harbor freight/ northern welders

i was looking to get a small welder from harbor freight or northern. my question is, are they any good? the price makes it seem kinda promising.and if i do get one, which route should i go, northern or harbor freight? i wont be using it daily or anything, but i would just like to have a welder for when i need it.

https://www.harborfreight.com/welding/arc-welders/120-amp-arc-welder-98870.html

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200355916_200355916

Neither of the above. A 115 volt stick welder is really limited. I mean, REALLY limited.

Look at the duty cycle of that harbor freight unit. 6% duty cycle. You are only able to weld 3.6 seconds for every minute of operation time. And that isn't even at max capacity, which you'll need to run 1/8 inch electrodes, which you'll probably find to be the most useful for general repairs. That 70 amp northern one won't get you to far.

Those no brand import welders have a pretty bad reputation. If you want to get an import one, something like an Everlast or Longevity brand would be a better option than the HF or Northern one, but I'd still shy away from them.

For that money, maybe throw in another 25 or so, you should be able to find a decent, older Lincoln AC-225 buzzbox (the one that looks like a tombstone, and has earned the nickname of such). Those machines are simple, cheap, and amazingly durable. They have enough oomph to properly weld stuff thicker than cardstock, and will last forever and a few days, even with little to no care or maintenance. For a versatile machine that will handle everything from relatively thin stuff (with the right touch), up to much, much thicker, the old buzzbox cannot be beat.

bassboy1 said:

Neither of the above. A 115 volt stick welder is really limited. I mean, REALLY limited.

Look at the duty cycle of that harbor freight unit. 6% duty cycle. You are only able to weld 3.6 seconds for every minute of operation time. And that isn't even at max capacity, which you'll need to run 1/8 inch electrodes, which you'll probably find to be the most useful for general repairs. That 70 amp northern one won't get you to far.

Those no brand import welders have a pretty bad reputation. If you want to get an import one, something like an Everlast or Longevity brand would be a better option than the HF or Northern one, but I'd still shy away from them.

For that money, maybe throw in another 25 or so, you should be able to find a decent, older Lincoln AC-225 buzzbox (the one that looks like a tombstone, and has earned the nickname of such). Those machines are simple, cheap, and amazingly durable. They have enough oomph to properly weld stuff thicker than cardstock, and will last forever and a few days, even with little to no care or maintenance. For a versatile machine that will handle everything from relatively thin stuff (with the right touch), up to much, much thicker, the old buzzbox cannot be beat.

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thanks bass boy, is there a good company that makes a welder that can run off of a standard house current (120 volts)

Lincoln, Miller, Hobart. In about that order for price.

My question is 'What are you planning on welding?' before offering any advice.

Jamie

free jonboat said:

thanks bass boy, is there a good company that makes a welder that can run off of a standard house current (120 volts)

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No and yes.

First of all, welding takes power, and lots of it. Just the way it goes.


However, newer technology inverter TIG welders are about as efficient as they come. Most decent inverter TIG welders can run stick as well, and many do it quite well. They are all going to require 230 volt to get the maximum output range/duty cycle, but many have multi-voltage capabilities, and will do respectfully on 115 volt. One that comes to mind is the Miller Maxtar 150 STH. It'll give you a good quality stick and DC TIG (no aluminum capabilities, but still gives you all the steel and stainless TIG options).

However, all this comes to around 1500, so it probably isn't going to be ideal for occasional repair work, and at the end of the day, you are still using it on 115 volts, and it will never completely do what a 230 volt machine will. But, if all you have is 115 volt, it will do better than most everything else.

i planed on welding smalll things such as an old lawnmower steering shaft and a broken gokart. there would be more but thats all tat comes to mind at the moment. i have heard if people making welders out of 2 microwave transformers? that is i definately want to try, even if its not that powerful, it still seems like it would be fun.

https://www.instructables.com/id/Build-a-Microwave-Transformer-Homemade-Welder/

Hit the garage/auctions and buy yourself a decent little machine for a fraction of the price of new. Tons of people out there who buy a new machine for a couple of small jobs, then for what ever reason they go up for sale for next to nothing, especially in this economy. Check your local pawn shops too. Around here you can pick up some decent tools for a decent price. There's always ebay, however the shipping might kill the deal.

That instructibles site is pretty neat, I could get lost in there for hours.

