If you already have oxyacetylene, you can use it for small work with
small tips. In some cases, it will be easier to braze than weld, so OA
is good for that also. No matter the process, the thinner the material,
the harder it is to weld, brazing is almost always easier for thin or
small material.

My opinion is that TIG would be better than Mig for what you are doing,
but it is pricy. I think that I would start off with OA, which you
apparently already have.

Richard



Jeff Polaski wrote:

I'd like a little advice on narrowing down the choice of a welder,
please. I'd like to make some of the rolling ball sculptures and some
other smallish sculptures. It will be fairly light weight, indoor kind
of stuff. There will be no massive multi-ton "industrial" sculpture.
For the ball sculptures, this is close to what I'm thinking of:
http://www.kugelbahn.ch/Cyclone_e.htm. Here is a nicely-done little
sculpture like what I'm thinking of:
http://www.geocities.com/weldingwalt/ek3chopper.html. Some of the
sculptures might have some heavier elements, like the supports for
this rolling ball sculptu http://www.kugelbahn.ch/wegnac_e.htm. I
plan on using O/A to weld the heavier stuff, but I'm really curious as
to what would be a good machine to weld the "wire" cage that the balls
roll in.

I'd think that a basic 110V mig welder would be ideal for this, or am
I missing something? I have a 220V outlet, so I might get a 220V
welder, but probaly not because of the extra cost. Or, am I making
this more complex than it needs to be, and brazing would be better?

Any one built somthing similar? I plan on using welding rod to get
started with the ball-races, but I'm sure I'll move on regular ~ 1/8"
steel rod. I plan on making a set of discs, or maybe a set cones, that
I can use to bend the races. I figure that and a peg board should work
to bend just about any raceway I'd want.

I have a decent metal/wood shop... metal lathe, drill press, etc... If
anyone would like a little more info, I have the basics of a site up
at: http://members.cox.net/jeffpolaski/. Right now there's not too
much up, just a bit about some of the tools, but I'll be adding more.

Thanks in advance,

Jeff Polaski