Recommend me a MIG welder?
Discussion
I'm looking to get back into welding mainly for hobby use, previously I had a Halfords welder and it was OK but the wire feed was crap which made doing anything with it very awkward, and those tiny gas cylinders were useless - this time I'll be getting a large co2 / argon gas cylinder from the local motor factor.
Currently considering one of these two, leaning more towards the Parweld:
https://www.craigmoreonline.co.uk/sip-05756-weldma...
https://www.weldequip.com/parweld-xte171c.htm
Anyone know if either of these are good / bad , or can anyone recommend a decent MIG welder in the £300 to £500 range that has a good wire feed?
Currently considering one of these two, leaning more towards the Parweld:
https://www.craigmoreonline.co.uk/sip-05756-weldma...
https://www.weldequip.com/parweld-xte171c.htm
Anyone know if either of these are good / bad , or can anyone recommend a decent MIG welder in the £300 to £500 range that has a good wire feed?
That Parweld looks very good - eurotorch fitting, detachable ground cable, should take the 20L bottle without fuss.
The only thing I could suggest is to get a 2nd hand one of higher quality again - you should be able to get something like a Portamig (if you can find one) which are very high quality bits of kit, or a Lincoln professional etc.
Any of them using a proper bottle and decent size will feel like luxury compared to the little disposable canister jobs.
The only thing I could suggest is to get a 2nd hand one of higher quality again - you should be able to get something like a Portamig (if you can find one) which are very high quality bits of kit, or a Lincoln professional etc.
Any of them using a proper bottle and decent size will feel like luxury compared to the little disposable canister jobs.
My first MiG didn't have a cooling fan, so the thermal switch would cut out after a few minutes and it wouldn't strat again for an hour. I cured it, by strapping an extractor fan to the side!
Neither of those mentionsa fanm, buyt they don't look that cheap! I like the Parweld's looks, and that it has a mount for the gas bottle.
John
Neither of those mentionsa fanm, buyt they don't look that cheap! I like the Parweld's looks, and that it has a mount for the gas bottle.
John
If Steve (weldequip) is selling a welder it will be a good one for the price point.
I started with an SIP (cheap Chinese box mover) and it really was a lesson in buy cheap buy twice. After 2 or 3 yrs trying to make the thing weld better (consistency was the issue) I bought a Portamig 185 from Steve - it’s fantastic and has never put a foot wrong - it’s hugely tolerant of settings being less than perfect - I wish I’d bought one at the start.
Portamig is a UK built proper transformer welder with power capacitors and a wire feed system that is built to last and work perfectly for 100’s of years - downside is the quality of build and specification doesn’t come cheap - I justified the price with the price of a second hand one being almost as much as new (so if I didn’t need it any more I’d get most of what I paid back)
Hope this helps
I started with an SIP (cheap Chinese box mover) and it really was a lesson in buy cheap buy twice. After 2 or 3 yrs trying to make the thing weld better (consistency was the issue) I bought a Portamig 185 from Steve - it’s fantastic and has never put a foot wrong - it’s hugely tolerant of settings being less than perfect - I wish I’d bought one at the start.
Portamig is a UK built proper transformer welder with power capacitors and a wire feed system that is built to last and work perfectly for 100’s of years - downside is the quality of build and specification doesn’t come cheap - I justified the price with the price of a second hand one being almost as much as new (so if I didn’t need it any more I’d get most of what I paid back)
Hope this helps
king don’t ever buy one ever ever ever.I just upgraded from my 25 year old Sealey Mightymig to an R-Tech inverter MIG180. Lovely piece of kit so far. List is just under £500 https://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/mig-welder-r-tech-...
Ah. So they are. Thank you.
No, not small or light are they.
To be fair, my old sealey mighty mug 130xt lasted well and did an OK job once I replaced the torch with a good one.
But the Oxford is proper quality. And then an SGS bottle (no subscription needed) and all is good
No, not small or light are they.
To be fair, my old sealey mighty mug 130xt lasted well and did an OK job once I replaced the torch with a good one.
