On 4 Aug 2005 20:17:30 -0700, "Ronnie" wrote:

Gots a small shop making mostly garden stuff for a landscaper. Do 95%
of my work with a MillerMatic 135, however the other day he threw some
4 x 4 .188 wall stuff my way. It took all the 135 had to weld it and
I'm still not real warm and fuzzy about the penetration. Here's my
delima...

I've got the dough to buy a MM210 and solve my concerns about not
having enough machine for the rare (very rare) occasion I do bigger
stuff. But, sitting in the back of my shop right now, is an old Sears
Crapsman A/C (only) stick machine of the 25 to 250 amp persuaion, I got
it for free for the taking, with about 100 pounds of various rod that
are many years old and been stored in open paper sacks.

I tried a project with it when I first got it, it turned out looking
like **** with all the spatter and slag balls from hell all over
everything. Granted it's got a hot arc and it'll warp the **** out of
stuff, but having used a clean, tidy MIG welder, a job that has to be
chipped and flap wheeled afterward is just unacceptable if you know
what I mean.

Do I try some new, fresh rod and blame the mess on the old rod, or do I
throw the A/C machine away and spring for the big MIG? I would
eventually like to get into aluminum trailer frames, so the MIG would
be beneficial, but honestly the 135 is still gonna be my main workhorse
regardless of what I do, as I make nearly all my stuff out of thin wall
material.

The lines are open, you be the judge...

The 135 will do .188 wall steel with fluxcore just fine, though
dutycycle will be somewhat limited and it's a bit slow.

Stick works well, but any stick will require some slag chipping.
Fluxcore isn't as clean as MIG, but considerably cleaner than stick.

If you tried a Millermatic 210, I think you'd own one pretty quick.
Its range is from 22 gage (.032") to 3/8" steel. I've found it very
easy to weld 1/16" wall thickness conduit with it, haven't tried it
yet on thinner stock. In addition, it is MUCH easier to weld
out-of-position with MIG (the 210) than with stick.

The 135 may be a better machine for very thin stock like 24-gage
autobody sheetmetal.

The smaller 220 volt machines would also well serve your needs for
steel to 1/4" or 5/16", but would lack the migration path to
aluminum. If you see aluminum in your future, go for the 210.