Honest answers requested on Welder Comparison

[Sberry]

Anymore I dont find it really entertaining,,, hahahaha. Its more like work.

[Danny]

I'm glad to hear the performance with C25 on thin stuff is good. If I am doing thin stuff it will be in the shop on some carbody stuff so C25 will available no problem. It gives me something to think about after I get the STH deal finished and Dan has had a chance to field test the new Passport that he will get soon I think

Thanks, all the info I can get is great. Dan also said to try 1 sec. pulse on MS 16ga (which is what I am mostly doing with the Maxstar). And the more I think about it, the more I am interested in being able to use the button and 2T.

George, just buy another 210 and set it up with .023 and C-25 for that car body stuff. As good as the 210 is set up with .023 and C-25 on thin ga sheet, if i had the need to weld autobody thicknesses, I 'd spend the time to switch the unit over. Obviously though, the Passport is an appealing unit to me, so i can question your thinking on this one.

On my Maxstar 150 STH, I use the 1 PPS when adding filler. When fusing ( no filler) 16 ga. SS, I use the 2.5 PPS setting. I honestly could do either without the pulse, however, the pulse makes it much easier and more entertaining too.

[Paul Seaman]

Storts:
That is whatever you get used to, I've run both and it is simply getting used to it. My mm210 is a tap machine, the Invision 345mp with 22a feeder I used in school was a variable adjust machine and both work well with attention to detail. I believe if someone is new to welding and is wanting to repeat the exact set of perameters as the last weld the digital infinite adjustability is advantagous, but with proper training and getting used to the machine I can do the exact same weld with either.

Both have benefits, not all appeal to everyone.

[storts]

Would Not trade !!!!!!

Wire speed tracking... (Voltage/Speed tracking is tied together)
takes some getting use to but, when you get it - no big deal.

My lincoln "WITH OUT!!!!!! WIRE TRACKING""" In My opion its worth every extra penny for the Lincoln!!Jack
Have tried the wire tracking machines,,it seems as soon as you get it to where it runs half way decent,,you change thickness in metal,,and the dog and pony show starts again,,the red,is just so much faster and so much more precise,,,Maybe its just me,,,,,,,Jack

[Sundown]

Sundown,

I fabricated some templates from .125" SS 304 to use a a guide for my plasma torch. It is a unique project for a great client so I did not want to free hand the cut.

I was in the shop and used my Dynasty 300DX with pulse and fusion welded all the butt joints. I used a 50% background amperage, 40% peak time, and 2.5PPS. My amperage was set around 225, but the pedal was not down very far. This definitley slowed my travel speed, created good fusion, and showed no carbide precipitation. There was only the slight discoloration of the weld area that cleaned up nicely with an SS tooth brush.

I could have made the same welds with the Maxstar 150 STL, but would have traveled faster with less amperage without the pulse. I am telling you this since you are really pumped on trading up to the Maxstar 150 STH. It will make you welding easier in situations like these.

I'm glad to hear the performance with C25 on thin stuff is good. If I am doing thin stuff it will be in the shop on some carbody stuff so C25 will available no problem. It gives me something to think about after I get the STH deal finished and Dan has had a chance to field test the new Passport that he will get soon I think

Thanks, all the info I can get is great. Dan also said to try 1 sec. pulse on MS 16ga (which is what I am mostly doing with the Maxstar). And the more I think about it, the more I am interested in being able to use the button and 2T.

[HAWK]

Sundown,

I fabricated some templates from .125" SS 304 to use a a guide for my plasma torch. It is a unique project for a great client so I did not want to free hand the cut.

I was in the shop and used my Dynasty 300DX with pulse and fusion welded all the butt joints. I used a 50% background amperage, 40% peak time, and 2.5PPS. My amperage was set around 225, but the pedal was not down very far. This definitley slowed my travel speed, created good fusion, and showed no carbide precipitation. There was only the slight discoloration of the weld area that cleaned up nicely with an SS tooth brush.

I could have made the same welds with the Maxstar 150 STL, but would have traveled faster with less amperage without the pulse. I am telling you this since you are really pumped on trading up to the Maxstar 150 STH. It will make you welding easier in situations like these.

[HAWK]

Sundown,

I am glad you've brought this subject up again because I failed to mention the 25 gauge performance was using external C25. I can tell you that with either inductance setting (crisp for steel wire-soft for SS wire) the machine will place a good solid tack weld without burning through. It will also run stingers without burn through. To me that is very impressive for a non-pulsed mig machine.

