TIG Welder - Miller/Lincoln/Kempi?

[andeep]

Hi all,

I'm looking to purchase a TIG welder. It must be able to do DC and AC and run off single phase.

I have always used a Lincoln V205 when I was at University, but now looking to buy a machine.

I could easily go out and buy an R-Tech, but budget allows me to buy a machine like a Miller or Lincoln and I like to buy tools that are quality and will last.

So whats your opinions? I was looking at a Miller Dynasty 200 as I have heard very good things about these. Another is a Lincoln v205? Or even a Kempi or another brand of machine as I have heard good things about them?

Machine is mainly going to be used in an automotive environment, so exhausts and aluminium parts so around 200 amps will be sufficient. I have not done any aluminium welding before, but this is something that I want to get into so the machine needs to have AC.

Many Thanks

 

[Richard.]

Between those and many others I could list it will be case of trying them out and choosing the one you like the best. Sorry that's not a lot of help but they are all very similar as far as quality is concerned. I could tell you what I would go for which would either be a magicwave 2200 or ewm tetrix 2300 but other members prefer others and you'll be back to square one. Go into a few distributors and do afew demos then decide. Don't buy straight off the net it's a big desision and you should defiantly try some others out and get it right.

 

[andeep]

Thank you for your reply Richard, it makes perfect sense to do that. Problem is that I consider myself to be very basic with TIG, as I have always MIG welded. Therefore I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the machines at my skill level.

As you said it seems that they are very similar indeed and it does come down to personal preference. Whilst someone may be accustomed to a certain machine, the change to another may take a while to get used to. This doesn't really apply to me so I think its probably best to contact a few dealers and see what package I can get for the best deal.

 

[Richard.]

If budget allows and aluminium is going to be taken seriously I would seriously consider watercooler and foot control. These two additions really do jack up the machine cost especially if you buy the oem kit. But it can be done cheaper. SSC do most machine pedals at a fraction of oem prices and as for the cooler they are fun and cheap to build. If I was going to upgrade I wouldn't bother without these essential items now.

 

[andeep]

Yep foot pedal is something that is a must for me as I have always used a pedal when doing steel.

Yes watercooling is also another thing that I need to look at in the future when I feel the need for it to be essential.

I will get in contact with a few suppliers and see what deals they can offer.

Does anyone have any experience with Empire Welding?

 

[Richard.]

I don't think you'll find any quality flaws through trying these bunch out but what you will find (even at a novice level) is which layout you like and which one you find easiest to live with. The problem is these modern acdc sets do so much fancy stuff they can be daunting and some are easier to get used to than others. The principles are the same but the way to carry out those adjustments varies from brand to brand

 

[langy]

Yep foot pedal is something that is a must for me as I have always used a pedal when doing steel.

Yes watercooling is also another thing that I need to look at in the future when I feel the need for it to be essential.

I will get in contact with a few suppliers and see what deals they can offer.

Does anyone have any experience with Empire Welding?

I have a water cooler but to be honest unless your welding 8 hrs a day you don't really need one.
I'm sure chevy2 got his dynasty from Empire, he was very happy with them.

 

[Richard.]

My cooler is used solely for one reason reduced torch size whilst still utilising the full potential of the machines capacity. I can't stand cumbersome torches and a wp9 would die after 5mins at high current so wp20 is the only option for me. As langy says unless your cooking torches you don't need it but if like me you don't like those 17/26 type then it's a must

 

[Paul G]

The mere fact that your Uni used Lincoln says it all. By coincidence my Dynasty spent the first year of it's
life in Ipswich Technical College. They ended up buying 6 Miller's. (Now 7 years ago)

If your budget allows then buy either of those.


A water cooler is easy to make for well under £100.
Mine is a car heater matrix, a desktop fan, and a submersible fish tank pump in a little tank.


IMHO the foot control is a luxury more suited to the experienced welder.

It's better if the less experienced learn what amps they are using, and learn to judge when a pool looks too hot,
or cold, and learn to adjust filler deposition rate and forward speed to match the incoming visual information.


HTH
Paul G

 

[Richard.]

IMHO the foot control is a luxury more suited to the experienced welder.

Whether it be a thumb wheel or a foot pedal if the op is wanting to weld aluminium variable current control is essential. It's not about not knowing what amps you are running it's about getting away with bursting through the oxide layer then backing right off to gain control of the pool. When coming to the end of your run you will lose it if you cannot start to taper out. I know we all have a slope down but with ally sometimes the tapering starts a good few inches before we are at the end. IMHO if any one at any level is going to take Alu seriously then current control should be 2nd on the list after an acdc.

 

[Jim Davey]

I have a tidy 230 volt ex rental water cooled EWM Tetrix 230 AC/DC machine with WP20 torch, all the leads, reg, flow etc and a foot-pedal for £2400 + VAT.
You could do a lot worse than buy one of these that's for sure.

 

[godfinds]

Have you considered Gysmi TIG 207 AC/DC HF FV from GYS?

http://gys.fr/prod-011618-739/TIG_Welding/TIG_207_AC_DC_with_accessories_SR_26DB/en

 

[Jim Davey]

Or the water cooled 208? Both really nice little sets and really good value for money.

 

[Jim Davey]

And I can do a cracking price on a 207 or 208 at the moment

 

[Richard.]

Does the 208have the cooler built in to it Jim or is it separable ?

 

[Jim Davey]

Built in, sort of, it's a separate cooler but they use different longer side panels on the machine to hold it on. So it's a taller 207 really. You can upgrade the 207 toaster cooled later but it's a lot cheaper to do it from the start.
Lovely little sets, they weld really nicely.
I'd have one for home if I couldn't pinch a Tetrix anytime I wanted one.

 

[Jim Davey]

Like so

Front panel has all the bells and whistles, slopes, pulse, freq, balance, post flow, memory yadda yadda yadda...

 

[Richard.]

Not a bad little compact unit there Jim. Do gys compare with the high end brands the op is asking about. Kemmpi, miller, lincoln ect as far as build quality and performance is concerned as they are quite a bit cheaper. I have seen the 207's at around £1400. This is closer to RTech money.

 

[Jim Davey]

They aren't at EWM, Lorch, Kemppi level yet, but they are learning super fast and seem genuinely interested in improving their brand. Reliability is HEAPS better than RTech and so is build quality, ok they don't fix as fast but I don't care if they don't fail much in the first place.
Arc quality on AC is really good too, better than by far than the R Tech digital 210 which is its closest price rival.
They are nice to deal with and have Europe's fastest expanding range of high end body shop equipment including some really inovative products. A GYS agency has infinitely more potential than an R Tech one.

 

[Richard.]

Well yeah if they are a superior machine they will defo do better as there ain't much in it as far as price is concerned.