Welding Tips and Tricks

Hello guys, I just recently joined hoping to find some answers and direction on what to do. I have been welding for about 15 years as a hobbyist. Nothing mainstream. With that said I have never used a TIG machine. I'm looking to start doing some Aluminum projects on my time off to try to make an extra dollar in this scary market. Thickest I intend to weld is no larger than 1/4 inch if that. Mainly treestands / dog boxes kind of things. So if anyone can lead me in a direction for a good starting machine Id much appreciate it. Needs to be 110/220 and AC/DC. Whether it has any other capabilities is not a concern. Actually looking at the Lincoln Square Wave TIG 200. Thanks for any help given.

http://forum.weldingtipsandtricks.com/v ... f=5&t=8579

one of the best bang-for-the-buck AC/DC dual-voltage machines. You'd be hard-pressed to out-grow this machine's capabilities unless you're doing some very specialized work. You'll know which one I'm talking about after you click the link.

Oscar wrote:http://forum.weldingtipsandtricks.com/v ... f=5&t=8579

one of the best bang-for-the-buck AC/DC dual-voltage machines. You'd be hard-pressed to out-grow this machine's capabilities unless you're doing some very specialized work. You'll know which one I'm talking about after you click the link.

Jdog1999 wrote:Hello guys, I just recently joined hoping to find some answers and direction on what to do. I have been welding for about 15 years as a hobbyist. Nothing mainstream. With that said I have never used a TIG machine. I'm looking to start doing some Aluminum projects on my time off to try to make an extra dollar in this scary market. Thickest I intend to weld is no larger than 1/4 inch if that. Mainly treestands / dog boxes kind of things. So if anyone can lead me in a direction for a good starting machine Id much appreciate it. Needs to be 110/220 and AC/DC. Whether it has any other capabilities is not a concern. Actually looking at the Lincoln Square Wave TIG 200. Thanks for any help given.

seriously though I am on the same boat and I am leaning in the direction of the HTP but hit the link of a fairly new discussion on the subject and Welcome these guys on here know their stuff and are very good with help...I lurked for a year before I posted mainly reading stuff but I'm shy that way

Welcome to the forum! IMHO, no matter what welder you choose, I would think long and hard about building treestands. You could get sued into the stone age if there was ever a problem. I have a small repair business and I ALWAYS turn down every request for treestand repair/mods. In fact, I will not do ANY repair that is critical in nature that I feel a failure could result in an injury or worse. You can't be too careful these days.

If it's in the budget then the Miller Dynasty 210DX is the top dog, you may also be able to find the 200DX still around which is the older model.

If you own on making money with it, technically you are not just a hobbyist. Do look for a machine that has local repair facilities. Excludes most Chinese machines except Thermal Arc/tweco

Jdog1999 wrote:Hello guys, I just recently joined hoping to find some answers and direction on what to do. I have been welding for about 15 years as a hobbyist. Nothing mainstream. With that said I have never used a TIG machine. I'm looking to start doing some Aluminum projects on my time off to try to make an extra dollar in this scary market. Thickest I intend to weld is no larger than 1/4 inch if that. Mainly treestands / dog boxes kind of things. So if anyone can lead me in a direction for a good starting machine Id much appreciate it. Needs to be 110/220 and AC/DC. Whether it has any other capabilities is not a concern. Actually looking at the Lincoln Square Wave TIG 200. Thanks for any help given.

Hi Jdog, welcome aboard. I'm a new TIGger as well. About an hour total TIG arc time in my life. Still practicing padding beads and haven't even tried to join two pieces yet. I bought the AHP Alpha-TIG200X for my first foray into the GTAW world. It's a nice little machine and runs a nice bead (when I don't mess it up). Eventually, I plan on making money with it, but that's a ways in the future. It's a 120/240 volt, AC/DC machine with a good feature set for the price. I paid $800 for mine from Amazon.