The Lincoln SP 135 is probably my favorite of the machines you listed and will not hold a candle to the Passport when running .030" wire. I almost always ran .023" wire when welding 18 gauge and thinner on 120 VAC mig machine other than the Passport

[Sundown]

<snip>The Passport really rocks on 25 gauge up to 1/4" with .030" wire<snip>

Can you compare performance of the Passport on 22ga-20ga MS using .030 wire and CO2 to the performance of one of the following 115V machines: HH135, HH140, SP135+, or MM135 (I listed these because I have either owned or used them) using C25 and .023 wire. I have used the passport on 1/8" & 3/16" with .030 wire and CO2 so I know how that works. I am thinking that sometime after I upgrade to the STH I might like to start thinking of replacing my HH140 with a passport if its thin performance is as good as one the above machines.

[Sberry]

I havnt found the 10 ft gun cable to be much of a issue. These machines are so portable on a cart and work great with extension cords that you can move them right up to the work. Running 030 they pull about 15 amps, maybe a touch more wide open as you can go so even with long number 10 cords there isnt any power issues. I think its one of the great advantages of the 230V units over the 120, by nature of dedicated outlets and cords it keeps them from being plugged in to places they really shouldnt be. I keep a 65 ft cord on mine so I can reach an outlet anywhere, most of the time use the one dedicated for it, but even out in the middle of the shop floor it leaves room to manuver.

[Paul Seaman]

I have stayed out of this fray and watched it unfold, if aluminum is part of the equation as a defanant, forget the 175 and buy a mm210. I consider the mm210 a base model if aluminum is in the plans.

Peace,

[Danny]

first off let me ask how you think that you would get unbiased info from a brand specific message board ? IT AINT GOING TO HAPPEN !

I have run the mm135( 2002) and I have run a sp135+(year unknown) and I own a hh135(2001) they all perform well. ( I have run a lot of wire through all three machines)

but the sp135 would be my top pick,

my advise to anyone would be to try all three or at least the red one and the blue one and see the results - things said on a message board shouldnt sway you one way or another -

dawg

Brian, there are a few of us guys that visit this site who will give an honest opinion based on having tried several different units. One of my units is a MM 175. Plus, I ve also owned or ran a HH 175, HH 180, and a Lincoln SP 175+. Now, Im definitely no afraid to admit that I made a mistake in purchasing the MM 175 over the Lincoln SP 175+. Performance wise, the Lincoln is most definitely the better unit between the two. If i could do it over again, I'd definitely purchase the SP 175+. At this point though, I d much rather have the MM Passport 180. So, if things go as planned, my MM 175 is going to be sold here in the near future to help fund this purchase.

[Danny]

Thanx for the great replies.

I really cant justify the MM210. I just dont have a need to weld very thick sections nor do I need the ability to spray xfer. Having the gun on demand would be handy but vertainly not necessary. I will be welding Al for sure but probably not as much as steel. I also like the portability aspect of the mm175.

Another question about the MM175...has anyone run a M15 15' gun on it? It seems that having the extra length would be handy.

In comparison to the MM 210 or MM 251, the MM 175 has a very small wire feed motor. An extra five feet of gun cable length will more than likely put a heavy strain on the motor. Plus, unlike the the MM 210 and MM 251 that have dual driven drive rolls, the MM 175 has a single driven drive roll, which will more than likely have a hard time consistently feeding the wire smoothly.

[arcdawg]

first off let me ask how you think that you would get unbiased info from a brand specific message board ? IT AINT GOING TO HAPPEN !

I have run the mm135( 2002) and I have run a sp135+(year unknown) and I own a hh135(2001) they all perform well. ( I have run a lot of wire through all three machines)

but the sp135 would be my top pick,

my advise to anyone would be to try all three or at least the red one and the blue one and see the results - things said on a message board shouldnt sway you one way or another -

dawg

[jimg]

Ok

Thanx for the great replies.

I really cant justify the MM210. I just dont have a need to weld very thick sections nor do I need the ability to spray xfer. Having the gun on demand would be handy but vertainly not necessary. I will be welding Al for sure but probably not as much as steel. I also like the portability aspect of the mm175.

Another question about the MM175...has anyone run a M15 15' gun on it? It seems that having the extra length would be handy.

[Scott V]

Hawk,
I not going to start on you too much. It's just Fun4now thinks I am just hate all Miller machines. If they make something that stands out they get my respect.
The 150 Maxstar/ Passport/ Dynastys do get my vote for overall leaders in their class of machine. The Sanex Thermal machines sometimes have a few less features but the features they do have, work fantastic. The other day I was welding with my Prowave 300 TSW at 200 amps ac on a 30 amp circuit. Those are 200 dynasty type # in amp draw. If you look at the specs you would never know those things. Thermal-arc in general is not a company I like all that much,
but I have such a good thing going with my local Airgas guy that I could work around a lot of those issues. Somebody that does not have the support I do, would be better off with a Miller. In my case it make no difference, so I go with the best machine for me. I went with the passport because it fits the biil for me,
same way with the P-Wee 160 TS I just picked up.