newbie getting ready to buy first welder

[jgriner]

ive never touched a welder of any kind, but have always wanted to learn how to weld.

someone has just posted a Lincoln 225 in some local classified ads. hes asking for 100 bucks for it. I dont know what to look for when thinking about buying a used welder. is that welder a good one? I will be working with mostly thick steel, about 1in to 1.5in thick, maybe some on tractors and lawn mowers.

What else should i know about before buying my first welder?

[Lanse]

Those machines are bulletpoof, and if it starts and runs and welds right when you buy it, you should be set.

Most of them are AC only, but youde be better off with an AC/DC model, although they are more expensive. You can do a lot with AC, but once you try DC, you'll never want to go back. DC is also better for out of position work, and specialty rods.

But, if this is all you can afford/find right now, you could buy it, use it for a year, and sell it for what you paid for it, or more. Thats what I'm doing with mine :-)

Good luck...

[norite]

Originally Posted by jgriner

I will be working with mostly thick steel, about 1in to 1.5in thick, maybe some on tractors and lawn mowers.

What else should i know about before buying my first welder?

If you are really planning to weld much steel up to 1.5" thick, this welder won't cut it. It has enough amperage to run a fairly big rod but the duty cycle will be so low you will have to spend most of your time letting the welder cool off or you will overheat it. If 1" to 1.5" thick steel is what you will mostly be working with then you need a higher capacity welder.

If you are like most beginners, welding steel this thick will be a rare occurance with the majority of welds done on much lighter material, then you should be OK.

[BCTimberwolf]

Hey jgriner, where ya located?

[jgriner]

Originally Posted by norite

If you are really planning to weld much steel up to 1.5" thick, this welder won't cut it. It has enough amperage to run a fairly big rod but the duty cycle will be so low you will have to spend most of your time letting the welder cool off or you will overheat it. If 1" to 1.5" thick steel is what you will mostly be working with then you need a higher capacity welder.

If you are like most beginners, welding steel this thick will be a rare occurance with the majority of welds done on much lighter material, then you should be OK.

i work on banks security equipment and i can get some steel from bank safes and old atms most range from .75 - 1.5in thick so i will probably doing some thicker stuff, but not
just

for example i got an old atm safe the other day from work its 1.5in thick, i had to have the old dispenser hole welded up, i took it to the local tech collage and had them weld it up for me (it was free ) but i would like to be able to do that crap my self.

Originally Posted by BCTimberwolf

Hey jgriner, where ya located?

Paducah, ky

[BCTimberwolf]

Cool, just asking cuz I have one of my old 225's on CL for $100. I think it is more than a fair price, but as was mentioned before, they are power hungry and the duty cycle on the top range is limited. You can look at it this way, buy the welder and see if you think welding is for you. If not, turn around and sell it for the exact same price. You arent going to lose money on the deal. If you do like welding and it turns into an obsession, well....you're on your own after that haha

[ranger225]

duty cycle where its at. 225 amps is is plenty of power if you can use it for more than 30 seconds.1.5 inch steel is really big but if you prep it right you can weld it no prob with that lincoln buzz box. itll just take a long time to do even small repairs cause of that 10-20%duty cycle

[weldbead]

if i had to weld 1 1/2" thick steel, id multipass and use 1/8" 7018 at 120 amps and the duty cycle would never come into play..

[jsm11]

Originally Posted by weldbead

if i had to weld 1 1/2" thick steel, id multipass and use 1/8" 7018 at 120 amps and the duty cycle would never come into play..

x2

I've rarely seen the issue with duty cycle....

Weld 1st pass
Chip slag
brush
Inspect
Weld
Weld 2nd pss
Repeat....

Pick that machine up...
$100 is a plenty fair deal.

[ranger225]

youll see when you start welding 1.5 inch steel,and a good joint will have multiple weld beads too. trust me.i repair/fabricate stuff this size a lot.youll have the amperage availible right away, but it will teeder out real quick if you dont let that machine rest a bit between passes.dont get me wrong its a reputable machine its just that it wasnt really designed to do a lot of welding on huge material. my first machine had a 20%duty cycle. it welded 1/4-3/8 all day but hit that limit quickly when welding on bigger stuff like1/2 in. preheat also necessary on big material.7018 wont save u all the time.buy it still, and borrow you buddies torches

[ranger225]

jsm 11 uses engine drives. dont know about the sa, but that miller most likely has 100% duty cycle,hes not conceren about duty cycle cause it not an issue w his equipment.

[tanglediver]

A used AC/DC transformer in the 250 amp range will out-live most of us, and do a fine job. There are not as many on the market as the 225 AC machine, but they sure can do the work.