Another newbie with a TIG questions

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Hello All, I am new to this forum, but frequently visit the top boating forums. For about 10 years now, I have purchased multiple old race boats (v-drives) and rebuilt them. Well, I am getting into building my own mold and rigging my own boats. Most of the rigging in these boats is Aluminum. 1/8", 3/16" 1/4" and 3/8" is what I will be welding. I would also need to weld 3/16" stainless every so often. The majority of the welding will be 1/4" aluminumWhat is the best bang for the buck for a used TIG machine that will handle the work I need done. Thank you in advance for the opinions and guidance. Andrew
Reply:I do have a little welding background. When I was 16 I went and got my GMAW cert. I have a Lincoln MIG welder that I use every couple of weeks for my steel project needs. I know nothing about TIG welding, but will practice in my garage, learn from my buddies, and read up on as much info as possible to get the job done
Reply:Hello and welcome.To do 1/4" to 3/8" alum tig, you are going to need a very large AC capable tig. Something in the Syncrowave 350 class. If you drop the need to do 3/8" you can drop down to a Syncrowave 250 or equivalent. Alum is a wonderful heat sink and requires much more power than stainless or steel does. Also expect at those amps you'll need a water cooled tig torch as well. Air cooled ones really won't cut it at the amps you'll need to be running.If budget is the main concern, an older industrial AC/DC tig like an old Miller 330AB/P would fit the bill. They are large units and moderately power hungry, but then most tigs in the 250+ amp range will be. I've seen the Airco rebadged units as cheap as $250 on occasion, but typically used these machines start around $400-900 depending on what all is coming with them.Syncrowave 250's used can be found as low as roughly $1500-2500 typically, again depending on what comes with them. They give you  a bit more control's over the older units like the 330's. I've seen the Syncrowave 350's and larger on rare occasions, so I'm not sure what the average used prices are.An inverter machine capable of doing those welds would probably be over $4K used if you can find one and almost twice that new.If you have zero experience doing tig, I'd strongly suggest taking a few classes 1st to learn the basics. Alum needs to be welded hot and fast. Usually when things start to go south with alum tig, the answer is not to slow down and lower your amps, but to go faster and hotter. If you don't have your basic skills down to the point where they are almost instinctive, most guys just end up making a mess. Expect to put a couple of hundred hours of hood time in before you are even close to being able to do the basics on alum. If you need to weld anodized alum tube for towers and rails, I'd say you probably better figure a closer to a 1000+ hours. Bump welding anodized is something that really needs to be learned by working with someone who really knows how to do it. It's different than welding basic alum with tig and requires a lot more skill. I know several guys who do this sort of thing and while they have done it with transformer machines like big Syncrowaves, they all have said bump welding works much better on big inverters like Dynasty 350's and up. I'd bet you are looking at $8K + if you go that route.Don't expect you will be able to sit down and learn this over a weekend, or even by taking just one semesters tig class..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWHello and welcome.To do 1/4" to 3/8" alum tig, you are going to need a very large AC capable tig. Something in the Syncrowave 350 class. If you drop the need to do 3/8" you can drop down to a Syncrowave 250 or equivalent. Alum is a wonderful heat sink and requires much more power than stainless or steel does. Also expect at those amps you'll need a water cooled tig torch as well. Air cooled ones really won't cut it at the amps you'll need to be running.If budget is the main concern, an older industrial AC/DC tig like an old Miller 330AB/P would fit the bill. They are large units and moderately power hungry, but then most tigs in the 250+ amp range will be. I've seen the Airco rebadged units as cheap as $250 on occasion, but typically used these machines start around $400-900 depending on what all is coming with them.Syncrowave 250's used can be found as low as roughly $1500-2500 typically, again depending on what comes with them. They give you  a bit more control's over the older units like the 330's. I've seen the Syncrowave 350's and larger on rare occasions, so I'm not sure what the average used prices are.An inverter machine capable of doing those welds would probably be over $4K used if you can find one and almost twice that new.If you have zero experience doing tig, I'd strongly suggest taking a few classes 1st to learn the basics. Alum needs to be welded hot and fast. Usually when things start to go south with alum tig, the answer is not to slow down and lower your amps, but to go faster and hotter. If you don't have your basic skills down to the point where they are almost instinctive, most guys just end up making a mess. Expect to put a couple of hundred hours of hood time in before you are even close to being able to do the basics on alum. If you need to weld anodized alum tube for towers and rails, I'd say you probably better figure a closer to a 1000+ hours. Bump welding anodized is something that really needs to be learned by working with someone who really knows how to do it. It's different than welding basic alum with tig and requires a lot more skill. I know several guys who do this sort of thing and while they have done it with transformer machines like big Syncrowaves, they all have said bump welding works much better on big inverters like Dynasty 350's and up. I'd bet you are looking at $8K + if you go that route.Don't expect you will be able to sit down and learn this over a weekend, or even by taking just one semesters tig class.
Reply:Make sure it works thoroughly, even if you have to arrange to send it somewhere and have it checked out prior to your purchase on your own dime. Inverters are VERY expensive to repair. Many times with older machines it's just not cost effective to repair one. It's not unusual when things go bad on inverters for the damage to cascade and take out a lot of other things as well. I'm not sure when Miller stopped making the Dynasty 300's. I know I was using a Dynasty 350 back in late 2007/ early 2008 for  a while, so my guess is they stopped making the 300's prior to that..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Originally Posted by rivergamesGreat info and I fully understand my welds will look like turds for quite a while. A class or 5 will more than likely be in my future after purchasing the right welder.I have a line on a 2012 Dynasty 300 DX with everything I need except a tank for $2,500. Almost seams to good to be true. I was thinking, even if I pick this up and never use it, I can still sell it for the price down the road/ Any downside to the 300 DX?After researching around though, I thought the 300DX we discontinued prior to 2012?