What to buy 190 or 211

[Flip1]

Need advice on buying a new welder. Looking at the 190 or 211. First I plan on only running on 220. Will be welding on 1/4 of smaller. Some sheet metal. I have heard the inverter which is in the 190 gives a better more stable arc. Also would like to run .023 wire and heard some say they have trouble with that in the 211. I know the 190 is fairly new so I am hoping someone has experience with it. Appreciate any and all advice.
Thank you

[ronnielyons]

Need advice on buying a new welder. Looking at the 190 or 211. First I plan on only running on 220. Will be welding on 1/4 of smaller. Some sheet metal. I have heard the inverter which is in the 190 gives a better more stable arc. Also would like to run .023 wire and heard some say they have trouble with that in the 211. I know the 190 is fairly new so I am hoping someone has experience with it. Appreciate any and all advice.
Thank you

I can offer you this regarding the 211. I moved up from a Millermatic 135 that ran only .023 wire. 023 wire is OK if you're not doing anything heavy but if you get beyond 1/8" steel you'll wish for bigger wire. The 135 wouldn't burn more than 90 amps full throttle because it's a 120 volt machine and from what I'm told, all 120 volt machines are limited to 90 amps max output. 90 amps is adequate if you're not building things heavier than 1/8" steel and non-weight bearing items meaning you're not going to build a stand and fall out of the tree for lack of penetration. Built a fire pan for rafting out of 3/16 plate and the 135 just wasn't heavy enough for adequate penetration.

The 211 is a great machine. I run mine on 240 volt with .030 wire and run the settings in and 3-30 range. At these settings it'll burn through 3/16 and 1/4 material and never break a sweat, I can only imagine what it's capable of full throttle with .035wire. I'm building a tree project with .250 cold roll rod and 3-30 is almost too much power for that material, just about right for 1/2 inch rod. I can't imagine I'll ever need more than this machine and it's obvious there is a big difference in capability between the 120 and 240 volt machines.

The dual voltage aspect is also a great feature for taking the machine on the road and doing small repairs outside your shop since you can plug in just about anywhere to 120 volt power. Gun and ground clamp are good quality, drive mechanism is all metal, typical Miller. It'll take an 11 pound spool and that's a nice feature as well. No complaints from me on this machine, it's a winner so far.

[BD1]

I have the 211 and it's great. It likes the .030 wire and runs well. The Lincoln L 56 .030 wire is a 12 1/2 pound spool and fits perfect.
As for the two, the 211 weighs almost double to the 190. They both have current rebates too. The dual voltage is a nice feature as mentioned .
Tough call, you can't go wrong with either one.

[cruizer]

If your going to move it around and take it places, then for sure the 190, if not I'd be looking to a bigger machine like the 211. Even up to a 252. Even find a 251 as its pretty much the same as the 252 cept for all the hidden not needed and often confusing menus