But the Oxford is proper quality. And then an SGS bottle (no subscription needed) and all is good
B'stard Child said:
Should have mentioned Oxfords and Portamigs are made by same company - they really are good (but the one thing they aren’t is small and light 
)
)chrisch77 said:
I just upgraded from my 25 year old Sealey Mightymig to an R-Tech inverter MIG180. Lovely piece of kit so far. List is just under £500 https://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/mig-welder-r-tech-...
I did consider an inverter mig but at the time they were very new tech and I wanted old school - a mate bought one a few years back and he’s been very impressed with it - small and portable they are but long term reliability I think the jury hasn’t decided yetOP best other advice I can offer is get on www.mig-welding.co.uk for purchase advice
I bought one of these to replace my tired old Sealey Supermig after seeing a very positive review on one of the welding forums:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202044579900?hash=item2...
Obviously a Chinese made budget machine though I suspect 'British' brands will be stuffed full of the same bits. So far I'm seriously impressed - I feel like a welding God now it's so easy to use and lay down good welds and a cinch to fine tune without the power being switched in 'steps' like my old Sealey. The wire feed mech looks to be very good quality - certainly better than the Sealey to my eye.
For the money I figured it's well worth a punt and not a lot to lose if it's no good - so far it seems to have been a great choice for a hobbyist like me.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202044579900?hash=item2...
Obviously a Chinese made budget machine though I suspect 'British' brands will be stuffed full of the same bits. So far I'm seriously impressed - I feel like a welding God now it's so easy to use and lay down good welds and a cinch to fine tune without the power being switched in 'steps' like my old Sealey. The wire feed mech looks to be very good quality - certainly better than the Sealey to my eye.
For the money I figured it's well worth a punt and not a lot to lose if it's no good - so far it seems to have been a great choice for a hobbyist like me.
R-Tech support is great, as I have a plasma cutter from them that was damaged in transit - courier arrived next day with another. The cutter is great in my opinion, and Urchfab uses their kit too on YouTube, so I can't imagine their welders wouldn't be. British company too if anything goes wrong.
I have a Clarke MIG welder that is a couple of steps up from disposable and it's actually pretty good for what it cost. I've converted it to run on full size gas and used it for various projects. Because it's a small unit, large rolls of wire won't work with it, so be aware of this with whatever you buy. In hindsight, I'd want full size gas and full size roll capability.
I have a Clarke MIG welder that is a couple of steps up from disposable and it's actually pretty good for what it cost. I've converted it to run on full size gas and used it for various projects. Because it's a small unit, large rolls of wire won't work with it, so be aware of this with whatever you buy. In hindsight, I'd want full size gas and full size roll capability.
I've got a new Oxford migmaker 240 on order. Its coming upto 9 week wait now, was quoted 3 weeks when I ordered it. Apparently its built, they are just waiting for the case to be made. Im sure its going to be a great welder when it arrives, but if you are in a hurry to get one, make sure you know the lead time on what you order.
Lotobear said:
I bought one of these to replace my tired old Sealey Supermig after seeing a very positive review on one of the welding forums:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202044579900?hash=item2...
Obviously a Chinese made budget machine though I suspect 'British' brands will be stuffed full of the same bits. So far I'm seriously impressed - I feel like a welding God now it's so easy to use and lay down good welds and a cinch to fine tune without the power being switched in 'steps' like my old Sealey. The wire feed mech looks to be very good quality - certainly better than the Sealey to my eye.
For the money I figured it's well worth a punt and not a lot to lose if it's no good - so far it seems to have been a great choice for a hobbyist like me.
I'll second this - I bought one of these "Uptime" machines after also seeing a few reviews on the MIG Welding forum. It's unbelievably good for the money. I sold my old Sealey MIG 130 for almost as much as this one cost, and the difference is night and day, Comes with Euro torch, quality ground clamp and an arc welding torch as well, I'm very happy with it. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/202044579900?hash=item2...
Obviously a Chinese made budget machine though I suspect 'British' brands will be stuffed full of the same bits. So far I'm seriously impressed - I feel like a welding God now it's so easy to use and lay down good welds and a cinch to fine tune without the power being switched in 'steps' like my old Sealey. The wire feed mech looks to be very good quality - certainly better than the Sealey to my eye.
For the money I figured it's well worth a punt and not a lot to lose if it's no good - so far it seems to have been a great choice for a hobbyist like me.
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