If you could only have one welder

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If you could only have one welder for your home/shop(not work related), what would you have?  Assume 230V/50A is no problem.  One welder that would cover most of your bases.
Reply:Gee, I just went through this whole shebang when I went to buy mine!  Miller Dynasty 200 DX baby...da Caddy of inverters. AC/DC TIG and SMAW welder in a tiny 45 lb box.The Synchrowave has a good rep, and so does the Thermal Arc ArcMaster 200 (almost bought the TA).Last edited by DirtyLittleSecret; 01-30-2007 at 08:05 PM.ThermalArc 185MillerMatic 180 w/ AutosetVictor Cutskill Oxy/AcetyleneThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 38and spite!
Reply:Not a hard decision - Miller XMT 456 CC/CV...then if I didn't have the cake for that, the Miller Dimension 652 would be my next choice. The XMT does it ALL  and only weighs 115 lbs! Well, except for SAW, submerged arc welding so that is why the dimension is my next choice. John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:Oh no... Not another king of the welder question...  Well now that Im a little wiser and learned, I would flip a quarter between a Lincoln Power Wave 355m with a PF 10 or whatever they call it or a Lincoln v350 adv. proc. with an ln10 and all the stick and tig goodies.  Maybe Ill hit the lottery one day and pick up one of these.. heh.And yes Id go bigger, but weve only got single phase and 50 amps to work with.  We could still run these, but not wide open.. Now if 50 amps is all we have, then Id say a thermal arc arcmaster 300TS (I think thats the ac tig version).. Its pretty derated on single phase, but you can still get 250 amps out of it..  At that limitation on the amps, you almost have to get a seperate mig and plug one or the other in when in use.  Thats what Ive been doing.Oh, and the miller doesnt do ac tig.  Neither do these lincolns.  Thats the next thing well probably see.  A multiprocess that does AC tig And all the other stuff.Various GrindersVictor Journeyman torch200cf Acet. 250cf oxygenLincoln 175 plus/alpha2 gunLincoln v205t tigLincoln 350mpEsab 650 plasmaWhen you can get up in the morning, Its a good day.Live each day like its your last.
Reply:lincoln Air Vantage 500 with all the options   Even has a built in screw type compressor. DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:So, what is the best brand of oil to use in your vehicle ???***************************************Lincoln AC225 stick welderLincoln HD100 WeldPak flux core wire feed welderThree of the cheapest grinders money can buy
Reply:Actually, let's up that amperage to 100.  Single phase though.
Reply:I would take a good quality O/A setup instead.
Reply:Were still in the same ballpark there ddonnel.  Littlefuzz has a good suggestion, and a trailer for it and everything... I was gonna say something but figured you were dreaming of one that ran off electric.  We need three phase to really get outrageous.   Here you go, Lincolns ultimate shop welder..https://weldingsupply.securesites.co...ave+AC/DC+1000Oh yea, The purple stuff KRS... (royal purple)...Last edited by Doolittle; 01-31-2007 at 04:40 PM.Various GrindersVictor Journeyman torch200cf Acet. 250cf oxygenLincoln 175 plus/alpha2 gunLincoln v205t tigLincoln 350mpEsab 650 plasmaWhen you can get up in the morning, Its a good day.Live each day like its your last.
Reply:There's no real answer here. It depends what you NEED to do.I have an ESAB Multimaster 260 for MIG, spoolgun, stick and scratch-start TIG. They call it "multi process", but I cannot do AC output.That's why I have the Lincoln 185.There's really no one machine that can do it all properly. Some machines have strong points and others have different strong points. Get the right machine for what you are doing. I still prefer to have the MIG seperate from the TIG.
Reply:My Choice, Campbell FTW!Just Kidding
Reply:personally I'd perfer a miller engine drive cuz when the power is it isn't!
Reply:You can do the most varied number of things with O/A.( Heatwrench, weld, braze, weld aluminum, cut, shrink, )  I use my mig the most though as said above it depends what you want to do.  Tig is the coolest but you can weld aluminum with O/A  each one has its place.  If you are welding heavy stuff most bang for buck is stick.  Get tig stick if you can afford.  If you are going to weld sheetmetal on cars mig or tig.Thermal Arc 185 TigHTP 200 MigCraftsman O/A1942 Bridgeport Mill12 Ton Hyd PressConsew Walking Foot
Reply:Originally Posted by ddonnellIf you could only have one welder for your home/shop(not work related), what would you have?  Assume 230V/50A is no problem.  One welder that would cover most of your bases.
Reply:Are good, name brand  multi-process machines good at all the various types of welding, or are they more of a "jack of all trades and master of none" type of deal?
Reply:Well for any aussies out there, you'll know who I'm talking aboutthe WIA Weldmatic 255 - 480 volt , a very nice machine. But my migmag 200c twin copper coiled will do for now.I own a 87 troopie (rust is slowly owning it  )I ride a quadand I love sticking metal together.  And I live in OZ...  (Geelong)
Reply:I'll second what MicroZone said 456XMT with the works or the Dimension 652 with the HF- 251D-1 and the 60 or 70 series feeders preferable dual feed