I have never welded before. I know I will probably need to weld something at some point during this restoration.

With my limited skill, and everyones knowledge of the type of welding that may need to be done at some point on this truck, what type of welding set up would you recommend. I know there is TIG, MIG, ARC, Plasma and a few others, but I really don't know what would be best suited for me and my truck.

Thanks in advance for the advice!

Cory

 

Well I will offer you this advice. The best way to learn is to 1. Do it 2. Find a community college that has welding classes (most do).

Where to start... A mig is going to be an extremely handy tool to have around for both frame and body work. A tig would be nice to have but requires a higher level of finesse to master, but the results are far superior welds both in strength and appearance. Forget the arc welder idea. It’s going to be too messy on the welds and you will most likely not be happy with the quality of work it puts out or you may not like the massive amount of cleanup that’s needed on your work afterward.

A lot of hobbyists have migs in their garage, me included. I find that it fits my budget the best and does everything I need a welder to do, body work and frame fabrication.

I readily admit to not following my own advice or others in some instances. I like to learn things the hard way I guess. I found an inexpensive 110v Lincoln welder and bought it new. I planned on major suspension (bags and four link) surgery for my mini truck. While my 110v did get the job done I also killed it at the end of the suspension mods (convenient). I then had to go back and take the advice of others and buy a machine that was better designed for what I wanted it to do...that for me was a 220v mig, you can pick your own flavor but I chose Miller and I am very happy with its performance. I don’t expect to be in a situation where I will need to be buying another machine anytime in the near future.

Also, I just jumped right in, without formal training and I have made my fair amount of mistakes but I have learned a lot too. I now, would like to go and take some classes to refine my technique...prob something I should have done right out of the gate.

There is a brilliant welding and fab section over at streetsource.com in the forums. Lots of great fresh ideas and lots and lots of talent to help advise on what to do. You can read and read and learn and learn.

 

If you have never welded before it would be a great time to take a class at a community college like stated above. You will learn the basics and some technique. It will also help you determine the size welder you can afford. Although I can weld I recently took a Mig class at our community college and learned several things, epecially related to machine setup.

Personally, I have a Miller 180 Mig which is 220V. It is pretty versatile and great for frame work. I recently purchased a used Tig machine but have not mastered it as yet. I mainly wanted it for sheetmetal work. By the way, Plasma is a cutting process, not welding. Plasma cutters are great to have also. Restoring or customizing an old truck is a good way to justify new tools. Have fun.

 

I went the community college route years ago and bought a Dayton 110V stick welder. It has done everything I have asked from it from welding frames together to exhaust pipe. If you learn to stick weld first everything following will be a breeze...

 

Hi Cory,
I have been welding since I was 13 and now that is a bit over 50 years. Back then we had a stick welder, (AC buzz box), and an oxy-acetylene outfit. No auto darkening helments back then... Things have changes a lot since then. MIGs and TIGs were around but they were as big as small car and weighed about as much. I renenber we later bought a used Miller machine that was on wheels and would do MIG, TIG and stick. The TIG torch was water cooled and the rig a a big tank and pump on it. My dad used to rent it out to contractors. Now I have a LincolnMIG 255, a MIG SP-170T, and a TIG 225 that will also do stick. Many improvements over the years have made stuff smaller and better.

I'm not sure what you financial restraints are but I would advise this. DON'T buy some cheap thing made in China like HF sells. I prefer Lincoln because of their quality and commitment to U.S manufacturing but I believe Miller is also a good choice. If I were you I would get a decent MIG machine like the Lincoln MIG 180. Go for the full rig with gas and avoid the fluc core wire.

The suggestion to find a vocational school for training ins a good one if you have one nearby that has class openings and if you have time. One person I recently corresponded with on another board said that he tried but the classes are all booked up. I guerss the recession and unemployment have spurred an increase in enrollment. If that is a problem I suggest buying a few good books on the subject and get a bunch of scrap metal to practice on. Using a MIG it won't be that hard to pick up the skills you need.

Later Man...

 

Hey dude, you've been given some VERY good advice. DO NOT buy a cheap chinese welder!!! My preference is Miller. I have a MIG, TIG, and Miller plasma cutter in my shop and these tools are so awesome for this kind of work.You really should if you can afford it get a 220 volt to start with, mine is a Millermatic 250. You'll learn alot workin on your old truck and alot from a good vocational school class. One more thing, sometimes they have welding class's at your local high school? I know that locally they do have these class's for welding, machine shop and auto shop. It is a way to raise some money for the school and you can learn alot. As stated already machine setup is very important (that is setting the heat, wirespeed, and gas level wire diameter and so on)

I went to one of these class's to learn some more. I wanted to learn TIG so I went and ended up getting to get certified in the process.

Good luck and GOD bless!!

 

Great advice from all, I just bought the Lincoln Handy Mig its a 110 unit. I like it so far and think it's gonna work great for the body work, but if you need to do stuff thicker than 1/8" definatley get a 220V welder and yes stay away from the temptation to buy The HF cheapy.

