Best way to go about buying a MIG welder for one job?

[Michael Yadfar]

I have a pickup truck that I'm redoing body work on, and there's a few patch panels that I'm going to have to eventually weld in. The issue is, this is mostly a one time thing, and good MIG welders run $1,000+, while cheaper/ used ones can be as low as $100. While I may find a few projects, this is really the main thing I'll really use it for, and this will be the only vehicle I'll restore for a long time. Some of you may say just have a body shop do it, but that would cost $1,000+ on its own.

So basically I want to go cheap. I hate thinking of Harbor Freight for a welder, because I rarely shop there to begin with, and only buy simple fool proof low use tools. However, they have a 110V AC flux core welder for $110 which I read works well with $50 worth of mods. They also sell a 220V DC flux/MIG one for $180. Another option I can consider is buying used off Craigslist. Some tough decisions here, looking for advice. Also, would flux be suitable, or would I need to buy MIG shielding gas?

[Charles Wiggins]

Why not rent one?

[Scott T Smith]

If I were you I would shop Craigslist for a good used Miller, Lincoln, Hobart or other quality 120VAC MIG welder that has a shielding gas setup, and when you're done with it sell it to recoup your money.

Hard wire with gas will provide a much cleaner weld than flux core. Plus, on thin wires the flux core tends to break easily with the wire jamming up the liner.

[Dom Garafalo]

If you only have a few patch panels to weld in why not put an ad under "services" on Craig's list for a experienced and moonlighting welder with his own equipment to come and do it. Has to be cheap if you have the patch panels already made up and fitted. If its a one time thing why screw with finding and buying a welder then perhaps trying to sell it after you are done.

[Ole Anderson]

I am not a welder, but my son is. Learning to weld sheet metal successfully is as much an art as a science. Plan on plenty of practice time before you start burning holes in your restoration project.

[Dan Hunkele]

Dom and Ole have answered you question wisely.

[John K Jordan]

Michael,

I was a welding inspector back in the 70s but never learned to weld myself until maybe 25 years later. Now I would really hate to be without a welder of some sort.

I currently have oxy/acty gas and electric MIG, TIG, and stick welders. And I still have my first welding machine, an inexpensive little Lincoln Weld Pack 100 I use with flux core wire.

I can recommend the little Lincoln for casual use. It operates on 110v so you can weld almost anywhere. It is very small and doesn't take up much space. It is very portable and can be carried to a project with one hand. My MIG welder (Miller) is heavy and with the cart and gas cylinder it's a pain to take out of the shop. I also keep the little Lincoln to loan to friends for small jobs - it is the one tool in my shop I will loan. :-) Do you live close to TN?

It can outfitted with shielding gas but you can do almost anything with the flux core. It is so easy to use I've taught kids how to weld. It's a bit like using a crayon.

The big difference between wire with gas and wire with the flux core is mostly how clean and pretty the weld looks. The flux core wire throws more spatter and will require more cleanup. Fortunately, clean up is easy with sanding disks - my favorite are those made with overlapping leaves of sandpaper.

I have used the flux core wire for a huge variety of projects over that last decade or so, shop and farm, thick and thin, including replacing a rusted out sheet metal panel on my old flat bed farm truck. This is perfectly doable although it is more work that using a big mig welder. A friend of mine used one to customize some antique cars. I would rather weld sheet metal with gas

The trick with sheet metal is to weld without burning through and leaving a big hole. Fortunately, this is not hard. With clean metal and a tight physical seam, you can tack weld along the seam with short bursts of the trigger, widely spaced at first, then spots between until finally you have the entire seam welded. This prevents overheating, burning holes, and warping the panels. I often clean up as I go with a wire brush and the sanding disks. Besides the truck, I've welded much thinner sheet metal this way to fix things like a fatigue-broken lawnmower engine shroud.

MIG is a LOT cleaner (although TIG is the cleanest) but I wouldn't let that stop me. In fact, the flux core is sometimes better outside since a breeze can blow away the MIG shielding gas and result in a very poor weld. The flux core makes its own gas instantly at the point of contact which seems better in a breeze to me.

I too would recommend you practice a lot with whatever welder you choose. Find some scrap metal or old smashed panels from the junk yard. It is mandatory to prepare the metal to be perfectly clean before welding. Read a welding book from Lowes or Home Depot. Maybe watch videos but I never did that. Try out different wire feed and power settings for specific metal thicknesses. What would also help a lot is to get some instruction from an experienced weldor or take a class. That's what the 15-year-old girl who helps here at the farm did.

You can certainly hire out this one job but how about the next one? And the 100 things you can make and fix from now on? A welding machine can open up new horizons.

