cant decide

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I'm new to welding. I have a Lincoln Weld pak 100 and now I'm wanting a stick welder. I have narrowed it down to two welding machines that fit my budget. The machines are: Hobart Stickmate LX 235 AC Welder and the Lincoln AC-225 model K1170.. What are the PROS and CONS of each of these welding machines.
Reply:I have an AC buzz box and wish it was DC. If you can afford one go with AC/DC.
Reply:lincoln over hobart..ac/dc would be better..lincoln buzz boxes been around and still working forever..craigslist for mabe a hundred and you have one..
Reply:I used the Hobart in the Miller warper seemed to work great for me.
Reply:More answers here:http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=49373
Reply:I have the Hobart AC/DC Stickmate and feel it is truly an Industrial Welder. When I showed a working pro my welder, his comment was "You could build a ship with that!"  He thought I was going to diisplay a 120 Volt toy.I like the idea that the current is infinatly adjustable, not just in steps.
Reply:look on craigslist etc there's many old Lincolns still around last one i used was a good 40 or more years old  and used in a shipyard and was one heavy mutha350P 30A spool gun cut master 51  syncro 250 other stuff " take a dog off the street and make him prosper and he will not bite you sad the same cannot be said for man" i didnt use punctuation just to piss you off
Reply:I don't think there is enough difference in stick welder brands to say that one is much superior to the other.  There is nothing special about the old Lincoln tombstones, and they don't last any longer than any other brand in my opinion.  There are just a lot of them around because Lincoln sold a zillion of them through tool salesmen, discount places etc.  Millers were more expensive so they sold fewer of them.  Hobart, Century, Lincoln, Miller, and all the rest will burn a stick just fine for the next 40 years for you.  Get the best deal you can find on an AC/DC infinitely variable name brand welder and you will be happy.Miller Syncrowave 350Millermatic 252/ 30A spoolgunMiller Bobcat 225g w/ 3545 spoolgunLincoln PowerArc4000Lincoln 175 Mig  Lincoln 135 Mig Everlast 250EX TigCentury ac/dc 230 amp stickVictor O/AHypertherm 1000 plasma