What would you do...? MIG or stick

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Gots a small shop making mostly garden stuff for a landscaper. Do 95% of my work with a MillerMatic 135, however the other day he threw some 4 x 4 .188 wall stuff my way. It took all the 135 had to weld it and I'm still not real warm and fuzzy about the penetration. Here's my delima...I've got the dough to buy a MM210 and solve my concerns about not having enough machine for the rare (very rare) occasion I do bigger stuff. But, sitting in the back of my shop right now, is an old Sears Crapsman A/C (only) stick machine of the 25 to 250 amp persuaion, I got it for free for the taking, with about 100 pounds of various rod that are many years old and been stored in open paper sacks. I tried a project with it when I first got it, it turned out looking like **** with all the spatter and slag balls from hell all over everything. Granted it's got a hot arc and it'll warp the **** out of stuff, but having used a clean, tidy MIG welder, a job that has to be chipped and flap wheeled afterward is just unacceptable if you know what I mean. Do I try some new, fresh rod and blame the mess on the old rod, or do I throw the A/C machine away and spring for the big MIG? I would eventually like to get into aluminum trailer frames, so the MIG would be beneficial, but honestly the 135 is still gonna be my main workhorse regardless of what I do, as I make nearly all my stuff out of thin wall material. The lines are open, you be the judge...  Ronnie LyonsBoise, Idaho
Reply:Would only cost a few bucks to try some fresh 6013. What the heck huh? Course if I had the bucks saved for a 210 I'd be a hard one to hold back.
Reply:.188 wall shouldn't be that hard with the MM135.  I've welded much thicker stuff with it before I started worrying about penetration.  If you're really worried and you want to get it in a single pass, try flux core.-Heath
Reply:I would try the rods for the hell of it so you know but I run the MM you are talking about and it is well worth it. The spool gun you can get for $400and now you are doing aluminum. If you don't mind parting with the money i would get the 210 ASAP.Yes I can tack it for you.    I know that won't hold but that is what you asked me to do.  Millermatic 350P XR Aluma-Pro push/pullMillermatic 185/spool gunMiller Dialarc 250 HF Water cooledThermal Dynamics Plasma
Reply:I agree with GA, although Sandy is right, you can find the smallest box of 6013 or 7014 rods you can find and give it a whirl.  Its a good idea to have a stick machine with or without the mig.  ive used the 210 and found it a very good machine.  I really enjoyed using it.  Good luckCHRIS
Reply:Try the rod. Buy the machine.  You only live once, but weld every day.  (Hey, that sounds like a great quote. I think I'll use it.
Reply:I long for a world where there aren't so many stick welders around.  Mostly just because I suck at it.  However it does work.That said, it should be easy to do a multipass on .188 wall with the MM135 and good prep.-Heath
Reply:I find a lot more uses for a $300 stick machine than a $500 mig.   That $300 stick takes more skill to operate, but much more of a machine.  also,  that $500 mig has a bunch of mechanical parts to break, stick has hardly none.   I wish there were less ignorant welders out there who think there all that and a box of rocks.  I believe these machines have their place, 110V mig, but for most users they are underpowered for many jobs you will present it with.  Having a good stick welder for 1/16" and up is awesome.  Having mig for the 1/16"-1/8" is mere convience.  But its good for me, those who cant stick, it keeps me employed good luck y'allchris
Reply:i also say buy some 3/32 or 1/8 6011,6013 or some 7018Ac rods. At least the 6013 3/32....it's very fun,forgiving,pretty,and useful rod.  i don't have a spunky username just what it is, me!
Reply:What TxRedneck said!!  Once you learn to run that stick you will use it alot more than you think you will.  Its alot easier to grab it when you want to weld Stainless or cast than setting up a mig with different wire and gas.  One other thing I keep hearing alot of on here is that with a stick you have to chip and grind and clean, etc... the welds.  When you need a nice clean weld then use something like a 6013, 7014, or 7018 AC, and if you know what you are doing it should not take that much effort to clean it.  in fact alot of times the flux will peel up and you can almost brush it off with a wire brush in a single swipe. The key is taking time to learn the technique.  I'm not knocking a good mig machine they both have there place but a stick is not near the demon as alot of people make it out to be. Good luck and have fun ~JacksonI'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:I have an old Forney stick welder, it still does a great job welding. I have always had good luck with it running the 6013 or 7014 rod. There are times when it comes in real handy having the stick machine around.  One of those places is when you want to get your project over by the open doorway where you can get some breeze while welding. You don't have to worry about the breeze effecting your weld like you do with mig welding.
Reply:Or, E, all of the above...  ........TIG88, loved that quote, might use it myself..  ....ronnielyons,I agree with all that. Our shop does scads of orny stuff and the 110 weldors do fine on 90% of it inthe field. In the shop we use big migs. On the other hand, like hammock and txredneck said, you just cant beat a stick(pun intended).Today I had to do some repair on a front end loader and was using 5/32 7018 and didn't have to grind anything. Tap the end of the slag with a chipping hammer and it peeled off all at once.You get good with a stick and you can do anything a mig can do, just maybe not as fast.
Reply:Yeah I dont know about this whole arguement regarding grinding and stuff with stick.   My experience is whether your miggin or stickin you gotta use a wire brush, and I prefer a wire wheel on the grinder to clean between passes.  Yeah a lot of guys say you dont need to do a clean up between passes, but there are contaments.  If you dont believe me,  put an Xray on it.  And besides that either way you go you gotta clean the main rust and crud off that weld.  But then again Ive welded parts wiht all kind of grease rust and paint with a 6011 or 6010 on farm repairs no problem.   Just weld it and go.  Cant try that with a mig.   Granted, those repairs arent as strong as they would if Id first got out the grinder and cleaned it up good.   But theres just times you look at it from a perspective of what is required here.   And with a 200 amp stick welder you will be running a lot fewer multi pass welds than is necessary with a small mig.  Therefore, one less welding.  Two, if you only need one pass than you dont need to clean it all up.  Sure cleaning is good and you should clean that slag off prior to paint.  A lot of times if im working for someone I know, they really dont want me bothering with cleaning slag off as final prep.  It just dont matter none to them.  Either they aint gonnna paint anyway, or they are like, heck I can do that and cost me less too.  As mentioned above it only takes a chippin hammer and a wire brush to get the stuff off though.  So most importantly, its quick and easy to get rid of this stuff. Stick is the way to go.Just my two and a half centsCHRIS
Reply:Originally Posted by TxRedneck Stick is the way to go.Just my two and a half centsCHRIS
Reply:Ya know them boy'z from oklahoma roll their joints all wrong, there too dang skinny and waaay too long...You dang'd navy redneck you know you got it all wrong.  You are one heck of a good stick welder.  If you dont quit sayin you aint im gonna come over and give youa rebel whoop azz!   I Love AMERICACHRIS
Reply:Originally Posted by TxRedneckYa know them boy'z from oklahoma roll their joints all wrong, there too dang skinny and waaay too long...You dang'd navy redneck you know you got it all wrong.  You are one heck of a good stick welder.  If you dont quit sayin you aint im gonna come over and give youa rebel whoop azz!   I Love AMERICACHRIS