Portability/versatility are the main advantage to the Invision or XMT power source with seperate feeder setup.

I have a 350P in the shop with a Python push-pull torch and Reach feeder with Q300 mig gun. It's an excellent shop mig setup, but it's not easily portable and only does mig, so it fills a specific purpose for me.

I have an XMT on the truck, which runs the spoolgun, XR feeder and push-pull torch, and Suitcase feeder and mig gun. Because it is CC/CV, it also stick welds and runs the tig torch and foot pedal. It's a very versatile machine to have on the truck and is reasonably portable too, alot more so than the 350P. I have the Optima pulser so it can pulse mig too, but I don't use the pulse very often on the truck like I do in the shop.

The Invision power supplies are CV-only, so no stick/tig capability with those like the XMT. Many are 3-phase only too, but I think the new Alumafeed package uses a single and 3 phase Invision, and the new XR-D digital feeder with choice of XR pistol or Alumapro gooseneck push-pull torches. The Alumapro is Millers own updated/improved version of the tried and true MK Python.

Which one is best for you depends on how you need to use it and what you want it to do for you.

For shop only use, the Millermatic 350P with push-pull torch is by far the best deal for aluminum pulse mig, alot less money than an XMT or Invision with XR feeder and torch. Going over the info on the Alumafeed package, I really don't see a big enough advantage to the Alumafeed package over the 350P in a shop to justify the higher cost of the Alumafeed. With the new Reach feeder option for the 350P, it can weld with aluminum wire in the machine with a push-pull torch and steel wire in the feeder and swap between the two, which was previously not possible. That used to be one adavantage I saw to having the Invision or XMT in a shop instead of the 350P, as the Invision or XMT can connect to as many different feeders and guns as you have a need for with different wires loaded in each. That advantage is no longer exclusive to the seperate power supply/feeder setup anymore with the Reach feeder and/or spool gun in the mix.

For mobile use, the XMT/Invision power supplies with seperate feeders win over the 350P, hands down. I would not want to carry my 350P around on the truck with me that would be rediculus. The XMT is very good for that though.

Personally, if I wanted a mobile setup, I would go for versatility, which to me means multi-process capability, which means the mig/stick/tig XMT instead of the mig-only Invision. If money were no object and I had a need for alot of mobile aluminum mig, I'd have a new XMT 350MPa with XR-D feeder and Alumapro torch, as well as Spoolmatic 30A spool gun and WC24 controller with long extension cable, along with Suitcase 12VS and 12RC feeders for steel mig. The XMT is also a truely excellent stick welder and a good dc tig welder too, if you dont mind not having HF start. The 350 models have the internal gas valve option for tig welding and of course the foot pedal plugs right in.

 

AF answer to your quistion I have not used or heard anything good or bad on the miller aluma feed system. you didn't say wheather you were going to be useing this in shop or portable ? . Also just for fabing or repair or how heavy of material you would be working with. If you want a malti-tasking machine the miller 350MP is a good choice.
I have a linclon 350MP , which i"ve had for 3 plus yrs. I am mostly a job shop repair but do some fabing. I chose the linclon over the miller because I can stick and gouge if need be. Also the linclon has pulse on pulse which is nice on lighter gage alum. Other wise the two machines are pretty much equal. The one thing you have to learn is to write down your setting in a little black bible. That is if you change modes often or have special set ups. I just happen to be that person.
This is just my two cents. Not knowing just what you are looking for in a multi-task machine you might take a look at the linclon350. lol

 

Thanks for all the info DesertRider33. I only work with aluminum, both as a fabrication shop and for my own entrepreneurial work. Tig is no longer going to cut it, as far as being price competitive with other aluminum fab shops goes. I have no real need to be mobile, but there is some value in the option to be, if ever it was neccesary.

My biggest concern with the 350P is its inability to handle voltage spikes and drops. Even the tech at Miller told me it can be a problem for the 350P. I don't really even know if I have 'dirty power' as the Miller tech called it, but he said it would cause inconsitent wire feed speeds and yield inconsistent welds, whereas the Autoline technolgy and the better slave drive motor technology in the Invision will compensate for voltage inconsistentcy and is suppose to always lay down a perfect weld.

