Instantly... or actually miliseconds.
The one I have is made in Switzerland and is solar powered by the arc, no batteries to fail.
I love it.
Jim

http://www.optrel.com/index2.htm

 

FWIW, you should not be using 100% Argon on steel! Argon promotes a cooler arc that gives a wide and shallow penetration profile. CO2 is added to provide a more skinny and deeper profile. I find a 92/8 mix to be the best for automotive welding of mild steel. 100% Argon should be restricted to aluminum welding only.

Welding cast iron is tricky at best because you can never really be sure of the exact chemical make up of it.....there is a big difference in the weldability of nodular, ductile and grey irons. Pre heating and post heating can minimize shrinkage and cracking. We tend not to Tig cast iron.....we mostly work with ductile iron and have had good results with Mig and a metal core wire with a 85/15 mix gas.

As far as welders go, if you can get a 240v machine, do it......you will quickly find the limitations of the 120v units and will be likely disappointed with the results if you find yourself frequently welding over 1/8" mild steel.

The fastest auto darkening helmets seem to darken in 1/100 th of a second.

Nobody that I am aware of makes a welder that runs on 120 and 240v. You have 240v in your house - everyone does......the 240v single phase that welders run on is simply 2 120v lines without a common wire. It is very easy to wire and well worth the effort to install a 240v receptacle in your garage. Duty cycle is somewhat subjective.....you need to know at what amp rating do you want 100% duty cycle at? Then, as the amps increase and the duty cycle falls, you must determine what a reasonable duty cycle would be for your needs. As far as I can tell, if you are considering a 120v machine for your needs, then a 240v machine will easily exceed your duty cycle requirements......for small repairs and hobby/automotive fabrication, the duty cycle will not be overly important, so don't get wrapped up in it - any 240v machine will meet your needs.

 

so what is the best 240 out there for the money? Yes i know I have 240 (the dryer runs on it) but I will have to run it to where i am working. this is a 240/120 but the list price is about 1700. do you know of anyone out there that sells a start up kit with the welder, helmet, gloves, jacket, and everything else you need?

 

FWIW, We run Miller 600s in our weld shop. they are rated continuous at 300A which is enough for .045 wire or 1/4" Rod as fast as you can reload rods. Not portable unless you can find a 240V 3 Phase gen set.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by CTD NUT
[B]FWIW, you should not be using 100% Argon on steel! Argon promotes a cooler arc that gives a wide and shallow penetration profile. CO2 is added to provide a more skinny and deeper profile. I find a 92/8 mix to be the best for automotive welding of mild steel. 100% Argon should be restricted to aluminum welding only.

Welding cast iron is tricky at best because you can never really be sure of the exact chemical make up of it.....there is a big difference in the weldability of nodular, ductile and grey irons. Pre heating and post heating can minimize shrinkage and cracking. We tend not to Tig cast iron.....we mostly work with ductile iron and have had good results with Mig and a metal core wire with a 85/15 mix gas."

Thanks for the info...it explains some difficulty I've had using Tig on steel. I guess I'll save up for another tank.
Is 100% Argon your recommend for aluminum?

 

Clunk

goto esab, hobart, or any other consumables manufacture's website they have good information on where to start on welding different materials. They also have recomendations on gasses to use. This is where we start to build pressure vessels per ASME boiler code. While we dont weld iron, we do weld high tensile steels and they have the same problems as iron on cracking.

 

With all that you have said about getting a 240, I cant see spending the extra money for something I dont think I need. I would like to stick with 120v, because of how much they cost and I dont plan on welding anything think(if i need to weld thick metal i can do it at school). so are the welders I picked out any good? is there a better one out there for the money, I would like to keep it around or under 500 bucks ebay prices. are there any welder start up kits out there?

Coop

 

What do you weld?
What kind of steels? A36 Plate? T6 Aluminium? 314 Stainless? 4130 ?
What purposes? Structural? Fence panels? Pressure vessels?
What kind of thickness are you looking at? 1/4"? 3""
What kind of time frame are you looking at completeing a job? you can weld 2" walled pipe for pressure vessle with 1/8" rod, but its going to take a while.

 

If you just want a starter kit go to home depot and buy the Lincoln unit.

You'll be sorry though, (JMHO) Spend the extra money on a Miller 135. I have had mine for about three years, never had a problem so far.
tom

 

I will be welding body parts, and some tubing for mabye a bumper on my toyota. it will just be steel, maybe stainless but not very much. The stuff wont be very thick.

Coop

 

Just steel (A106 or A36) mild steel, you should be fine with a welder capable of 150 to 175 Amps.
(edit: I wasn't thinking when I made a statement that I removed.) The miller does have more voltage settings than the Hobart.

A more costly alternative is to go with a power source / welder setup. You can then later upgrade your power source rather than buying a new all in one welder.

 

HOw big of a generator would you need to make a portable arch welder? I already have a 5500 watt gen, and have thought about trying to get a portable welder, But being no electrician im not really sure what ot look for

 

20A X 120V =2400W (No service factor)

I have run my my Miller 135 off of a 5500W several times and never had any problems.
tom

 

Whats the average welder pull for amps?

 

I wouldn't size a generator for "average" welder power. welder power jumps and fluctuates as the wire is moved around on the material. Size the generator for the max load.