Do I need a big stick welder?

admin

I was looking at my wish list of welders and I just bought a harbor fright inverter 80amp dc arc stick welder. Have not had time to play with it yet but my buddies where say how I well need a "full power 220v" If i want to do any real work in my shop. I am already getting a Hobart 190 mig with spool gun so I would is i really need that Hobart ac/dc stick mate 220v for my home shop. I fix and rebuild bikes and cars mostly
Reply:Yes.  Every red blooded American man needs a Big stick welder.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:I am 50% Canadian so that makes me wonder more lol but thanks for the vote.
Reply:Take the HF one back.   There is really no point to a low amp stick welder as it won't burn much more than sheet metal and stick welding is really designed for thick plate.   Say 1/8th and up.   U can stick weld thinner if u are a good welder but if u. Have a mig welder u never will or want too.   Tig welder if u r doing bicycle frames but mig with .023 wire will do them fine tooI really don't see why u need the stick welder at all though for what u want to do...Last edited by soutthpaw; 06-24-2012 at 07:35 PM.Tiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:I am a happy Stickmate owner.  I am not a professional welder, nor am I a "wanna be" just happy to use one in my home workshop.I was visited by a tenant of mine, a professional welder, and when he agreed to walk with me to my workshop and look at my welder he said; "You could build a ship with that!".  He than said "I thought you had a little toy welder".I offer three choices: Good, Fast, & Cheap. You may pick two.Hobart AC/DC StikMate LXHarbor Freight AD HoodHarbor Freight Industrial Chop SawDeVilbis 20 Gallon, 5 HP Compressor
Reply:wasn't it teddy roosevelt who said 'speak softly and carry a big stick welder'.  not sure;  have to check that out.
Reply:I think the only people that would vote for the HF would be the ones with profit sharing in HF !You could also look at the Miller thunderbolt AC/ DC or a inverter machine.
Reply:Originally Posted by fdcmiamiwasn't it teddy roosevelt who said 'speak softly and carry a big stick welder'.  not sure;  have to check that out.
Reply:One thing to remember, you can always turn a big welder down - but you will never have amps you didnt buy.Most of the welding I do is in the  150-275 amp range - I have a box of 1/16 rods and have run them down in the 40-50 amp range - I use a lot of 1/4 inch 7018's up around 400-420When any government, or any church for that matter, undertakes to say to its subjects, "This you may not read, this you must not see, this you are forbidden to know," the end result is tyranny and oppression, no matter how holy the motives.
Reply:I am 50% Canadian so that makes me wonder more lol but thanks for the vote.
Reply:Originally Posted by darklinks614... I fix and rebuild bikes and cars mostly
Reply:an 80 amp stick welder is as useless as teats on a froggy..if  at all serious get 200 amps dc...Last edited by weldbead; 06-25-2012 at 11:44 AM.
Reply:I don't even know why anybody buys those things, unless you wan't to use it for low amp tig or something.
Reply:an 80 amp stick welder is as useless as teats on a froggy.
Reply:I agree with Soutthpaw, "I really don't see why u need the stick welder at all though for what u want to do... "  Your 190 Hobart mig with spool gun will cover all you do - "fix and rebuild bikes and cars mostly".Also, as BradTN said, "If you work on Motorcycle frames, you need a TIG don't you ?  And,of course, a TIG will stick weld also"Given what you do, TIG would seem to be the first welder you need (bikes), MIG the second (cars) and Stick a distant third.However, if you really want to hang onto to that small Harbor Freight 80 amp DC unit, get another one and run them in parallel - you should get 2 x 80 = 160 DC amps.  That kind of amperage can run all 3/32 and 1/8 electrodes and 5/32 6011/6010.Rick V 1 Airco Heliwelder 3A/DDR3 CTC 70/90 amp Stick/Tig Inverters in Parallel1 Lincoln MIG PAK 151 Oxy-Acet
Reply:The little HF is going to be hard to weld with because of what someone said - its pretty hard to stick weld sheet metal, and your Hobart 190 will do that all day and be a lot easier and prettier.I think BradTN hit the nail on the head.  Thermal Arc has some pretty nice inverter stick / tig units based on what I read, and the prices are nice.  But aluminum is off limits withoug ac.  You should be able to use an air cooled tig torch off the Hobart ac/dc stickmate, and it will do 1/8"+ a little?? aluminum since you would have 225 amps of ac.Plus, your HH190 would have a nice stable mate.ps, find a used ac/dc stick machine and you can buy a decent tig torch and consumables with the saved money, probably have some left over.
Reply:Originally Posted by weldbeadan 80 amp stick welder is as useless as teats on a froggy.....
Reply:I voted yes in your poll, however I don't believe that the Hobart Stickmate AC/DC is a "big" stick welder....For my purposes, my Lincoln Idealarc 250 is a "big" stick welder based on the following definition: It is comfortably bigger than about anything I need to do at a reasonable duty cycle.  I have never used it to capacity, and tend to do most of the jobs in my shop in the lower third of the range.  For me, that gives sufficient margin, and never have duty cycle issues.  Except of course for my own duty cycle.Mike
Reply:I can't think of anything on a car or bike that your Hobart 190 couldn't handle better than any stick welder except maybe a cast iron repair.