AHP 200X & Alphacut 60 or everlast powerpro 256si or ??

[scottc5]

Looking to pickup a tig/stick welder ~200amps and a plasma cutter. I chose the everlast 256 over the 205 to match the ahp plasma amps and stick amps.

Any thoughts on what route to go? I've listed the highlights I can think of for the options below, anyone have any more to add? Or have any thoughts? This will be for hobby welding. I have a cheaper MIG and a buzzbox stick now, but want to get better at stick and learn to tig. I want to get a plasma torch too and already have a nice compressor. Also had a question on AHP vs Everlast support. Ive been reading mixed reviews about both companies warranties (though AHP seems to have better reviews overall on amazon, but also fewer units), but it does seem like both companies support have improved in the last few years. I have been reading with everlast they support you diagnosing your our system and replacing parts yourself (that may seem like a con to some people but this seems like a plus to me as I am an electrical engineer and would much rather do that than ship the whole unit back and wait forever), does AHP do anything like this? I also havent seen any comparisons between the AHP and everlast plasma cutters?

1) AHP route
*two seperate units dont have to worry about breaking one and bringing down the whole unit like the everlast
*dont have to swap the gas/air lines and tig/plasma torch like the everlast
*save few hundred bucks


2) Everlast route
*gain an extra 50A of tig welding could come in handy for thick aluminum
*gain some more settings : stick arc force, gas pre flow, a little more pulse freq, (down/up slope time I think I will always be on the pedal so i'm not sure I will use these)
*higher OCV 85v vs 75
*save some space
*2 year longer warranty

3) other routes?


All input is appreciated, Thanks!

[mechanic416]

Everlast sells AHP

I would never buy any thing with a plasma cutter built into it.

[M J Mauer]

Scott, welcome to the forum.

[JDWeldAZ]

I vote for AHP route as you stated. If one machine goes down, your whole operation is shut down until you buy/fix/rent a replacement. I've had great luck with my AHP Alphatig 200x

[KMA]

Personally, I'd be nervous buying a welder with plasma cutter built in...

[Jawslandshark]

The AHP for the tig, for the plasma you can't go wrong with the Thermal Dynamics Cutmaster 52. Both of these are proven units, while I don't own the AHP a friend of mine does and have tried it out a couple times. He seems happy with it and had no problems. The Cutmaster 52 is a rock solid machine, not one time has it ever failed to do more than advertised.

[Ullihundi]

Personally, I'd be nervous buying a welder with plasma cutter built in...

Everlast sells AHP

I would never buy any thing with a plasma cutter built into it.

So I will be buying the Everlast PowerPro 256Si shortly. I have done a lot of research and watched some real encouraging video reviews of similar/lesser Everlast units that have made my decision pretty easy. 'Welding Tips and Tricks' as well as 'Weld.com' have pretty much sold me. For hobby/artistic use this is perfect, I blacksmith and this will really help expand my capabilities.
Please elaborate on what is so scary about a this kind of combo. The argument that if one function fails the whole thing is in the shop for a while is really irrelevant unless you're earning your living with this. For someone like me who does not want to spend $10,000 or more on separate units this is perfect.