Steps To Purchase A Welder *Help*

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Ok. heres the deal.. ive went to college and learned how to weld. but now im ready to buy my own MIG welder.. so i was just wondering if someone could please tell me the whole steps to purchasing a welder.. ex. prices, wire gauge, contact tip, gas, etc. any help would be greatly appreciated.. thanks.
Reply:Ok. heres the deal.. ive went to college and learned how to weld. but now im ready to buy my own MIG welder..
Reply:and what are you planning on welding?ChuckASME Pressure Vessel welder
Reply:Find out what you are going to be welding and get one that fits your needs. Im taking classes right now and doing small fab work on trucks at home so i went with the miller 175. For me it works out great. You could also go and ask your teacher what they like and dont like...
Reply:Can't say much else at this point, except for the gasses.  For common mild steel, use an argon/CO2 mix.   75%argon/25%CO2 works good.   For aluminum, pure argon is the one to use.
Reply:im going to be doing auto body collision repair.. ill be mainly working on high strength steel, and some ultra high strength steel.. where can i find the 75% argon/25%CO2 mixed gas at? and how much does it cost? im fairly new to welding the class i took was a pre-requisite to my other classes for auto body.. but im just looking for what welder, contact tips, nozzles, gases, wire etc.. i need. Basically like my instructor said.. if i gave you like 2000 dollars to go purchase welding equipment (like if you were starting your own shop) what exactly would you buy and what would it cost.. thanks for all the help.
Reply:You can get the argon/CO2 gas at any welding gas supplier (airgas, westair, praxair, etc...).   I think I paid about $280 for a 250 cu.ft. bottle but that was a long time ago so it could be up or down now.   You might want to try a lower CO2 content mix like 85%argon/15%CO2 since you'll be welding thinner metals.I'm not up on all the prices of the latest machine models.   When I bought my MIG some 15 years ago, I spent about $1500 and bought a new HTP MIG200.  The machine has worked good for all the projects I've done with it from sheetmetal to 1/4".   Whatever brand machine you choose, since you'll be welding some thin sheet, pick a machine that can be dialed down low on the power.  For wire size, .023 is good for sheet.  I use .035 wire for most everything besides sheet.   Your contact tip size will be decided by the size wire you run.   ER70-S6 I believe is the number of the wire I use for welding mild steel.   For the high-strength steels, you may want to consult your local welding supply shop for advice on that.