New from Ohio..

[Axman]

Been welding and fitting for almost 20 years..I have my certs in stick,mig,fluxcore,and stainless.I want to start tig welding a bit and joined up to maybe get some pointers and maybe look into buying a tig machine.I have worked mostly in heavy fab, multi passes some alum..

[specter]

Hi Ya Axman and Welcome to the Welding Web family. Be sure that you do some research before you buy a TIG machine especially if you plan to use it for commercial application.

[drexydefighter]

hello...welcome to the forum......yeah...research is a must

[Axman]

Thank's guys i will..I am looking to have something for me to practice with and have for home use.Most of the weld shop's i have worked at never really did any Tig at all so i feel i need to learn it better..I had a buddy of mine that went to a Vocational school to learn TIG and basically said he would have been better off buying his own machine and learning it himself. He said there were not enough machines for people to use and said he wasted his money.I have seen that there are a lot more opportunities welding Tig then most processes besides pipe welding so i think it's time for me to learn..With buying a machine there is really a lot of home work you need to do...I want to buy a Miller or a Lincoln or Hobart but they are way out of my price range...But the import's are risky so i am at a stalemate.Also if i were to buy a used American made unit i run the risk of buying something that might break and end up costing me big money in the long run.Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks..

[4on12]

Welcome to the forum Axman.

There is excellent information and advice available on this forum. I joined this forum hoping to speed up my tig welding learning curve and it has helped, but I find myself drawn to the Math/Layout section more and more.

It would seem that we have similar backgrounds and goals for the coming year.

I’m also in the same stalemate position you find yourself in. I’ve been looking at Miller products (Dynastys and Syncrowaves) but my head aches when I think about the price. I have heard both good and bad things about the foreign made machines, but it is important to me to buy American made products when I can.

I would recommend checking out http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/ There are several short videos for beginning, intermediate, and advanced tig welding.

I would also recommend the student pack from Miller welding. http://www.millerwelds.com/resources/tools/#training The “Tig Handbook” does a good job of explaining pulsing and advanced squarewave adjustments. The whole pack was only $25 and the handbook on Pulsed Mig gives me head start on my coworkers when we upgrade our machines at work.

[ibanezed4yrs]

millers got the electric and lincoln got the powered.. everyone else i don't bother with just because of customer support and warranties... only welder i hold above lincoln and miller is MQ's"whisper weld".. so queit when it runs, you don't even know it's on... and it's diesle..

[Axman]

Only three replies come on guy's and girl's this is a big web sight..