Another new guy

[Exarkun]

Hi there

Just joined the forum. I've been reading over a whole bunch of stuff on here over the past couple of weeks. Learning to weld has been on my to do list for a few years now. It's one of those things were semi regularly I end up coming across jobs that I could get done with a welder.

So I picked up a Clarke 135TE.

I know that the disposable gas that came with it isn't going to last long so I need to get a larger bottle. I'm not 100% decided on what will be best for the gas yet (rent free(possibly hobbyweld) or the BOC offer) but I know I'll need some other bits n' pieces to hook my machine up to the new bottle.

Can someone provide a list of stuff that I will need for this please?

 

[Badger1bear]

Welcome to the forum buddy, you will find everything you need to know here

Badger

 

[Exarkun]

I'm a step closer now. I picked up the gas today. It's a sgsgases 10ltr bottle of argon / co2 mix. 5%. That should do the trick. I figured I would just get a regulator at the autofactors where I got the gas. Unfortunately the guy behind the counter didn't really know about welding gear and didn't know what the right stuff was.

A couple more questions though. What's the difference between a twin and a single regulator? Also how do I tell if I need a side or bottom entry reg?

Thanks

 

[Tigman]

Hello and welcome , single stage regulators are fine , twin stage regulators are more stable and accurate , if the outlet on the bottle is vertical on the top of the bottle gauge will be upright , if the outlet is on the side of the bottle you will need an elbow so the gauge is upright have a look on Weldequip at the top of the page

 

[Exarkun]

I hooked up the argon mix this weekend for five minutes and I can certainly see the difference to the Co2. I still need to get a clean bit of metal to practice on though. I've only tried on a slightly rusty circular saw blade that I had lying around.