Blue Point/Snap On Welders Who Makes Them?

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Been watching classified in surrounding areas for good mig welder (machine, not person!) for use around the house.Keep running across this Blue Point and Snap On stuff. It's plentiful in the classified but,damn is it pricey. Who makes this brand for these guys. Prices are nearly as  much as the red and blue machines. These machines run that good to be compared to  miller or lincoln?
Reply:A lot of them are made by Century. Prices are high because they are the buy here pay here machines off of the tool trucks. Some body guys swear by 'em but I don't.HammerFile Big Hammer------------------------------Here, let me Google that for you...
Reply:You will find a bunch of them, because they are financed through the tool truck accounts and most people by them for a crazy amounts of $$ for that reason alone. They cant afford the upfront cost of a traditional machine so they settle for the machine that cost 1500. more and pay on it weekly. It's like rent a center I was told that Lincoln made the snap on machines years ago, have never confirm that
Reply:I wouldn't spend a dime on a welder from anyone but Lincoln or Miller...
Reply:2nd on that.If someone pays either full retail for a welder or buys one off the truck, they immediatly assume the price they paid is a fair price and that becomes the starting point from where they calculate their used price.  There are people today that try getting $2500 for a Millermatic 251 - when a 252, new, delivered to your door, full waranty is $2100 (see Ebay).If you want quality used machines, stick to the red, blue, gray, and yellow ones.  The ones you can get parts for from your LWS.  Yes, you can call up the person, show them comparable prices and maybe they will agree to come out of la-la land and give you the welder at a reasonable price, but why bother?  Plenty of better stuff out there at better prices.  The more suckers that buy the overpriced stuff, the less buyers you are competing against for the good, reasonably priced stuff.BTW Blue-point doesn't necessarily mean American made.  I have a porta-power that is most definitely Chinese made.When it comes to Snap-on, buy their torque wrenches (because they are dirt cheap to calibrate) and if you can afford it, consider the hand tools (sockets, wrenches etc.).  They do have some speciality tools that make life easier, but generally speaking you can get as good or better at significantly better prices if you look elsewhere.Con Fuse!Miller Dynasty 350Millermatic 350P-Spoolmatic 30AMiller Multimatic 200Hypertherm PowerMax 1000G3Miller Maxstar 200DX
Reply:Originally Posted by kustomizingkidI wouldn't spend a dime on a welder from anyone but Lincoln or Miller...
Reply:Some of them are Systematics units.  Here is a link to their website:http://www.800abcweld.com/Lincoln Powermig 255Hypertherm Powermax 45Thermal Arc 161SOxweld 24R OA TorchStill Looking for an Old Round Top Idealarc 250
Reply:Originally Posted by kustomizingkidI wouldn't spend a dime on a welder from anyone but Lincoln or Miller...
Reply:man , i know where one is right now , sitting in a corner of a shop for only $100 dollars. Its one of the century made ones and also has spot weld and stitch weld modes which is really cool , im so tempted , BUT.  Im worried it'll just be junk sitting around my shop soon as it breaks , becuz from what ive read , hard parts availability & broken circuit boards and just plain expensive to repair....so i'm content with my  millions made sweet welding hobart mig        thermal arc 252i  -  millermatic 350P -   miller XMT, cp300ts, 30a 22a feeders, buttload of other millers, handfull of lincolns, couple of esabs  -   Hypertherm 1250 G3
Reply:For a hundred bucks I'd bag it, weld enough to pay for it, and part it out on Ebay if it breaks or use the good bits for "experimentation".  ALL equipment is eventually expendable.
Reply:Snap-On tools have become junk - I wouldn't trust their weldersThermal Arc Fabricator 2101970 Lincoln RedfaceMiller 150 STLStill need a Syncrowave and a plasma and a milling machine and a lathe and a bigger shop and a....
Reply:Snap On welders are made by CK Systematics. CK Systematics makes welders for industrial manufacturers and build Snap On's line exclusively so you cannot purchase these welders from anyone but Snap On. They do have 100% duty cycle with the muscle mig you can weld up to 50ft from your plug with no extra cables or adapters. they are built to weld 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days a year for 25 to 30 years. The heat selectors are not a variable resistance rheostat selector, each  heat selection has its own windings so it gives you a more consistent weld, They are also built with virgin copper leads and windings so they give you the best arc in the business. You Drink a Miller, Drive a Lincoln and you weld with a Snap On do your research before you judge. If you get a chance you should look at the inner workings of a snap on vs every one else it is very clear what the difference is. Please Don't get me wrong Lincoln and Miller make a very nice welder and for the hobby shop weekend warrior the snap on might be over kill and not cost effective. But they really are Worth the extra coin. I own an old century and a friend of mine has the Snap On muscle mig used them both and hands down his is twice the welder mine is.
Reply:Snap On makes hand tools.  Everything else the sell is rebranded crap.  The dealers will swear everything with the Snap-On name on it is made in house. But I know Snap-On puts their name on Knipex pliers (though Knipex pliers are far from crap).  They reserve their Blue-Point name for products they don't actually want to be associated with (but some of their Blue-Point stuff is really nice).  I like the Blue-Point crescent wrenches with the inch and metric denominations on the jaws and the wedge shaped plier on the handle (I think those are made in Spain).You would be stupid to stick to one manufacturer for every tool.  Their is no doubt that Snap-On makes some of the best hand tools, especially sockets and combo wrenches.  But, would you buy a Snap-On pipe wrench?  I would always buy Rigid.  Would you buy a Snap-On voltmeter?  I would buy Fluke.  Would you buy Snap-On crimpers?  I would buy Klein.  Would you buy a Snap-On welder?  I would buy Miller or Lincoln.Last edited by 76GMC1500; 06-14-2012 at 02:36 AM.
Reply:"You Drink a Miller, Drive a Lincoln and you weld with a Snap On do your research before you judge"A close friend of mine has one he bought brand new off the truck,he constanly has issues with it and parts are a biotch to get.The drive system looks like it came out of a gum ball machine.My research tells me complete piece of crap.....I'll stick with my trusty Millers and Lincolns.
Reply:Snap On welders are by CK well overpriced. Snap On pliers are red handled Channellocks !!!Like to know where the air tools are from ???
Reply:Hello Jynxpak, I believe the jist of the responses from everyone is that since Snap on is selling a rebadged welder they are passing on additional costs for a given level of quality. That being said, for a given amount of money you can likely find similar or superior quality elsewhere. I personally am a firm believer in many of Snap on's tools, their quality is second to none in many offerings. When I was a full-time industrial/farm mechanic I had many Snap on tools that were the only ones that could perform a particular job without fear of failure. I do not feel that their welders are one of those particular areas. Therefore, when I see adds for Snap on welders on Craigslist or other places they are almost always over-priced IMHO. There is much to be said for convenience, so for many people the pay as you go scenario works for them. Once you add up the additional cost and possibly the initial cost to begin with you could likely afford to invest in other machines that would serve your purposes better and more efficiently. Personal opinion is something that generally doesn't change for most folks so I would say: "to each their own probably applies in this case". Best regards, Allanaevald
Reply:The original buyers got bent over and they want to pass the boning onto the next purchaser.Just ignore 'em and go for a well-supported machine.