Welder info....????
 

There is one of those travelling tool sales coming here in the next few days. (I know, not the best quality tools) They have a 125 Amp Flux Welder advertised. I know nothing about welding and would like to learn. I need something to weld light guage steel and little jobs around the house. Just like a "starter welder" if you will. I don't want to spend alot of money.

I did a quick search about welders on the net and came up kind of empty. Not enough time to search more. I'm sure alot of you here know about them.
Will this thing be OK? I have no other info.

I am not an expert welder but I bought a flux core welder from Harbor Freight a couple of years ago. 125 amp, 220 volts. It is amazing what we have done with it. My son uses it more than I do. I can tell you this, it will do what you want it to do. I also have the gas hook up available if I need. My only problem with it was getting use to the wire feed. Until I bought it, I had only used a stick welder.

Seems to me I paid something like $130.00 for it.

I'm a qualified welder, so any questions, just ask. :)
As for flux (or MIG/MAG) welders - they are by far the easiest to learn on. I'm trained in stick, MIG and TIG, and I rate in terms of ease of use MIG first, then TIG then stick.
125A should be fine for what you describe, but your shielding gas and wire thickness also play a large part. .6mm wire with argon is my preferred setup for general use, but CO2 and .4mm will be fine for all the smaller jobs.

I bought a used CH MIG welder
 

I also did know know anything about welding when I bought mine, it was a CH 105amp (110v) Welder with the gas kit and cart.

I've used it a lot on my Rover project and it really is pretty simple to use. Just make sure that you weld metal that is the same thickness to the metal your welding to.

Harbor Freight seems to have really good prices on these items.

Years ago I bought a 110volt wire feed welder flux core, no gas, it was a Cambel Hausfield. That thing was great I used it in a comercial application for over a year and it never gave me any problems. The cheapo harbour freight models look like the same thing.

I have a few questions. Is there a rod specifically for vertical and or over head welding. (a/c welder). Also why is the 7014 so easy to strike an ark with? Even at low current like 20 30 amps it never sticks. It doesnt seem to do as nice a welding job as 7018 but it's easier too use.

When I started welding cast iron a nickel rod was the thing,then I was introduced to wire-feed MIG's with Argon gas.What a revelation! most of the engine block cracks worked out fine,but some cracked after welding,then I learned about pre-heating the area to be welded with an oxy-acetylene torch to avoid the sudden expansion and contraction.

Stick is far easier than tig, atleast to me it was.

6011 and 7018 are the better option for vertical up and overhead use, but beware of using 7018 on lower voltage A/C welders and try ensure no moisture gets in the weld, the low hydrogen in the flux means they're a bit more prone to problems with dampness.
7014 is used more for light penetration jobs, where the weld isn't entirely structural i.e. for plugging gaps or just ensuring two pieces are together. 7018 is a full on structural electrode designed for full penetration of the weld and high strength, whilst ensuring a good ductility too.

Carleton - kudos, welding cast iron is something I tend to avoid all I can. I'm never confident with it, even with preheating, and, as you say, argon and MIG. It's never a nice job to do, and almost always fails.

Monomer - down to personal preference I guess! I found TIG very difficult to get the hang of, but once I had it I could get a far better continuity than I could with stick. And if you can solder, you can TIG - likewise the other way round.

This thing is only $99 so I can't expect it to do alot.

i would stay away from any wire feed that you cannot add gas to. that flux core ***** sucks. when i got my wirefeed i used flux core for a month, when i got the gas i put that crap away for an emergency. what are you trying to weld?

omegaman, next time you plan on welding with 7018 try throwin the rod in an oven for a while. the flux on the 7018 rod soaks up alot of moisture compared to all the others. heating it will dry them and make them easier to start. ever notice a still hot rod restarts easier than a new "cool" rod?

i have never tig welded but i hope to somday. i prefer my wire feed because i can rest my hands on somthing while i weld where as with stick i cannot. since i have athsma i take medicine for it and that causes me to be shakey(reason i prefer the mig over stick) somedays at work i can weld no problem and somedays i have to have somone else do it for me.

vwbuge, i would stay away from a cheap machine if you want to learn to weld. if you are looking to spend very little i would advise you to go with a lincoln stick welder. they are cheap and are of good quality.

*edit*
i just noticed what you are planning to do with it. i would still recommend against a flux core only machine

Well now IT has proven itself,the thinner the iron the better.

Since most of my experience is restricted to pre-29 cars there are several methods of water jacket repair.....

First we have "lace welding" locating the crack,drilling holes at the ends to prevent the crack from spreading and then drilling minute holes along the whole crack,tapping them for a soft tapered brass plug and installing said plug until tight,this is repeated along the length of the crack,driling and tapping at the end of the last tapered and threaded brass plug.Finishing with a center punch clinches the deal,and after filing flat you have a watertight seal.

Also we use soldering,if the water jacket flaw{most commom on Rolls Phantom 1 &2} is brief enough we sand blast the iron jacket,drill said crack-stopping holes at the end and solder a patch of brass or copper over the crack,my 1915 InterState has this and it has held for 15 years,such are the methods I learned among the mostly now deceased machinists and collectors whom I revered.

Can you quantify that a bit? I'm sure many factors determine how quickly one can become proficient with TIG, but what's a conservative estimate for someone with mechanical aptitude, but no welding experience? Is it a skill somebody with patience can even pick up on their own, or is training pretty much mandatory? There are welding classes at the JC near me, but the hours are pretty inconvenient...

I've wanted to get into stainless fabrication for a long time. Hobby stuff mostly, but it could turn into part time work a few years down the road when I semi-retire. Most of the stuff would be marine related, dealing with thin wall tubing - something for which I'm assuming TIG would be the preferred method.

I hesitate to learn welding with MIG, even though I've read it's far easier...I just don't think I'd have anywhere near as much use for it long term.

I'd agree with kmaysob here - gas is sooo much better.

Da Nag - yes, you are correct, TIG is the way to go with thin wall tubing. I work for a company that does steel fabrication, and we use nearly exclusively TIG for stainless, especially tube.
As for timescale, it all depends on how good you are at soldering. It took me a good 15 hours under tutelage before I got the hang of it. Once I had it, I suddenly snapped into it and did well. The main thing is not letting the tip touch the steel - that's where I kept falling over. It's a huge waste of time when you have to remove it and re-grind it, only to go back and twenty seconds later do the same again.
I'm sure you would be able to pick it up by yourself, the only obstacle would be having to buy tungsten tips all the time. :P But in all honesty I'm sure you would be fine. :)

As for MIG - well, it's something I personally would recommend to anyone who wants to weld. It's remarkably useful and is the quickest way to learning about ductility and penetration of welds.

At work I have access to rods straight out of the oven and they work quite nice. I think at home I'll try that.