Miller Syncrowave 200 or Lincoln Precision TIG 185

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Hey guys, I am buying my first TIG welder, and I would like to know which is the better machine.Miller Syncrowave 200 or Lincoln Precision TIG 185?I am also considering going for an inverter, is it worth the extra money?I will be using this to weld aluminum only.I am not doing production weldng here, I am just doing some welding at home, so I need a user firendly machine that will make doing aluminum as easy as possible.Thanks
Reply:Go with miller. Syncrowave has always been good to me. Also, go to millerwelds.com and you can get some good tips and advice on aluminum TIG.
Reply:There is a great tutorial on tig welding there, thanks for the link.I have been reading some other posts here, and now I am strongly considering an inverter machine.My four choices are:Thermal Arc PRO-WAVE 185TSW ~ $2600 (web)Lincoln Invertec V205-T ~$4700 (local)Miller Dynasty 200SD ~ $4250 (local)Miller Dynasty 200DX ~ $4700 (local)(all prices CAD after tax)The price of the Thermal Arc is unbelievable, from what I hear it as good as the rest. This is more or less a no brainer, so before I go out ang get a TA, can anyone convince me otherwise?Oh ya, and does anyone know a good store in or near Toronto that may have better prices?
Reply:Never used a Miller so I dont know how good they are .But I own a PT 185Love it! easy to use .Got a hand amptroller on it great for me as I have rather long things to weld os its easier than a foot control but it takes a lot of getting used to.Would highly recomend it ....remember 1/4" is approaching the limit of 185-200 amp in ac
Reply:Lincoln now has a precision tig 200 available now. The company I work for has both machines. It seems like everybody prefers the lincolns around the shop.I personally use a miller 320abp at home,and at work if in shop lincoln precision tig 325. Make sure what ever you decide to by it will handle the work you plan on doing. If ya plan on doing alot of 1/4"aluminum and thicker you should probally look at a larger machine.
Reply:Lincoln's new box is the PT-225.  I would recommend that over the Miller for the extra amps.  My preference would still be an inverter for aluminum.  The ability to change the ac frequency is a valuable asset plus the you get a full function pulser.  The Thermal Arc Master ( formally Pro Wave ) 185 would be the best bang for the buck.  Thermals new Arc master is an updated Prowave with a couple of added features.  If you plan a lot of 1/4" aluminum you should seiously consider getting a Miller Synch 250.DennisThermal Arc 185-TSWMillermatic Challenger 172VictorO/AAtlas Craftsman 12 by 24 LatheEsab PCM-875Wholesalem Tool Mill-Drill
Reply:the TA-185 is a good lil tig unit, if its for home use i would go for it in a second........ .....oh ya i did LOL. great choice for the home hobby guy.if you are interested in a cover we make a great one for it and have a 100% satisfaction ratting. not only dose it look great but it functions great too, allowing you to keep the welder hooked up and ready to weld when the cover is on. so your covered and still have every thing hooked up no disconnecting for cover install and removal. at $40 its a great deal too.we can make a cover for what ever you decide to get or have just shoot us an e-mail. Attached Images summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:Looks like I'm gonna go with the T/A.  Thanks for all the input.
Reply:I'm a Miller fan, but in this genre of machine, I just don't see any way a person can justify $1000 more for a miller than the TA.As for the Lincolns...they run fine when they run...but when they mess up, I have never found anybody that wants to do repairs or work on them at all.  I had a PT175 and about a month after the warranty ran out, it started acting up.  I got zero help from Lincoln with it.  They didn't even want to deal with it, even if I paid.  I wound up selling it, buying a 10yo miller, and havn't had any problems since.
Reply:the TA-185 can be had for about $1900.00 on the web not $2600.00 look into IOC and B&R they are good companies with a long standing on many welding forems as a safe purchase. i got mine threw IOC not only fast service but he was there to help me when i had a problem with the foot controle.congrats on the new TIG you will realy like it. 8^)) summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:Congrats  I am sure you will be as pleased with yours as I am with mine.  One piece of advice is to get the biggest argon bottle you can afford.  This will save $ on refills.  The one minor bad point on the TA is whoever proveds the tig/stick kits doesn't seem to tighten the work clamp and the dinse connectors.  No big deal just check them and tighten if neccissary.DennisThermal Arc 185-TSWMillermatic Challenger 172VictorO/AAtlas Craftsman 12 by 24 LatheEsab PCM-875Wholesalem Tool Mill-Drill
Reply:yep i had to tighten mine also, but did not mind as i wanted to re-rought it any way.8^)) summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:The 200 Syncro with the tigrunner package is about $300.00 cheaperthen Airgas can buy a TA arcmaster 185 package for. You are not seeingthe type of discount on the Miller as you are on the TA machines.IOC really sells the TA stuff at cost and makes money other waysfrom Thermal. Maybe with their end of the year bonus from Thermal?The 200 syncro is not a bad machine for the inverter leary types.I do know the circuit boards in some of the syncro machines canbe scary$$$$ too.
