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I would to get a welding kit just for little repairs and projects wire feed kits seem the least faff, any STW's with any feedback or experience views would be helpful
Having played with arc ("stick") and MIG welders, I bought a used MIG set. Not that I've actually done anything with it yet 🙂
Depends a bit what sort of stuff you want to do and how much you want to spend. I found MIG much more rewarding (and neater) but arc sets are cheap and easy to use.
(Disclaimer: I'm an utter novice 🙂 )
what do you want to weld ?
thick , rough and ready - as a novice then arc/stick/rod will do it ....but its a pain in the arse upside down or in a tight space
if you want an adaptable machine that will do thick or thin with minimal fuss as a novice then a gas mig .....
avoid gasless mig UNLESS you are welding in a windy area
i have a clarke mig 230 turbo and its done everything ive asked of it .... - welding up 4mm plate on a land rover chassis to working on 1mm sheet for body work repairs.
make sure you can get spare liners , nozzles and the like for what ever you do buy !
make sure you can get spare liners , nozzles and the like for what ever you do buy !
And take the wire out and store it somewhere warm and dry (air cupboard etc) if you don't use it for a while, as any corrosion on the wire will cause it stick/drag in the feed mechanism
*Mig is by far the easiest to use. Would not recommend a stick welder to a novice. Arc eye is not a nice thing to have and the chances of getting it with a stick set will be greatly increased.
Once you get used to setting the gas pressures, amps and wire speed set correctly then mig sets are pretty straight forward for butt welding. Positional welding takes a little more skill but can be learnt easy enough.
If you go with a mig set then make sure you get the correct wire size for the plate being welded. If you use 1mm wire on 3mm plate the chance are you'll blow straight through it.
*ex welder/ fabricator.
auto arc darkening lenses can be had pretty cheap these days - made the biggest difference to the accuracy and quality of my welds out of anything i did ....
dont forget all the other shit to go with. - grinder - for prep and dressing , files , clamps are also hand as **** !
Its just the odd little fabrication jobs ie metal frame for a scarecrow or adpating stabilisers to fir my sons bike over derailluer that sort of thing nothing major
I bought a Clarke 100E gas MIG about 15 years ago, and its been superb. Really easy to use once I got the hang of the adjustments. The hardest thing is being able to diagnose what your doing wrong, wire speed, gas flow, current etc etc..... once you get the hang of all that its a doddle.
I've made loads of things over the years, log burners, a bike workstand, garden stuff, stainless car exhausts, a hanger for a hose and a ladder..... plus loads of car repairs.
You also can't beat the sound of a small globule of molten steel sizzling away in your ear...... wear a hat! 😀