I have finally decided to take the plunge and have a go at welding. Looking through past posts Clarke machines seem to be well regarded, and as I have a Machine Mart nearby that seems the way to go. Where I should like some advice is which model. It will be solely for use on the cars, and if I were to need any serious structural work I would probably get it done professionally. 90 amps appears to be sufficient and I am inclined toward the 90 or 105EN, though given the minimal difference in price I wonder if there would be any benefit in going for something with a bit more capacity, such as the 135TE. Any thoughts?
Buying a welder
- Thread starter 2549andy
- Start date
Try having a read through on here:
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/
there is a section for buying a welder, and a section on learning too.
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/
there is a section for buying a welder, and a section on learning too.
I have a Clarke 160TM, does really well on all the projects I've done with it, and having the extra oomph available can be handy from time to time. General light bodywork butt welding set to max 1, it's happier on max 2, but will blow holes through single skins. Double or more skins and spot welding works really well on max 2. I used to have a smaller (I think 90 amp) mig welder without a cooling fan and trashed that in a little over a year, and clearly didn't have the same penetration of the Clarke 160 I have now 
Thanks chaps. Having spent some time looking at the welding forum I'm probably more confused now than when I started.
Simon, when you say you trashed your 90, was that because you used it a lot and for long periods (which I am unlikely to do) or because it was not up to the job? Also, as you talk about blowing holes on anything but the lowest setting, is a 30amp minimum low enough for body panels? The 135 will go down to 30, but the 90 and 100 go to 25 and 27 respectively. I am leaning toward the 135, if only because it will not have to work so hard, but as I am likely to be welding mostly thinner stuff I should probably be more concerned about performance at the lower end.
Andy
Simon, when you say you trashed your 90, was that because you used it a lot and for long periods (which I am unlikely to do) or because it was not up to the job? Also, as you talk about blowing holes on anything but the lowest setting, is a 30amp minimum low enough for body panels? The 135 will go down to 30, but the 90 and 100 go to 25 and 27 respectively. I am leaning toward the 135, if only because it will not have to work so hard, but as I am likely to be welding mostly thinner stuff I should probably be more concerned about performance at the lower end.
Andy
Both, used it until it cutout and didn't leave it time to cool down properly before starting again. It was truly rubbish, not powerful enough to give a good weld, blobbed it on top rather than create a nice weld pool, cheap, old and nasty thing :wink: . The 160 I have has two main controls, a min/max switch and 1/2/3 knob. I never use it on min, not enough power to melt tinfoil so it lives on max. Personally I don't like welding on setting 1 as it doesn't give enough power to properly get a pool going, whereas on thin sheet setting 2 vapourises the edges . I don't know what the setting equate to in amps, but my style is high power and low feed so I don't end up with a mountain range of bird crap laid on top of the metal!
. I don't know what the setting equate to in amps, but my style is high power and low feed so I don't end up with a mountain range of bird crap laid on top of the metal!ive got one of these,
https://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/prod ... ils/mig165
really pleased with it once i got it setup, earth clamp thats provided with it is a bit crappy but easily replaced. make sure you get a refillable gas bottle, the disposables are false economy
https://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/prod ... ils/mig165
really pleased with it once i got it setup, earth clamp thats provided with it is a bit crappy but easily replaced. make sure you get a refillable gas bottle, the disposables are false economy
Kman1600
Member
Hi,
After owning a number of cheaper welders, SIP 150 then a Sealey 150 went the first one died and recently splashed out on one of these:
http://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/mig-weld ... -i-mig180/
I know it's a bit more expensive than even to top end of the amateur ranges but what a difference in quailty and performance!!!! I've been welding for years and thought I was pretty good at it but wow does this machine make a difference :shock:
As already said stay clear of the disposable gas bottles they are a waste of money unless you really do just use your welder for a few hours a year, I use hobby weld
http://www.hobbyweld.co.uk/products/
I used to have a BOC contract bottle but hobby weld is ssoooo much cheaper.
Tim
After owning a number of cheaper welders, SIP 150 then a Sealey 150 went the first one died and recently splashed out on one of these:
http://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/mig-weld ... -i-mig180/
I know it's a bit more expensive than even to top end of the amateur ranges but what a difference in quailty and performance!!!! I've been welding for years and thought I was pretty good at it but wow does this machine make a difference :shock:
As already said stay clear of the disposable gas bottles they are a waste of money unless you really do just use your welder for a few hours a year, I use hobby weld
http://www.hobbyweld.co.uk/products/
I used to have a BOC contract bottle but hobby weld is ssoooo much cheaper.
Tim
1396midget
Well-Known Member
Dad has an ancient SIP stick welder with which he seems to be able to weld paper thin stuff, like Midget floors. I think it goes down to 30 amps but all the number have worn off. It'll blow a 13 amp fuse in about 2 mins of continuous welding on it's biggest setting....
I've just inherited a MIG plus a roll of wire but with nothing else. Hobby weld for gas looks sensible, what about regulators and that?
I've just inherited a MIG plus a roll of wire but with nothing else. Hobby weld for gas looks sensible, what about regulators and that?
I've finally taken the plunge and bought this www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/product/deta ... mig-welder.
Only spent about 30 mins playing, and all I've managed so far is a lot of random splashes and a few holes. Hope it gets easier soon as the car is of the road until I master it (or give up and get someone who knows what they're doing to do it for me). Biggest problem seems to be that I can't see what's happening, which I suspect is because the mask is too dark for the low settings I'm using. Still using the cheap one that came with the welder. I will be getting an auto darkening one shortly, hopefully at the NEC next weekend.
Andy
Only spent about 30 mins playing, and all I've managed so far is a lot of random splashes and a few holes. Hope it gets easier soon as the car is of the road until I master it (or give up and get someone who knows what they're doing to do it for me). Biggest problem seems to be that I can't see what's happening, which I suspect is because the mask is too dark for the low settings I'm using. Still using the cheap one that came with the welder. I will be getting an auto darkening one shortly, hopefully at the NEC next weekend.
Andy
unstable load
Well-Known Member
Any decent welding supplier will have the regulators and consumables you need. To stop splatter sticking to the head, give it a spray of1396midget said:
whatever 'er Indoors uses for non-stick baking. Here in SA we use Spray and Cook, and it reduces the amount of crud forming in the nozzle
quite a bit and makes what does accumulate easy to remove.
mikecoombs
Active Member
With the mask, get the fastest acting one you can at a reasonable price. Never use it on less than 10 tint and make sure you have your whole arms legs neck (back of) and everything else covered up or you will get instant 2nd degree sunburn on places you've never had it before.
to explain, for MIg work the amperage largely controls the type of flow as the wire melts. Low amps it drips off the torch, medium amps it runs off and high amps it is a spray. Obviously the thicker the wire the higher the values for low medium and high. Trick is to get the wire to melt at a point just outside the nozzle (so you can see it)
The heat of the melt (the molten part of your join) is mostly controlled by gas choice and this also controls the height and penetration of the weld. for a cold weld on say thin sheet straight Argon is the bottom heat, producing a high, round shaped run on thicker sheet. Then you progressively add CO2 to the gas the weld melt gets hotter as the oxygen burns with the steel; this makes the weld flatter or burns holes in the work if you go too far. Most bottled premixes are either 10% or 20% CO2. Some metals, such as Stainless require much more heat so we use straight oxygen with the Argon to boost the heat even further. Note that this also burns a proportion of your wire into gas during the process. Gasless wire is made like electrical resin cored solder, it does spatter somewhat but not as bad as stick. I keep regulators for both full bottles and throwaways so I can change gas cheaply at home.
If you are just getting spatter your either have the electrodes backwards (the electrodes are reversed depending on whether you are using Gas orGasless wire, the machine will have the correct polarities written on it somewhere) or way to little current. start at about 7 then work your way up or down.
Finally, The Machines Duty Cycle is a measure of how long you can weld without the amps dropping. It is a % of a set measure. Most small machines are only 10% or 20% so you do need to rest them a bit.
to explain, for MIg work the amperage largely controls the type of flow as the wire melts. Low amps it drips off the torch, medium amps it runs off and high amps it is a spray. Obviously the thicker the wire the higher the values for low medium and high. Trick is to get the wire to melt at a point just outside the nozzle (so you can see it)
The heat of the melt (the molten part of your join) is mostly controlled by gas choice and this also controls the height and penetration of the weld. for a cold weld on say thin sheet straight Argon is the bottom heat, producing a high, round shaped run on thicker sheet. Then you progressively add CO2 to the gas the weld melt gets hotter as the oxygen burns with the steel; this makes the weld flatter or burns holes in the work if you go too far. Most bottled premixes are either 10% or 20% CO2. Some metals, such as Stainless require much more heat so we use straight oxygen with the Argon to boost the heat even further. Note that this also burns a proportion of your wire into gas during the process. Gasless wire is made like electrical resin cored solder, it does spatter somewhat but not as bad as stick. I keep regulators for both full bottles and throwaways so I can change gas cheaply at home.
If you are just getting spatter your either have the electrodes backwards (the electrodes are reversed depending on whether you are using Gas orGasless wire, the machine will have the correct polarities written on it somewhere) or way to little current. start at about 7 then work your way up or down.
Finally, The Machines Duty Cycle is a measure of how long you can weld without the amps dropping. It is a % of a set measure. Most small machines are only 10% or 20% so you do need to rest them a bit.
Willy Eckerslyke
Well-Known Member
Also, wear ear plugs. Either proper ones or little bits of cotton wool, tissue, bog-roll, anything that'll stop a molten blob of steel rolling down your lughole. When you've heard one fizzing it's way towards your ear-drum once in your life, you'll never want to risk it again, even if it does do a grand job of clearing away that build up of ear-wax.
unstable load
Well-Known Member
Good tip, Willy!Willy Eckerslyke said:
I used to wonder why the professional welders wore those silly looking peak-less caps with the long tail at the back until I was chipping flux and a piece went down the back of my collar and stuck to my neck...... :shock:
unstable load
Well-Known Member
So true!Bren said:
Also, be VERY careful of welding anything that is Galvanised because the vapour that comes off is toxic.
DO NOT clean anything with Brake Cleaner....it produces Phosgene which is a nasty gas. I can't get the link to open, probably because I am in Nigeria at the moment, but Google "Welding and brake cleaner" and have a look-see.
Bought a decent auto-dimming mask, apron, and gauntlets. As I ride a motorbike I also have a ready supply of earplugs (not something I would have thought of using).
After a lot of frustration, it all got a lot easier when I realised that there was a protective film on the inside of the mask as well as the outside.
I've welded a couple of small patches where they won't show, and after a bit more practice I think I'm ready to have a go at the corners of the front valance.
After a lot of frustration, it all got a lot easier when I realised that there was a protective film on the inside of the mask as well as the outside.
I've welded a couple of small patches where they won't show, and after a bit more practice I think I'm ready to have a go at the corners of the front valance.
unstable load
Well-Known Member
Just a caution....
If you are using a modern Inverter type machine, be it MIG, TIG or Stick, please be cautious of the location of the machine in your garage when grinding. If the sparks get onto the circuitry in sufficient numbers they will cause the board to fail and kill your machine. And, the machines have a handy little fan to help the sparks along.....
If you are using a modern Inverter type machine, be it MIG, TIG or Stick, please be cautious of the location of the machine in your garage when grinding. If the sparks get onto the circuitry in sufficient numbers they will cause the board to fail and kill your machine. And, the machines have a handy little fan to help the sparks along.....