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BEGINNING WELDING FOR nOOBs

zlathim said:
It sounds like a little general purpose MIG welder will fulfill your needs just fine, IMHO. I'm not an expert welder, but I've been welding since high school and worked as a mechanic/welder for years when I was in my 20's and 30's. I've never owned a welder myself, so I did a bunch of research to try to figure out a suitable machine for my home garage use.

I ended up with 180 Amp Lincoln MIG welder. Home Depot sells this exact welder (except it is called the "Weld Pak" 180 instead of "Easy Mig" 180) for $750 locally It is a 220v machine, so I had to add a circuit in the garage. That was easy, but it cost about $40 for the breaker, receptacle and wire. I'm into everything including the new 220v circuit, a cart, and a 40 cf bottle full of gas for about $1050. There are definately cheaper and easier ways to get started welding, but I won't need anything more than this for what I'm doing, and it sounds a lot like what you will be doing.

I think you mentioned that you live in Boise. If you want to come over and try it out, bring beer. I drink Coors Light. I'm near Lake Hazel & Cloverdale.
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Careful with the home depot welders. I bought a migpak 5000HD used, turned out that HD doesn't mean heavy duty, it means only sold at Home Depot. Its not gas ready like the weldpak180, so you need to buy more bits and pieces if you want to run gas.

I didn't take a class post high-school, but my best friend of 20ish years is a welder, has done everything from red iron to submarines to exposed stair stringers. Having him over my shoulder critiquing has taught me a lot.
 
Squamch said:
Careful with the home depot welders. I bought a migpak 5000HD used, turned out that HD doesn't mean heavy duty, it means only sold at Home Depot. Its not gas ready like the weldpak180, so you need to buy more bits and pieces if you want to run gas.
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My research shows that if it is a new Lincoln 180 amp machine, it is the same no matter who sells it. They make a few different versions of the same exact machine for different retail sellers. The parts list is identical anyway between all of the machines. "Pro MIG 180"="Weld Pak 180"="MIG Pak 180"="Easy MIG 180", they are all the exact same machine, sold by different retailers. I'm sure the 140a 120v machines are the same way.
 
Squamch said:
Careful with the home depot welders. I bought a migpak 5000HD used, turned out that HD doesn't mean heavy duty, it means only sold at Home Depot. Its not gas ready like the weldpak180, so you need to buy more bits and pieces if you want to run gas.

I didn't take a class post high-school, but my best friend of 20ish years is a welder, has done everything from red iron to submarines to exposed stair stringers. Having him over my shoulder critiquing has taught me a lot.
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That's not the only corners homodepo cuts inside their products...
let's put them to a scale weight test...
 
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Read the chart that's stuck right to whatever welder you buy that'll tell you what settings to use. It might not be perfect but it'll get you damn close. It'll save you a whole lot of frustration and let you get a hang of welding instead of setting up a welder. After that just practice. Cut your welds and see how they look. Practice some more. If you go a length of time without touching it run some practice beads before welding anything important. I weld infrequently enough where I have to get the hang of it again almost every time I touch the thing
 
I learned on a old Lincoln cracker box. Think I was 12 or 13 when I told my dad I wanted to learn how to weld. He showed me the basics, pointed me to a scrap pile of metal, and handed me a box of 6011 rods. Ended up being decent with a stick machine, but it has been close to 20 years since I have used one. Built a few cattle guards and gates that still are working.

Currently have access to a Hobart 140. It’s good for what it is. I’ve only used it with flux core wire. That has managed to hold my BBQ pit and headache rack together. I’m planning to purchase a 220V machine this year, so I’m following along on suggestions.
 
Start with decent equipment that will last and that you can grow into. I started out self taught in '99 at 19 years old. I bought myself a Miller 135, a Speedlass auto-dark helmet, Milwaukee 4.5" grinder w/a dead man switch, and a Milwaukee chop saw. Fast foward 21 years of heavy hobby use, I still have the mask and welder. I've had the grinder rebuilt twice but the chop stopped cutting straight last year. Get yourself a decent pair of side cutter pliers, some needle nose, and some good gloves. I'm a big fan of Carhartt bibs since they seem to resist spark and slag burn through decently.

