Welder info wanted.

[Butch 194]

Will a Hobart 125 mig welder be good enough for tractor work? Every

now and then I have need for welding but yet don't wanna spend a lot

on one. In the photo below that work was done with a mig welder. Would

the Hobart 125 be good enough for that? It's a reinforcement plate for the transmission.

Is that a good looking weld and can I expect those kind of results?

Thanks

[Jim_M 178]

A Hobart 125 is a great machine for the kind of work you want to do with it. It's intended for the hobbyist who doesn't need to do heavy work. You'll be happy with it.

[big mike 13]

The small machines are very handy BUT they do have limitations.I laugh when I hear it said that 1/2",for instance,can be welded with a 110v machine.......it may glue it together but it is not a good penetrating weld.For sheet metal and material up to 3/16" a 125 should do just fine.

[Nick 13]

The Hobart 125 should work out nice. A lot of my first projects, including a 16' trailer, were done by a friend with a no name 110v mig welder then a Lincoln weld pak flux core wire welder. Both got the job done but the gas mig welder did a much nicer looking job than ours with flux wire. If you get into heavier jobs you might also watch the auctions and garage sales for an old stick welder. :hide:

[bell 11]

I bought a Hobart 140... It has been the best welder I have ever owned. If possible, you might want to step up (in size) a little bit. You never know when you're going to need to weld something thick. I have successfully welded 3/8" steel with the 140 and a little "pre-heating"..... :hide:

[Nick 13]

I was just going to mention the same thing Jon. The Hobart 140 looks to be around $120 more but comes ready for gas or flux welding plus has the extra step up in power. Might not be the best price around but its always easy to find stuff on the Northern tool site. Northern tool welder link-

[big mike 13]

Also when you use a smaller machine and need to weld near the limit of the machine flux cored wire will gain you a little advantage.

Flux core has less material to burn off and that equates to less amperage needed.The flux also gives off CO2 which will help penetration.

By all means if can raid the cookie jar buy the biggest possible machine you can because as soon as you find out what you can fix/build you will need a bigger machine.Auctions are good place to buy machines but be cautious of REALLY old equipment as parts could be hard to get or obsolete.Also be aware of 3 phase machines......a number of times I have had guys offer a machine REAL cheap,why,3 phase.....and they are useless without 3 phase power.

[Butch 194]

I was just on the local vocational-technical high school web site. They

offer 2 welding classes. One is for basic electric welding and the other

was basic gas welding. I emailed them to get info for their night classes

that start in January. I guess that would be the best place for me to start.

I just don't know whether to take gas or electric. I'm curious what the

classes cost. Sure wish I had my VA educational benefits that I never

used. I coulda bought a welder with them!!

Butch

[big mike 13]

Oxy/fuel is a good skill to have but electric will be of more value to you.

What ever class you take good luck and try to learn everythinh and anything you can.

[Butch 194]

Oxy/fuel is a good skill to have but electric will be of more value to you.

What ever class you take good luck and try to learn everythinh and anything you can.

Mike I'll probably take the electric welding. I'll probably buy a Hobart

or Lincoln that will accept gas. I have 220 volts in the garage so going

a little bigger won't be a problem. Thanks.

[Teddy da Bear 11]

I have a Century (Lincoln) 155amp welder. I can tell you....mine has burned through a lot of material. But I am still learning it all.....lol

[Butch 194]

You can burn though material? Like the steel you're welding?

[big mike 13]

Sure can.Steel you can tell by color,aluminum,now that's another story cause it don't change color.

The other bit of advice I'll give ya is when(not if)you get a slag ball down your boot don't bother wastin time tryin to take your boot off cause by the time you do it's all over but the shoutin.

[Teddy da Bear 11]

Sure.....you can spot weld with a wire welder.

Turn up the power and burn through a "spot".

Then turn the power down and fill in the hole......

It is not "true" spot welding....but the premise is the same.

[Butch 194]

Sure can.Steel you can tell by color,aluminum,now that's another story cause it don't change color.

