[Killo.Richards]

I wish I had the money to drop on a quality mig-welding rig, but I do not. I seen eastwood co has a Stitch welder and a Tack welding "gun".
A setup like this would be ideal, as I'm not going to be doing major repairs...only a few patch-panels (please don't mention the no-weld-required patch panels w/ adhesive...I don't want to go this route)

Does anyone have any experience with either of these guns, and would it work for this type of application?

Is there a steep learning curve?

thanks in advance.

 

[oldred]

Both units require an AC welder for power,if you do not already have one then you would also be looking at the cost of a welder.If you do have a welder then you could get by with the stitch welder but I was not very impressed with the one I tried.Mig welders are not realy all that costly and do a much better job.Even the cheap discount store machines would do a better job and would be a lot easier to use.This is just my thoughts someone else may have had better luck than I did with the thing but I have done a lot of welding and I had lot of trouble using it.I have not tried the spot welder but they are limited as to their use.

[ February 27, 2003: Message edited by: oldred ]</p>

 

[Dragon J]

Agree w/oldred- I had the stitch and spot attachment and was not impressed- I did use the spot many times but ended up selling all as a Mig IS much better and more versatile. The stitch left too much residue for practical sheet metal work (for me) and was hard to get the knack of-/ my own opinion only!

 

[Killo.Richards]

thanks for the input gentlemen.

I just figured if it was halfway decent it would be worth the money, considering you can get a small arc welder and the guns for under $250, whereas I haven't seen a mig in that price range...maybe I haven't looked hard enough.

 

[Halloweenking]

Save you money, buy a MIG. Mines brand new and only cost me $550 and its a Hobart. It took a few weeks to pay it off, but it mine now and its much better than any one use contraption for half the price.

HK

 

[BLOWN 1100]

I agree with HK, I have a ten year old 150amp mig that still works like new.
Loy

 

[HotRodMan]

I bought a $200 mig welder from Wal-Mart by Cambell Hausfield and it works great on metal up to 3/16 thick. This is all I need for ocasional thin metal welding. If you do alot of welding you might want to buy a better unit.

I called the body shop supply house today about the adhesive to join body panels and they told me you had to buy a special aplication gun that cost $130.00 and then buy the adhesive which was another $40.00. I will just stay with my mig welder for that price.

 

[[email protected]]

Agree w/ everyone above. I bought a stitch, fooled with it for an entire afternoon and never got it to work. Bite the bullet and get a good Lincoln wirefeed.

[ February 28, 2003: Message edited by: [email protected] ]</p>

 

[oldred]

That little lincoln gets my vote too if all you are going to weld is body panels.If you need to weld on a frame you can do that too if you mind the duty cycle limits.Hobart and Miller make really good machines also and are priced in the same range.Any one of these welders are a good investment and will last for many years if you dont abuse them.The Cambell Hausfield is a good machine for the money if you are on a really tight budget and they can be found Wal-Mart.

 

[gaino]

I think my stich wielder is in the back of a drawer somwhere. I like my hobart handler,I have to use a gas mix for bodywork,some wielders can only handle flux core wire.

 

[Killo.Richards]

Thanks gentlemen.

I think I might look into doing the MIG instead, since it is regarded so highly...

What size should I be looking for? Something like a hobart 135 good for doing patch panels and whatnot?

Plus...<excuse my ignorance, I'm a newb here, but I'm adventurous> don't I need an acet' tank for shielding when using mig?

guess I should check the FAQ under welding for jack-holes. <img src="confused.gif" border="0">

 

[oldred]

Unstable-If what you intend to weld is body panels you will find that little hobart to be to be an excellent machine I recomend it highly.Yes you will need shielding gas, CO2/argon mix(C25 as it is commonly known)or straight CO2.You will find that C25 works MUCH better and is worth the extra cost as it maks a slicker weld with a lot less spatter to clean up.You could also use gasless wire but I dont recomend it as it is harder to get a decent weld with and requires more clean up.