YESWELDER: Anyone used one of these?

[RKCRLR]

Well the tig function works very well for being lift tig. But I wont be trying spool gun welding on this thing unless someone comes up with a guide or something. This is the first machine I've ever personally owned.

I didn't mean using a spool gun (although that would be interesting also). Many MIG welders can weld aluminum with a Teflon liner and a U groove drive roll. My concern is being able to input the correct settings for aluminum (there is no direct wire feed control).
Good to hear about the TIG function, I may order the TIG torch if I decide I want to learn TIG.
This is my first machine also (sort of, I also have a trail welder).

[RKCRLR]

Just thought I'd report back on a few things.
First, DO NOT remove the wire roll spindle unless you want to see the inside of the machine. I was annoyed with the wire roll retaining nut not being captive in the retainer so I thought I'd put a dab of glue in it to hold it in. The bolt was loose in the spindle so, being anal, I thought I'd do the same thing to it. I removed the 4 screws holding the spindle on but the nuts weren't attached so they fell inside the machine. I had to remove the cover to reinstall the spindle.
The wire drive mechanism appears to be the same (or a reasonable clone) as one used on some of the 120v Lincoln welders (i.e., Pro Mig 140, Easy Mig 140, etc.).

[California]

... The bolt was loose in the spindle so, being anal, I thought I'd do the same thing to it. I removed the 4 screws holding the spindle on but the nuts weren't attached so they fell inside the machine. I had to remove the cover to reinstall the spindle.

Sounds like legendary older stuff from Harbor Freight - 'Some Assembly Required'.

Back in the day that meant take apart and reassemble the object the way it should have been in the first place.

[Shootr]

I picked up the MIG-205DS off Amazon and it was delivered today. This is the first mig machine I've ever had, only used a HF FCAW before. I don't plan on doing any aluminum so can't really help you out RKCRLR on that I'm afraid. I only have a 30amp 120v circuit to run it with for now (RV hookup) but will eventually run a 240V leg to the garage for it.

I can see a bit of a learning curve ahead of me - ran a bunch of wire to try it out and make sure it functioned and it sure is more sensitive than the old one.

[California]

I picked up the MIG-205DS off Amazon and it was delivered today. ...only used a HF FCAW before... ran a bunch of wire and it sure is more sensitive than the old one.

Which HF, and 'sensitive' how? Better? More/less power? Flux or gas? And what do you think of quality compared to HF, similar?

[ronsii]

Which HF, and 'sensitive' how? Better? More/less power? Flux or gas? And what do you think of quality compared to HF, similar?

I think shootr has the flux125 HF...

[California]

I think shootr has the flux125 HF...

If HF's Flux 125 (90A AC @ 17V and just two voltage settings) is like their previous AC flux welders then almost anything will be better. My experience with their blue AC 'MIG100' was mostly frustration.

This MIG-205DS should be worlds better.

[TraditionalToolworks]

I think shootr has the flux125 HF...

Gotta give him some credit for that...that machine would be like running the 100 yard dash in flip-flops.

[Shootr]

Which HF, and 'sensitive' how? Better? More/less power? Flux or gas? And what do you think of quality compared to HF, similar?

Yeah, the 125HF - it was baaaaasic! The Yeswelder will set wire speed and voltage if I dial in the amp value as recommended on their charts. The charts don't seem to accurate from first blush.

It will also let you set amps, wire speed, voltage, and inductance all independently to tweak it to more exacting standards.

Waaaay more powerful, on the 30amp 120v circuit it was reaching 136amps. I know I'm going to love this thing since I can see all the values, not just HI or LOW, and a wire speed knob with no correlation to IPM. With that ability, it might be a long process but I will be able to develop a cheat sheet over time as to best settings for different materials and situations.

I've only used 0.030 wire with C25 gas so far. I have a good feeling this model/manufacturer is an anomoly - more bang for the buck than anyone could have predicted.

Little things like the single knob to change settings: the quicker you spin it the quicker it jumps in value. In other words I'm not turning endlessly to get from one end of the spectrum to the other. If I turn it slow it creeps up/down. If I turn it faster it changes the value exponentially quicker.

About the only chintzy thing I see is the ground clamp is a little flimsy.

[ronsii]

Yeah, the 125HF - it was baaaaasic! The Yeswelder will set wire speed and voltage if I dial in the amp value as recommended on their charts. The charts don't seem to accurate from first blush.

It will also let you set amps, wire speed, voltage, and inductance all independently to tweak it to more exacting standards.

Waaaay more powerful, on the 30amp 120v circuit it was reaching 136amps. I know I'm going to love this thing since I can see all the values, not just HI or LOW, and a wire speed knob with no correlation to IPM. With that ability, it might be a long process but I will be able to develop a cheat sheet over time as to best settings for different materials and situations.

I've only used 0.030 wire with C25 gas so far. I have a good feeling this model/manufacturer is an anomoly - more bang for the buck than anyone could have predicted.

Little things like the single knob to change settings: the quicker you spin it the quicker it jumps in value. In other words I'm not turning endlessly to get from one end of the spectrum to the other. If I turn it slow it creeps up/down. If I turn it faster it changes the value exponentially quicker.

About the only chintzy thing I see is the ground clamp is a little flimsy.