Southpaw makes a good point about local repair if you're using it daily to make money, but I'm not in that position yet. If I get to that status, I'll probably get a Miller Dynasty 210 DX and keep the AHP for backup. Like exnailpounder, I'd tend to fight shy of treestands. Folks are really litigious these days, and the 140 pound guy who ordered the "lightweight" stand just might loan it to his 350 pound uncle...

Good luck to you as you start your business, and keep us posted on your progress.

Larry

Agreed, for the price of the AHP, if you are making money with the machine, it always pays to have a back up. Dynasty's break too. You would still be without a machine for a couple weeks while it's being repaired.

exnailpounder wrote:Welcome to the forum! IMHO, no matter what welder you choose, I would think long and hard about building treestands. You could get sued into the stone age if there was ever a problem. I have a small repair business and I ALWAYS turn down every request for treestand repair/mods. In fact, I will not do ANY repair that is critical in nature that I feel a failure could result in an injury or worse. You can't be too careful these days.

Thanks for the response. I guess I should have been a little more clear. lol.... The ladder stands will be for myself. The ones I would consider selling would be a shooting house. No legs to set it on. That would be on them.

I guess im trying to keep my expense around $1500.00 US. There is plenty of local places. Airgas and a few others that sell Miller and Lincoln.

Jdog1999 wrote:

exnailpounder wrote:Welcome to the forum! IMHO, no matter what welder you choose, I would think long and hard about building treestands. You could get sued into the stone age if there was ever a problem. I have a small repair business and I ALWAYS turn down every request for treestand repair/mods. In fact, I will not do ANY repair that is critical in nature that I feel a failure could result in an injury or worse. You can't be too careful these days.

Thanks for the response. I guess I should have been a little more clear. lol.... The ladder stands will be for myself. The ones I would consider selling would be a shooting house. No legs to set it on. That would be on them.

I guess im trying to keep my expense around $1500.00 US. There is plenty of local places. Airgas and a few others that sell Miller and Lincoln.

Tweco (formerly Thermal Arc) 186 AC/DC might be your best bet, but you can't run it on 110V. I hear it's a very capable machine.

I have had an Everlast 255EXT for a couple years and really like it. CK FlexLock Torch. Works great, no problems. Everlast 250EX looks like a nice machine at ~$1700 but don't own one. Amperage, Duty Cycle, Features, Warranty for the cost Everlast beats everything out there in TIG but support is over the phone and not right down the street. Company has been easy to work with too. If really prefer Red or Blue, I like the specs & price point on the new Lincoln 200 Squarewave as a minimum entry machine. A little light on duty cycle for production Aluminum but you can add Helium to Argon and get better performance. Airgas has their Aluminum Gold Gas mix which is 72/25, Argon/ Helium. My $0.02.

shipj0 wrote:I have had an Everlast 255EXT for a couple years and really like it. CK FlexLock Torch. Works great, no problems. Everlast 250EX looks like a nice machine at ~$1700 but don't own one. Amperage, Duty Cycle, Features, Warranty for the cost Everlast beats everything out there in TIG but support is over the phone and not right down the street. Company has been easy to work with too. If really prefer Red or Blue, I like the specs & price point on the new Lincoln 200 Squarewave as a minimum entry machine. A little light on duty cycle for production Aluminum but you can add Helium to Argon and get better performance. Airgas has their Aluminum Gold Gas mix which is 72/25, Argon/ Helium. My $0.02.

I just finished testing and reviewing the Everlast 250EX. Nice machine. I just got a 210EXT to check out over the holiday so I can compare the 2 systems. The 2016 EX is fully digital like the EXT. What that means is the analog knobs don't connect to potentiometers, the are just digital position sensors so the internal processing of the input data is all digital/electronic.
I just started my own welding sales business. Currently authorized dealer for AHP and Everlast. But I only sell models I can stand behind 100%. I stock and test every machine before I ship it. So I am going to be reviewing several models over the next several months. (Partially to decide what models I like and want to carry)
Also I also had a couple issues with the clear braided air line. Talked to Everlast, they are going to change to a better hose with their next production run.
The EX stick welds really well too. There was nothing I didn't like about the machine itself or the way it welded. Once I have spent a bit of time with the EXT I will share a review and comparison of both machines. I know the is some confusion in the differences between the two, I will also try and get some more info on the internal build differences.
If you are in the Reno NV area, members are welcome to come and weld with and try out any of my machines. I also travel to the LA and bay area pretty regularly. Can meet up with folks if they are interested.
Already have a welder? Any brand, I'm happy to give some free basic welding lessons if you any help. Just a hobby welder myself but in good at teaching the basics. I actually used to teach HS shop classes.

