What model Mig

[Young Gun]

My problem is that we dont have a 220volt plug in the garage, at least I don't think we do. Therefore I'm pretty limited, and that's pretty inconvenient.



Where would everybody recommend buying from? Are there any sponsors here I can support?

[Roger M]

I would go along with everyone that recommends the miller 175( or whatever the current model is). I dont have a welder yet, but that is the welder I plan on buying when the funds are available. Vince (aka MR Quick) has a good idea about where to get a good deal on one. The only drawback to buying online is that you wont have as good of support/customer service as you would if you bought locally, if something went wrong.
My garage didnt have a 220v outlet either, so i asked an electrician that i met on a job about how to put one in. It was pretty simple as long as you can get wire ran from your breaker box to the garage. You should also make sure that your circuit panel can support the extra power demand. I did it myself and I am not eletrical genius. I needed that power to run my compressor.
I would bet that some of the electricians that frequent this site can chime in and give you some advice. I do not recommend atemping this project with some good guidance first. Electricity is not something to take lightly. Good luck.

[MrQuick]

I would go along with everyone that recommends the miller 175( or whatever the current model is). I dont have a welder yet, but that is the welder I plan on buying when the funds are available. Vince (aka MR Quick) has a good idea about where to get a good deal on one. The only drawback to buying online is that you wont have as good of support/customer service as you would if you bought locally, if something went wrong.
My garage didnt have a 220v outlet either, so i asked an electrician that i met on a job about how to put one in. It was pretty simple as long as you can get wire ran from your breaker box to the garage. You should also make sure that your circuit panel can support the extra power demand. I did it myself and I am not eletrical genius. I needed that power to run my compressor.
I would bet that some of the electricians that frequent this site can chime in and give you some advice. I do not recommend atemping this project with some good guidance first. Electricity is not something to take lightly. Good luck.

He's a factory dealer and you do get a warranty card that is recognized by your local Miller dealer. I recommended the autoset cause its a great beginner machine. Set it and go.

On the 110 vs 220 deal. Most 110 migs will handle up to 3/16" MS easily. You can still do 1/4" it will just take a double pass or a switch back to flux. I don't see the need for a larger machine in Colins case, unless he plans on doing a lot of 1/4"+ jobs on a daily basis. TIG would be another story.

Search around for recommendations and see which machine will suite your needs.

[Twentyover]

My problem is that we dont have a 220volt plug in the garage, at least I don't think we do. Therefore I'm pretty limited, and that's pretty inconvenient.

No electric cothes dryier or stove outlet nearby?

Put a 35 or 50 amp outlet on the face of the circuit breaker box, and attach it to it's own breaker or a 50 amp breaker for the Dryer/Stove.then run a 0 or 00 flexible wire to the welder in the garage. Plug it in when you want to weld, unplug and coil when you're done.

And you didn't hear that from me, because I wouldn't do domething like that when i lived in CA, since it would not be to code. Are we clear on this?

When I wasn't running the 250 amp tig, the 50 amp breaker wouldn't cycle after 4 or 5 minues of low power use (the synchro-wave 250 runs about 35 amps to turn it on. would run about 15 minutes idle before it tripped a breaker. 100A service in a house built in 1955, had seperate 50 amp to support the welder.

Typically, a 175 amp mig will chew up about 35 amps running full boogie (did I just say boogie out loud?)