Reply:I've got a Lincoln PT 185 and I love it. The only thing is I wish it was offered with a watercooled torch!
Reply:i paid 1895 out the door for my syncrowave 200 and i love it. i was looking at lincolns but i was talking to the dealer and lincoln has a new policy that if they stop production of that welder then they stop making parts for it. so since they just replaced the 185 with the 225 if you bought it and a year or two down the road something breaks and they don't have any nos parts your sol. so i went with miller and couldn't be happier. p.s. im not biased against licoln i have a 175 mig and it works great but i need to be able to reliably get parts for my machines and i called up miller and i can still get parts for my trailblazer that was made in 93 and for the machines at work that are probably 20 years older or more i can still get parts for so i know miller wins in that area. so this is just something to think about. and if you're willing to spend the extra money my old instructor has used the dynasty 200dx and he said that it welds aluminium better than any machine he has ever used. and he has tested a lot of different machines
Reply:Dang  I wish I knew that before I bought my PT 185, I've had it for a year and a half and so far no problems whatsoever!!!  I wonder if I can trade mine in for the PT 225
Reply:Originally Posted by fun4now.the TA-185 can be had for about $1900.00 on the web not $2600.00 look into IOC and B&R they are good companies with a long standing on many welding forems as a safe purchase. i got mine threw IOC not only fast service but he was there to help me when i had a problem with the foot controle.congrats on the new TIG you will realy like it. 8^))
Reply:indeana oxigen company. i got all my welding power suplys there, MIG,TIG,and plasma. my TA-185 was $1725 or $1750 cant remember i can get you a link if you want. i know they just had a price increase and went to the new modle TA-185 but it is still under $2000.00 i think i herd it was like $1850.nope sory its $1948.87 with free shipping.http://cgi.ebay.com/THERMAL-ARC-ARCM...QQcmdZViewItemstill better than the $2600 mentioned above, save you enough $$ to get a cover LOL summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:miller is defenetly the top dog for service and parts availability, i just could not swing the $3000.00 for the dyn200 i tryed for 3+ years and settled for the TA due to its good record ( i hope it hold's) and the $1750 price tag. i would love to have gotten a syncro 200 i would trade my TA-185 for it in a second, but i just can not feed it the required 60+ amps it needs. my shop is run compleatly off a 150ft feed line of 10/4 so i am pushing it with the TA-185 i have to make shore my air compressor dose not kick on wile i am welding or its flicker city. the good part is if i do get a power upgrade with the $$ increase of the TA-185 my used one would sell for enough to get a new synco200, well maybe not but it would be real close.8^)) summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:i would love to have gotten a syncro 200 i would trade my TA-185 for it in a second,You must be nuts??? The Thermal is a much better machine.You have about 60% wave balance max on DC - with theSyncro and 90% with the Thermal. Also locked at 60HZ is so old school. Pulse of the Thermal is way way beyondany Rec. transformer machine. The Syncro 200 is a goodunit but not even close to TA-185. Trading down does notmake any sense at all. Maybe the extra 15 amps dc mightmake sense if you need it but the 185 of the Thermal onac will carry you way farther. Arc on time means morethen you know. I don't find very much difference between all the top inverters other then the layout of the controls and the little differencesin the sound of the arc. Miller being the hands down loudestmachines when on ac output. Even when running at the samefreq.
Reply:it may be nuts but i prefer the miller and would be happy with a transformer, the new syncro has plenty of ajustability for the home hobby guy and i would rather have a miller, hey thats just me, i did not say it was better just that i would rather have it. its a good solid unit and would fill all my needs. summer is here, plant a tree for mother earth. if you dont have time or space, sponcer some one else to plant one for you.feel free to shoot me a PM or e-mail me at [email][email protected] i got lots of time.
Reply:The community college where I have been learning tig has 8 TA 185's in use for at least 2 years with no problems.I am impressed with the multitude of adjustable parameters of the TA Arcmaster 185 machine, most of which I have yet to learn to use.   I am still puddling around trying to maintain consistent weld longer than 2 inches.Its price, ($1,948.77 at IOC with free shipping & probably no sales tax) which includes foot control, tig and stick torches, gas regulator and hose, work cable and clamp, is far and away a bargain compared to the equivalent Miller and Lincoln inverters with yet additional cost for these necessary "accessories".  As far as reliability, I am lucky to live in Phoenix area with a local Thermadyne rep who is very responsive to questions, but I have not needed any service. And, again, the machines in use at school have had no problems in over 2 years with many novices using them probably 20-30 hours/ week.-------TA Fabricator 210Cutmaster 38Soon to acquire the TA Arcmaster 185