Brand comparison question.

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Anybody ever do a brand comparison on 1-pound spools of 4043, or 5356 wire, say .030, .035, and .047? If so which brand do you like best, and why? Or is there much difference in brands? I know I can sure tell the difference in SMAW brands on inverter machines. One brand of rod works great on one brand inverter, but not so good on another brand inverter, go figure. I'll be running 1-pound spools on a new Invertec V350-Pro w/pulse, if thats any help.  Thanks in advance!Don’t pay any attention to meI’m just a hobbyist!CarlDynasty 300V350-Pro w/pulseSG Spool gun1937 IdealArc-300PowerArc 200ST3 SA-200sVantage 400
Reply:sounds like a good thing to do a write up on.Dynasty 200DXPassport plus w/ spoolmate 100victor 315c oxy/(act and prop)Miller digital elitemilwaukee power tools
Reply:Hey CEP,Unless you have tried some different brands yourself, it would be a bit difficult to really surmise the best brand for your applications. I'll try to give you an idea of my usage & brand results. Here are my brands in the shop & mobile.....Indalco: .035, 5356, 15# spool...... in my shop MIG for production runs.....superb filler.J.W.Harris/Natweld: .030/.035, 5356, 15# spools set up on my spool winder for reloading the 4" MIG spools for the shop spoolgun. Excellent filler.Gulf Wire: .030/.035, 4043, 15# spools also used to reload 4" spools for the mobile spoolgun unit. Excellent filler.Techniweld: .030/.035. 5356, 12# spools to reload 4" spools for the mobile spoolgun unit. Excellent filler.So far, all the brands worked well with s/a & spray & I like the Techniweld .035/5356 for TIG on the very thin(.062) alum.d/plate outside corners I do with "laywire".Anyway, these are the ones I am stocked up on & was fortunate to grab a couple years ago on E-Bay really inexpensive. I've got (18) spools of 12-15#r's.....none cost me more than $32 shipped. Yup! That's why I grabbed them.DennyAddendum:  Another "senior moment".....    For the regular cast alum., in the shop I use J.W.Harris, 5356. All castings over .500(1/2") get a 250-300* pre-heat. For any cast alum. used on auto engines, or any heat applications >150*, I use the Gulf Wire .035/4043.Last edited by yorkiepap; 10-11-2011 at 08:57 PM.Reason: Added info.....Complete Welding/Machine/Fab. ShopMobile UnitFinally retired*Moderator*"A man's word is his honor...without honor there is nothing.""Words are like bullets.... Once they leave your muzzle, you cannot get them back."
Reply:Thanks for the info yorkiepap! I don't do enough aluminum work to be too concerned. My Dynasty hasn't been on AC in months, haven't touched my Cobramatic in a couple years. But I just ordered a new Lincoln Invertec V350-Pro with a SG spool gun, so I'll be taking a trip to the LWS. I wanted to know what brands of wire to avoid, and to see if there was a brand that could help me with the learning curve.Don’t pay any attention to meI’m just a hobbyist!CarlDynasty 300V350-Pro w/pulseSG Spool gun1937 IdealArc-300PowerArc 200ST3 SA-200sVantage 400
Reply:why didn't you just hook up the cobramatic to the new invertec?Dynasty 200DXPassport plus w/ spoolmate 100victor 315c oxy/(act and prop)Miller digital elitemilwaukee power tools
Reply:Different kind of plugs on the Cobramatic, it's all setup to run on a Mig machine. Anyway the push pull lead and gun is quite cumbersome at times. Attached ImagesDon’t pay any attention to meI’m just a hobbyist!CarlDynasty 300V350-Pro w/pulseSG Spool gun1937 IdealArc-300PowerArc 200ST3 SA-200sVantage 400