Guy,s I have a Miller 200 tig syntonic wave transformer type. Its got pulse & everything a guy needs. Welds great.
But been looking at these new ones as a back up. Is there really any of these china tig welders that are
worth buying. I hear good, then I hear bad. Some say many are the same company with different
names.
I know this question comes up offend. But I trust the people here. Many of you have been there done that.
So we are talking a 200 amp tig for under $1500. Single phase.
I haven't tried any of the machines with features, but have the stripped down harbor fright ( ) 160A machine. It's not exceptionally good or bad, it just is. I'm not particularly fond of it and only got it to stay sharp with on stick and and tig, but have used it to put a few things together here and there.
I guess that the best thing I can say about it is that it hasn't broken yet, but I don't really expect much from hobbyist grade/light duty machines.
There is a vast section of machines that are made in China. If you want a back up machine, at a certain price, its the only way to go. (unless you buy second hand, which isn't that bad of an idea) My advice is to stick to a brand that has a bit of substance around it, such as everlast, and a decent warranty. Ones with fancy names from ebay or home depot look the goods, but may not come when called.
I've got a thermal arc 186 that I've been real happy with. It's a 200 amp machine with ac/dc tig. High freq and pulse. It stick welds very nice too. We use mostly Miller stuff at work it welds as nice as those do. Had it for a couple of years now and use it weekly and never had any trouble.
Poland308 wrote:I've got a thermal arc 186 that I've been real happy with. It's a 200 amp machine with ac/dc tig. High freq and pulse. It stick welds very nice too. We use mostly Miller stuff at work it welds as nice as those do. Had it for a couple of years now and use it weekly and never had any trouble.
I like thermal arc products. Currently have an older 300 and a 161.
Personal opinion - Thermal Arc isn't in the same category as an importer like everlast.
Thermal Arc is a company, the other is a container. Price would be the deciding point between them I would guess.
But like I said, personal opinion only.
Dave J.
Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance. ~George Bernard Shaw~
Syncro 350
Invertec v250-s
Thermal Arc 161 and 300
MM210
Dialarc
Tried being normal once, didn't take....I think it was a Tuesday.
I could have it mixed up, but I thought that thermal arc was a Thermadyne product. Some of these companies have changed hands a couple times in the past decade or so though. Last I knew they were solid heavy industrial manufacturer.
PeteM wrote:I could have it mixed up, but I thought that thermal arc was a Thermadyne product. Some of these companies have changed hands a couple times in the past decade or so though. Last I knew they were solid heavy industrial manufacturer.
Victor bought the Thermal Arc brand..
"Victor Technologies already includes multiple brands for products in different applications of the welding, cutting, and gas-control industries. The former Thermadyne Holdings Corp. was purchased by private-equity investors in 2010, and rebranded as Victor Technologies International Inc. The portfolio includes Victor, Victor Thermal Dynamics, Victor Arcair, Victor TurboTorch, Tweco, Thermal Arc, Stoody, Firepower and Cigweld."
PeteM wrote:I could have it mixed up, but I thought that thermal arc was a Thermadyne product. Some of these companies have changed hands a couple times in the past decade or so though. Last I knew they were solid heavy industrial manufacturer.
Victor bought the Thermal Arc brand..
"Victor Technologies already includes multiple brands for products in different applications of the welding, cutting, and gas-control industries. The former Thermadyne Holdings Corp. was purchased by private-equity investors in 2010, and rebranded as Victor Technologies International Inc. The portfolio includes Victor, Victor Thermal Dynamics, Victor Arcair, Victor TurboTorch, Tweco, Thermal Arc, Stoody, Firepower and Cigweld."
PeteM wrote:I could have it mixed up, but I thought that thermal arc was a Thermadyne product. Some of these companies have changed hands a couple times in the past decade or so though. Last I knew they were solid heavy industrial manufacturer.
Victor bought the Thermal Arc brand..
"Victor Technologies already includes multiple brands for products in different applications of the welding, cutting, and gas-control industries. The former Thermadyne Holdings Corp. was purchased by private-equity investors in 2010, and rebranded as Victor Technologies International Inc. The portfolio includes Victor, Victor Thermal Dynamics, Victor Arcair, Victor TurboTorch, Tweco, Thermal Arc, Stoody, Firepower and Cigweld."
I don't know what goes on with those companies. All I know is that the combined website is confusing as hell. There is like six companies on the established website and you can't hardly find anything.
A student now but really want to weld everyday. Want to learn everything about everything. Want to become a knower of all and master of none.
Instagram: @farmwelding
Nick
Yes they own Esab as well. If you look at any of the multi mig/tig machines that say 180i the front plate looks identical on most of them no mater who's name is on it. I used to work at a place where we ran lots of industrial thermaldyne machines. I've used the older 300 to stick weld a lot. They always worked great.
I was in a similar situation. I'm just a hobbyist welder. I was wanting a TIG machine but didn't want to spend a lot of money.
I had been MIG welding for a few years and wanted to learn to TIG. I have a Thermal ARC 181i and bought a TIG torch for this machine. The machine was awesome and I really like how it performs. The torch didn't last very long I was only able to weld about 2ft of weld when the torch quit working. At this point I decided I was going to invest in a better machine that could weld aluminum instead of purchasing a new gun for the thermal ARC.
The Chinese brands are very enticing with the low price point. I was trying to decide between the AHP Alpha TIG 200, Everlast 210 EXT, and the Lincoln Square Wave 200. All of the research showed that they seemed to be hit or miss on quality or longevity. It seemed that all of the Chinese had a lower quality guns and foot pedals. Which would need to be replaced or upgraded. I didn't want to deal with another cheap gun. At the end of the day the deciding factor for me was the total cost after upgrading to quality guns and foot pedals and not having to ship the machine if it failed. I ended up with the Lincoln Square Wave 200. It is a great machine at a great price point. If something fails then i can return it to my LWS. I know that between my LWS and Lincoln I will be taken care of.
As a side note I did take my cheap torch apart to see why it stopped working. The neck had snapped in two pieces. I guess it didn't handle the pressure from being placed in those magnetic torch holders. The upside is that I found a direct replacement on EBAY for $11 from China. I ordered two of them and they should be here some time next month.
) 160A machine. It's not exceptionally good or bad, it just is. I'm not particularly fond of it and only got it to stay sharp with on stick and and tig, but have used it to put a few things together here and there.
