Worth upgrading to inverter MIG?

[JOEPRO]

I have a SIP welder like this I bought new about 4 years ago now.



I use it primarily for autobody repairs. DIY use on my own cars.

Is it worth upgrading to a Inverter type MIG? Say an R tech 180?

Would this give better control on thin metals etc? Or for DIY occasional use is it not worth it?

I could always sell mine on and get back some floor storage space with the inverter type!

 

[dieselsamurai]

Hi mate here's my opinion

I have a GYS myltipearl 201 and it's made a huge difference to my diy welding efforts , but it's a big lump and although you can carry it not very far! Its mostly left on a trolley as I have a full size bottle. I did some body panel work on my brother in laws T5 and wasnt too much hassle to take it to his.
The other advantage is it will do arc and AC rig too all in the same box.
I've seen your welding I done think you need the upgrade to improve it much but I would not go back to a transformer set.

 

[tom2207]

I weld a lot of stuff with worse ,,, but new stuffs nice ,,, a pop up shelter would make your life easier as you always seem to be on the drive welding ,,,, then again summers on its way in ,,, only you have the answer.

 

[Ubique]

A quality Inverter will give you a more consistent weld, the weld quality is still down to material prep, consumables and your skill. I have recently bought a GYS Multipearl 211 after years of not bothering with MIG/MAG as I thought I just couldn't get the technique right - although I can gas, stick & TIG weld reasonably well.
After using an inverter MIG a few months ago I realised that most of my problem was the machines I'd previously used were not well maintained and the settings were 'off' by enough to cause poor quality welds 'unless you were used to the machine'.
The Multipearl is DC only but has Synerginic options which takes a lot of the guesswork out of the settings - although adjustments are possible to suit variables not able to be programmed.
In short, it's as pleasure to use, I can focus on the workpiece without having to constantly trim the machine settings.
Personally I wouldn't say the R-tech would give you much improvement for your money, you need to spend a bit more for the machine to make a difference. I have used an R-tech TIG a couple of times and I wasn't hugely impressed, it was adequate, no more - but you know what opinions and rseholes have in common....

 

[Richiew]

I think your car repairs are top notch with what you have already. Diminishing returns for the extra spend.

 

[dieselsamurai]

Hi mate here's my opinion

I have a GYS myltipearl 201 and it's made a huge difference to my diy welding efforts , but it's a big lump and although you can carry it not very far! Its mostly left on a trolley as I have a full size bottle. I did some body panel work on my brother in laws T5 and wasnt too much hassle to take it to his.
The other advantage is it will do arc and AC rig too all in the same box.
I've seen your welding I done think you need the upgrade to improve it much but I would not go back to a transformer set.

Sorry meant to say DC Tig/GYS211 i was on mobile and a pain to type!

 

[dieselsamurai]

I think your car repairs are top notch with what you have already. Diminishing returns for the extra spend.

I second that I dont think he will see much improvement for the extra expense but like @Ubique says the GYS is synigetic too so was a lot more than just an inverter mig so once the old Sip is sold might not be too expensive to upgrade

 

[arther dailey]

I tried an rtech 180 , a local guy was selling ,on 1mm tin it worked is the kindest way to put it , he also had a super cheap mig, think it was euromig or similar name, asked if I could try that..wow chalk n cheese, super smooth and consistant , I offered to buy that ..urgh no why do you think I am selling the rtech was his answer. Yet I hear the rtech 250 to be a belter.

 

[premmington]

I still using a wound coil MIG welder for "tin bashing - MOT repairs".

I also reckon 0.6mm A18 wire in pure CO2 is better for the job.

 

[JOEPRO]

Hi all,

I will reply better in a little while. I spotted this for sale locally and wasn't sure if available.

It was available and brand new un used for £480 for all. Inc the mid size new sealed hobbyweld gas bottle and reg etc. I needed a new bottle of gas anyway and this is twice the size of my current one which is empty.

The welder hasn't had a plug fitted yet so I'll fit one now.

