ill tell you this ......you can get a much better stick welder cheap than a flux core or mig machine plus a lot less stuff to go wrong with a stick machine (no moving parts, no tanks , no regulators ,no tips ,no gun) just to name a few look on youtube for cheapest stick welder on amazon by ChuckE2009 he goes into great detail on why a cheap stick welder is better . if money is no object a nice mig machine is tuff to beat !!

 

I picked up a Hobart Handler 140 110v unit that does Flux/Gas for $200 CAD brand new never used.

I would take my mig unit over a stick unit any day for doing small welding jobs of various sheet metal and anything under 1/4"

 

Where in Calgary did you find a Handler 140 for $200 CAD brand new? The regular price on that is like $900+tax, I want in on your deal lol. FWIW I'd also pick something like that welder for a first unit if and only if you can't make 240V happen where you need to be welding.

 

HAHA some dude was moving and had a bunch of junk in his storage locker. He posted it to Kijiji and I jumped on it as soon as I saw it. He said I was first and I got dibs as there was like 50 other people waiting.

 

Going to get some flak for this, but you can do most Fab work with a oxy-acetylene setup. You can cut very thick steel, you can weld some pretty thick stuff, you can also weld aluminum with it.

If you learn to gas weld first, it'll make you a better welder in the long run.

 

get a DC stick machine. i've got just about every type machine there is and i use the stick rig more than anything else. you can find a used one cheap on craigs list or one of the welder forums.

 

stick is easier to learn, but with a good stick machine, you will need rods, lots of rods and you will have to store them properly. best to have a rod oven, but those are expensive. we had an old refrigerator that was converted to warming, and kept all the rods in that.

i use mine quite a bit, but a decent mig machine is a lot easier to move around, weld thin metal with and no need to figure out which rod to use. you just need really clean material.

tig is really nice, and not as hard to use as most would think. it just takes a lot of patience to learn on, but far superior to even mig. i don't use mine enough.

 

I second the Hobart Handler 140. I picked mine up for around $500, and my C25 tank ran about $300 (after learning more I over paid big time for the tank). Don't bother with flux, just spring for a tank if you can. It's been an awesome welder so far. I've been running .030 wire and welded quite a bit of 3/16 with no issues.

One of the BleepinJeep guys did a pretty good review on it if you search YouTube.

 

I bought a Hobart Handler 140 to learn how to weld with. I'm still learning. One of the first things I learned not to do was store it with the wire still in the welder. Fluctuating temps will cause the wire to corrode. Remove the roll of wire and store it on top of the hot water heater in your house.

That's my two cents worth!
Still learning! 😁

 

Corrosion happens because of exposure of base metals to the natural environment...moisture, and air oxidizes the metal to make it more chemically stable, but destroying the base material in the process.

How does storing your wire on top of a water heater help this? I've never heard of such a thing, and thinking a water heater would be the LAST place I'd be putting my wire..

If you need to store wire, or electrodes, dry environments are best. Arc rod, depending on what it is, should be stored in an oven. Wire, is in an airtight bag with desiccant. If you've ever opened a wire spool, then the way they packaged it is the best way to store it, lol

 

BTW, I leave spools on my machine all the time. Unless you only use your machine once in several years, I would not be worried about it. There's also wire feed cleaning pads/chems available. I use them at work AND home.

 

If your hot water heater is moist you have a problem. The wire stored on top will stay warm not as hot as an oven but hot enough to keep the wire from sweating like a cold soda can on a hot day. It was suggested to me by the old guy at the welding store. He probably has 50 years of welding experience. Like I said, I'm learning. So far, I have one large wheel of welding wire I've had for five years and one large wheel of welding wire that's only good for lashing wire. I have had that wheel of wire for about 5 years and a month.

I don't weld often!

 

I agree, if your water heater is moist, that's no bueno...however, common sense dictates to me at least, a water source is not the best place for materials that can corrode. And, sometimes, "old timers" advice can be straight wrong...I have great respect for experience and knowledge, but, people also learn new and improved ways over time, so sometimes the "old way" doesn't mean it's the best way.

 

I agree with this. If I were to get rid of all of my welders the O/A torch would be the last to go.