Yeah, even the last couple of miller 211's I got have had really bad ground clamp setups!!! a few years back they were bad but now it's even worse

[Lis2323]

Yeah, even the last couple of miller 211's I got have had really bad ground clamp setups!!! a few years back they were bad but now it's even worse

After upgrading, I save the OEM’s for a “friend” She has quite a collection and she doesn’t even know how to weld.

[ronsii]

After upgrading, I save the OEM’s for a “friend” who uses them for nipple clamps.

LOL!!!! pics !!! or it didn't happen

[RKCRLR]

Yeah, the 125HF - it was baaaaasic! The Yeswelder will set wire speed and voltage if I dial in the amp value as recommended on their charts. The charts don't seem to accurate from first blush.

It will also let you set amps, wire speed, voltage, and inductance all independently to tweak it to more exacting standards.

The Yeswelder settings seem hot. I think they are set up for traveling fast in a straight line without weaving, maybe targeting fast production.
I don't think there is a way to control wire speed separately, it is baked into the other settings. How are you getting to a wire speed setting?

[Shootr]

The Yeswelder settings seem hot. I think they are set up for traveling fast in a straight line without weaving, maybe targeting fast production.
I don't think there is a way to control wire speed separately, it is baked into the other settings. How are you getting to a wire speed setting?

There's not, I was getting ahead of myself. Just excited I guess to have a capable welder for once lol.

[dooleykevin70]

The mig 250 is 399.99 an it's great mig amps are 250 so is tig but stick is 220 but has lot of options

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[Shootr]

There's not, I was getting ahead of myself. Just excited I guess to have a capable welder for once lol.

As I've been practicing and learning with the -205DS and googling about settings and values, I've come to these conclusions:

*Wire speed is set by amperage, for .030 wire the wire feed is 2 x the amperage setting? I have an old 2lb spool of crappy flux core wire, so when my current one runs out I want to use it for some speed tests and see if that is really the truth with this machine.

*A couple youtube video reviews show how to use the voltage +/- values to lower or the raise the voltage for a set amperage. That has been super useful in getting me into the ballpark for correctly setting it up per this chart another reviewer shared:


*I still can't run a bead to save my life - lot's of bench practice in my future...

[RKCRLR]

^^^
I think think a workaround for the wire speed might be to tell it you're using a different size wire than you are actually using.
If you're using 0.030" (.8mm) wire and you want a faster wire speed, tell it you're using .6 mm wire. If you want slower, tell it you're using .9 mm wire.
Obviously there would a lot of tweaking necessary. I haven't tried this myself.

[Shootr]

If you really want a deal...(or are a gambler...)

Amazon Warehouse is their scratch and dent area - they have a "used-like new" MIG-205DS for $200.

[California]

If you really want a deal...(or are a gambler...)

Amazon Warehouse is their scratch and dent area - they have a "used-like new" MIG-205DS for $200.

Looks like you got the last MIG-205DS. Searching Amazon on MIG-205DS now goes to the ARC-205DS (stick) and clicking your link goes to the TIG-205DS which is "currently unavailable".

Can't find MIG-205DS anywhere on Amazon, as retail or Warehouse.

None found on Ebay either.


Anybody have some ideas for something similar that is decent quality?

[dooleykevin70]

Try yes welder website if you are looking for their brand if you like the 205ds I would honestly suggest the mig 250

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[TraditionalToolworks]

Try yes welder website if you are looking for their brand if you like the 205ds I would honestly suggest the mig 250

That does look like a better machine, but oddly there is no manual on the site for it, where there is for the 205ds.

Looks like a better display and more adjustments as well as more power at the expense of not having 120v operation, which I am not sure why anyone would use 120v unless they just didn't have 240v. The thing with the 120v circuit is that it needs a lot of amps, which is not commonly available on 120v circuits in most homes, so most welders tend to pop the breakers. I'm not in the market for a welder, but they sure are cheap. They seem to have a niche carved into multi-process machines, the 250 tig ac/dc seems mediocre in comparison with the Primeweld 225. Slighly more amps, slightly less price, but no CK Worldwide torch.

[dooleykevin70]

Manual sucks that comes with it. It does 120/220 but only comes with 220 plug in no adapter max 30v wfs of approximately 592 no tig torch with it but accepts one I have from my Vulcan omnipro 220 an doesn't come with knurled rollers for fluxcore wire. I have modified it to accept up to .052 wire an it works decently for all I do . Inductance goes from -10 to 10 hot start an burn back with mig

Sent from my LGL455DL using Tapatalk

[TraditionalToolworks]

Manual sucks that comes with it. It does 120/220 but only comes with 220 plug in no adapter max 30v wfs of approximately 592 no tig torch with it but accepts one I have from my Vulcan omnipro 220 an doesn't come with knurled rollers for fluxcore wire. I have modified it to accept up to .052 wire an it works decently for all I do . Inductance goes from -10 to 10 hot start an burn back with mig

Does it allow adjustment for wirefeed speed?

[dooleykevin70]

It's wfs is in m/min so basically an it goes form 2m/min to 15m/min

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[TraditionalToolworks]

It's wfs is in m/min so basically an it goes form 2m/min to 15m/min

Does it let you select that in increments of 1m/min?

That would be a huge advantage over the 205ds, IMO, since it sounded like the 205ds would only allow the user to set the size of the wire and determine the feed based on that.

If the 250 allows that to be set, it would be more than worth the extra $50.