Anyway, if you like to weld, learn to love grinding, cleaning material, and sweeping. I take it you're a little older so hopefully you can appreciate learning the "right" way and minimize picking up bad habits. Once you're all prepaired, you just have to get after it and try your best to enjoy the process. There's more of a chance you'll suck right off the bat but you'l gradually get better. Prep-prep-prep and practice. Find comfortbale arm and hand positions, be consisent with your hand movements, and rememeber to breath. I'd go get a couple sticks of something like 1/8" x 1" flat bar, prep it, chop it into 6" sections, then start welding it together. Keep your first piece around to look back on years down the road.
 
I'd played with a couple of mig machines and took an intro stick welding class at a shipyard where I worked. When it was time to buy my own welder I went with a hobart handler 187 (220V) Mig and a decent Hobart auto darkening shield from TSC. By the time I had everything (wire, gas, gloves, jacket, side cutters) i was all in @ 1200$. Been using it for about 12 years now and its done most everything I've wanted. First project was a halfass welder cart to figure out settings and get the welder off the floor. Sheetmetal you will most likely be better off with .023 wire, most everything else .030 will do most anything you want. Im not good at all but can stick metal together without much trouble and it doesnt look completely horrible.

my 2 pennies
 
I learned how to weld standing around watching my friends build long arm kits for their jeeps and asking questions. My friend showed me how to stick weld and then MIG in his shop. My first solo welding was my front frame chop, toyota axle flip and SAS on my tacoma. I purchased a hobart 140 and went at it at flux core because getting 220 into my garage would have been a few grand in electrical work. I havent broke a knuckle off, the frame in half or any weld in 5yrs so I must have done something right haha!

My advice is to get an auto darkening helmet, I got a speed glass something or other off Amazon, one of the cheaper ones.
also get a few cheap grinders and keep a flap.disc on one, a cut off on another and a wire wheel on another one for knocking slag and shit off.
don't be afraid of pre heating Beveling and prep is probably the most important thing about welding.
overhead sucks
X3 on weld.com youtube channel

I focused more on part design than obsessing over stacking dimes. Bracing and what not and trying to conceptualize where the forces are going is super important. I found the hobart 140 can do just about anything on a toyota (I believe that's what you are building right?), And I usually had to turn the welder down quite a bit because the frames are tin foil.
 
CDA 455 II said:
The townhouse I rent has an electric stove and oven.

Would that use a 220v outlet?


That I could use as a power source if I go with a 220v welder?
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Yes, you would just need a long cord with that plug (there are a couple different ones it could be) on one end and receptacle to match your welder on the other.

Aaron Z
 
aczlan said:
Yes, you would just need a long cord with that plug (there are a couple different ones it could be) on one end and receptacle to match your welder on the other.

Aaron Z
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99% chance a stove uses the 3-prong 50A outlet.
 
You can also probe outlets to find two on different legs and make a 2->1 extension cord. We used to do that to run welders in college.
 
arse_sidewards said:
99% chance a stove uses the 3-prong 50A outlet.
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Yes; it's a 3-prong, and it reminds me of Scream's ghost face (the way the prongs are set up :laughing:):

diana_scream_mask_tut_final.jpg



In the fuse box it has twin 40 breaker switches.
 
CDA 455 II said:
.
You mean make 2 extension cords with male plugs on both ends in order to feed said two-into-one set up? 🤔😎
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Yes, two extension cords with male ends going to one 220v female plug. Each cord powers one "side" of the 220v plug.

You're basically creating the same circuit as a double breaker that supplies 220v but with a bunch of extra hardware in the way.

For a 3-prong 220v outlet you can get extra current capacity from your cords by removing the neutral terminal from the male connector and bonding the neutral wire to the hot at both the 120v end and the 220v end. This gives you twice as much copper to carry the current. Grounds should be bonded at the 220v plug because the last thing you need is one tiny little ground wire carrying all that current if you have a short to ground.

Alternatively, you can replace neutral and ground in the above example and gain less danger of letting the smoke out if you short to ground at the expense of reducing the current carrying capacity of the extension cord.

You will likely wind up with wierd voltages on the other outlets in whatever circuits you are doing this on so don't have your expensive TV plugged into the same circuit when doing this.

Obviously this all hack shit and you shouldn't let OSHA see it.
 
arse_sidewards said:
Yes, two extension cords with male ends going to one 220v female plug. Each cord powers one "side" of the 220v plug.

