Welding Tips and Tricks

I need to weld alot of 1/2in low carbon steel to some equally thick mild steel. Whats the best SMAW machine for the money? My budget is 250.

It will be difficult to find a quality welder for that price. My suggestions would be a Lincoln AC 225 or a Miller 225 Thunderbolt. You can probably find either one around your price range on Ebay if you look.

If your willing to spend another hundred dollars you can get one of the everlast dc machines. Is this a one time deal or are you planning on using it alot after the current job.

cashiusclay97 wrote:I need to weld alot of 1/2in low carbon steel to some equally thick mild steel. Whats the best SMAW machine for the money? My budget is 250.

If this is a one-time use, you may wish to consider renting. Red-D-Arc, a partner of AirGas, rents welders. The XMT304 or ES300i that they rent would probably serve you well. I think a month rental would be $250. Those are 230/plug-in machines. They also have gas powered machines available. A PipePro304 might be $700 per month. I considered buying a used XMT304 from the Red-D-Arc Chicago location. I ended up buying the XMT304 from Stumpf''s (near St. Louis). Stumpf's also rents equipment of all types.