Question about welder for project

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Hello,I am a novice to fabrication and need to buy my first welder for a Mini Buggy project that I am building. I am building a Piranha II from plans bought from the The Edge Buggies in Austrailia. I need to buy a welder to weld the tube frame together.My question is that I really don't need an expensive unit as I will only be tacking and welding together buggy frames. I am going with a mig welder since they are the easiest to use.I saw a Clark 180EN on Ebay selling for way less than Hobarts, Millers, Lincolns. Would this be a good welder to use for just tacking together and welding frames? I don't have a big budget and I don't need much more than a 180 amp unit....Would I be better off to get the cheaper Clarke unit?
Reply:If you are looking to get a Clarke 180EN, check out the prices at www.welding-depot.com.  They have some of the best prices around.  Not sure how good a welder it is, but, it is quite a bit less in price than the Lincoln, Miller, and Hobart equivilent.A few of my toys !LinuxMintManjaroMiller Roughneck 2E Lincoln WeldPak 100HTP MTS 160 Chicago Electric 80amp Inverter   Victor O/A
Reply:Only consideration I would make to buying a clarke is the parts availibility.  If you stay wtih the big three its not so much an issue.   Just like with cars.  But otherwise generally speaking youre ok.  Good luck and tell us how it works if you choose to go with itCHRIS
Reply:TxRedneck is right on the parts issue.  As far as I know, the mig gun is of Tweco origin, the rest of the machine I dont know.  With the Tweco mig gun, getting liners, diffusers, contact tips, and nozzles will not be a problem.  The only concern would be with the rest of the machine.  I do know that Clarke gives a 10yr warranty on the main transformer/rectifier and 2yrs on every thing else except consumables.  I dont know of any other company that does that.A few of my toys !LinuxMintManjaroMiller Roughneck 2E Lincoln WeldPak 100HTP MTS 160 Chicago Electric 80amp Inverter   Victor O/A