LocostUSA.com

What you said too! I just didn't get that far into the why of it, just that it does. Cheers!

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Dismantalus, Fabricatus, Assemblus.....
Certified Welder, Certified Welding Inspector, Full Time Car Freak...In New Jersey no less!

I will second Lincoln L-56 for bare wire and wouldn't choose anything else. One large part of my day job is weld procedure development and weld wire selection for a ASME/Military code shop that has around 100 welders. A few years ago I reevaluated our Er70S-6 filler metal and ran spools from every brand of weld wire that I could find and L-56 was hands down the best. I also get free sample spools all the time with the latest greatest that is "supposed" to be better and only one has been better for us, another Lincoln weld wire. Unfortunately that wire is not available for order to the general public.

If anyone's needing a small welding cart, napaonline.com has one on special for $54. $100 off.

Equivalent on Amazon is $99. It's a little nicer than the HF basic $45 cart IMHO.

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/FPW14440407

I think it's on sale until the end of the month, but I didn't dig to find out 'cause I already got mine.

Does anyone else have the latest advise on the best locost MIG?

The last mig I bought was the eastwood 135. It is now at about $350. I bought it thru Jegs at the time since eastwood did not have free shipping but now they do. Jegs no longer sells eastwood welders since they have their own brand.

I'd probably buy the bluearc from Jegs for $265 and free shipping.

In general, go for the most amps available at 30% duty cycle on a 110vac machine for portability. Gasless is messy and more difficult to see the puddle but generally better penetration at the same amps as gas with solid core wire. Ot for a unit that is already equipped to use a bottle and make sure the gun assembly is a tweeco. If going with gas, buy a large bottle you can cart around separately on a modified handtruck. The smaller the bottle, the more frequently it needs to be swapped/filled, usually right in the middle of a job.

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Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12

I still stand by:
1) No machine with a rocker switch for low/high voltage and another rocker for slow/fast wire feed - it will never be setup correctly
2) No machine where the wire speed and voltage knobs have tapped settings - at least one needs to be a potentiometer

Otherwise most will get the job done.

Hobart's 140 is still what I'd get if I was on a budget. I know several people with them and they're a great value for the power and quality and it's from a big name.

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-Andrew
Build Log
Youtube

Since we are bumping, I second the Hobart 140 as probably the best basic mig. I've got 6 of them in my school shop and they can take a beating and keep pushing wire. They are all at least 7 years old and not one has failed after daily abuse at the hands of students in our humid shop which is steps from the bay. However, once you "graduate" to a larger machine there is no comparison. We have two miller 212s and a 252. They are superb. We have a larger beat up Lincoln as well which also welds rather smoothly and consistently.

Thanks guys voice of experience always appreciated.

No problem. I forgot to mention, you want to buy/rent a bottle of c25 and use solid wire. Don't weld with flux core inside.

I was wondering about this.

My dad has a MIG & A flux core. What's the issue with the FC? I've read that they tend to have more spatter/mess, but give a similar quality weld.

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1975 MG Midget
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=24382
13B Powered Rotus Geauxkart
http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=20899

When I started out knowing absolutely nothing about MIG welding I bought a (very) used 240V Cebora Apollo 215 A welder.



I would recommend considering buying a used industrial quality welder rather than a cheap new one. Mine hasn't had a single issue, was very cheap, and takes the cheap(er) 15kg spools of wire. I've put probably 5 of the 15kg rolls through it over the years and it is still fantastic.

My cheap TIG welder I bought new, on the other hand, has gone through 3 main boards and 2 torches, which is why I upgraded to a 2nd hand Syncrowave 250DX.

Just my 2.02c, adjusted for inflation.

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Scratch built turbo V8 hot-rod in progress
http://locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=19549

Gas shielding provides a much cleaner process without splatter. No cleaning the weld after either. Less fumes as well. I usually use a respirator when welding. It's an absolute must when welding with flux core mig or stick. Gas doesn't do well outside though - use flux core if there's any wind.

Flux core is typically a hotter process too, so more difficult with thin materials like we use in Locost 7's. They are cheaper to purchase, however.

I tried flux core, but switched to MIG very quickly. I've never regretted it.

Cheers,

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Damn! That front slip angle is way too large and the Ackerman is just a muddle.

Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=5886

On our scale, flux core welding is for farmers in the field not shop welding

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Honey anyone?