What happened to the Vulcan ProTig 200?

[filetobeef]

got confirmation that new protig 205 will come out in January 2020.
asking about new features.stay tuned if any reply comes my way.

[Astrobuf]

I have a Protig 200 that will be less than 1 yr old in January. Will I want to exchange it, or keep it?

Astrobuf

[California]

With that model orphaned before many were sold, there may never be third-party components to maintain it. I would take them up on the exchange warranty, on the basis that it has no future so it isn't what you had expected when you bought it.

That exchange warranty was a feature intended to get the units out there for the public to try. The discontinuance is now an unexpected disadvantage of that model, in my opinion justifying exchange for a current model.

[shovelon]

I have a Protig 200 that will be less than 1 yr old in January. Will I want to exchange it, or keep it?

Astrobuf

Well if it were me I would take advantage of the one year satisfaction guaranty, get my refund, and then use the money for an upgrade of your choice. If you purchase the new improved ProTig205 then HF will be thrilled. Whether it has the same satisfaction guaranty, IDK.

[filetobeef]

Well if it were me I would take advantage of the one year satisfaction guaranty, get my refund, and then use the money for an upgrade of your choice. If you purchase the new improved ProTig205 then HF will be thrilled. Whether it has the same satisfaction guaranty, IDK.

this is what i'm thinking also.
mine will be coming up on 1 year in the next few weeks.still debating turning it in and waiting on the new HF protig ,assuming it really does come!

[rolibr]

How long of a warranty do these welders have?

I keep hearing about a "1 Year" warranty. A little while back I got a ProTig 165 and it only came with a 90 day. I had to pay additional for a 1 year and even more for a 3 year.


You guys with the 1 year warranty, are you paying extra for that or is that what comes standard? If it comes standard is that a regional thing?

[jfh]

The 1 year warranty was only for the first models being sold for a limited time.

[shovelon]

The 1 year warranty was only for the first models being sold for a limited time.

The 90 day warranty is to get past infancy failure. That was their logic. Even then it took some convincing to get them to offer warranty for purchase. Well worth it. They told me that they wanted to target the professional market and I told them I would must have 3 years to justify my ROI and tax strategies.

[California]

it took some convincing to get them to offer warranty for purchase.

If HF thought they would lose money if they sold warranties for their welders .... that's not encouraging.

So in effect buying the 3 year warranty is an essential part of the purchase. You're betting that some units won't last that long and HF didn't want the other side of that bet.

I'm looking at this from a marketing case study perspective. About the time of that extreme management turnover, I anticipated the growth that has now followed. (Kinda like watching early Ebay. A good guess on that got me most of the cost for a new car). I looked for ways to invest in HF. Nope, it remains owned by a single stockholder. Who takes all the cash out of it that HF can raise or borrow. It's interesting to watch but there's no way to buy into their profitability.

[filetobeef]

The 90 day warranty is to get past infancy failure. That was their logic. Even then it took some convincing to get them to offer warranty for purchase. Well worth it. They told me that they wanted to target the professional market and I told them I would must have 3 years to justify my ROI and tax strategies.

no update on the upcoming tig205,if it's really coming?
i only have 2 weeks to return my protig200 before the 1year is up!

[shovelon]

If HF thought they would lose money if they sold warranties for their welders .... that's not encouraging.

So in effect buying the 3 year warranty is an essential part of the purchase. You're betting that some units won't last that long and HF didn't want the other side of that bet.

I'm looking at this from a marketing case study perspective. About the time of that extreme management turnover, I anticipated the growth that has now followed. (Kinda like watching early Ebay. A good guess on that got me most of the cost for a new car). I looked for ways to invest in HF. Nope, it remains owned by a single stockholder. Who takes all the cash out of it that HF can raise or borrow. It's interesting to watch but there's no way to buy into their profitability.

My 3 year ROI means that all the expenses involved with the purchase of tig welders are recovered within that time. So take for instance my purchase of Miller Dynasty400. Total cost to me is $9k. If I use said tig welder 20 hours a week at $80/hr, times 50 weeks a year, times 3 years I have billed $240k. Seeing as my shop rate reflects 4 times cost, that piece of equipment generated $60k. So my investment was returned at least 6 times in 3 years provided warranty kept me operating for that 3 year period. My Dynasty700 took twice as long to realize ROI but was realized within 12 months and well worth the investment.

