Looking for advice on what to buy and where to start.....

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Hello everyone, My name is Lee and I am new to the world of welding.  I really know very little about welding, only what i have picked up recently with some online web sites with their basic how to's, however, I am very mechanically inclined, so I would like to learn.  I am looking to purchase a small home mig welder to begin tinkering with some projects that I plan on having manufactured full scale.  I really just need a small welder to mock up prototypes and make adjustments to some simple steel products made from hollow steel tubing and flat steel sheets  I will be working with 1 3/8" o.d. diamter hollow center steel tubing, approx 1/8" - 3/8" wall diameter ( not sure what thickness i am going to go with ) and 1/8" - 1/4" thickness flat steel sheets ( not sure if am using proper terminology here ).     I was looking at the lincoln electric K2189 (115v 15 amp......good for up to 1/4" welds), the K2188 (115v 20 amp.....good for up to 1/8" welds ) or the k2283 ( 115v 20 amp.....also good up to 1/8" welds ) welder at my local home depot.  My question is, will all of these work on my home outlets?  If i'm not mistaken, isnt a house wired @ 110 volts?  I am sorry to sound so stupid here, but welding and electrical are my two least know areas at this point.Basiclly I just want to weld together pieces of the for-mentioned pipes and to weld some plates together, where nothing is reaching any larger than 1/4" thickness.  Any advice would be gretly appreciated.  Also, i would be looking to weld solid steel rods ( approx 1/2" diameter ) to the 1/4" flat steel plates, would that be a problem with the welders mentioned above?Thanks again !!!Last edited by standman4320; 11-16-2006 at 09:18 PM.
Reply:When you are looking at advertisements they show you the maximum size the welder can weld under the best conditions.  When buying I think it is best to go a littler bigger than what you think you will need.  Do you have anyone to help you learn?  I didn't and it was a little frustrating at first and I already knew oxy acely.  After solving a few simple problems I could weld with the mig although poorly.  After that practice, practice, practice.  Sometimes I lay down weld so good I can hardly beleive that I did it!  Good luck.  I would buy a larger welder if you can afford it, if you can't buy the small one and get a larger one when you can.
Reply:Lee, the welders you've mentioned would all be seriously underpowered to mig weld 1/4" stock.  The only way you would even get close to the penetration you would need would be with flux-core wire, as it burns hotter than solid wire with gas, but you would still be stretching the limits of any of these machines to weld 1/4".  The K2188 and K2189 are both flux-core welders, the K2188 only 88 amps, the K2189 is a 100 amp unit.  The K2283 is a mig or flux core welder, but it's still only 88 amps.  To reliably weld 1/4" stock in mig you are going to want to go to a 220 volt machine.  You would be much better to spend the extra money and get the Weld-Pak 175HD  #K2338-1  Even with the 175 amp machine 1/4 is about the practical limit.http://www.homedepot.com/prel80/HDUS...glm.0&MID=9876The 220 volt machines aren't all that much more money, but they are a LOT more welder.If you need to weld 3/8" material you will need to go to a 220 volt 210 amp unit, you should be considering something like a Hobart Ironman 210, a Millermatic 210, or a Lincoln Powermig 215.When the  drops the  stops!Check out my website at:  Tombstone 180 ACHandler 120Millermatic 210Powermax 380Harris & Victor torchesSawzallChop Saw
Reply:Thanks for the input so far guys.   I was planning on sticking with the gassles flux cored wire, so thats good to know about what it can do over gas mig welding, thanks for that info.  I wont be welding anything thicker than 1/4" now that I think about it.....I don't know why I mentioned 3/8" thickness.....except for the solid steel rod @ 1/2" diameter welded onto 1/4" steel plate, thats about the most heavy duty steel i'd be using.But, what about the plugging in to standard household outlets? Like I said, I dont know squat about electrical, will the bigger machines like the Weld-Pak 175HD #K2338-1 mentioned blow out the fuses or what?  I could afford $600 for that unit, but will it work in my garage?Last edited by standman4320; 11-16-2006 at 11:22 PM.
