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Karnage Welder

Stingray said:
Any of the onboard alternator welders.

This may or may not be a good product, but its one more 45 lb thing to carry in my rig. The premier welder on my crapbox gives me more alternater than the stock one, and doubles as an onboard welder. and uses stuff already on my rig.
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It's also ~$1500-2000 and the alternators are only for common engines.
Sure a person could make one work, but that's expensive and not portable.

Not saying it's a bad setup. I'm considering the Bun welder just on cost. Not sure how the spool gun setup handles, I've never used one.

Either case, I'm not worried about extra weight. The Unimog isn't light anyhow (4-5 ton area) so what's 50lbs.

I've used my mig welder hooked to a generator for small jobs and that was a bit of a PITA to load up.

Like the front axle retainer bolts on the 648D skidder kept backing out. I welded a bar across the 4 of them out in the woods. Maybe 3 mins of weld but 45+ mins of loading the truck and getting it and the skidder close enough, setup, fighting with the generator, etc, etc.
 
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I have the 165A version of this machine. Literally bought it for ONE of my gate jobs but I have found it's pretty fucking handy.
It would be super easy to just mount this thing to a open frame construction generator or keep it portable.

I use mine on my 3500w Inverter generator.

$89 inverter welder
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But there is probably no need to buy the 120A when you can get the 165A for $10 more.
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There are many different welders on the market an each has it's specialty:
  • Karnage Welder:
    • Advantages
      • Setup speed (Flip the switch on and start welding)
      • Portability (throw the kit in whoever's rig is going that day)
      • Weather proof (leave it in the back of your pickup in the rain, no biggie)
      • Fits in tight spaces (standard sized welding torch)
    • Disadvantages
      • Weight (46lbs)
      • Run time (15-20min)
      • No gas support
      • No aluminum
      • Price ($999)
  • Bunn Welder/Ready Welder
    • Advantages
      • Price ($300-600)
      • Weight (~11lbs unless you count the two car batteries you have to carry with the welder [two typical batteries 64lbs]);
      • Portability (throw the kit in whoever's rig is going that day)
    • Disadvantages
      • Setup speed (time consuming pulling donor batteries, hooking up the cables)
      • Spool gun (hard to get into tight spaces, heavy)
  • Premier Power Welder
    • Advantages
      • Run time (runs until you run out of gas)
      • Adjustable temp control
    • Disadvantages
      • Tied to one vehicle (vehicle must be able to get to where you want to weld)
      • Vehicle must be operational (requires the engine running to spin the alternator)
      • Price ($1500-2000)
      • Stick welding (personal preference)
  • Jumper cables and welding rod
    • Advantages
      • PRICE ($50)
      • Weight (~5lbs unless you count the two car batteries you have to carry with the welder [two typical batteries 64lbs]);
      • Portability (throw the kit in whoever's rig is going that day)
    • Disadvantages
      • Setup speed (time consuming pulling donor batteries, hooking up the cables)
      • Stick welding (personal preference)

Really just all depends on your use case, pocket book, and amount of time your willing to spend on a trail doing repairs.
 
Mogster said:
There are many different welders on the market an each has it's specialty:
  • Karnage Welder:
    • Advantages
      • Setup speed (Flip the switch on and start welding)
      • Portability (throw the kit in whoever's rig is going that day)
      • Weather proof (leave it in the back of your pickup in the rain, no biggie)
      • Fits in tight spaces (standard sized welding torch)
    • Disadvantages
      • Weight (46lbs)
      • Run time (15-20min)
      • No gas support
      • No aluminum
      • Price ($999)
  • Bunn Welder/Ready Welder
    • Advantages
      • Price ($300-600)
      • Weight (~11lbs unless you count the two car batteries you have to carry with the welder [two typical batteries 64lbs]);
      • Portability (throw the kit in whoever's rig is going that day)
    • Disadvantages
      • Setup speed (time consuming pulling donor batteries, hooking up the cables)
      • Spool gun (hard to get into tight spaces, heavy)
  • Premier Power Welder
    • Advantages
      • Run time (runs until you run out of gas)
      • Adjustable temp control
    • Disadvantages
      • Tied to one vehicle (vehicle must be able to get to where you want to weld)
      • Vehicle must be operational (requires the engine running to spin the alternator)
      • Price ($1500-2000)
      • Stick welding (personal preference)
  • Jumper cables and welding rod
    • Advantages
      • PRICE ($50)
      • Weight (~5lbs unless you count the two car batteries you have to carry with the welder [two typical batteries 64lbs]);
      • Portability (throw the kit in whoever's rig is going that day)
    • Disadvantages
      • Setup speed (time consuming pulling donor batteries, hooking up the cables)
      • Stick welding (personal preference)

Really just all depends on your use case, pocket book, and amount of time your willing to spend on a trail doing repairs.
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I wouldn't even consider rod and jumper cables to be anything more than a last ditch effort.

I've tried it out before, it's not even close to as good as using even a shitty a stick welder. Maybe an actual pro weldor could do ok with it. I don't stick weld a ton to begin with and trying it with batteries was almost a joke. I was able to "weld" enough to get it home, so I guess it was better than nothing.
 
