On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 16:21:42 -0500, with neither quill nor qualm, Don
Foreman quickly quoth:

On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 21:46:02 -0700, Tim Wescott
wrote:

I asked this question on s.e.j.welding, and for the most part (with one
or two notable exceptions, thank you if you're reading this) all I got
was fatherly advise on how to break into professional welding (jeesh).

So, I need to get my front gate welded up before it gets lost in the
weeds, and before my dogs figure out once more how to get by the
temporary measure I'm using.

I'd also rather do the job myself, but I have a cheesy old stick welder
that won't do the thin-wall tubing in the gate without blowing through.
I know I can get a cheap wire feed welder that'll cost less than the
welding job, particularly if I stick to flux-core wire until I can
justify to the head accountant (actually, it's the accountant in my
head) that I Really Need to set it up with gas for MIG welding.

I'm going to check with a pro shop tomorrow to get a price on the job,
and if it's enough I'll just go buy a wire feed, teach myself a new
skill and fix my damn gate myself.

So I'm looking for suggestions for a good hobbyist wire feed welder?
I'll mostly use it for welding on 10-16 gauge material. I don't expect
to do any bodywork with it (I'll stick with OA until I get a TIG), and
if I have anything heavier to do there's the stick welder.

Intermittent use is fine. Way intermittent use is fine. Welding
nothing thicker than 1/8 inch is acceptable. A reliable source for
replacement and upgrade parts is a big plus. A machine that makes
crappy welds no matter how good I am is just not what I want at all.

Any suggestions?

Lincoln SP125+ or later version (135+, 140+ whatever). Avoid imports.
These little red boxes really do work a lot better than the
similar-looking imports, and you can get parts for them.

Are Clarke products imports? I've seen them on eBay for considerably
cheaper prices than Lincoln and Miller.

--
Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile I caught hell for.
-- Earl Warren