[Moparmikeo]

looking to purchase a welder for use in my car restoration hobby. Looking at 120v MIG welders, the astro I had checked out a long time ago.

The welders I have been considering are the Lincoln 140, forney easy weld 140 mp, longevity migweld 140, and Eastwood 135. These are available, similarly priced and consumables readily available. The Eastwood is a clear winner on price, but not sure of the quality, especially the drive, which gave me fits on the old astro. The others are similarly priced, wondering if one is way better or way worse than the others.

Thanks in advance.

Mike

[Oscar]

I used to own an Eastwood MIG 175. It was fine for what it was and for what it was priced. Inverter welders can typically produce smoother arcs and help out little here and there, but you have to sometimes learn the in's-n-out's on how to set them up, depending on the available settings. I'm not sure if the Eastwood 135 is the same, but the 175 had infinite adjustability on both WFS and volts, which makes dialing in the arc very easy and gives more versatility. I didn't even know longevity was still around. Looks to be about the same machine as eastwood.

[sbaker56]

They're generally pretty comparable in specs, if you're wanting the most tried and true machine I'd probably suggest going with the Lincoln 140,the fourney machine has a bit higher duty cycle and stick/tig options albeit limited, It would let you get some stick practice with 3/32 rods and you may find tig welding certain very thin material very useful, It'll also take a 10lb spool which will let you save a lot of money in the long run. However it lists a wire speed of Wire feed speed range: 79 - 197 inches per minute?!? It might be a typo but if that's accurate it would almost certainly be hugely limiting with .023 and even .030 wire.

I don't want to beat you over the head with it, but is 240v completely out of the question? I'm just asking because you'll almost certainly appreciate the increased duty cycle and have a lot more options.

[Oscar]

[quote="sbaker56"]I don't want to beat you over the head with it, but is 240v completely out of the question?/quote]


You certainly have my permission to do so

[DavidR8]

I’ll weigh in here because I have a 110v Millermatic 130 MIG.
It works great, runs up to .030 wire and runs flux core if I want.
If I had it to do all over again I’d get a 220v MIG for the versatility.


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[bplayer405]

I was looking at the same welders earlier this year and included Hobart in my list. Went with a Hobart 190 (220v) mainly because of versatility, availability, warranty and their wire feed assembly (plus I got a really good price on one new). No complaints on its ability to do whatever I've asked of it.

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[Moparmikeo]

Ah, the 220 question. I have 220 in the garage, but can't justify the near 50% price increase. Replacing a quarter panel or floor section are the biggest jobs i forsee doing. Short beads to minimize warping, possibly worse with the bigger unit. I understand th limits of the duty cycle, but I am not under production time constraints, and trying not to get an unforgiving machine.


If I am missing something let me know!

[bplayer405]

True, you don't need a 220v machine to do sheet metal. They're just more robust to work with thicker material if you would ever choose to. A lot of us do. I'm a hobbyist that likes to fix autos, boats and build tools. A 110v may be all you need. I would still include Hobart in your list as they have a really nice wire feed assembly in their 140 amp units and have a good warranty. It was my top pick for a 110v for steel. Lincoln downgrades their wire feed assembly outside of their power mig line (which is priced to compete with Miller). Most of the cheaper units have plastic drives and are prone to issues. The newer inverter machines show promise, but no one knows their longevity and repairs could be more costly. Check reviews on whatever is on your list. Yeah, its not a life or death situation, but who likes downtime from a cheap machine. Choice is ultimately yours. Best of luck.

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[Oscar]

. The newer inverter machines show promise, but no one knows their longevity.

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I think it's far-fetched to say that 'no one' knows their longevity. And they're not really all that "new" to the scene anymore. Its not like the first inverter ever came out just 6 months ago, lol. Mine is going on 7 years and still going strong. Lots of others have inverters still much older. Of course abything can fail, but that's a discussion for a separate thread that an electrical engineer woukd have to chime in on. I think people's main concerns are cheap inverters that have proliferated the market, especially in the last 5-years or so.

[bplayer405]

. The newer inverter machines show promise, but no one knows their longevity.

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I think it's far-fetched to say that 'no one' knows their longevity. And they're not really all that "new" to the scene anymore. Its not like the first inverter ever came out just 6 months ago, lol. Mine is going on 7 years and still going strong. Lots of others have inverters still much older. Of course abything can fail, but that's a discussion for a separate thread that an electrical engineer woukd have to chime in on. I think people's main concerns are cheap inverters that have proliferated the market, especially in the last 5-years or so.

Yes, the cheap 110v inverters that have "more recently" flooded the market.

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[drizler1]

Ive had a Hobart Handler 135 15 years with no issues. It’s only vise is being heavy if you need to lug it around. I use it up to 1/8” then normally grab the Tombstone. It’ll weld 1/4 but I prefer the stick for the heavier stuff.
If I was only going to buy 1 though I think I’d get one of those dual voltage units. You say now that you only do sheet metal[emoji1781]. Deep inside you know that’s not going to ALWAYS be the case.


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[Oscar]

You say now that you only do sheet metal[emoji1781]. Deep inside you know that’s not going to ALWAYS be the case.

Yeap, next week it will be, "well perhaps I can weld up this support bracket.....or perhaps this motor-mount...."

[Moparmikeo]

Ive had a Hobart Handler 135 15 years with no issues. It’s only vise is being heavy if you need to lug it around. I use it up to 1/8” then normally grab the Tombstone. It’ll weld 1/4 but I prefer the stick for the heavier stuff.
If I was only going to buy 1 though I think I’d get one of those dual voltage units. You say now that you only do sheet metal[emoji1781]. Deep inside you know that’s not going to ALWAYS be the case.


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I have an award that will cover most of the cost of the welders on my list, Hobart is not sold at Lowes or Home Depot, which is the only reason it is not on my list. The price difference to go to a 220 is only part of my thoughts for sticking with a 110 model, but the 220 perhaps being much less forgiving. Think giving a 16 year old a Scat Pack Challenger. Too much power in the wrong hands. Dual voltage units are nice, but the cost jumps to about $1000. As nice as it would be,ni can't justify that expense

Still open for discussion!

[TraditionalToolworks]

I have an award that will cover most of the cost of the welders on my list, Hobart is not sold at Lowes or Home Depot, which is the only reason it is not on my list. The price difference to go to a 220 is only part of my thoughts for sticking with a 110 model, but the 220 perhaps being much less forgiving. Think giving a 16 year old a Scat Pack Challenger. Too much power in the wrong hands. Dual voltage units are nice, but the cost jumps to about $1000. As nice as it would be,ni can't justify that expense

Still open for discussion!

Moparmikeo,

I know very little about mig, but HD has a pretty good selection of welders you can order.

For budget mig, I would consider the following:
This is a dual voltage machine that does mig/tig/stick. Comes with a mig gun, tig torch, stinger and ground. Amico has a pretty good rep for being low cost, from what I have seen. This is very budget at $600 for a 205 amp dual voltage machine, the tig is scratch start, no pedal. If I was on a budget and was limited to HD, I'd consider this.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/AMICO-POWER ... /305349327

EDIT: the above is the wrong link, I meant to post this one for the 205, only $50 more.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/AMICO-POWER ... /305349325

[DavidR8]

Deleted