You're basically creating the same circuit as a double breaker that supplies 220v but with a bunch of extra hardware in the way.

For a 3-prong 220v outlet you can get extra current capacity from your cords by removing the neutral terminal from the male connector and bonding the neutral wire to the hot at both the 120v end and the 220v end. This gives you twice as much copper to carry the current. Grounds should be bonded at the 220v plug because the last thing you need is one tiny little ground wire carrying all that current if you have a short to ground.

Alternatively, you can replace neutral and ground in the above example and gain less danger of letting the smoke out if you short to ground at the expense of reducing the current carrying capacity of the extension cord.

You will likely wind up with wierd voltages on the other outlets in whatever circuits you are doing this on so don't have your expensive TV plugged into the same circuit when doing this.

Obviously this all hack shit and you shouldn't let OSHA see it.
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This is all above my paid grade. :eek::laughing:


Now that I know the stove/oven is a 3-prong; can't I simply use that with an adaptor for the welder power source??

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CDA 455 II said:
This is all above my paid grade. :eek::laughing:


Now that I know the stove/oven is a 3-prong; can't I simply use that with an adaptor for the welder power source??
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Just put a 3-prong plug on the welder's cord and make an extension cord.

Assuming you have a typical range outlet "10-50P" and "10-50R" are the plug and receptacle. The wire you want for your extension cord is "X/3 SOOW" is the wire. X is the gauge you want to buy. You probably want 6 or 8 depending on the length of the extension cord.
 
This is a good helmet. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-Auto-Darkening-Variable-Shade-Hydrographic-Welding-Helmet/1000003026

I will say I have used really "cheap" entry level welders.....I would go at least miller, lincoln, or hobart.

I am planning to buy a miller 211 after using it both on 220 and 110.
The honart MVP210 is solid

and any old stick machine is great if you have the 220 to run it. Stick welding will make you better overall. But major fab owrk with on sucks up so much time vs mig.
 
I learned on a mig machine, really easy. But looking back I wish I would have learned how to stick weld first.
 
lpukas2 said:
I learned on a mig machine, really easy. But looking back I wish I would have learned how to stick weld first.
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I've been eyeballing the Premier Power Welder for 30 years.

The whole set up runs about $1,500.

Among other reasons I like that it's attached/mounted to it's power source and it's a stick welder.

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CDA 455 II said:
I've been eyeballing the Premier Power Welder for 30 years.

The whole set up runs about $1,500.

Among other reasons I like that it's attached/mounted to it's power source and it's a stick welder.
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I've been eyeballing them too but the thing that's kept me from pulling the trigger has been the fact that they've been around for 30yr and haven't caught on.

If they're really that good why aren't more of the more money than sense running them and why aren't there cheap chinese knockoffs installed in more trail rigs?

I get that people who don't know how to weld are deathly afraid of stick welding but even so you'd think that you'd occasionally see them in farm trucks and other applications where you need to weld fairly regularly but not regularly enough to waste space on a welder generator.

That said, if they ever have a 50% off sale I'm definitely getting one. :laughing:
 
I learned on an old marquett stick welder. Then a tombstone, then a Hobart handler 187 (love that machine)

idk if it’s been said yet, but TimWelds on YouTube is good and thorough.
 
220 volt Power cords to get you started. Shop around. I just looked for what had clear pictures.
Welder, get what you can afford. Stick is basic, can be used in any position depending on what rod. Flux core is messier but just as strong. Mig is prettier and a little more forgiving. If you can watch the puddle with one, you can figure it out with the others. Class at community college or even just someone to tell you what you need to change. Or like has been said before, YouTube. I’ve been welding for almost 20 years and that stuff is still interesting to watch.
 

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I did just this. Made a 100’ extension cord with a 30A male plug into the abandoned electric dryer outlet, and a female 50A in a box at the end to plug the welder into.

180HD, works fine (when my friends weld with it though, I still SUCK).

CDA 455 II said:
This is all above my paid grade. :eek::laughing:


Now that I know the stove/oven is a 3-prong; can't I simply use that with an adaptor for the welder power source??

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Stick
MIG
TIG

In that order. There's a reason any welding class you take follows that order. Each skill set builds on the last.
 
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