However, I would not recommend stick or even Tig for a novice, especially for structural repairs. I'm with Hanr3, look for a used wire feeder, with a gas conversion if possibly. You'll be able to weld much better much easier at a fraction of the frustration factor. Tig is difficult and stick is just a PITA until you've burned through a couple boxes of rods to get used to the different aspects.

The battery welder is 'neat' but I question the practicality without any settings for current, must less any circuit protection.

For me a little lincoln 110 wire feeder with a gas conversion from Lowes or HD for under $400 will do anything you need in steel up to 1/4"

Jamie

thanks guys, i hadnt really given any tought to a mig because i thought they were hard to respool. it this true? and do they make migs where it can run off of a standard house current? do you have to have some kind of gas for mig welding? and last but not least, what is the difference in mig and flux core? sorry about the noob questions

Spend some time on the miller, lincoln or even the hobart welding sites, tons of excellent info. Mig welding uses a consumable wire as a filler and to keep the arc going. Adjust the wire speed for the amount of filler and the voltage setting for the arc penetration. This allows you to weld thin to heavy metal, vertical and even overhead welding easily. The wire comes prespooled and can be had with or without flux in the wire. The flux wire is ok, takes a lot of wire to do anything and you have to be patient with it, works better than gas flux in windy conditions. The wire without the flux uses a shielding gas to keep the weld process for filling with impurities. Shielded mig is by far the easiest welding technique to learn and can be used to weld from thin sheet metal to heavy structures with the right welder.

The 100a welders run off of 110vac house current and will draw up to 15 amps at the highest load.

Stick welders have there place but are far more difficult to use. You strike the stick across the grounded work, hope it doesn't stick there and instead creates the arc which consumes the stick while you move the tip to control the heat and filling. The ceramic on the rod is the flux and has to be chipped away once done. Usually stick welds look like chicken crap because it's hard to use the tip to control the weld. Stick doesn't do sheet metal very well.

Tig is similiar to stick except you are using a consumable tungsten tip to strike the arc while using your foot to control the amount of heat you are putting into the work while at the same time adding filler material by hand with a rod of metal. It can be tricky but leaves a beautiful weld when done right.

Jamie

i was on the lincoln website and it said that you have to have external shielding gas for a mig. what does that mean?

Yes and no. You can get wire with the flux core that will act like a shielding gas. If you run straight wire it needs the bottle and gas.

Ranchero50 said:

However, I would not recommend stick or even Tig for a novice, especially for structural repairs. I'm with Hanr3, look for a used wire feeder, with a gas conversion if possibly. You'll be able to weld much better much easier at a fraction of the frustration factor. Tig is difficult and stick is just a PITA until you've burned through a couple boxes of rods to get used to the different aspects.
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I disagree with that. For a new weldor (operator), stick is the way to go. With stick, it is hard to do it wrong. If you can get the arc to stay, and the metal to lay down, chances are the weld is going to be decent. If something is not set up right, or improper technique is used, it doesn't really lay down at all.

With a MIG, especially a small one, it is real easy to lay down a bead that looks good, but beneath the surface, it is crap, lacking fusion on the legs, no penetration into the root, etc.

Furthermore, a 115v MIG running gas is NOT good to 1/4 inch. It takes flux-core to get there, and even then, if you really looked at the fine print on the machines, the test conditions used to create these ratings are not normally available conditions. It really is borderline false advertising, and a handful of threads have been brought up about such on a few welding message boards. When confronted about it, Lincoln and Miller give the runaround time and time again.

At the end of the day, stick will be better for anything structural. And, you can make some downright beautiful welds with stick, with just a little skill.

If you are going to be getting a 115 volt wire feed machine it would be wisest to keep flux-core wire in it, for most general repairs. Once you've done that, you're chipping slag again, and really loose the benefits of the wire feed over stick (I'm going to assume that household repair work doesn't include anything that the added speed is required for - no production work).

Just my 2 cents worth, and I'll stand by those 2 Lincolns (pennies) to all end.

I'd just find someone who knows how and is set up to weld. :mrgreen:

Too broke and lazy to take on any new hobbies. #-o

Last year I purchased the Hobart Handler 140 from Northern Tool. I'm very satisfied with it.I have limited welding ability,but I get a little better at it each time I use it.I have yet to set it up with shielding gas.As soon as the flux wire that it came with is gone,the gas will be set up.Then when I'm confident with my ability,I will add a spool gun so I can do aluminum.