Need advice on tig welder purchase....

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I'm a weekend welder and have very little experience with tig welding. I use my Millermatic 210 almost every weekend for automotive related fabrication(roll cages, sheet metal and seam welding).I would like to get a tig welder. I rarely weld anything over 3/16 of an inch(steel).I also need ac to weld tanks and such out of 6061 no thicker than 3/16 ofan inch for aluminum as well...my choices:Thermal arc 185Miller dynasty 200dxHTP Invertig 201All opinions are welcome...Thank you for your time and help...
Reply:Weldcraft .........
Reply:Originally Posted by Robin HoodWeldcraft .........
Reply:"weldcraft makes tig torches...i need a TIG WELDER..." I'm not for Hire....  But Serously you can get a (AC/DC buss box) just a cheap one from Home Depot for Two Hundred dollars or so, and a "weldcraft" rig, a bottle of Argon and thats all you need for repair work. I hope this Helps.
Reply:The Miller is supposed to be the very best out there and if you can afford it, that is the one most recommended. I had the exact same choices less than a month ago, I really liked the TA 185 and even purchased one.  2 weeks later I still had no machine and got frustrated and went out and  bought from my local shop a Lincoln PT 185 and saved enough money for a small Hypertherm plasma cutter.  For your options, if you can afford it, Miller...then TA 185 then HTP, that seems to be the order that was highly recommended to me by many people but a kitchen remodelling project the wife insisted on allowed me to run enough power to the garage and the Lincoln fit my pocket book the best, so I didnt follow the recomendations.
Reply:Originally Posted by Robin Hood"weldcraft makes tig torches...i need a TIG WELDER..." I'm not for Hire....  But Serously you can get a (AC/DC buss box) just a cheap one from Home Depot for Two Hundred dollars or so, and a "weldcraft" rig, a bottle of Argon and thats all you need for repair work. I hope this Helps.
Reply:Originally Posted by mikeyrThe Miller is supposed to be the very best out there and if you can afford it, that is the one most recommended. I had the exact same choices less than a month ago, I really liked the TA 185 and even purchased one.  2 weeks later I still had no machine and got frustrated and went out and  bought from my local shop a Lincoln PT 185 and saved enough money for a small Hypertherm plasma cutter.  For your options, if you can afford it, Miller...then TA 185 then HTP, that seems to be the order that was highly recommended to me by many people but a kitchen remodelling project the wife insisted on allowed me to run enough power to the garage and the Lincoln fit my pocket book the best, so I didnt follow the recomendations.
Reply:"I'm a weekend welder and have very little experience with tig welding." well i'm not the smartest, but i would think if this  statement was true you probably could get an econotig machine and be money ahead."I just got done building a FIA legal group N roll cage for a Subaru WRX. I pulsed(mig) the whole thing..." if this is true i would go for miller 200dx that you want. If I were you i'd go synchrowave!!! just my opinion.....either way go BLUE
Reply:Yikes, you guys are to smart for me
Reply:If you have a litle bit of space the miller syncrowave is what you need it has great arc stability on AC on stick and you can adjust the arc ballance in the stick mode. It also makes perfect tig beads on almost any matirial. I would go with it because it is cheaper and for a newbee that does not understand wave shapes and frequency the syncrowave is a peice of cake.
Reply:Originally Posted by madmaxxxThank you for your reply...So the TA185 is not capable of doing the tasks mentioned below:I would like to get a tig welder. I rarely weld anything over 3/16 of an inch(steel).I also need ac to weld tanks and such out of 6061 no thicker than 1/8 ofan inch for aluminum as well...
Reply:Originally Posted by mikeyrNot sure where you got the idea from my post that the TA could not do those things, you are doing exactly the same type of stuff I do, the TA should have no problem with those welds.  The TA was my choice of welders but after getting the run-around for 2 weeks from where I purchased it, I went with Lincoln from a local shop and a plasma and I am quite happy.
Reply:Since all I have is a old as dirt Union Carbide,Linde HDA-300. will any of these machines go low enough to tig aluminum say .010 or .020 thick ?
Reply:If you must go blue, go with the Dynasty.  Dont settle for the Econotig just to save some bucks, you will be disappointed with its features and shortcomings compared to what else is on the market.A few of my toys !LinuxMintManjaroMiller Roughneck 2E Lincoln WeldPak 100HTP MTS 160 Chicago Electric 80amp Inverter   Victor O/A
Reply:The syncrowave will because i welded beer cans together with it in college. The Dynasty will also do it. the arc starts are tough on both. The lincoln Precision tig has better arc starting at low amps but does not have the control of the puddle like they millers. Also you have to use a .040 tungsten.
Reply:WooooHooooo Beer cans!!!  I know you took some pictures of it, Because you were proud of it. can we see it , Please Please.....
Reply:Originally Posted by WeldengineerThe syncrowave will because i welded beer cans together with it in college. The Dynasty will also do it. the arc starts are tough on both. The lincoln Precision tig has better arc starting at low amps but does not have the control of the puddle like they millers. Also you have to use a .040 tungsten.
Reply:Where did the Egineer Go....
Reply:Anybody have any experience with the Thermal Arc Dragster 85???
Reply:the big bad dragster....have one now and will burn 1/16,3/32 and some 1/8 just alittle slow on the 1/8 to get good penetration.if your curious about tig....all i use is weldcraft 17v and 3/32 and dragster worked good for stainless pipe railings.overall i think thermal arc is the most under-rated company around;they make a great product but it seems the dealers are the downfall.
Reply:So it wouldn't be a bad entry level tig machine if you are only going to be using it on metal thinner than 1/8???
Reply:i'm not saying buy, don't buy ,but i kind of like it on s/s or steel.as with anything there are always opinions, but this is just mine. maybe someone else on board could give some different (better) advice.i hope this in someway.  i don't have a spunky username just what it is, me!
Reply:Wow! this is a LONG discussion! In the end it all comes down to the mighty buck. The more $ you have the more power you get. I personally own a Thermal Arc 185 and love the thing. It's a very small machine at only 40 lbs. and has all kinds of bells and whistles. In the future I plan on stepping up to their 300 amp machine. Only thing I did not like was the CK17 torch that it comes with, it's bulky. But I think most machines come with these 17 torches now.The beer can thing sounds interesting I would love to see it.
Reply:Come on Paul, don't hold back, you own one I want to hear your real opinion on it. Does it work good for doing thinner metal???
Reply:yeah it sure does, but ......for the money i think it's the best starter rig goingyou brought it out of me  i don't have a spunky username just what it is, me!Paul just two more questions for you and then I will leave you alone, does the dragster come with everything needed for the tig (minus the gas of course) like regulator and stuff? And does that have a pedal or torch control or what. Thanx.
Reply:caz you can get it either way 1.plain machine,stinger, and ground  2.all of 1. plus air cooled tig rig which is everything but argon and in a case!!i don't want to mislead anybody on purchases of anything and miller (power of blue) has maxstar 150 which is a good starter and has more range, but i just like my little dragster. hope this has helped and don't forget to let me know what you went with!!  i don't have a spunky username just what it is, me!