 

my welder is a Lincoln sp-135plus, and its the best little welder i've ever owned. mine gets hot enuf to do minor frame work(with fluxcore), its only a 30% duty cycle, so you gotta go slow and let her rest.
i gotta agree with everyones advice, and DONT BUY A CHEAPY, you'll hate it.

 

...I agree...I received my certs at a local community college while pursuing a degree...

...the instructor is a graduate of the skilled-trades program there and retired from Rouge Steel... as a journeyman welder...

I still keep in contact with as the campus is only a couple miles away...

Might want to start with oxy/acteyelene...then to stick (GMAW)...and the
to MIG (metal inert gas) & TIG (tungsten Inert gas)...

Careful... 'cause it kinda gets under your skin...

I think the best way might be to look in to the welding curriculum
and see how the classes "flow"...from start-up to advanced...

Some local welding shops even offer a "student discount"...check in to that...
...I saved a bunch on welding gear with the local supplier the College used for their Miller welding equipment...

That is how I got started...next thing ya know...your passing the
"Pipe and Pressure Vessel Welding" class...

...anyway...after it was all over...I picked up my 110V Snapon YA219B MIG
and a nice, small oxy/MAP-GAS torch-set with a cart-hoses-regs & the works
ALL off of EBay and Craigslist...for pennies on the dollar!!!

Shop around...it helps...nothin' wrong with a used tool...somebody else
already made sure it is working order for you and the warranty has
run out anyway......

-

 

We often fool ourselves into believing that it’s pragmatic to buy tools to justify our hobbies. I know I have, so now’s your chance. (You didn’t think I was going to talk you out of it, did you?)
<o></o>
Seriously, some of the tools you are talking about are quite expensive. Miller and Lincoln are two of the best because they are quality machines, have a great distribution network, and parts are readily available. Not so with the cheap HF variety.
<o></o>
I would suggest looking into an oxy/acetylene set-up; it’s much cheaper than a plazma machine. I found brazing to be fairly easy to learn. You also can use the tool for cutting (oxidation) of frozen parts like carriage bolts.
<o></o>
Where can you buy one? HF, of course.

 

I bought one of the HF 110v Dual Mig gas/flux core machines 10 yr ago for $200 on sale (they don't sell this model anymore).. I converted it to gas, and it was fine for the heavier stuff, hard for body panels (not enough power adjustments ). I got a small bonus now 3 yrs ago, and was able to find a Miller 180SD tig box used (size of a small a/c unit, on wheels) and a Miller 175 MIG unit (both 220V). and wow what a difference across the board on all kinds of material.

as luck would have it, the HF machine finally died last year (loaned it to my son, and it never worked again)... but I need a 110v welder to weld on the gate, approx 400 ft from the 220v source. I found a new Lincoln 140HD on Craigslist a few weeks ago (for $300), 110V, supports both gas and flux.
so I picked it up too. I am about to start some bodywork again so I'll find out how it works there.. has 5 power settings instead of 4 on the HF machine. Both the millers are variable power.

Also have the small Oxy setup from HF for the heat related tasks. cost about $250 to get one at working level.

Sam

 

Cory, give me a call (619-993-8862)...you can come over and I will show you MIG, TIG, and a HENROB setup. It's always better to put your hands on a tool and see what it will do for you rather than trying to base your decision on what others have done. Once you find out what you need then start shopping using others experiences with the type of tool you need.

 

Don't waste your time with a gasless flux cored welder. Get a MIG, I've used both and its night and day, especially for sheet metal. I use a Lincoln MIG for all my sheetmetal stuff. Love it.

I've done some pretty welds with the old buzzbox ARC welder, when the flux peels off the weld as you your move along, there's not a better feeling. If I do any frame welding on my truck it's going to be ARC welded, but for all around stuff, I love my MIG.

 

I used to think that way too until I got a big enough MIG. My Lincoln 255 litterally blows away the stick welder. I use it for the big stuff and run 45 wire. I use my little 170 MIG for body and sheet metal and run 25 wire in it. My new TIG 225 will run stick also but I hardly ever use it that way unless I am running Ni-rod on cast iron.

Later Man...

 

Just finished my first class in welding from the local community college. It was a "Metal art sculpture" class, but I interpreted that as "bring in all your truck parts that need welding" class!

We started learning with oxy acetylene which was cool because you learn about your weld puddle etc...we then moved on to arc, then MIG and then dabbled in TIG and had access to plasma cutters, etc. I now know what kind of machine I want (220v MIG -with gas, either Miller or Lincoln) and feel confident that I could use it the right way. Found out that welding students get a hearty discount on welding supplies including welding machines which I hope to take advantage of soon.

My instructor was way cool and laid back. I didn't make any "sculptures" per say, other than a shop sign for the garage with the plasma cutter...but I did get to bring in all sorts of parts to weld on and my instructor thought it was neat. I mean, what better metal art is there than a old ford?

I would venture to say you would be happiest with a MIG, but find out for yourself. I probably could have figured it out without the class but I also think I saved myself a lot of guess work by taking the class.

My classes were every friday from 8:30-1:30 but they had another class that split it between Fri and Sat nights that was popular.

Good luck!!