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welder ?

R

R A

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 23, 2010
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1,088
Location
Missouri
I don't know anything about welders. One of these days I'm going to have to get one and learn to weld. I'm still trying to decide wether I can get by without one this year or not. I'm worried about some things on my hay equipment is why I'm really thinking it over, otherwise I would wait.

I'm seeing some lincoln arc welders on craigslist for $200 on down. Is that good? Is it bad to buy used welders? Anything to look for on them when buying? There's one for $160 on there I could budget in now....if I ranch in sandles all year again this year....MAN, I had black feet last year :D :D I'll have to wait a couple years if buying new is better.

Also I have some pipe the guy before me left laying around that would make some corrals.....and a pile of horseshoes from shoein' I've been waiting to make stuff out of.....I have plenty of use for one for awhile anyway.

Thanks!
 
Thanks not much info yo make a recommendation.There are AC welders, AC DC welders, Mig welders/ 110 volt wire feeds and motor driven welders. It mostly depends on what you want to do.I started out with a little 180 Amp AC welder and fixed alot of stuff then I got a AC DC welder that allows me to use different rods and has a heavier Duty Cycle.I bought a little suitcase wire feed on sale that is handy for light work and will run off 110 power and welds light material. I wish I had a motor driven truck welder to weld in the field and around the corrals.

Decisions, Decisions :D
 
I've got an old Lincoln AC welder thats 30 years old and works as good as a new one I would'nt be afraid of one but I'd put an add on Craigslist offering $75 for one and see what happens. Around here you could buy them for that money pretty easy.Thats what I paid for mine 25 years ago I can weld really well with a stick welder but that welder had to pay for all the new ones back then.
 
If you are welding old material with a bit of rust, paint, dirty, etc, you will find that a stick (arc) welder will do a much better job than a MIG. Migs don't like dirty steel and you will need to grind down to bare metal with one.
 
R A, with your creative talent and spare time, a welder wouldn't be an expenditure, it would be an investment. I can't weld worth a hoot, and detest doing shopwork, but fortunately my son makes up for my inadequacies. :wink:

Whatever the initial cost would be for you, it would be recovered very soon with what you produce. Good luck.
 
If you don't know how to weld the easiest to learn would be Mig. One of my wife's uncles told me he finally figured out why they call arc welders "stick welders." He thought it was because they stick to everything. One thing you need to be aware of when you look at used welders is that if the guy that ran it exceeded the duty cycle regularly it could have a weak board in it. If the board goes you have an expensive door stop.

For the kind of money that you are looking at an arc welder is probably going to give you the widest range of application. Typically an arc welder can weld heavier material than a wire feed can for the same dollars. The little wire feed that BMR was talking about probably isn't going to be able to do much more than 1/8" steel reliably. I have one of those and for much more than sheet metal they are pretty much worthless. I have tried welding 1/4" pipe and haven't been able to penetrate deeply enough to get a good quality weld.

Bottom line for me on a used welder, if the guy that had it before is conscientious and takes care of his equipment I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you don't know anything about the previous owner I would probably pass.
 
Find an old buzz box, get some 6011 or 6013 , a helmet & experiment.

Then when you get good enough you will find a DC motor drive you can take out to set fire to the hay field.

The last part is totally up to you. I never needed that kind of excitement.

I have fire extinguishers on everything.
 
Chances are 95% of used welders were doorstops in the first place someone had to have it and it never seen much use.Mine are used and you would still get alot of use from any of them. My welders have seen more use in a month than most see in a lifetime so I would'nt worry about someones garage welder.

My favorite rod is 1/8" 7018
 
For just starting out a Lincoln arc welder would be great. You will be a lot better welder after you learn on a stick welder. We have built most anything we need since my dad was in high school. My grandad couldn't aford to buy anything. Get some good rod and you will be set. The rod is the key as wether you learn good or get frustrated. For starting out get some rod that you can just drag on the metal without sticking. Been a long time since I bought some so I don't remember the number but whoever sells it to ya will know. You will save enough in your first project to pay for your welder.
 
One winter, vo-tech put on night school welding class. Basics in several types, neat cross section of people--ranchers, farmers, a stock broker, a guy who wanted to build his own custom motorcycle---about 1 1/2 drive, but fun and worth it--
 
Lots of good advice given.... Everyone should know how to weld. Except for Soap. And if we had a Sparky..... Wait we do! Then I wouldn't weld either...
And in another note. We bought steel bunks the other day and before we got home with em we had lost a leg on one.. :roll: Had to go back and find it.. Didn't ride more than 12 miles outta town... :roll: Sooooo all you part time welders I wouldn't worry about starting out to weld.....
 
