Are Stick Welders A Necessity in a Welding Shop?

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I have an opportunity to buy a new in box Hobart Stickmate LX AC/DC welder for $175.  The cheapest I have seen so far has been $479.  But my question is, how much are stick welders used in this day and age?  How many of you pro welders use stick welders regularly?  I have a tig and a mig welder, but it seems to good of a deal to pass up.  Are stick welders a necessity if you are going to weld for a living?  Just curious before I decide what I want to do.My Babies:MillerMatic 185Thermal Arc 300SHobart StickMate AC/DC 235/160Dalex Werke Spot WelderOh and the wife and kids are important too!
Reply:Doing a search may better help you on this subject. It has been discussed many times, including recently.  But for my 2 cents worth:A stick welder is still used in many shops.  Sometimes it sits for ages, then it is used nonstop for months.  It all depends upon the work that is being performed.  I wouldn't have a shop with out one.Esab Migmaster 250Lincoln SA 200Lincoln Ranger 8Smith Oxy Fuel setupEverlast PowerPlasma 80Everlast Power iMIG 160Everlast Power iMIG 205 Everlast Power iMIG 140EEverlast PowerARC 300Everlast PowerARC 140STEverlast PowerTIG 255EXT
Reply:if you have a tig welder you already have a stick welder. just get the leads for your thermal arc and call it good.
Reply:I agree 100%. I seldom use stick, but for some things it's just the best way to do it. Heavy repairs, gouging, dirty metal, outdoor work are all strong reasons for a stick machine. I wouldn't do without mine.It's kind of like an oxy/acet torch. There are better ways to weld steel and alum than OA, and there are lots of cleaner and more accurate ways to cut than with OA. That said you still need a torch for some things.
Reply:The answer is yes, but it depends more on what you are actually doing in said shop.  I have more stick machines in my shop than wire or tig.  Stick is what we run 70% of the time, 90% in the field.  Alot of the equipment I work on I can't get in the shop so it's parked outside the door.  Try welding up a busted log loader frame 1.5" thick in a 15mph wind with wire.  I've been there done that.  No welding shop worth their money is without a good stick welder.I'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:Every shop is different, one I worked at all I did was tig day in and out.  Now the new place im at doesnt even have a tig setup, just lots and lots of wirefeeders because thats what they use.  Pick which suits your needs.Have we all gone mad?
Reply:Gotta have the stick machine, I use mine as my tig power source as well.- If you can jump across it you can weld it!  - anonymous old boilermaker
Reply:It will be worth its weight in gold when you need it!American by birth Southern by the Grace of God
Reply:Originally Posted by gjgarre ... Are stick welders a necessity if you are going to weld for a living?...
Reply:What kind of welding shop are you running? If you were manufacturing parts I would say you probably don't need one. If you are repairing stuff I would use your TIG machine when you needed stick capabilities in the shop and start looking for an engine drive stick machine for good times outside the shop.Either way though, $175 bucks? Buy it. If you don't, someone will show up at your place next week wanting a ton of hard facing done, or like Hammack said, you may not be able to fit the next project through the door. If something does show up like that and it works out to some decent $$$$ for ya, knowing that you passed on a stick machine that would do the job for $175 would indeed suck.Yup
Reply:How "warm" is that NIB Stickmate?????
Reply:I think the guy is hurting for cash.My Babies:MillerMatic 185Thermal Arc 300SHobart StickMate AC/DC 235/160Dalex Werke Spot WelderOh and the wife and kids are important too!
Reply:Its amazing what you can reach with a bent stick electrode that you can't with a full sized MIG gun...
Reply:I want ALL processes I can have.  Then I decide what is best for each job.  On the road, stick is king.  Its almost always hourly too.  David Real world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:Everyone else has already said it all.Besides, how else would you run 7018 downhill?MM200 w/Spoolmatic 1Syncrowave 180SDBobcat 225G Plus - LP/NGMUTT Suitcase WirefeederWC-1S/Spoolmatic 1HF-251D-1PakMaster 100XL '68 Red Face Code #6633 projectStar Jet 21-110Save Second Base!
Reply:Well I agree with David. I want to be covered. But on my farm stick is 90% of all welding done.Hugs my Tombstone   buuuzzzzzzzzzzzttttttttttttttCo-Own CNC shop:Miller :1251 plasma cutter, MaxStar 700 TIG/Stick, & XMT 456 Multiprocess Welder.&  2 Hypertherm HPR260's Plasma CutterSorry I had a bad stroke but now I am back.
Reply:I'm with the others, I wouldn't want to be without stick both in the shop and on the truck.  I use wire alot more than stick cause it's faster, but for some things stick is best.MM350P/Python/Q300MM175/Q300DialarcHFHTP MIG200PowCon300SMHypertherm380ThermalArc185Purox oaF350CrewCab4x4LoadNGo utilitybedBobcat250XMT304/Optima/SpoolmaticSuitcase12RC/Q300Suitcase8RC/Q400Passport/Q300Smith op
Reply:Buy it.
