Welding Tips and Tricks

Hey guys I'm new to the forum and wanted to get some opinions on a welder that can weld steel and aluminum. I was looking into getting the lincoln 180hd and the 100SG spool gun. I know this isn't the best setup out there but I don't do this as a profession, I don't need my welds to be pretty, just strong. I plan on building some bumpers and doing some aluminum work for boats and what not out of my garage. Do you think this is a good setup for me? Any other set ups y'all would recommend? Trying to keep it under $1,000

Welcome friend. I looked at all the specs for this machine and feel for the garage as a hobbiest this will be fine. However, I would like to have more specifics. How thick of material are you looking to weld? How long and often are you going to be using it? Another machine you might want to look into it the Lincoln 210MP. Starts at $1000 so it is a little higher than what you were wanting to spend but keep in mind the additional features, more amperage and the dual voltage.
-Jonathan

Nothing less that 1/8'' and nothing more than 1/4'' aluminum. I plan on building fishing platforms on the front of boats. I've been doing lots of research and another welder that I see that has awesome reviews is the eastwood 175. It is very cheap and I've always been one that believes you get what you pay for but from the reviews I'm reading it seems like it's perfect for me. Any reviews on the eastwood?

Aluminum mig will need abit of a bigger machine, big possibility of lack of fusion as the heat is drawn away so fast.

I'm going to agree with welding mike.....aluminum can be welded with the welder you mentioned but it will need to be preheated just prior to welding to make the machine feel larger than it is(some grades of aluminum will not be happy with the extra heat). You really do need the extra amperage capacity so that you can join the materials without the extra heat input.

Would the hobart 190 have enough amps to properly weld aluminum?

FLETCH wrote:Would the hobart 190 have enough amps to properly weld aluminum?

Yeah, you can weld 1/4" very nicely.

That setup is very capable.

Check duty cycles. You will be maxed out doing 1/4" . A low duty cycle will drive you crazy.
Many welders do not even give duty cycle for max amperage. Often it's in the 10-20% range. Welds one minute and wait 9 to cool down.

Ok thanks to yalls help I've narrowed it down to the new Lincoln 210 mp or the Hobart 210. From the research I've done both of these machines should have the amperage to weld up to 1/4 aluminum. Now I have to decide between the two and I'm leaning toward the Hobart because I've seen lots of reviews with good things to say about its aluminum welding capabilities. The Lincoln is very new so I have yet to find a review about how it handles aluminum. Do any of yall think the Lincoln is a better choice?