Reply:If at all possible ask the shop you will be buying your machine from to let you try welding with gas and then with flux core gasless. The gas weld is a much nicer weld though flux core isn't exactly a mess. You won't be needing the flux if you are working with clean metal, and you may decide to go for the gas. The gas will last longer than you think.If you don't have the time to do it right, then you definitely don't have the time to do it over.
Reply:If you have a 230v electric dryer plug in your house or garage, you can use that to run most of the 230v mig machines and you'll have alot more choice on what materials you can weld with a 230v machine.   Seems like 20 amps is about the limit for most residential 115v circuits, with 15 amps fairly common.  110v, 115v and 120v are for the most part interchangeable names for the same household electrical service.   I dont know how happy you'll be with a mig on 115v for the thickness of metal you want to weld.   If you have 20 or more amps available at the breaker it might  work out ok but if you only have 15 amps, I dont think you'll be happy.   My old air compressor whos motor could be wired either way for 115 or 230 ran great on 230 but on 115 it would pop the breaker every time it tried to turn on automatically after the pressure dropped below the minimum setting.  The breaker was either 15 or 20 amps, I forget which.  I've always stuck with 230v welding machines to avoid problems of not enough power at the breaker, and even then my wimpy 30 amp service isn't enough, I'm finding, to operate alot of the AC TIG machines I've been looking at...I agree, gas mig is alot cleaner and nicer to weld with than flux-core gasless.
Reply:is it possible to get an extension cord for my 230 volt recepticle?  My washer dryer is right next to the door leading to my garage and I checked the breaker box, the dryer breaker is labled with two conjoined breakers with 30 amp fuses.  My dryers recepticle has a 4 prong plug.
Reply:You can get them or make one up yourself, perfectly fime to run an extention cord as long as it is the right guage wire. You can talk to the guy at home depot in electrical, most of those guys seem to be retired electricians and will should be able to set you up based on the machine and the length you need. Or check back here when the time is right, plenty of fellas here can set you up as well. I found a better link for the machine big ed was directing you to: http://www.homedepot.com/prel80HDUS/...rchResults.jsp Looks like a good machine too.If you don't have the time to do it right, then you definitely don't have the time to do it over.
Reply:I just checked Clanweld's link, and the one I posted, Home Depot must be changing their site around, both links go to the same page.  Here is the page on the Lincoln Electric site with the info on the 175HD mig welder:  Lincoln Electric info for 175HDI doubt Lincoln will be changing this link around!EdWhen the  drops the  stops!Check out my website at:  Tombstone 180 ACHandler 120Millermatic 210Powermax 380Harris & Victor torchesSawzallChop Saw
Reply:220 volts is more efficient than 110 and will do more with less amps I would take a new plug off the breaker box and try not to use an extension off the dryer It will be a pain to get back there every time you plug it in and I worry about the insulation on romex getting scuffed and causing a short use strait barier cable for the ex if you go that way it is a lot tougher insulation
Reply:the millermatic Passport is a great welder for home shop projects.it workes on 115v or 230v with the no tools multi-voltage plug.I dont know what you want to spend but the $1,500 price is well worth every penny.
Reply:Didn't suggest using Romex for the extention cord, Depot sould have various configs of industrial/commercial grade shielded cord on huge spools for sale by the foot.If you don't have the time to do it right, then you definitely don't have the time to do it over.
Reply:Originally Posted by standman4320is it possible to get an extension cord for my 230 volt recepticle?  My washer dryer is right next to the door leading to my garage and I checked the breaker box, the dryer breaker is labled with two conjoined breakers with 30 amp fuses.  My dryers recepticle has a 4 prong plug.
Reply:(You do what you gotta do!). I heard THAT! Nothing wrong with going pure and permanent, nothing wrong with a "set up/break down" work area either. And you can always change things around later, no biggie. Stick with the reccomendations about equiptment though, I think you will be happier for the money spent. Good luck!If you don't have the time to do it right, then you definitely don't have the time to do it over.