Reply:All I'll say is " It's better to have and not need it, Etc. Etc. Etc." I have one in my shop that doesn't get used very often, but when needed, it's there.                             MikeOl' Stonebreaker  "Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes"Hobart G-213 portableMiller 175 migMiller thunderbolt ac/dc stick Victor O/A setupMakita chop saw
Reply:Originally Posted by daddyBuy it.
Reply:My answer to the question is...Yes. But that depends on the job you want to accomplish. Stick machines are great when working with dirty metal and stuff.Midwest Metal ProductsMetal Wire Forming Fan Guards Delta-Larm
Reply:well i havent stick welded anything in the shop in the last maybe 8 years.   i can run a stinger off of the XMT's and powcons.      everything i send out the shop is covered by MIG, TIG, FCAWS.   about 8 years ago i made some 3/8" stainless steel plateing tanks and went ahead and burned some rod on those but thats the last time i burned any rod.I DO use a fair amount of 6022 in the field for puddle welding deck down.Vantage 500's LN-25's, VI-400's, cobramatics, Miller migs, synch 350 LX, Powcon inverters, XMT's, 250 Ton Acurrpress 12' brake, 1/4" 10' Atlantic shear,Koikie plasma table W/ esab plasmas. marvel & hyd-mech saws, pirrana & metal muncher punches.
Reply:I weld for a living, and 90% of it is stick welding, but that is what works best for what I do. What are you gonna be doing?
Reply:When you need one... you really need one. So, better you have it, and learn how versatile they can be. Just like a set of soldering irons; people always ask me " Why??" Then they see me soldering galvanized sheet, or copper, or copper to galv. , and they say " Ohhhhhhh, I get it!!"And then, after so much work...... you have it in your hand, and you look over to your side...... and the runner has run off. Leaving you holding the prize, wondering when the runner will return.
Reply:Originally Posted by lugweldDoing a search may better help you on this subject. It has been discussed many times, including recently.  But for my 2 cents worth:A stick welder is still used in many shops.  Sometimes it sits for ages, then it is used nonstop for months.  It all depends upon the work that is being performed.  I wouldn't have a shop with out one.Heck, this is a no brainer!For that price, I would buy it, even if I didn't ever plan on using it, or already had 50 of them I already use, you could always re-sale it and make a profit!But, thats just me, I am always looking to make that extra buck!Buy it for $175.00, stick it on Craigslist for $275.00, you just made $100.00 for your trouble!Last edited by Ken Dennis; 02-28-2009 at 10:12 AM.#1. If you don't like what I wrote, or if it offends you, then don't read it!#2. I am living life the way I see fit, if you don't like the way I'M living, tough sh**!
Reply:Originally Posted by Hammack_Welding No welding shop worth their money is without a good stick welder.
Reply:It's pretty hard to use a MIG unit for thawing frozen pipes, and an OA tends to thaw the roof and all!
Reply:When I was learning to weld nearly 30 years ago they said in 10 years stick welding would be as rear as oxy/acet welding. Well 30 years later stick welding is alive and well as it will be 30 years from now.Tough as nails and damn near as smart
Reply:Originally Posted by Oldiron2...and an OA tends to thaw the roof and all!
Reply:Like everyone said, you won't need it until you need it...and then you'll really need it. 90% of what I do in shop is MIG, TIG and FCAW. I recently had a Bobcat bucket in for a modification that even FC wouldn't handle. Without a stick machine, there would have been no way I could have finished the job. It is simply amazing how much crud a 6010 will blast through and give a solid weld....and it is equally amazing how much crud those buckets can have on them after running a 6" wire wheel on them for a half hour.QamuIs Heg qaq law' lorvIs yInqaq puS
Reply:I weld outside most of the time so I have a stick welder. I have been using them for many years and I am comfortable with them. I welded in a shop for a while where we built asphault mixers and 99% of the welds we did was with a MIG but when we capped off the welds inside that were in contact with the mixer we used a stick with JET rods as we needed the smoothest possible surface we could get. I would not go without a stick welder myself.
Reply:No feeding mechanisms to fool with, no gasses to fool with, simple reliable machines, wide availability of different rods for different purposes, ease of use, and the list goes on."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by farmersammNo feeding mechanisms to fool with, no gasses to fool with, simple reliable machines, wide availability of different rods for different purposes, ease of use, and the list goes on.
Reply:Originally Posted by duaneb55Everyone else has already said it all.Besides, how else would you run 7018 downhill?
Reply:I would buy it even if I didnt know how to weld