critical welds so I could get used to working with larger sections, and overdesigning my joints so that I didn't have to achieve full strength in any given weld (i.e. a 5" seam where a 3" is all that's required for strength) just in case. I'm paranoid. :thumbup

Just to show MFS that flux core isn't as bad as he makes it out to be
MFS - :goodfinge

http://www.supermotors.org/getfile/278863/fullsize/weld4.jpg


So, Travis, what've you decided?

i just discoverd my uncle that lives in sunriver has a welder. i forgot what model it is though so i will get that and post up. I am basicly needing to be able to weld up .120 2" tubing at this point for a possible cage. if i can build the cage for less then buying another body thats what i will do.

A 20ft stick of 2" tubing is almost $55. Figure needing about 6-7 sticks. Then how're you going to bend, and notch it?

Bending and notching was step 2 of many.