On 2010-07-18, Steve B wrote:

"RogerN" wrote in message
m...
I've been trying to do some body work and rust repair on my truck before I
sell it and I'm getting close to the point of needing to weld in some
metal to replace the rusted metal. This isn't so much to increase the
value of the truck as it is to learn to do some body work and rust repair.
My welder is a Century 145A (IIRC) 230V Sam's Club special that came with
the MIG Gas regulator kit.

For my current location and to weld thin auto body sheet metal it would be
nice to have a 120V welder so I was looking at what is available. Seems
the economical MIG welders (Harbor Freight, Northern Tool, etc.) are set
up for flux core and the thinnest they advertise to weld is 18 Ga. and the
addition of the MIG kit puts their price near the price of the little bit
better MIG welders.

Looking around, I found a welder that looks interesting, a Millermatic
211. It will run up to 140A on from 120V or up to 210A from a 230V supply.
Sounds like just what I need, light duty running out to my auto body and
heavier duty shop welding. Plus it is ready for a spool gun (on sale
locally for $179). Everything sounded great until I looked at the price,
$949 on sale locally, sounds like a good price for this welder but still
pretty expensive. It would fill all my MIG needs in one machine plus I
could add aluminum spool gun capability. And it looks like a bottle of
Argon for TIG + MIG aluminum and a bottle of 75/25 Argon/CO2 would set me
up with all the gas I need for about anything I'm likely to weld.

Any recommendations on a favorite MIG welder for auto body sheet metal?

RogerN

That is a good welder, but the price is high for a used unit. Buy only
Lincoln or Miller. And don't buy from HD or those stores, as the components
they use have more plastic parts than a similar one you're buy at a welding
store. You get what you pay for, and a red or blue one will weld all day
long all week long. There are cheaper ones, but they have more problems,
and you can't make any money if your welder is not working. I wouldn't
worry too much about the aluminum, but to have the spare hole to get one
later is a plus. If you are going to do any heavy work, you might want a
220v. unit. The 110's have a light duty cycle, and you will have to spend
time waiting for it to cool off. Not so much with the 220. Red and blue
are easy to get consumables and repairs for. The other off brand names not
so much.

What Steve says. If you look locally, you can find a better deal. I
bought a Millermatic 251 for about $600. (hard to calculate as I
bought several things for $1k and sold some)

i