The other bit of advice I'll give ya is when(not if)you get a slag ball down your boot don't bother wastin time tryin to take your boot off cause by the time you do it's all over but the shoutin.

If it can be done then I'll do it. I've burnt myself, ran a 1/2" drill bit through

my leg, gone to the emergency room and even wound up in a cast for 24 weeks doing work around the house. And I knew what I was doing was dumb. I was either lazy or said to myself I'll be extra careful!! And do I learn? NO!! :omg:

[Rideawaysenior 25]

Butch,

You and I are in the same exact boat. I never learn by doing things the hard way. I just get hurt, patch up and keep at it all the time knowing and wondering what may happen next. LOL

As for the welder, I have a Hobart 140 with shielding gas. Does an excellent job. I first started off with an Astro Pneumatic which was an ebay buy. It claimed to be a 140 amp but I had my doubts. It also did ok. Welding with shielding gas though is the way to go. Flux wire is messy and you will certainly get that slag bead in the shoe welding with flux.

Good luck with your purchase.

Jack

[illinilefttackle 399]

When it comes to welding, I guess I was lucky. My Dad welded landing gears for airplanes @ Bendix in South Bend & later Plows for Oliver Plow. His father was a Blacksmith, and his before him. I guess I was just supposed to work with metal. My dad taught me by "Doing"making mistakes and they explaining the right way to do it. He would not teach me to Arc weld until I learned to Gas weld. Those old folks were stubborn.

Anyway, I have a Lincoln Tombstone & a Small Flux-core welder By Century. The Lincoln is unstoppable-the only thing I don't like about the Century Mig is it's short Duty Cycle. It welds great, but if you have a lot to weld it will "shut down" periodically to cool properly. So whatever you get look at the Duty Cycle of the machine-Good Luck-AL

[HorseFixer 2,012]

Butch my personal opinion is I dont like the Flux Core Machines for the reasons stated above. Weld Quality, Limitation Constraints, but hey thats just me! I agree you should try and get the largest machine you can, because there is alot you can fix once you one. I use a Lincoln 255 for mig with stitch controls and Lincoln Square Wave 175 for tig & arc. I built my own cart and stacked mine for less floor space footprint. I have these Identical machines at the Jail and they preform well for me.

The machine I recomend for you in the 110 V class would be a millermatic 140 I just purchased one of these for our juvenile center maintenance department heres one on flee bay

MILLERMATIC 140

Or Millers Website Millers website on the 140 also can watch the video

Oh and on the weld job on the plate.... He was running a bit to fast... looks like was done on a flux core machine weld looks dirty.

[Butch 194]

Horsefixer that's a nice (expensive) setup. I don't wanna go that

far. I don't have the space plus it would be hard to justify that.

I heard from the Vo-Tech HS it's $108 and 10 weeks. It's probably

2 hours a night so I hope I can learn alot in only 20 hours.

[HorseFixer 2,012]

I understand, Butch here is a deal on a Hobart 180 with a dented door on flee bayI would say a $ 300.00 bill might take it! This one will weld 5/16 material and will do about everything ya need Dented Hobart

[Butch 194]

Horsefixer I'm leaning towards the Millermatic 180!! I'm not gonna do anything

yet until I can start that class in January. That will be a good way to help kill

the long winter months. I should take an auto body class too! I went to a

Vo-tech high school for 4 years. I went to become an electrician and never

became one!! I shoulda taken something else! But at 13 it's hard to decide

what to do.

[HorseFixer 2,012]

Atta boy butch! Im glad you stepped it up to a 220 V machine you will not be dissapointed! I have welded with that machine and it is smooooth! will do 5/16 also and has a 30% duty cycle 18 minutes of welding in an hour is a bunch!! Yep you will be able to weld anything on a wheel horse you can imagine and should be able to build about any impliment you will want! Good job! Fine choice!

Later you can treat yerself to a spool gun and do aluminum! :omg: