Doug White wrote in
:

This surfaced here a couple of years ago:

http://www.multiplaz.com/about

There was considerable skepticism at the time. They still seem to be
in
business, although their network of US dealers hasn't exactly
exploded.
There's a lengthy thread he

http://www.hobartwelders.com/weldtal...524-multi-plaz

with some actual user feedback, and as far as I read, the guy who
bought
one was pretty happy.

Just curious if anyone here has had any first hand experience with
one,
or has seen one in action by now?

I waded through the whole thread on the welding site (15 pages worth).
The one guy who has one is very happy with it. There are lots of usual
jerks who insist on carping about anything that isn't what they are used
to. They keep complaining about it, and then wondering why everyone
isn't using one. Given the number of knee-jerk "it can't be any good"
reactions, it's no wonder it isn't more common. I think it's a
combination of poor marketing & all too common resistance to change. It
_would_ be nice if someone could do a head-to-head comparison, with bend
tests & sectioned welds, but the guy who has one is a hobbiest & isn't
interested in taking the time & energy to placate the naysayers. I
think his welds look OK, but lots of the pros on the forum insist on
nitpicking about the weld quality in photos he posted when he had just
started using the machine.

I can see where a pro would be leery of using it on a paying job with
laywers hovering around. Especially if they already have a suite of
conventional, accepted machines at the ready.

I don't have a welder or a OA torch at this point, and don't have room
for tanks & a big welder. Given that it can cut, braze, heat (for
bending), and weld a variety of materials, all in a compact package, it
sounds like it would work well for my hobby needs. For the amount of
welding I might do, I'd probably have to pay for hydrotesting with every
fill. Aside from storage issues, that makes welding with tanks all the
more expensive.

The last time I did welding, it was with an OA torch in junior high
school shop (about 40 years ago...). It sounds like this thing welds
more like a torch than an arc welder, so that could be another plus (for
me).

I'm not about to dash out & buy one, but I'm still intrigued. Once I'm
fully retired, I plan on taking a welding course at the local vocational
high school. From what little I know, I can't cut or braze with
TIG/MIG. In theory I can weld aluminum & stainless with OA, but it
sounds tricky (aluminum especially), and there's still the tank storage
issue. Ideally, I would have a plasma cutter, TIG, MIG, and OA. That
ain't gonna happen.

It IS disconcerting that after all this time there aren't more dealers
listed. The web site _claims_ they have plenty around the US & Canada,
but they only have ONE listed. I may send them an email & see if they
actually have more they aren't listing (who knows why..?).

Doug White