Scratch start or High freq start?

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I was wondering if the scratch start (lift arc) is an ok way to go to save $300.  or is the high freq start worth the extra $300?.  How many scratch starts can I do before i have to resharpen the tungsten?  My application is building a sandrail tubular frame at home...
Reply:Ehhh...well...hmmm.  It's worth it if you do a bunch of tig work.  Note, that scratch and lift are two different start methods...they arent the same.  I have never used lift arc, but I hear it works fine and doesnt require any more sharpening than HF starts.  I have scratch started and if you use a nice conductive piece of brass or copper, you can cut down on contamination of the tungsten and avoid downtime.  You want something thick enough that you cant start a puddle, and you just quickly move the arc to the work location.  If you are doing a rail, this might be hard, keeping the scratch pad near the work piece, but it can be done.If you already have a tig machine, give your idea a try.  If you are looking at tig machines, there are a lot of nice low end machines with lift start that work well for all types of steel, but they are just basic machines.  Some folks here are impressed with the $200-$400 harbor freight dc tig machines for lighter steel.  They have lift start and are dirt cheap, but this is in no way a recommendation to buy one, just go look at the HF thread and see what folks say about them...Also look at the small Thermal arc dc tigs (probably higher quality and better service).Last edited by smithboy; 11-23-2005 at 03:03 PM.Smithboy...if it ain't broke, you ain't tryin'.