So I have been looking into buying a welder ever since I started the restoration of my Chevelle. I would like to have a welder of my own in my garage that I can use for the projects that I have.

My father has a large 220V MIG that is currently setup for 045 to 065 wire with the torch liner and drive rollers. To change over to the 024 wire would be a pain only because we would have to switch back and forth all of the time depending on what we were doing. So larger stuff is no problem with his welder and I like the idea of the portability and flexibility of a 110V welder. Only need a 110V-20A circuit and plug to be able to use the welder!

The welders I am considering include:
Lincoln Power MIG 140C - $670 w/ cart (http://content.lincolnelectric.com/pdfs/products/literature/e723.pdf)
Miller Millermatic 140 - $680 w/ cart (http://millerwelds.com/pdf/spec_sheets/DC12-43.pdf)

I was also considering the Hobart Handler 140 - $560 w/ cart (http://www.hobartwelders.com/pdf/spec_sheets/Handler_140.pdf)...

I'm really leaning towards the Lincoln simply due to the cost of replacement parts and accessories. I also like the ground clamp and wire feeder design of the Lincoln much better than the Miller, but do not have a good feel for the design of the Hobart wire feeder. However, the Hobart doesn't have infinite amperage control like the Miller and Lincoln. Due to the fact that I may be welding up inconsistent sheetmetal thicknesses (due to rust, etc), I really feel I want/need the infinite control.

The Lincoln also comes with more parts in the box, including all of the accessories for flux core welding which the Miller does not come with, but has available.

I still have to buy a welding helmet with either of them...

Thoughts/Opinions???

I have used welders from both companies, and for some reason, i like the Lincoln better. Just the control is a little better. Plus, they are out of Cleveland Ohio!!

So do you have any buddies that can get me a discount!?

i might actually. let me do some checking. I will give ya a shout later tonight!

Very nice! The prices I listed above are from an eBay Store which I have heard good things about in some of the sheetmetal and welding forums I have been wading through. Most of those guys don't use a welder this small though.

I like the Millermatic 212, but I know that on is way out of your price range at $1700.
If I wanted a small welder, I'd go with the 140 with Auto-Set. It should be perfect for auto-body. Itscosts slightlymore than the 140 but its much easier to use.

I used a Lincoln MIG welder back in school, and I loved it...

It's alsothe brand thatthe NAIT campus uses for all its welders...

ORIGINAL: EuroGoldLS

I like the Millermatic 212, but I know that on is way out of your price range at $1700.
If I wanted a small welder, I'd go with the 140 with Auto-Set. It should be perfect for auto-body. Itscosts slightlymore than the 140 but its much easier to use.


The difference between the Autoset and the regular 140 is just in the decal in the front from my understanding. Both of them are infinite voltage control and the autoset is only $1 more expensive through the eBay store I was planning on purchasing from. The Autoset model is the one I quoted the price for anyhow.

It isn't that $1700 is out of my price range as money really isn't the factor here and rarely is when it comes to tools for my garage. I want portability. Something that I can plug into a 110V wall outlet and go.

I've got a millermatic 175 and its very nice. Never used a lincoln, but I don't think you can go wrong with either. Sounds like the lincoln is a better deal.

We used millers at tiffany coach works and never had a problem with them at all.

i have have alot of expeiance w/ both. i have had over 700 hours of welding classes not including side job, on the job and current schooling, they both work well and i would say they are equal as far as specs and capabilities, but the miller with outlast by a long shot. i have seen many lincolns give out and very few millers. i would only buy miller if money wasn't an issue. the holbart dont even compare to the other two in my opinion

Thanks blznlow'! I am really starting to lean towards the Miller.

One thing that is complicating this a bit more is the fact that the Lincoln has the spot timer which would come in quite handy for all of the spot welds that I am going to have on my Chevelle!! I don't think that the Miller has anything like that available...

Also, I just read a Guide on eBay (http://reviews.ebay.com/BUYING-A-MIG-WELDER_W0QQugidZ10000000001233749) specifically dealing with MIG welders...

i dont really know much about the spot timer. i haven't saw it before. i still say the miller. but that timer wouldn't be important to me. but if that timer is really something you need then the lincoln may be your better option. i checked w/ my localwelder dealer and they sell the miller for $658 w/ cart, you might want to check around before you pay that off ebay. maybe you have a local dealer where you live. they didnt carry the lincoln so i couldn't get a price.

Oh I definitely was going to check with the local retailers. I am only using the eBay price for a comparison.

I'm still leaning towards the Miller as the more I read about flux core, the less I think I'm going to be using it. It may come in handy at some point, but I'll never use it on my Chevelle.

Once I get good at welding the spot welds, I won't need the spot timer. I can practice quite a bit before doing it on the car. The spot timer is just a neat gadget.

I just looked on the local suppliers webpages and the Miller is significantly more expensive ($60+) than it was online. That and there was a greater separation ($20+) between the Autoset and the regular 140. I would much rather buy it local if they can match even the online price!

*EDIT* - Blznlow', does your local store happen to have a flyer or website displaying that price? I may be able to use that to get either of the two local places to price match!

i already looked so you could try that. they dont have a website that post prices they just list products but i will go by and see if they will give mesome kind of print out w/ the price and could mail it to you and you can see if it will help.

Cool thanks!

Heck, even if they match the price from WeldingSuppliesfromIOC.com (http://www.weldingsuppliesfromioc.com), I'd be fine with that. $20 more than your local shop price isn't worth pushing too hard.

Still waitin' to hear from Pat (hillbillyinohio) on any deals he can strike!