This was a ridiculous deal hence I went for it. The lady bought the welder and fell of a roof a while later whilst helping a friend. She dislocated both shoulders so can no longer take on her hobby. Hence why it was for sale brand new unused condition.

If I don't like it I can always sell on the welder.

It came with a new welding trolley and welding curtain too.

So in my mind the welder owes me around £200 new

 

[JOEPRO]

Got a new rubber permplug fitted. It turns on fine and ran a quick couple of tacks on scrap metal to see if it was working OK.

It sounds different to my other MIG for sure. Smoother and more power. I'll download the destruction manual and have a proper go later.

I'll also list my other SIP MIG on Gumtree in the coming days. It's like brand new condition so I should still be able to get £300 or so for it.

 

[roblane65]

I've got to go along the lines of you do get what you pay for ( although I do have the luxury of needing a mig to be just a mig as I have other machines and I'm just a hobby welder ) but when I had the bester I spent as much time twidling knobs as I did welding ! I know people will say it's cheating but when using the synergic on the kemppi ( minarc mig evo ) it's dial in thickness and away you go . It's the mutts nuts and was a game changer for me and worth every penny spent . Just my opinion though .

 

[Ubique]

I don't see it as cheating, I see it as using other peoples knowledge and experience to your advantage - after all, not many people compile their own OS for their PC, tablet or phone...

@JOEPRO That's a great bargain you've got there, whilst I have sympathy for the sellers situation - at that price, I'd have snapped her hand off as well! (as long as it didn't put her shoulder out again...)

 

[JOEPRO]

Another quick try out on a bit of spare box section



It definitely feels alot more powerful and smoother than my SIP.

And as for those fillet welds I've never ran smoother welds. That's kneeling on my garage floor too.

With practice and on a bench I think this will most definitely produce nicer more consistant welds compared to my SIP

 

[addjunkie]

Not sure where you live but you should advertise the other one on a welding forum!

 

[arther dailey]

Another quick try out on a bit of spare box section

View attachment 396822View attachment 396823

It definitely feels alot more powerful and smoother than my SIP.

And as for those fillet welds I've never ran smoother welds. That's kneeling on my garage floor too.

With practice and on a bench I think this will most definitely produce nicer more consistant welds compared to my SIP

that sip should be able to do same as that weld on box , the ones I had did . either way at the price you paid its win win and free gas, excellent.

 

[JOEPRO]

I weld a lot of stuff with worse ,,, but new stuffs nice ,,, a pop up shelter would make your life easier as you always seem to be on the drive welding ,,,, then again summers on its way in ,,, only you have the answer.

Yes I have been welding outside but I do have 2x garages. Masonry cavity wall ones. And a Clarke temporary garage.

The trouble is I have too many project cars and they block the garages at present until I get some of them going again and out of the way!

In the future I will be extending my garages and I'll try to build a little workshop with permanent workbenches/ welding setup inside.

 

[Rannsachair]

I am a hobby welder and used a Cebora 130 for years until I struggled to get spares for it and bought an R-tech180 7 years ago. It instantly improved my welding, for the money I have been delighted with it.

 

[JOEPRO]

It came with a 5kg spool of .8mm wire. I loaded 0.6mm wire into it and I'll try it out tomorrow on a w124 Jack Point repair.



Unlike my last experience with Hobbyweld (multiple empty new Argon bottles) this bottle is full

 

[Turbo]

I went from a Sealey Supermig 180 to a Rtech 180a mig so a similar jump to you.

Straight away my welds improved & I'm able to get consistent decent looking beads, with the Sealey you had to get everything perfect to get a similar weld, so the Rtech is more forgiving.

Works very well on thin metal, you can really fine tune you settings on the control pots.

The only downside is that the Rtech only holds a 5kg reel. OK for me as I don't do much welding but if I did I'd rig up an external holder for 1 15kg reel.

Oh, by the way, the Rtech is a cracking stick welder too & will run a 7018 really nicely!