What I really like about the AlumaFeed, in theory and wish I could talk to someone who has used one to confirm it, is that when you adjust the wire feed speed with the dial on the push/pull gun, it adjusts all the parameters on the machine to compensate for the change in wire feed speed. Is seem to me this would be really efficient when starting with a cold piece of aluminum and as it heats up and begin to really flow, you can just reduce wire speed on the fly and still keep on welding in the same parameters. Now, there's a lot that I don't know about the 350P operates, so maybe this wouldn't be much of an advantage, but if it is, I'd gladly pay extra for it, because anything that makes welding aluminum more efficient is worth it to me. Also, there is a "profile pulse" setting on the alumafeed that leaves the desired stacked dime look automatically. Seems a little gimicky at first, but it could increase efficiency considerably on large jobs.

 

The 350P's pulse program is also 'synergic' like the Alumafeed's, with the same one-knob adjustment on the torch and the machine matches the voltage and rest of the settings just like you describe. The 350P is by far the easiest pulse mig to set up that I have ever run.

As far as the the dirty power issue, I welded aluminum production with 350P's at my old job before buying one for myself. We ran them on 460 3-phase and we had dirty power in the shop and the machines just kept on welding and welded great. You can test your supply voltage at the outlet at different times of the day and determine if you have stable voltage supply or not in your shop. I have never heard of anyone not being able to make good welds with a 350P in a shop because it couldn't run on the available power. I wouldn't worry about that issue at all unless you are certain you have a very extreme power fluctuation problem that has already caused problems with other equipment in the shop.

From what you have described as your intended use (shop use only and aluminum only), the 350P with Alumapro torch package would be the best choice for the money, in my opinion.

 

Thanks again DR33, that really makes me lean more toward the 350P. I'll let the thread go a few more days in case anyone with AlumaFeed experience has something to offer about it, but plan to order something this Friday from my LWS, probably the 350P at this point and save the extra $2,000 or add some more fume extraction equipment, you never regret paying for good clean air.

 

No doubt, a fume extraction system would have been nice when I was welding aluminum production. We left the shop doors open and put small fans behind our backs in our booths and that helped some. Company was too cheap to put in an extraction system for us.

Whichever machine you choose, I'm sure you'll be very happy with it, they're both top-notch equipment well suited to the task.

 

Aluminum fumes are definitely not to be messed with. The more I think about it, I'll probably fab my own extraction system with some off-the-shelf shop vac Hepa filters from Lowes or Home Depot and a bag of activated granular carbon from a local marine supply. The filters for the manufactred fume extractors are outrageous (around $500.00), but you can buy a thirty pound bag of activated carbon for around $80 and fab a refilable mesh filtering container (post Hepa filter). Shop vac Hepa's can be washed out, so I'm thinking you could double the CFM over most manufactured extractors and still spend a fraction on replacing Hepa/Carbon filters - and build the extractor for a third of the price.

 

I love my MM350P. I think thats bull on it not running well on the "dirty power". You need to check you power. Does it just fluctuate a few volts, or is it fluctuating 30 volts? I could see it being a problem if its 30 volts or more, but if its only a few, then you will not have a problem.
As much as I love Miller and my 350P, I hate to recommend Lincoln's 350MP. But you might want to check into that. The pulse on pulse is very nice. But the Lincoln 350MP takes some getting use to. It is harder to setup and to use. The Miller 350P is very simple and easy to use. But once you get the hang of the 350MP it can be just as easy to use as the 350P. Basically the 350P is plug and play with a few controls to turn, the 350MP has a lot of setting, controls and menus to mess with each time.

 

We have been using one for about six months; on a trial run from our local welding
supplier. It is a Miller 450mpa with Alumafeed and water cooled gun. I tried the
350mpa with Alumafeed and air cooled gun; it got a bit too warm for me: eg: more
tips and gas cups being consumed. The 450mpa with Alumafeed has proved to be
a rockstar. For the money it should be. Our hardest weld to make is our seam welds,
.25" 5454 aluminum cylinder 68" diameter welded inside; outside ground through to
inside weld. For the last fifteen years we have used the Miller 452 with XR water cooled
guns, with fair results. Problems are pin holes popping up, even though we had a good
grind ( .125 grind 100%, .25 grind 50% and stainless wire wheel).
With the profile pulsed we eliminated 90% of our weld problems.
Miller 350p is a great welder; that's what I use at home and have four at work.
It does not offer the profile pulse that the Alumafeed has.
If you plan on welding with .035 wire, get a Python gun. MK Products.