I would go with the lincoln, both are really great welders(miller and lincoln) but as far as doing spot welding, tacking and thin to thick metal a lincoln is the way to go. I have been using a lincoln wire feed for 4 yrs, and I have welded frame rails, body mounts, shaved doors, body panel replacementand never have any problems with it at all, also i use it with a mixed gas. [sm=wootwoot.gif]

Sorry Pat, couldn't wait...

So I took the plunge today during lunch. I went to the local welding supply shop talked with the guys there for a good half hour. Their price difference, after besting the online price from the aforementioned website, still ended up being $10 difference between the Lincoln and the Miller. They had a Millermatic 140 out in the warehouse that was a demo unit. I didn't get to try out the Lincoln, but man, that Miller was sweet!! So I made my final decision and purchased everything necessary today.

Out the door was $1145, $668 for the 140 w/autoset & cart, $225 for the helmet (Miller Performance Series), $160 for a 80cuft tank, something like $20 for the C25 mix (75% Argon, 25% CO2), and some extra consumables (anti-spatter, nozzles, tips, and a 2# spool of 0.030 wire) + Taxes.

hey man thats cool. glad you got it. hoe you like it which i know you will. which helmet did you get. i bought the camo elite series. i love it. you will want to get a welding jacket ar some sleeves. and a welding cap if you are going to be in tight spaces.

I bought the 'Stars, Stripes, & Eagle Performance Series.

I already have a welding cap and I have a machinist jacket that is flame retardant that I'll use until it's dead, then get a proper welding coat.

Good choice on the welder and a good price to boot. I have an auto dim helmet that I really like, except for the fact that the actual headband part digs into your skull.

thats a cool looking helmet. i thought about getting that onn but i know a guy who has it so i went with something different. as for the jacket, i prefer the thin green ones im not sure what the material is but i like it better than the leather because its lighter and cooler

Yeah, I wasn't going to get a leather welding jacket. Their too expensive and I have found that if not used frequentlly, the leather can dry out and become stiff. Atleast that's what happened to my dad's old leather welding jacket. But then again, he really never used it.

So I got everything all put together this afternoon and practiced on an old PC case that I wasgoing to junk. I'll be doing some practicing on this sheetmetal for quite some time. And yeah, this is one smooth operating MIG! Super clean welds as well.

Does it work without gas also? My uncle bought a gasless mig last year. It has hookups for gas, but is designed to run without it too. Works just like a normal mig, but it welds like a old AC welder without the gas.

Yes, my new welder is flux-core capable as are just about all MIGs provided they have knurled drive rollers. I didn't get everything necessary to use flux-core wire though because I didn't want to deal with the slag left over after welding.

the flux core wire is harder to make a pretty weld. it takes more practice and most people hate it. i like flux core myself

I must be a natural then. Iput downsome of the best welds I've ever done on the deckguard of the lawn mower with the flux core!

I like fluxcore... If the welder can handle it... The MIG welders we had at school must've been getting tired... They couldn't put out the amperage I needed...

Then again, I tend to run the machine at max speed and do fast welds, lol... Luckilly my teacher never did manage to break one of 'em...

I've used flux-core wire in my Dad's welder. I was able to lay down a nice bead under all of that slag, but man is it a pain if you have to do multiple passes... We decided that it wasn't a whole lot better than the stick welder for those windy conditions. So why bother changing over the MIG.

yea it is a pain if you have to to muti-pass. i need to re-word my last post. flux core is harder to get used to than a mig w/ gas. i like not having to worry about running out of gas. just out of wire

Very true on the running out of gas. That won't be a problem when working on my Chevelle as my dad has 4 large tanks full sitting in his shop. I'm not even bringing my own tank when I go out there! Not to mention flux-core wire is $$$. Way more money than solid core + gas.

really? i didnt know it costed that much more than the regular wire. ithought it was just a little bit more

It was about $12 for a 2# spool of common steel wire. It was over $30 for a 2# spool of flux core!!

wow that was a big difference. i believe i would just use the gas then. i never had to buy it, school paid for it so it didnt matter to me.

Sorry to resurrect this one but I'm looking at two Lincoln's. The 3200hd and the 140hd.
The only differences if can find are:
3200hd can only run .035" flux cored wire while the 140 can run both .030" and .035" flux cored.
3200hd output ranges 25-135 amp, 140hd 30-140 amp.
140 has .5 volt higher volt output=19.5 vs 19 for the 3200hd
The 140 is almost $50.00 more. Is it worth it?

http://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Catalog/lecocompare.aspx?61247=on&59615=on

I would go for the 140HD if you were choosing between the two of them.

I was leaning that way because of the options but does that 5 thousandths make that much of a difference.

wow this is an old thread. lol i agree w/ kyle on the 140hd,
p.s you still using that miller kyle?

Over 25lbs of wire through it and love it every time I strike an arc!!

thats cool, so you should be pretty good w/ it then. im starting to look into buyin a welder now, but i want a stick/tig welder, for what i need. i have became a certified welder now in tig and stickso i guess all my time has paid off lol.

This welder makes it easy, but I have been welding since I was 8 or 9... Growing up on a cash crop farm has its benefits! Dad's stuff is just a LOT bigger than what I wanted. If I need to weld something heavy or it is a critical weld, I'll just use his MIG welder. He has an old Lincoln buzz box that I learned to weld with as well as an Ltec (Esab) Migmaster 250.

Well, after all the hemmin' and hawin' I went ahead with 140hd weld pak. About $525. Spent most of the day sunday welding straight...or well mostly straight line. But welding some stuff together. I can definitely see i'm gonna get some practice with a hammer and dolly...or be more patient and spot weld further apart to keep from warping so bad.

I talked with a buddy and he suggested heating the warped areas and using dry ice to "re-shrink" the warped areas. Any body tried this one?