BTW, besides the welder itself, you will benefit from:
- an autodarkening helmet, fortunately very cheap these days
- a wire brush, maybe with a chipping hammer
- wire cutters to keep with the welder
- gloves, I use a thinner leather one with gauntlet cuffs on my trigger hand, a big well-insulated one on my "holding" hand.
- a side-angle grinder with grinding wheels, flap sanding disks, and wire brushes
- a face shield for grinding and wire brushing
- chalk marker

Also handy:
- sawsall with metal cutting blades like Milwaukee's The Torch
- can of weld spatter protecting spray
- leather sleeves unless you don't mind a few burns
- welding blanket to protect things close to the weld
- various magnets for holding steel in place
- clamps, vise grips
- extra tips for the welding gun
- heavy duty extension cord
- snap-in correcting lenses for the welding helmet
- a clean place to work away from combustibles

JKJ

[Tom M King]

Pay someone else to do it. I was going to post the same thing that Scott did. You don't want to use flux cored wire, and it needs to be a good machine that can run at low amperage with very small wire. In other words, no cheap welding machine will do a good job.

There is a guy near me who does body work, and he brings the car in process here for me to do the welding. For the typical job for a small panel, I only charge him 50 bucks. He doesn't waste my time doing a lot of talking, has everything clean down to bare metal so I don't have to do any prep work, holds the part in place while I tack it, and leaves quickly once I have the beads run. He does all the finish work. I don't do this for other people, but he's really efficient at not wasting my time, so I don't mind helping him out.

[Adam Herman]

i have the Hobart handler 140 set up with flux core. it works well for home projects. I am not sure i would use it for anything finish.

[Michael Yadfar]

I can consider hiring someone to do it, never thought of that, I'm actually hiring someone to come to my house to paint it. The issue with that is sometimes I come across a lot of BSers, but I guess I can bring some spare metal and make them prove themselves. I did take a two week welding course last summer, but that was stick welding big pieces of metal, so it's a completely different ball game.

[Mac McQuinn]

I had a Lincoln SP100 I purchased new in 1990 and used it heavily for (25) years on 3/16" and thinner metals. It worked very well when doing a restoration on a 1951 GMC for all the sheet metal work. I found the welder worked the best on sheet metal with C25 mix and .023 wire, very controllable and smooth. Fit is everything along with clean surfaces. I ran it off a dedicated 20 AMP circuit w/ optional Lincoln accessory cord. While Flux core runs hotter with deeper penetration, it may be too hot for sheet metal work. I don't care for the smoke and appearance it produces, more work to get a smooth surface. The welder is now on it's second life producing good welds for my son. I'd suggest you shop the used market for a lightly used machine which you can obtain consumables for.
Mac

[Wayne Lomman]

Find a good used one. You will mysteriously find all sorts of things that need welding apart from your resto. You will wonder how you managed without one. Cheers

[Frank McGuire]

I had a Lincoln SP100 I purchased new in 1990 and used it heavily for (25) years on 3/16" and thinner metals. It worked very well when doing a restoration on a 1951 GMC for all the sheet metal work. I found the welder worked the best on sheet metal with C25 mix and .023 wire, very controllable and smooth. Fit is everything along with clean surfaces. I ran it off a dedicated 20 AMP circuit w/ optional Lincoln accessory cord. While Flux core runs hotter with deeper penetration, it may be too hot for sheet metal work. I don't care for the smoke and appearance it produces, more work to get a smooth surface. The welder is now on it's second life producing good welds for my son. I'd suggest you shop the used market for a lightly used machine which you can obtain consumables for.
Mac

Right. Better late than nothing for my side. Rented usual 120/240V output welder few days ago. Price is $40/day. But I didn't know that it's possible to find decent used one for a $120-140(similar model which I rented). We live in a time when we know nothing. I’m sure I’ll need it more than one time. So wasted $40

[George Yetka]

Little 110 machines seem to be purchased and lose that off the lot $$$ but hold the value from there. We mostly stick weld and have been fans of Miller. We do have a large hobart mig machine and most of are machines will tig. We had to buy a mini 110 machine to weld a AHU's skin back together. It ended up sitting so I sold it. When researching price to sell it, I found they hit that bottom number and stay there. SO if you buy a used one Obviously look for a cleaner less used one but, If you use it for a couple years you should get every dollar back if you sell it later.

[Tom M King]

I didn't catch that this was an old thread, to start with, but see that I already posted in it. Nothing has changed from what I said several years ago, but I will add that the machine is just one part of all the stuff you need to weld with. I bought a new welder a short while back, and built a cart, with a built on toolbox, that keeps most of the stuff I need organized, together.

The smaller a welder is, as far as the amount of power it puts out/uses, the thinner the maximum metal you can weld with it. A smaller welder just can't put enough heat into the metal you're trying to melt together. The thick metal dissipates the heat faster than the machine can output it. Read what the maximum thickness the machine says it will weld, and realize that's under ideal conditions.