[Dstedman]

I have been welding as a hobbyist for many years. I have two machines, one cheapy and one not so cheapy that do stick and mig. I want to get into Tig. At this point just for steel. Primary reason is to have more control and to put less heat into the work piece.

I am looking for suggestions for a Tig only machine. I would like it to be capable of welding steel and aluminum but the aluminum is not critical at this point. Baby steps first.

Budget is up to $2500.

Would like it to be capable of using water cooling but be able to add that later.

I would need a complete plug and play package, I am a long way form ready sources of parts and supplies.

Power available: I have a 400 amp triple phase main panel so probably not a big issue. I run an 85 Amp Hypertherm and the lights do not flicker.

Please consider me uniformed at this time, so if you say "this machine has reverse flow wingbats at 62% of osmotic field strength" it will likely mean nothing to me. What I want to know is which machine is solid, will last say 10 years, has the ability to keep up as I learn and not limit me in the medium term future.

Open to suggestions.

[LtBadd]

What I want to know is which machine is solid, will last say 10 years, has the ability to keep up as I learn and not limit me in the medium term future.
Open to suggestions.

Welcome to the forum, I bought a Dynasty 210dx and had a problem that required service, fortunately under warranty, that was a few years ago and no problems since, hoping for 10 years

If you have a cooler or not has nothing to do with the machine, it's an added feature that can be done with any TIG capable unit

I am a long way form ready sources of parts and supplies.

Where are you located?

[cj737]

To get a TIG only box capable of AC, the best value on the market is a PrimeWeld, hands down. Runs less than $1,000 and there are a few members here with them, plus scores of YT video reviews of it.

I had a buddy get one to help launch his side gig, he'd never welded before. So my actual use of the machine was pretty damn impressed. Torch is a CK, pedal is SSC type.

From there, the next best rated jumps to an HTP InverTig. Cost for the dual voltage is just over your budget At $2,800, or their 220v only at $2,350. Very nice machines by all reports. But I will bet you a dollar to a donut you can't out-weld the PrimeWeld And you''' still have $1,500 in your pocket.

[JayWal]

The Lincoln Square Wave 200 would fit your criteria. Its a reliable, full package machine with good warranty and support. But it is extremely basic. The Prime Weld has more features than it, simple things like adjustable pre and post flow. For your budget you might want to look at the Lincoln. But again, it is extremely basic and lacking some pretty simple and important features.

Sent from my SM-G970W using Tapatalk

[robert-r]

I'm a tig newby - been at it about 1 year. Would like to suggest (as others have) the Primeweld machine. That's what I started with. Great welder and pricing. After 5 months, I wanted digital and more features. Purchased an Everlast 255EXT. Am extremely pleased with it. Price was a factor in my decision. I could not afford a similar or better AHP or Miller. So far, it has worked flawlessly. Not sure if it will last 10 years as it's an inverter. However, most modern machines are. Technology doesn't look back and in 5 years or so - maybe sooner - there probably will be machines that will outperform today's models.

[VA-Sawyer]

I also bought a 255EXT . Was happy with it for the first 18 months , then the arc became unstable on AC.
'Lugnut' from Neverlast told me the problem was my Tungsten was getting hot and causing high resistance. They would do nothing to honor the warranty at that point. Said it was all my fault. By their theory, I suddenly became too stupid to weld anything requiring AC, but retained my skills when welding on DC. Think of Neverlast as really having a 6 month month warranty, instead of the 5 years they advertise.
Knowing what I do now, I probably would buy the HTP.

[G-ManBart]

Since you said to consider you uninformed, people are throwing around terms which may be new. One is inverter versus transformer. Generally speaking, the newer, smaller machines are all inverters as are many of the larger units as well. They pack a lot of features into smaller packages and use less power for a given output size. I have one and it welds very nicely. The Primeweld 225 which has been mentioned is probably the best bang for your buck going right now. I wish someone I knew had one to try! Even Harbor Freight's new ProTIG 205 is pretty impressive at $1K (just tried one of them recently).

The Miller or Lincoln inverter welders that would fit in your budget aren't all that impressive in features/power and honestly, Lincoln's parts support for 10 year old machines is weak right now, so I can't imagine buying anything from them for hobby use....big companies that replace their equipment every couple of years might be a different story. The really nice Miller and Lincoln machines will be well over your budget and HTP will stretch it at least somewhat.

The one problem with inverters is that when they die, they're dead. Under warranty they pretty much replace the guts of the machine and you're set. Out of warranty the boards typically cost roughly half of what a new machine costs, sometimes more, and board repairs aren't common. I've had an inverter welder go bad and was lucky enough that it was under warranty. The replacement (actually a more expensive machine) is still going strong after 7 years, but I always sort of wonder when it's going to die.

The alternative is a transformer machine. They don't offer as many features, draw mower power, weigh more and take up more space. The big plus is that they rarely break, and when they do it can almost always be fixed at the component level, and board repairs can be done in at least some cases.

When my inverter machine died I started researching transformer machines because I wanted something reliable and wound up buying a used Miller Syncrowave 250DX at auction. By the time I had it all set up and running I only had $1,100 in it, and then I found one a bit newer, so I bought that one, sold the first one, etc....did that a number of times to my current machine which is like new. Each time I sold the previous machine it went to either a welding shop or a guy who is a full-time welder who wanted a machine at home to do some side work. All stressed reliability as their primary consideration.

There are some really great deals on commercial transformer machines out there, or at least there are in certain parts of the country, so if the size/power/features don't scare you off, it's something to consider.

As far as water cooling goes, that upgrade is the one thing I'm most happy about. It essentially lets you run a smaller size torch as long as you want and not cook your hands. For most folks the smaller 20 series is more than enough (can handle 250A with ease). I highly recommend getting one with a flex head...once you get used to that you won't want to go back.

Let us know what you decide, or if you narrow down your choices.

[Granddaddy]

I have the Lincoln sw 200 and 2 primeweld machines as well as a couple of yeswelder machines.

The SW 200 is the last machine I would get rid of and is the one I would recommend to you because of the A/C ability but if you aren't hung up on having AC tig I would recommend the Lincoln Power Mig 210MP.
That being said when I needed service from PrimeWeld they were johnny on the spot answering the phone and replying to email so I believe that would be a safe purchase for you as well.
I realize you have a respectable budget but there is another machine in the PrimeWeld price range I would recommend based on my use of it. One of the guy's at work bought a Weld Pro 200 amp machine that can be used for flux core, mig and DC tig welding. He purposely tried to overload it and couldn't and based on his experience with his I bought one to run off of an engine drive at work. I spent a good part of yesterday running solid wire through it and laying some beads with the tig function and it is pretty impressive overall but especially the lift arc tig function. It has smooth arc starts and a really smooth arc, I really enjoyed using it. The price is 638.00 if I remember right and it has a 2 year warranty and is aluminum capable with the use of a 140 dollar spool gun. I have a YesWelder machine that is pretty much identical to it and I really like it but I honestly don't know if I have used the tig function on it or not. the draw back on the YesWelder is that it will not except a spool gun. as for lasting 10 years I can't say and being old I don't put a whole lot of faith in any inverter machine which brings me back to YesWelder, their machines are cheap enough that if I get 2 or 3 years out of them I would buy another because of how well they weld and their duty cycles. It can be confusing trying to pick a new machine but the budget you have is a nice advantage because it will put you into a Lincoln SW 200 or Power mig 210MP with the tig kit and leave a few bucks for accessories. the MP is DC tig but accepts the magnum spool gun for aluminum for another 220 bucks when and if you need it.

Good luck.