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I have heard that the 250EX will be digital in 2016 and I have recommended it to some other friends locally. I like that I can get torches through CK. I wish Everlast would get up with CK and figure out how to make the steady grip amptrol work with the 255EXT. Weld.com marketed one for the 255EXT but I could not get it to work and sent it back. Would like to have a finger amptrol for my CK Flexlock. I have steadily upgraded MIG Machines over the past few years looking for a larger capacity pulse MIG to where I have a Lincoln PowerMig 350MP but I will not give up the 255EXT. For the price and quality, thought about buying another to sit on the shelf but this one has never blinked so hard to justify.

if you are really going to weld quarter inch aluminum, a 200 amp machine is not for you. A 200 amp machine is a stretch on material that thick. You will need to preheat and likely add helium to your shielding gas mix, which gets expensive. You really want a larger machine for that kind of work. 250-300 amps. Otherwise you will be running your 200 amp machine at full throttle all the time and will run up against the duty cycle really quickly. Plus having the extra horsepower is great for getting the puddle started without having to wait around all day and overheating your piece in the process. There is NO 110v machine that will weld anything but the thinnest aluminum. I don't care what make machine you have, they are all basically limited on 110. Take the HTP invertig 221, which is a widely acclaimed welder. On 110 volts you need to provide a 30 amp outlet to get to 150 amps peak output. Not many people have 30 amps outlets in their house. Most don't have 20 amp outlets even. Look at the AHP welder and it requires37.5 amps input power to get to 150 amps peak output on TIG...that's ridiculous. There is no standard household outlet that is going to provide that kind of power. And if you are stick welding it calls for 58 amps input on 110 volts. Why bother? Most of these dual voltage welders are realistically going to top out at about 120-130 amps on a 20 amp outlet. You aren't going to weld aluminum with 120 amps. Not for very long and not anything of any real thickness. I think people expect too much from 110 volt household power. I am not sure it is worth much other than some stick welding with 3/32 or smaller rods, or tigging sheet metal.

Louie1961 wrote:There is NO 110v machine that will weld anything but the thinnest aluminum. I don't care what make machine you have, they are all basically limited on 110. Take the HTP invertig 221, which is a widely acclaimed welder. On 110 volts you need to provide a 30 amp outlet to get to 150 amps peak output. Not many people have 30 amps outlets in their house. Most don't have 20 amp outlets even.

Agree on the 110v point, however a quick check and my dryer and water heater both have 30amp breakers, saw a few 20amp also.

LtBadd wrote:

Louie1961 wrote:There is NO 110v machine that will weld anything but the thinnest aluminum. I don't care what make machine you have, they are all basically limited on 110. Take the HTP invertig 221, which is a widely acclaimed welder. On 110 volts you need to provide a 30 amp outlet to get to 150 amps peak output. Not many people have 30 amps outlets in their house. Most don't have 20 amp outlets even.

Agree on the 110v point, however a quick check and my dryer and water heater both have 30amp breakers, saw a few 20amp also.

Your washer and dryer are 220vac not 110 which Louis was referring to. I agree that if you plan to do a lot of aluminum, get a 250 amp machine. 50 amps makes a world of difference. We are taking large pieces of 1/4" wall tube/plate, not the occasional bracket or tab. The AHP only needs 28amps on 230 to run TIG @200 amps for example.
A helium blend is a good option too, but you don't want it on thin aluminum.