With the advice of this group, I now have a Hobart Handler 140 MIG welder. I
have done a couple of light projects with the flux core wire that came with
the unit and the difference between this and the cheap hobby welder I had
before is enormous, but need to do a fair bit more (primarily patch the rusty
floors on my '63 Sunbeam Alpine) over the winter. So, it is time to buy a
tank and shielding gas. I will certainly want to start with an Argon/CO2 mix
for the sheet metal work, and I think this will probably be fine for most any
other repairs that come my way. There is a chance that I will want to try
welding stainless steel exhaust next year, and I suppose Aluminum is always a
possibility down the road.
So, with this as background, I come to the tank. The primary local supplier
recommends their tank exchange program, which seems like the best deal to me.
I'd pay $91.50 for a 20 cu ft tank and about $42 for the Argon/CO2 to fill it.
One advantage of this program is that I could just exchange the tank for a
straight argon or triple mix one if I need to work with stainless or aluminum.
I'd be out the wasted gas on both ends, but that doesn't seem too bad a deal.
But, here's my dilemma: a 40 cu ft tank would run me $142, but only about $45
to fill it. (I assume they must have a minimum charge). So, I would break
about even if I used the full tank before I exchanged it, but would be out the
$50 if I ended up swapping the tanks out when they were only half empty. And,
of course, I increase my waste every time I swap tanks.
How long does 20 cu ft of shielding gas last? Given the minimal cost
difference between 20 and 40 cu feet of my primary shielding gas (I have no
idea what they get for other mixes), am I stupid to even question this?
As always, thanks.
Jim
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