The investment of my LincolnSW200 at $1500 including 5 year warranty upgrade was returned just shy of 3 years with 2 years warranty left. It took that long because I use it only for portable or field applications. I teach workshops with it and the HF tigs as well. Harbor Freight has me lending my beta units to the local high schools, and local universities to build their competition entries. Cal State Northridge welds their steel bridge. University of Southern California welds their off road chassis. The high schools weld their "First Robotics" chassis.

[shovelon]

no update on the upcoming tig205,if it's really coming?
i only have 2 weeks to return my protig200 before the 1year is up!

Only info I have is Feb 2020 seems to be the debut of the 205 and that is second hand info. The last time I remember that the stores were building inventory for a couple months before debut. In fact the debut happened before I even knew it. They wanted me to do an online video but I had to tell them maybe when the production unit was available I would consider it. They had a production unit on my floor within 2 days. The 200 would still be on the shelves if not for the settlement they made with Lincoln to discontinue production. Figuring Harbor Freight has over 1000 stores, and each store has sold at least 20 units, then you can expect that Harbor Freight manufactured and sold at least 20,000 ProTig200s.

[mechanic416]

no update on the upcoming tig205,if it's really coming?
i only have 2 weeks to return my protig200 before the 1year is up!

I am betting they will not come out with the new one until all the old ones can't be returned.

[paulbuz]

no update on the upcoming tig205,if it's really coming?
i only have 2 weeks to return my protig200 before the 1year is up!

just got email clicked on the live from sema and had alot of new stuff including tig 205 coupon so must be coming soon

[cmh31909]

just got email clicked on the live from sema and had alot of new stuff including tig 205 coupon so must be coming soon

What was the price on the 205?

[Dave66]

What was the price on the 205?

$899 (using coupon). ProTig 205 SEMA Coupon. FYI - The coupon expires 11/24/2019. So if they aren't available in store before then, I presume they'd issue rain checks and notify you when they arrived.

[cmh31909]

$899 (using coupon). ProTig 205 SEMA Coupon. FYI - The coupon expires 11/24/2019. So if they aren't available in store before then, I presume they'd issue rain checks and notify you when they arrived.

Thanks for posting that! It would be nice if we had some idea what if any differences that are between the 205 and current 200's other than possibly 5 amps...lol

[Dave66]

Try taking a look at the user manual for the HF accessory tig torch. It includes what appears to be a CAD representation of the Protig 205 new LCD screen. And if it is accurate, is a notable improvement over the 200. I'll try to upload a screen grab from the manual and edit my post if successful...

[filetobeef]

it has quite a few improvements .

[cmh31909]

I saw that section in the torch manual, and while it looks 'cool', it still does not really tell you about what feature-set the machine has.

[av8r]

I've been using my Pro Tig 200 for a couple years now without issue. If this new one has some better features, I'd be all over it.

[av8r]

Just talked to a buddy who manages the local HF. Said to call him Friday AM and he'll have something for me.

[cmh31909]

It would be super-cool (lol) if they offered some kind of trade-up program for existing owners of ProTig 200's.
I would love to have the latest and greatest and would be willing to pay an incremental upgrade fee, but probably cannot justify all out buying a brand new machine and since the 200 is discontinued, would probably not be able to get a decent amount for it if I tried to sell it.

[av8r]

It would be super-cool (lol) if they offered some kind of trade-up program for existing owners of ProTig 200's.
I would love to have the latest and greatest and would be willing to pay an incremental upgrade fee, but probably cannot justify all out buying a brand new machine and since the 200 is discontinued, would probably not be able to get a decent amount for it if I tried to sell it.

They sell for around $500 online (used). I think I paid $699 for mine so no big deal. Have to see what the new one has to offer.

[filetobeef]

from what i've been told,pre and post flow are adjustable,possibly wider range on pulse,high frequency start and "advanced functions" whatever that means.
read on their ordering system that it still has 1 year free trial warranty but the sales people said only 90 days!