Marc936

which is the best to buy? not for heavy work, but just to mess around and practice and learn on, mainly just to get some experience on welding and fabrication

Matt93SE

I have a Lincoln SP135T MIG that I make all of my parts out of. It's big enough to do up to about 5/16" steel, and I've welded up tons of stuff at 1/4".

they'll run you about $500 at most places, then you'll need about $250 worth of extras.. Gas bottle is about $150, good welding mask is about $40 ($100 if you get auto dimming :thumbsup, more wire $30 a roll, anti-spatter gel is a few $, good welding gloves, $20....

so expect to spend $750-1000 for a decent MIG setup. double that if you want to go to a TIG setup.

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turbo200

I got a lincoln 135. I bought it at home depot. I think it was like $400. It's 120volts, it'll weld up to 5/16" it's all around pretty good. you do not need a bottle of argon to weld, I have one and don't use it. I use rosin core wire, the core of it has flux in it, which cools the material you're welding, same idea as gas. It's much cheaper. to fill a small argon/mix bottle will run you about $70. to buy a roll of rosincore is about $10. look for a used welder first, I've seen them pretty cheap in a local newspaper. just another suggestion.

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Matt93SE

Meh.. the rosin core wire sucks balls. makes ugly welds.

A bottle of argon costs about $150 up front for the bottle and gas, and I pay $18 to fill mine up each time.

your roll of wire.. a 1lb roll of rosin core wire costs $10. I buy a 10lb roll of solid wire for $19.. Honestly, the gas and solid wire will go a LOT farther for your money, and it produces better results.

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Smitty 3.5

I will agree; a bottle of shielding gas also makes it possible to weld a larger variety of metals, depending on the gas and wire you choose.

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