What power range for a TIG machine?

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Looking to buy a TIG in the near future, so I can learn how to, you know, actually weld TIG.  Never even tried it. However, most of the work with be .120 wall mild steel, and mostly 1/8 aluminum. I may want to burn 3/16 aluminum once in a great while. I know I'll need an AC/DC machine, but how many amps will be solid for 1/8, with the occasional 3/16 aluminum? Will a 125 amp unit work? Any other specifics I should look for?  Also, will air an air cooled unit work, or should i look into a water cooled? Hoping not to spend much more than a grand. Thanks for any info, and sorry for the newbie question....Millermatic 200Lincoln SP-100
Reply:Originally Posted by pcoplinLooking to buy a TIG in the near future, so I can learn how to, you know, actually weld TIG.  Never even tried it. However, most of the work with be .120 wall mild steel, and mostly 1/8 aluminum. I may want to burn 3/16 aluminum once in a great while. I know I'll need an AC/DC machine, but how many amps will be solid for 1/8, with the occasional 3/16 aluminum? Will a 125 amp unit work? Any other specifics I should look for?  Also, will air an air cooled unit work, or should i look into a water cooled? Hoping not to spend much more than a grand. Thanks for any info, and sorry for the newbie question....
Reply:If you're lucky you can score a good used 200A AC/DC tig to do 3/16" "comfortably", meaning without getting close to the duty cycle of the machine.  Brand new, under a grand, and you'd be looking at machines like Eastwood, Longevity, Everlast, etc.   Even then, when doing AC welding, an air-cooled torch will get much hotter at the same amperage as doing DC, just the nature of the beast.  Save up for a good 200A AC/DC tig.  Think closer to two grand+ by the time you add a water cooled setup. 1st on WeldingWeb to have a scrolling sig! HTP Invertig 400HTP Invertig 221HTP ProPulse 300HTP ProPulse 200 x2HTP ProPulse 220MTSHTP Inverarc 200TLP HTP Microcut 875SC
Reply:If you have the space and power, the only reliable units you will find within your price range would be older transformer units.   Zero wrong with going that way.  Little electronics to break and no suprises if it works when you test it out.  In your price range, a Dialarc 250Hf, a Miller/Airco 330 or a syncrowave.  You'll need a minimum of 50 amps of 220 to feed them.  100 is better.  And they're big and heavy.  You're not gonna get a quality inverter in your price range.  You may be lucky and get one of the good ones, but the customer support from many of these companies is lacking after the machine has been purchased.  For $1700 you can get a brand new TA186 with a warranty.  Post back what you find and we will be here with opinions.
Reply:I run a TA185 wide open on 1/8" and 3/16" Al.  Wish I had more on initial start.  I would never go smaller, only bigger.  I use an air cooled setup and its doable, but you'll be getting toasty on Al.
Reply:A year and a half ago I was you, I felt the want to TIG, I couldn't bring myself to spend a boatload of money on one. I went Miller as I wanted customer service second to none. Other Miller welders I have have been dream machines. I bought a Diversion 180. Very quickly I learned much more about TIG, and was able to recognize the shortcomings of the Diversion. The duty cycle was driving me crazy! I felt if I took up heavy smoking, or texting, I could live with it! Waiting for it to cool was not working. I bought a used cream puff Dialarc 250HF with cooler and tons of extras. A great machine in 1980, it was outdated, sine wave, fixed 60HZ, fixed 50/50 balance, no pulse, I felt limited. Within the year, after a lot of study I bought my third TIG a Dynasty 280DX with cooler. I'll never want a better TIG! It was expensive, but I've moved on. Able to stop stewing, I have what I believe to be the best welder in the world. Yes it has replaced frustration with challenge and satisfaction. When sizing a welder for aluminum think mass not thickness. A small workpiece will saturate with heat easily. A large one will wick heat away, the only thing getting hot enough to weld is the cheap welder. A cooked welder has no resale value. A Dynasty is worth about as much used as new.
Reply:Originally Posted by Willie BA year and a half ago I was you, I felt the want to TIG, I couldn't bring myself to spend a boatload of money on one. I went Miller as I wanted customer service second to none. Other Miller welders I have have been dream machines. I bought a Diversion 180. Very quickly I learned much more about TIG, and was able to recognize the shortcomings of the Diversion. The duty cycle was driving me crazy! I felt if I took up heavy smoking, or texting, I could live with it! Waiting for it to cool was not working. I bought a used cream puff Dialarc 250HF with cooler and tons of extras. A great machine in 1980, it was outdated, sine wave, fixed 60HZ, fixed 50/50 balance, no pulse, I felt limited. Within the year, after a lot of study I bought my third TIG a Dynasty 280DX with cooler. I'll never want a better TIG! It was expensive, but I've moved on. Able to stop stewing, I have what I believe to be the best welder in the world. Yes it has replaced frustration with challenge and satisfaction. When sizing a welder for aluminum think mass not thickness. A small workpiece will saturate with heat easily. A large one will wick heat away, the only thing getting hot enough to weld is the cheap welder. A cooked welder has no resale value. A Dynasty is worth about as much used as new.
Reply:Who said fever doesn't feel good?
Reply:Dynasty fever feels awesome!Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:This week might be the week that I satisfy my dynasty fever.
Reply:A 200 amp AC/DC tig will do 1/8" alum no problem. You'll be borderline on 3/16" with only 200 amps. For the occasional small project you can make it work, but you'd really want at least an additional 25 amps or more with 3/16". Steel will weld at lower amperage's since it's not as good a heat sink as alum is. So you can usually do any thickness of steel if the output is high enough to alum that size.One thing with doing alum. You'll want a water cooled torch if you plan to do much continuous welding at the 150- 180 amps needed to weld 1/8" alum. Air cooled torches will work for short periods, but they heat up very fast..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Originally Posted by zankThis week might be the week that I satisfy my dynasty fever.
Reply:Originally Posted by zankThis week might be the week that I satisfy my dynasty fever.
Reply:Originally Posted by Willie BHave you tried one?
Reply:Originally Posted by Willie BHave you tried one?
Reply:I have an older 200dx. It will weld pretty much any sort of aluminum with the right gas. Thick aluminum for hours would benefit from more amps because of duty cycle, but unless you are doing production work that should not matter. 280 sounds nice but mine starts and runs fine on 100% He. Anyway those extra amps cost money no matter how you slice it, but a 200 is very capable. Attachment 782271
Reply:Whatever you decide, always get more welder than you think you will ever need. Trust me, you may think youll never need more power than what 3/16 th's AL wants, but once you get hooked youll want to weld just about everything in sight lol.