Who makes a heavy duty TIG welder that holds up?

[videorov]

Im planning to weld aluminum 1/8 to 1/4" thick. Some steel aswell a little thicker.
Is it possible to have one type welder for all or should I be thinking of having a
TIG and a MIG. The welds on say 1/8" flat stock will be corner welds around 5" long.
I will put a few of them down a 4ft section. I don't need it welded all the way down and
it will keep the heat down.
Ive been looking at Miller have a local dealer here that sell's gas aswell.
Any computer controlled machines like the plazma cutter's are getting. For straight long repeat welds.
Just wonder?

[Donald Branscom]

Miller, Lincoln, and Hobart. Excellent reliability from industrial grade machines.

Give all details to your local welding supply store about what you are doing and an experienced person will be able to help you. DONT go to a big box store.

[duaneb55]

What Donald said plus stay away from the 'fortune cookie' brands if you want a unit that is heavy-duty and stands up. It's not unusual for those units to arrive in the mail DOA.

[specter]

Well I would say if your looking for industrial application TIG's go to Miller. We have a Miller Syncrowave 350xl and just sit it aside for smaller jobs! We just got a Miller MaxStar 700 and are in the process of setting it up for automation. The Syncrowave lineup is GREAT.

[lugweld]

Heyyyy!

Wait a minute... You are forgetting the grandfather of Heli-Arc...

ESAB...Its yellow but a good fellow. You can't go wrong with the people who invented the process.(although at the time it was under a different name.) Seriously take a look at their machines. They have the multi task type machines as well. You just might be impressed with their prices. They are #3 seller in the US>

[specter]

Oppsie oh yeah forgot them. Went with Miller since that is who set up the shop other than Jim Colt and crew setting up our automated 10'x40' Plasma Table.

[Craig in Denver]

ESAB had to buy Linde, just like K-Mart bought Sears. :eek: Huz-yer-daddy?? :D :confused: :cool:

[DDA52]

Yup, my Esab Heliarc 252 is a tough sucker.:cool2:

[crawler]

What Donald said plus stay away from the 'fortune cookie' brands if you want a unit that is heavy-duty and stands up. It's not unusual for those units to arrive in the mail DOA.

Does Everlast fall into that category? I've seen lots of post from users having problems with their welders.

Definitely stay with USA made welders (Miller, Lincoln, Hobart, ESAB) if you care about warranty, support, quality, and reliability.

[crawler]

dup post

[Rojodiablo]

Does Everlast fall into that category? I've seen lots of post from users having problems with their welders.

Definitely stay with USA made welders (Miller, Lincoln, Hobart, ESAB) if you care about warranty, support, quality, and reliability.

Have you heard guys with Miller, Lincoln or Hobart having problem after problem?? juuussst saying....

[lugweld]

Look,

Even US made welders have foreign compenents from time to time. Being imported isn't all to the issue. Integrity and honesty of the company is.

A import company that I rate highly is HTP. They import a lot from Italy. Their products are phenomenal in quality and durability. Their support and policies are unmatched.

Their Tig machines are feature packed.

ESAB has some of their products imported from Sweden. It is in fact a Swedish company.
They manufacture products in Florence S.C. as well and much of their line is US built.

[specter]

Ditto on what Rojo and Lug said. I had problems with chinese made units from two different manufacturers. ESAB is a VERY well establish company with good customer support. And HTP also falls into the good company to deal with range and thhey have great prices.

[Ries]

Look,

Even US made welders have foreign compenents from time to time. Being imported isn't all to the issue. Integrity and honesty of the company is.

A import company that I rate highly is HTP. They import a lot from Italy. Their products are phenomenal in quality and durability. Their support and policies are unmatched.

Their Tig machines are feature packed.

ESAB has some of their products imported from Sweden. It is in fact a Swedish company.
They manufacture products in Florence S.C. as well and much of their line is US built.

Well, if you live in Illinois, I guess you could say "unmatched".
My local welding supply, 20 minutes away, stocks parts for most common Lincoln and Miller welders, but not a single thing on the shelf for HTP.

Match that.

HTP are a good deal for the money, IF you dont mind having to fed ex parts and talk to somebody in Illinois about service and repairs.

For a hobby type, thats great- saving money balances out the inconvenience.

For a business, its a no go. I gotta have local availability of parts, consumables, and accessories ANYWHERE in the USA. If I fly into Phoenix or San Antonio, and am working on site, and something breaks, I want a part NOW, not 3 days from now.

I am a Miller man. I have had at least a dozen over the years, and still have two Tigs, 4 migs, a plasma, a spot welder, and a bunch of parts and pieces that are blue. Total repairs, since about 1978- TWO.
Both, as it happens, on my older, transformer style Syncrowave 250. Once, the main power switch wore out. In stock in town, $60. Another time, the circuit board went. $500 exchange, slots right in.

My Miller 110 volt Sidekick mig welder fell out of the back of the truck once at 25mph (my helper didnt tie it down) I banged the sheet metal case back with a hammer, plugged it in, and it still runs fine, 20 years later.
My Miller spoolgun has been beat on, dropped, burned and cursed at. Never stops working. My older miller migs, my push pull, my ancient Thunderbolt- they take unlimited abuse, and keep working.

My favorite heavy duty tig welder, though, is my Miller 304XMT. It wont do AC, so it wont do aluminum, but for everything else, it kicks ***. Its light, doesnt use much power, and does everything- stick, tig, and mig. Its incredibly powerful, gives great welds in every process, and is completely bulletproof.

[lugweld]

HTP deals direct with its customers. Never had a part that I needed that they didn't have.
Shipping was prompt. I have gonedown many times (as in yesterday) to my LWS and they didn't have anything in stock for my machine. Whose fault was it? I own both ESAB and Lincoln. The majority of the stuff I need has to be ordered.

If you are in the business and own several welding machines, you learn to anticipate the parts you will need. Consumables and the like are easy to stock in your toolbox and who just buys 1 consumable at the time? Sure I can see the issue if you are just buying one consumable at a time. But the fact is a lot of your HTP consumables interchange with national brands. Just ask them and they can tell you in a pinch.
In fact if you have any name of welder, plama cutter or something else, HTP carries an OEM quality part for it as far as consumables, guns and torches go.