I wrote a looong reply to this, and then decided to spare the list the
boredom.
My comments boil down to this:
As a long-time gas and stick welder, I would have a gas set-up before
anything else. You can weld almost anything with it, and you'll find
heating with oxyacetylene is just nothing like a propane or Mapp torch.
A stick box - especially and AC unit, is really only good for heavier
materials. Yes, with lots of practice you can do some thinner materials
with 1/16" rods, but that skill is not easy to develop. If you're only
going to have a stick welder, a decent AC/DC machine is far more versatile
and DC is easier to control, although it costs a few more $$ than an AC
buzz-box. That said, you can still do a lot of stuff with that Lincoln AC
machine.
If you're going MIG, don't think you can really rely on just a flux-cored
set-up - you need solid wire and a gas bottle with a flowmeter to do nice
work on a range of materials. Flux-cored is really for rough work on dirty
metals. The cheapo units at Homey are just that. You'll find yourself
spending lots more $$ to add gas capability, and then you may as well have
bought a better machine with gas capability built in. Look at Miller and
Lincoln before buying a no-name.
I bought a good Miller MIG unit a few years ago. Great deal at the Oshkosh
fly-in (Lincoln too, but I prefer Miller - usually a bit more heavy-duty).
MIG guys love my machine. It's fast. All the body shops use MIG for
production work. I don't use it much at all.
Problem is, I just don't like going as fast as MIG requires. After decades
of taking my time and making pretty gas welds that I KNOW have good
penetration (because with gas you watch the penetration develop), I just
don't like flying along a bead with MIG. MIG on aluminum and SS is a
limited process. You can indeed weld certain alloys, but for many aluminum
applications you may need a spool gun, which itself is expensive. And some
stuff you just can't MIG weld.
TIG will give you far more control and will weld any weldable metals. It
will weld thinner materials than MIG and gives you so much control that you
feel as if you could sit therre all day with a little puddle and never burn
through. You can literally weld a pop can. TIG is an electrical torch that
you use in much the same manner as gas - torch in one hand, filler metal in
the other - which is why it seems so right to me. TIG units also give you
AC/DC stick capabilities, so for that trailer project, heavy repairs, etc.,
you have a fast alternative welding process built in.
There are now inexpensive inverter-based TIG units that are displacing the
old, heavy, expensive transformer-based TIG machines, and the new units are
really reasonably priced - they start way under $1,000 for a credible
machine. Some little imported machines are closer to $500, but for a decent
capacity, heavy-duty unit and including a flowmeter and gas cylinder, you're
going to be in the $1,500 range minimum for a good machine ready to work.
I wish I had bought TIG when I bought MIG. I listened to production-type
body shop guys who know nothing but MIG, and for them it's great. For my
needs, it's not. If I were repairing Tauruses all day or building trailers
or doing some sort of fabrication, I'd probably love it. But for welding a
variety of weird things, it's just not the best. I will eventually sell my
like new Miller Challenger 172 MIG and make the switch to TIG.
YMMV - and probably will. To some extent, it's like the old saying that
when all you have is a hammer, everything begins to look like a nail. Learn
to weld one way, and you'll probably prefer that.
Good luck and happy welding with whatever you decide on !!
Karl Vacek
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