Every time I turn around, I find I'm needing to weld something arond the house, whether it be on my vehicles or lawnmowers, etc.
What would be the best wire welder to purchase for general use on mild steel without paying an arm and a leg? You know, something small and mobile to keep in your garage.

 

i'd look for a GMAW ( solid wire gas shielding) in 110v. buy the largest 100v you can find. it's easy to dial a big machine down, can't dial a small machine up. gas will give you a lot better results than fluxed wire. i'd only buy from lincoln or miller, maybe hobart if the price was right. buying from the "big 3" you'll know you can get parts and have factory support. i'd watch for used ones to come up for sale if you aren't in a rush to buy one.

 

Thanks, ede. I think you're right about choosing GMAW. I'm not a big fan of FCAW (as for as heavy fab goes anyway). I'll stick with Miller or Lincoln due to the fact I can get parts through the vendors that come through the plant where I work. I appreciate it.

 

I have used many different welders through working at different body shops and I personally have become a huge follower of millermatic series welders

 

I bought a lincoln 255 and never looked back.that would be a little over kill for what you need but i do alot of heavy duty welding.

 

i own a lincoln and a craftsman no complaints out of either never had a problem

 

I assembled my MIG setup in a round-about way

1. Bought the Lincoln Electric Weld-Pak 100, which comes set up for flux core, for under $300 (Home Depot did the beat-a-price guarantee against Lowe's for me)

2. Few months later, bought the MIG conversion kit for the Weld Pak to turn it into GMAW for $100

3. A year later (laughs), finally bought a 60 cu ft bottle with the CO2/Argon mix

All that is basically an LE MigPak 10, but I can't add a stitch timer or spotweld timer. (not a big deal for me)

LE's got some new smaller GMAW Mig out... doesn't do as high as amperage as the Mig Pak 10 or Weld Pak 100, but it's about $100 cheaper. Ah; here it is, the "Handy Mig". See http://www.eastwoodco.com/shopping/p...ProductID=1264 for more info...

For comparison, here's the Mig Pak 10 http://www.eastwoodco.com/shopping/p...ProductID=1217 and Weld Pak 100 http://www.eastwoodco.com/shopping/p...ProductID=1182 .

But like ede said; that Handy Mig might restrict you if you ever move up to heavier stuff...

 

I appreciate the info man. That MIG PAK 10 sounds like what I'm looking for. My old cars, trucks and lawnmowers are all I'll need to be welding on. If I need to weld anything thicker than 1/4", I'll take it to work! Thanks.