Mild steel tig?
Scratch arc, just get a rummage sale Lincoln ac/dc and ask a pipefitter to get you a torch setup.
Pedal driven? You get what you pay for because of the duty cycle.
How much welding are you planning to do?
One problem with the “all in one” set ups, is that if you get a voltage surge because of poor line voltage, and you burn the board, the whole unit is junk. And that doesn’t really matter what brand it is. My Miller board was $700.00 on a $150.00 used welder.
I still do light fabricating on an AC Lincoln tombstone my Dad bought in 1965. It works fine.
Pre digital welders are available cheap at rummage sales all over the place. People don’t know how to use them.
One tip I would suggest is get a machine with variable amperage selection vs notches. Especially for a mig welder. Easier to dial in your heat.
Lots of people buy Harbor Freight units for one project with the extended drop off warranty. Ie. modding a steel trailer. If it quits, return it.
There are plenty of welding pros on YouTube putting every conceivable brand through their paces.
There is no substitute for decades under the hood.
My AWS# is xxxxxx
Left blank for the doxy twins.
Last edited by ClapperZapper; 02/07/24 09:27 AM.
