Jimmyc

In search of some advice,.. i'm looking for a MIG to start doing some welding on my Series 2.

Not too sure what would be best suited for me, i know i need something with and amp range between atleast 30 and 130 for the work i intend to be doing.
A friend has a SIP 150P for restoring his S1 and reckons that it is a touch too powerful finding it harder to weld thinner panels and suggested i go for the SIP 130.
However i have heard a few bad things about the reliability of the SIP, especially the wire feed mech.

I have also been looking at the Clarke 135TE which seems to be highly rated by some, yet i have found the odd negative comment, normally surrounding Clarke the brand being cr*p.

Anyone have any good recomendations on a descent welder, looking to spend circa £225-£250 really.
Also what are peoples views on Gas/Gasless welder, i like the idea of having the flexibility of having the gasless option and lower cost on gas (downside being a poorer weld i have read), however the Clarke i was looking at is gas only so a bit confused as to what to go for.
FYI most of the work i will be doing will be in the garage, so away from wind.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!

CheeRS James

KnoxyGtt

For hoby shit and light work clarke gear is fine, also getting parts in no problem with them

westus1

iTrader: (6)

if the 150's to powerful why doesn't he just turn the power down a bit
the only reason he should have problems with blowing thru is if he metal is crap
easy for me to say as the 1 i use is a big comercial unit
the smaller box type migs are a waste of money in my experience
i'd say for that money try get a right good second hand item tather than a lessor quality new item
also avoid the gasless option
they are terrible, just dont get a nice weld with them at all(,aybe i just cant use them)
all just my opinion but i been welding in work for 10 years so might not be a bad 1

Matt Baxter

iTrader: (37)

I use a sealey supermig 150 very good bit of kit not had 1 problem with it

used to have a sip 150 and that was total dog shit imho wire feed was a joke

at the end of the day a good plant can make crap welder look good, and a crap plant make a good welder look crap

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/items/?_nkw=s...+150&_osacat=0

hth

matt

tabetha

I have SIP 150, they are not very controlled so will be a lot harder with these than some others.
It's all down to STABILITY, which boils down to cost.
I would if I were you get a s/h MIGATRONIC, utterly stable low down whereas most smaller ones aren't, it will cost you as much as a new welder even though s/h but is much more of a machine too.
Depending which gas you use can have a major effect on it being fierce or not as well, I use CRYSTAL mix.
tabetha

costina

iTrader: (1)

Stay away from clarke there rubbish

Get a good welder i use big powered ones at work for cars and its no problem it just has greater control low down

BUT for a good weld make sure you use correct gas bottle and reg and a good helmet

those two items will not be that cheap but will save u time and a lot of rework

Paul

The Youth.

iTrader: (1)

I have had a clarke 150te no gas (that I converted to gas) since 1992 it has been superb and I used it to do all the welding on the 100E
I wouldn't hesitate in recommending clarke welders!

steve

costina

iTrader: (1)

Steve you must be one of the lucky onesi had one that was not very good at all i have a cebora 155 which is a great welder had it for 10 years now and hav'nt even replaced the tip

Paul

fish99

Get yourself on

www.mig-welding.co.uk

Its a great site for people who are into welding. There is a chap on their called Steve who goes under the name weldequip, he does some great deals on welders and is cheaper than places like machine mart.

I bought a 160TM off him a couple of months back and had it delivered and it was cheaper than a clarke 150 from machine mart.

Some interesting stuff on there

Lee_R21Turbo

iTrader: (1)

I've got a Clarke 160Turbo I bought off ebay for £95 a couple of years ago - I've got that hooked up to a CO2/Argon mix in a rather large cylinder from Air Products.

I find it very very good to use - parts easy & cheap to change as well.

fish99

Do you have to pay rental on that bottle? Im after a size x bottle with co2/argon. I have found this place www.adamsgas.co.uk, you pay a one off £40 deposit and the refills are pretty cheap. And they deliver also

Jimmyc

Thanks for the advice so far, looks like i need to be looking for a bigger MIG than i thought


Cheers for the link, spoke to Steve, he sure knows his stuff, but has now got me tempted by the 160TM too
That's going to be another £100 on top of my budget.
How have you found yours?

dojj

iTrader: (3)

i've got a clarke 130 thing, not had any problems with it once i've figured out how to set it up to the metal i'm welding

good strong welds too and not much pideon shit either

neilrev

also got a clarke, 151 te. done loads with it. no problems whatsoever. been very good.

fish99

To be honest mate I havent used mine yet.. I have to get my bum down to Adams gas in Margate so I can get an X size co2/argon bottle.. It looks like a solid bit of kit though. I only went for it as I didnt want to use Halford size bottles which only have about 4mins of welding time.

Brian

iTrader: (2)

I have a Clarke one never had any trouble with it had it for about 4 years now


Brian