i know it is from wal mart, so maybe that should answer my own question.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=8727990

 

Depends on what you want to weld

max thickness 1/8"

 

i would go with a mig welder, seems to lay a nicer bead, but if you're good with stick, go for it, but you get what you pay for

 

yeah what are you wanting to weld? if you have done it before or like to do it i would save my money and get a better one. you can get a decent hobart mig for 450 ish and run flux core wire

 

Yeah I guess it does depend on what you want to weld, but that welder won't weld anything more than sheet metal. I'd save my money for something with more amps. I went with the Millermatic 180 mig and its a nice welder, lays beautiful beads compared to the cheap sears one I had before. It was pretty pricey for what it is though.

I'd keep looking personally.

 

I would say no. It just doesn't have the amperage to be able to do anything really useful.

Personally, I'm hoping to get a Millermatic 252 sometime, but that's also a 2000 dollar welder.

 

i have some buddies that welded with the 252 (250) at the time then welded with what would be the 212 now but (210) then. they actually liked the 210 better. many people find the 252 to have too many settings and hard to get that setting that they really want to make it weld like they want.

i have the hobart 210, couldnt be happier. if you only use the welder as a hobbiest the 252 is kinda over kill imo. i only paid 600 for my Hobart 210 half price and was only used once.

i can weld, weld and weld with the hobart 210 and it wont shut off because of overheat or overloaded. You really want to watch the duty cycle on the migs.

i am by far a pro at this, i never welded with a mig until i got mine 6 months ago. i am still learning but i love it.

 

Using a Harbor Freight 120 amp unit -- though it is a 220 volt unit which helps some in terms of arc steadiness at high currents. Touchy-touchy-touchy settings. Wire feeder mainly.

I use C-25 gas and not flux core (can't see what I'm doing with flux, lol) -- and that's because I too am a real novice. So far, nothing I've done structurally on my truck shows any weakness and I have beat it a bit now. My welds aren't textbook pretty though.

I recommend that unless you have time and no budget, you get a better welder. At some time in the future, a Lincoln, Miller or Hobart MIG will be in my shop instead of the cheapy. You can use the cheap ones, but you've got to be very attentive to their peculiarities.

 

i got that last week it works ok i just learned how to weld with it...sorta.... and it welds muffler pipe fine i would agree with what it says on the box though that it can only weld up to 1/8 of an inch but for the $100 i think its a pretty good little welder it gets the job done

 

had one there a pos took it back and got a mig welder from lowes works great i could never get the stick welder to weld lol too low amperage i geuss but i would spend the extra bucks and get the mig welder there great

 

I bought the Campbell Hausfeld 115 amp mig welder from walmart and it has worked out well for me. I used to have the one you are looking at, but returned it because I needed more amps. I started off welding in my shop class with a stick welder then went to mig and I found out how much easier and faster mig is than stick.

 

mig welding is for pansies, real men know how to work a stick. I like stick welding more because it involve skill. MIG welding is easy.

 

ford rangerxlt is right not enough amperage i have that one and it sucks

 

wow, thanks for all the replies everyone. i have no knowledge when it comes to welders.


And D. i will have to bug you sometime after i got a place to use it.

 

Welding is something I have always wanted to get into but have never done. Knowing nothing about welders I would have to say wait and save your money like it was said up higher "you get what you pay for!"

Good luck with your search

 

Get into it when you can, Andy. I never did any welding before this summer and I am so happy I had to learn, lol. It opens up all sorts of fabricating opportunities and is helping me make my truck exactly what I want it to be.

It's also very satisfying to be able to join metals together for some reason. Not sure exactly what that is, but I get a kick out of it. I welded my two neighbors cars together at the bumper just for fun...although somehow they didn't appreciate it -- some people have no joy in their hearts...

 

i could see where they may be a tinsy bit pissed over that lol.

i would love to get into custom fabrication, working with high end cnc lathes, waterjets, stuff like that as well.

 

Yeah, I get excited when I get to use my welder. It is a fun tool to use, but don't really use it all that much. It is a good skill to learn and it sure does save you money.

 

go TIG or go home =)

 

Don't bother getting a stick welder for working on your car, you can get a Mig welder for a little more and get better quality welds. Get something in the 150-180 amp range and youll be fine. Anything less than that will make welding thicker metal tough. Also, try to avoid using flux core wire if possible, using a cover gas will make it easier to see what your doing. Miller units are very nice, but very expensive for the "garage" welder. Tig is nice also, but requires more skill and you have to protect the back of the weld with a shielding gas also, which can be tricky depending on what your welding, but Tig also lets you weld aluminum.