Denny said:
Chances are 95% of used welders were doorstops in the first place someone had to have it and it never seen much use.Mine are used and you would still get alot of use from any of them. My welders have seen more use in a month than most see in a lifetime so I would'nt worry about someones garage welder.

My favorite rod is 1/8" 7018
Click to expand...

I have been told, you can't run 7018 with a Lincoln buzz box. I know it isn't totally true, but I also know it took lots of practice, and trial and error to find the right rod. Since you are the resident welder, can you maybe help us out with some rod recommendations, and such.
I enjoy welding, and have welded every since I was probably 10 years old. There are times when my welds look like total chicken scratches, and other times I can weld beautifully. Still haven't totally figured that one out. I do know I weld better with my Miller portable AC welder then any others we have.
 
I learned to weld using 1/8 - 7014 rods with an old Lincoln 225?. They lay in nice and smooth and just turn the amps up a notch for better penetration. But 6013 seemed to be what we used the most. 6011 will bite pretty good but would seem to be a bit sticky for starting out on, therefore not my first choice for learning to weld.

Man that brings back memories! I built most of the headrails and stabling in the barn when I was a kid and quite a few things after that. But when I started into a bit of production work, a mig just made so much sense and saved a lot of time. But it been years since I had a stick welder that works.
 
http://www.zena.net/
I've got a buddy that has one of these. I've seen some of the welding he's done on his place, not to shabby. He let me try it, It welded fairly smooth, now it wasn't my Lincoln Ranger, or a Pipeliner, but for the difference in price and for being "entry" Level it wasnt a bad little unit. My buddy had his rigged up with a larger Briggs and Stratton so he did not have to mount it in his pickup, (He trades trucks every time the wind changes).
 
Lincoln Buzz box here and 6011 rod. I am a birdsh!t welder which means my welds look like they came out of the north end of a south bound bird. :D But i built pipe corrals for the horses, a manger for my bull corral and lots of gates and such. I have a 60 foot cord so i can move it around my shop. My wish list is to upgrade to a gas or diesel powered model that could double as a generator. Someday. RA, i'd say keep your eyes open and get one when ya find a good one. With your drive and talent, welding would be a cake walk.

Or, you could just hire another guy as a full time welder on that mega-estate you run. :D :wink: :wink:
 
RA you will find that whatever you spend on a welder it will pay you back in spades once you figure it out a bit. The old Miller buzz box in the shop has welded countless pieces of broke and breaking equipment over the years.
I like to lay a root pass with 6010 and cap with 7018. 7018 is a nice rod to weld with, and relatively easy to make look nice. 6010 require a different technique, but is best to keep your keyhole open for full penetration on the root pass.
Just my two cents!
 
Silver said:
RA you will find that whatever you spend on a welder it will pay you back in spades once you figure it out a bit. The old Miller buzz box in the shop has welded countless pieces of broke and breaking equipment over the years.
I like to lay a root pass with 6010 and cap with 7018. 7018 is a nice rod to weld with, and relatively easy to make look nice. 6010 require a different technique, but is best to keep your keyhole open for full penetration on the root pass.
Just my two cents!
Click to expand...

Silver you got me curious about 6010 so I googled it and found this. Are you sure you're not a welding instructor disguised as a rancher! :wink: Iguess the reason I never used them is because they wouldn't work with our old Lincoln.

http://www.thefabricator.com/article/consumables/examining-the-finer-points-of-6010-6011-and-7018
 
I bet that hunk of metal you lost was "welded" with a wire feed. Sure make pretty welds.

I bought a hitch for a #9 IH mower. Had real pretty welds on it all painted & nice.

It came apart when I picked it up...no penetration on a right angle weld.
So, I put some 6011 on it with my $50 Montgomery Wards ac welder.

Seems like one can get 7014 ac rod? Most of what I weld is scrap. 6011 handles rust just fine.
 
I really appreciate all this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm learning a lot already! I knew there would be a lot of knowledgeable people on here about welders.

Right now the need for one would be for old, rusty, probably thicker than thin stuff. ....but would really like to get to where I'm making all kinds of stuff for ranch, probably involving newer, thinner stuff....as well as the older, rustier material. I've got a lot of ideas in my head.....and am really getting excited now reading all this!

Again, I really appreciate everyone taking the time to post this stuff!...it's helping a lot!

I didn't know about the different stick options yet....and am glad that is being brought up!

Thanks!
 

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