Hi Jim,
I have the exact unit you are considering and use it frequently. As others
have suggested MIG isn't the greatest for sheet metal work. The controls on
this one are fairly frustrating as you will often find yourself welding with
too much or too little power. HF does sell an argon regulator pretty cheap
but don't bother with the bottle they have, it's too tiny. Go to the welding
supply and get a decent sized one.
If you can afford a better unit I'd say go for it. Maybe a used one is
availiable at a good price.
Someone suggested taking a class, a great idea if you have the time and you
might find someone who is ready to upgrade and will give you a deal on a
Miller or Lincoln.
If you are restoring cars you really can't beat Oxy/Acetlyene for
versatility. Silicon bronze welding (brazing) is strong and used originally
in many places on old British cars. You can also use a big flame to find out
what metal is good and what needs replacing.
So, to sum it up the Harbor Freight unit will stick random pieces of steel
together in a fairly orderly fashion. Unless you are better than me it won't
be pretty and you will end up doing a lot of grinding. If you only need to
weld thin guage metal I'd go for the even cheaper no gas unit.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=55167
I have one of these and it works just as good as the 220v unit and I can
take it with me to places where there isn't any 220v availiable. The simple
fact is making good welds requires a serious commitment.
http://www.millerwelds.com/products/mig/millermatic_175/index.php
If your budget is only $200 I'd buy the 110v HF model and spend the balance
on having someone else do the welds that really matter.
As always, YMMV....
Cheers,
John Matthews
http://www.tms-racing.com
P.S.
I used to work at Harbor Freight and use a lot of their stuff.
>
>Harbor Freight currently has a dual MIG for sale. It would allow me to
>work with or without gas, and at $200 it is in the ballpark of what I
>wanted to spend. Does anyone have any experience with this or similar
>setups? Is it a good 'starter'?
>
>http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=6271
>
>Thanks,
>
>Jim
|