I'm hooked by the small size of the new inverter machines ...

Yes,.

90% of the work I do is on thin car steel body.
But I'd like to be able to weld aluminium.

I'm very impressed with the little 130amp DC TIG, and I'm looking for AC capability.

Both r-tech and Cheltenham welding supplies will let me try the machines out - that's what I'll do.

I agree - welding sets seem to be doing the same thing that a lot of top end oscilloscopes did in the late 90's - they went menu-driven - and were quite infuriating. I prefer something with lots of knobs to twiddle. Or as a ( non politically correct) mate said - "more knobs to twiddle than Snow...

I'm very new to TIG as well - I'm following advice here. Practice.... So this is exactly what I've been doing. One of the bits of practice I have been doing with my TIG is to practice doing a small tack - basically bringing a small area up to puddle temp, and then stopping. Getting the hang of the a...

Hi guys, that's great stuff. Thanks for that - just knowing the right trade named is a benefit. Yeah, I hear a lot of good things about the Kemppi 2300, but it's one hell of a lot of money! What are these welder a made of - gold? I've looked at the insides of a few, and there isn't more than a few h...

Hi there, I'm based in the UK, fairly new to TIG welding, and currently have a neat little scratch start Clarke 131 TIG inverter set that I got for £80 ( ~$120 ) off eBay. Great value, as it included everything - the arc torch, TIG torch and gas regulator, and is like new - literally used once. Clar...

Well, I tried TIG welding for the first time last night. Spent about half an hour burning holes in a test piece, and getting the feel of it - trying to get the hang of laying a bead. Very impressed - very controllable and neat. I was amazed at how slow and controllable it was. The scratch start took...

Hi Len, Cheers for that. It's clear that I'm very much a newbie here, and it's good to be welcomed so warmly. Also, the videos are a great resource - just to show what I should be doing, what the arc should look like, what the puddle looks like, how rod is fed in etc,l You can explain it a thousand ...

Hello to all, I just thought I'd say hello. I've been using a MIG welder for years to repair car bodies, and fabricate things ( and an old plasma cutter to cut them apart again!) Also have experience of arc welding large steels for structural building work. This year I treated myself to a small DC i...