Hey guys, I was just wondering if anyone has had any experiences with Eastwood welders. The one in particular I am looking at is the Mig 175.


MIG 175 Amp Welder with Spool Gun | MIG Welders | MIG 175 Welder ? Eastwood Welders


From the reviews I have read, the forums online, etc, it seems like an ok welder, but does anyone have any experience here with it or any Eastwood welder for that matter?


I have always used Miller and Lincoln welders and have never had a problem that the local welding store couldn't help me with, but then again, I don't have the extra $500 to get something similar to what Eastwood has.


Let me know.


Thanks!

 

I have that one. I love it! Not a single problem with it on everything from sheet metal to 1/8" plates. FYI they typically package that with a plasma setup for right around $1k during the holidays.

 

they are the cats meow! i have a older craftsman and wish i had one..

 

ALB, have you tried welding up-to the 5/16" that they claim it can weld? What about using the spool gun?


I personally wish they would drop the spool gun and save me an extra hundred or two because I will never use it, but I do not want the smaller 135 machine!

 

I've had the 135 for a few years. No problems, works great. Was $400 with free shipping with a cart and auto darkening helmet.

 

The spool gun is only for aluminum, AFAIK, and mine is still in the bag. I've had the MIG cranked up pretty good with the thicker wire, not on 5/16 tho. I have no doubt it would do fine as long as you watch the duty cycle.

 

I had one of my intro to MIG students buy the 135 and bring it into the shop. Asked me to set it up and try it out. We used Hobart 175 for the class welder and I have a Hobart 140 at home, I thought the Eastwood compared very favorably with the Hobart machines, and have been recommending the Eastwoods every since to anyone buying a machine. I'd buy one! The torch takes standard tweeco expendables. Lincoln has recently started selling their own branded clone of these machines.

 

The mig spool gun can be used with any wire, but it makes using aluminum wire easier to use due to the softness of the wire, it does not have to be pushed 10 feet where the drag would cause it to bird nest. If welding flux core you only need a heavy gauge lead and you can weld far from the machine, e.g. attic trusses, tops of trailers, etc... when using the spool gun.

 

That is very true, but if I ever wanted to do any quality aluminum welding, I wouldn't use any other wire in the same gun, the residue left, especially the copper coating on steel wire, will ruin it for aluminum. Aluminum welding is very contamination sensitive and the pure aluminum wire is very soft and will readily pick up contaminants.

 

I meant to mention, the nozzles that come with the machine are hit or miss. My son had three in a row fall apart while welding up a bumper for his Jeep. (heavy stock, high current) Buying genuine Tweco nozzles is the obvious upgrade.

 

Ax, you of all people should know (as I do) you don't run aluminum wire through the steel liner, let alone one that had steel wire in it, you replace it with a Teflon liner made for aluminum wire. I have a Tweco teflon liner that can be installed in less than ten minutes, because I currently don't have a spool gun.

 

Dave, I was talking about using steel wire in the spool gun as you suggested in post #8. I don't know if a spool gun even has a liner? The drive rollers would become contaminated with copper and deposit it on any aluminum wire run thru afterwards. I think using a standard torch with aluminum wire even with a teflon liner is a masochistic exercise in frustration likened to trying to push a rope uphill.

 

thanks guys for all your help. looks like my mind has been made up and I will soon hopefully be the proud owner of a new Eastwood. I sent an email to the rep asking him if they can discount me the price of the spool gun as I agree with ALB, it will probably stay in the bag.


hopefully they will give in!