This made me chuckle it's like buying a Ford vs. Chevy by how the glove box works

 

Will you be using it more hours as a welder or a generator????

I'm more familiar with the Lincoln machine but was told that the Miller is a "good generator you can also weld with" while the Lincoln is a "good welder that can also be used as a generator". However, like I said, no personal anecdotes or side by side comparisons.

 

battery access in really trivial deciding factor for such a purchase. you shouldn't need to mess with it but every 5ish years. imho

i bought a tb325efi a couple months ago and the biggest reason was NOISE, the miller units (bobcat/tb both) are aroiund 75db and the lincoln 100db. thats a HUGE difference. especially if your working near the machine for much of the day. the miller makes less noise at full load than the lincoln at idle!

second the miller (efi) was able to power my plasma pm65 at 65amps. the lincoln would have faults and had to be careful not to strech the arc, so plasma gouging was out.

the lincoln is 600lbs vs the miller 500lbs. again a big differance.


for me the only thing the lincoln had over the miller was the remote hookup. which isn't something i use.

 

The Trailblazer isn't a consideration for the OP. He's looking at the Bobcat. And as he stated, they both use the same Kohler engine. Presumably this means that the noise will be roughly the same.

 

I had a Ranger a few years ago and now I have a Bobcat 250. I see the newer Ranger GXT 250 has a remote connector, if that's of interest, the Bobcat doesn't. As far as welding and using the generator, I can't see any difference. They are both good. The battery isn't hard to get to unless you mount it up against something that would make it hard to get to. This is my first Miller, I have had several Lincoln Rangers. I have about 300 hard hours on the Bobcat it with no problems, and have had several 10 hour days with it. Probably 50/50 on using the generator/stick. I always check to see where I can get repairs and warranty work done, just in case. To me, for this class it is kind of the Ford vs. Chevy comparison. I do see in the specs the Lincoln is much noisier than the Miller. I know my older Ranger was noisy, and that is something to think about.

 

I would definitely consider the TRAILBLAZER. Besides being a great welder the generator power is even better. While welding with the Trailblazer and You decide to activate the generator by running a power tool the WELDING ARC is not affected . If you do that with the Bobcats you will notice the difference in arc and a pause . On jobs where we needed power and welding to be done the Trailblazers were always sent out . Do a demo of each as a test.

 

That's very true. If you have a constant load like flood lights it's ok but you have to adjust the current to compensate. If someone is running a saw, plasma cutter, etc. (off and on) you really can't weld. However, if you are a one man operation it doesn't matter.

 

Thanks for the replies. This is a ranch in central Texas and we can go weeks or months without needing to weld, and then have to do it 3 out of 5 days. And that doesn't include the occasional committed major repair on a pen. For a pro, it would seem that the Trailblazer or the Ranger 305 would be the better bet, but we just can't justify the price difference. We are graduating up from a Weldanpower 225 Briggs motor. That said, the db are going to be better than that old thing.

As I understand things, the TB or Ranger 250 allows for concurrent welding and grinding if that is called for. (Though rarely in our cases.) From what we have seen and have been told, there isn't much difference between the Bobcat and the Ranger 250s.

For those who have changed the battery in the Bobcat, how difficult was it? We plan on bolting the thing to a single axle trailer with the cutting torch attached to the trailer as well.

 

I haven't changed the battery, but like all of them you have to hook it up when you get it. I've serviced it a couple of times. Access is easy, the side doors are easily removable. The manual recommends 6 and 7 " clearance for the doors to change plugs but I would leave more than that, maybe a foot or so. If you can get a chance to see one personally you probably won't have a problem. You could remote the battery if it is an issue.

Just a side note. I have also used it to power my house during two major power outages for 8 and 12 hours. Ran everything in the house including AC and electronics with no problems.

 

I can't comment about how hard the new bobcats are to remove the battery, but on my 97 bobcat you have to remove 7 bolts ( 3 on each side and 1 in the middle) and then slide the battery tray out the back. It doesn't take long to do. I have my bobcat currently on a single axle trailer with oxy/acetylene and a tool box


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Well, it is always wise to remember that Youtube has seemingly everything to look at--including the changing of a battery on a Bobcat. It is an 8 bolt job and the whole rear panel comes away with part of one side. The fellow doing it had it up on a lift for ease of access, but I would assume the rear can be pulled away even with it bolted down to a trailer.

As to the generator, when we have power outages, it's usage as to run the water well is a nice thing to have. But those outages are becoming fewer and farther between.

 

'' As to the generator, when we have power outages, it's usage as to run the water well is a nice thing to have. But those outages are becoming fewer and farther between.''

Yes, power outages are becoming less in my area too. A couple of times the power went out in winter at -5 and wind chill around -20. It doesn't take long for the house to get cold under those conditions. Even having 6'' walls and brick veneer house temperature still drops. My TRAILBLAZER did its job on those nights. It uses about a gallon a hour if running full speed and continuous. It ran house and my heat lamps and electric heater in barn. Great investment.