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Mogster Cool to see you drop in. Even cooler to see a legit comparison of the market, not just marketing hype. :beer:

You forgot output. ReadyWelder with 3x batteries will do 350 amps...for all those times you need to glue 3/4" plate. :laughing:
 
subybaja said:
Mogster Cool to see you drop in. Even cooler to see a legit comparison of the market, not just marketing hype. :beer:

You forgot output. ReadyWelder with 3x batteries will do 350 amps...for all those times you need to glue 3/4" plate. :laughing:
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Over the years I've used them all to get out of a jam. I think the way the market is right now each welder is not really even competing with each other because the capabilities are so different and specific to the buyer.

We tried to focus on one specific area which was portability and speed. Could we do 3 batteries... easily with a small mod or two but we don't see much 3/4" on the trails. Gas capabilities.... I'm actually working on gas and reversible polarity version but not very heavily due to the fact who wants to carry from their rig a gas bottle and a 46lb welder to a repair location just to have the gas blown away by the wind. Aluminum... really not feasible unless you have a spool gun so the wire will feed and there are other options for that now. Another capability I've been asked about was ability to plug into 110V/220V in the garage.... again, there are PLENTY of mig welders out there that do that.

We do have one ability none of the others have... We can run a Verizon Hotspot for a full week in Moab off the internal batteries :lmao: It is a 12V 44Ah battery pack when in charge mode.
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OP from your first post you had a ready welder and that was too complicated, I don't see how any of these other options are any less complicated, just different. No way in hell would I want a welder with built in batteries that would go unused for months at a time and then find out the batteries are no good when I actually need to use the thing.
 
ChiScouter said:
OP from your first post you had a ready welder and that was too complicated, I don't see how any of these other options are any less complicated, just different. No way in hell would I want a welder with built in batteries that would go unused for months at a time and then find out the batteries are no good when I actually need to use the thing.
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I get that, I came home after a week in Moab to find my Dodge dead just sitting there... disappointing. Unlike my Dodge though when the welder is OFF there is nothing connected on the inside.

So far mine is one of the oldest built in 2017 (5 years old) and used heavily. Still working and charging fine. The manufacturers of the AGM batteries tell us we should have a usable life of 8 years under normal daily use conditions. Typically it's the depth of the discharge that limits the life span. i.e. you take a battery from 100% to 90% thousands of times, 100% to 50% hundreds of times or 100% to 0% like 10 times. In the case of a welder, if you get to like 50% battery capacity you're likely not getting a hot weld anymore so it basically prevents you from really DEEP discharging them.

Sitting on the shelf the batteries discharge about 3% per month so sitting on the shelf for a couple months is fine. I typically recharge after each use then lock it back up on the buggy which currently lives outside. If it's been a LONG while I'll charge the night before a 4x4 trip but with the knuckleheads I wheel with it's gets used basically monthly. :laughing:
 
ChiScouter said:
OP from your first post you had a ready welder and that was too complicated, I don't see how any of these other options are any less complicated, just different. No way in hell would I want a welder with built in batteries that would go unused for months at a time and then find out the batteries are no good when I actually need to use the thing.
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Complicated?

Never said that. Pulling batteries out of rigs or carrying extras is a pain. Lot of times the rigs need to stay running, like when it's -30*
 
Mogster said:
I get that, I came home after a week in Moab to find my Dodge dead just sitting there... disappointing. Unlike my Dodge though when the welder is OFF there is nothing connected on the inside.

So far mine is one of the oldest built in 2017 (5 years old) and used heavily. Still working and charging fine. The manufacturers of the AGM batteries tell us we should have a usable life of 8 years under normal daily use conditions. Typically it's the depth of the discharge that limits the life span. i.e. you take a battery from 100% to 90% thousands of times, 100% to 50% hundreds of times or 100% to 0% like 10 times. In the case of a welder, if you get to like 50% battery capacity you're likely not getting a hot weld anymore so it basically prevents you from really DEEP discharging them.

Sitting on the shelf the batteries discharge about 3% per month so sitting on the shelf for a couple months is fine. I typically recharge after each use then lock it back up on the buggy which currently lives outside. If it's been a LONG while I'll charge the night before a 4x4 trip but with the knuckleheads I wheel with it's gets used basically monthly. :laughing:
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Was going to put an order through, but in the middle of buying a house, so waiting for all that to go through.
 
AKnate said:
Was going to put an order through, but in the middle of buying a house, so waiting for all that to go through.
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We'll be here whenever you're ready. We've got them in stock now unlike last year where we were on a 3-4 month waiting list due to supply chain issues.

Where do you live? We're out of Las Vegas and travel to a lot of the surrounding areas. If you in the area you can always stop in and try one out. Or we can contact an owner near you that would be willing to let you check theirs out. We have over 350 around the country now ;)

Guys in California must break a lot... they are our heaviest concentration :)

1651849414013.png
 
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Mogster said:
We'll be here whenever you're ready. We've got them in stock now unlike last year where we were on a 3-4 month waiting list due to supply chain issues.

Where do you live? We're out of Las Vegas and travel to a lot of the surrounding areas. If you in the area you can always stop in and try one out. Or we can contact an owner near you that would be willing to let you check theirs out. We have over 350 around the country now ;)

Guys in California must break a lot... they are our heaviest concentration :)

1651849414013.png
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Alaska
 
Mogster said:
Hmm that name makes more sense now ;) I think we've chatted before. I think you were like 7 miles down the road from another guy up there with one.
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Yes, was going to order last week or so. House thing happened suddenly
 
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