welder
 

looking to get a better welder for my garage. my main uses will be welding exhaust, some light fabrication work what do you guys use/ recomend

I use a Millermatic 175 and it's perfect. Will do light to medium duty welding, so IMO from sheet metal to roll bars and frames. I think the 180 is the new model now. But either way, get a 220V welder.

thanks ill check it out

how does lincoln electric stack up?

They make a good product as well. Some people swear by lincoln over miller, others the other way around. I like miller products better... but again, I'm no pro.

I'm with Bill. I have a Millermatic 175 and I am very please with it. I settled on the 175 because my buddy had purchased a 135 and told me it was nice but if he had it to do over he would get the 175.

I use a Lincoln 255 most of the time. Current work has Lincolns mainly, and my old job did also.

My friend has the Miller equivalent to the 255 (forget the model) and I really can't say ones better then the other.

we have like super old millers at work... and they work great... so i guess they are a quality product... dont forget this is at a body shop and they are full of dust on the inside and are used everyday and little to no problems... just replaced the trigger and liner in one of them from being worn out but other than that they weld nice... when i buy a welder ill prob look for a used miller....

what do you have currently and are you looking to get rid of it?

i was looking into welders a while back. brand new, from hobart, was a 110 welder for less than $500. i can't remember the model number i was looking at, but that kind of price is what they get for used welders... with no warrantee. check out http://www.hobartwelders.com/products/wirefeed/ for more info.

^^^What he said. I bought my Hobart new a few years ago for about $400. I think it's the Handler 187. Granted, I wouldn't use it to build cages and stuff, but it's great for sheet metal, exhaust, etc., especially since I switched over to gas (From flux core).

I recently had the pleasure of borrowing a huge Millermatic 220v welder and it really is point and shoot. Awesome machine to work with. Unless you're building roll cages and fabbing with heavier steel, it's a little bit overkill for the thinner stuff.