I am on a budget, and need to purchase these two items. I'm going to be doing some light to moderate fab work for my project, IE roll cage, shock hoops, rock sliders, stuff like that. nothing bigger than 2" OD. As for the welder, same type of stuff. the thickest ill prolly be welding is 1/4" thick tubes and plate. so what should i buy?

thanks

find someone who has them and is good w/ them and make friends then u don't have to spend the money and end up doin a shitty job

id rather learn to do it myself and not have to rely on somebody else to do it right... i know what i want, and it can be very hard to transfer ideas verbally and on paper sometimes

<IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0">

Originally posted by the kid in the hall:
<STRONG>I am on a budget, and need to purchase these two items. I'm going to be doing some light to moderate fab work for my project, IE roll cage, shock hoops, rock sliders, stuff like that. nothing bigger than 2" OD. As for the welder, same type of stuff. the thickest ill prolly be welding is 1/4" thick tubes and plate. so what should i buy?

thanks</STRONG>

for the bender williams low buck tools has some cheap tube benders capable of more than 90 degrees with no tube deformities as does pro tools mechanical benders these benders take some time to create the bend as opposed to hydraulic but the rewards are worth it. as for the welder just about any 110 wire welder will do shop around for one with the highest duty cycle the miller xp130 comes to mind be sure to get a gas conversion for it <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

got links and/or prices to these benders?

thanks techguru <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

yep the pro tools is www.pro-tools.com (http://www.pro-tools.com) its the mechanical 105 ive got the pro shot . Total cost wasdnt that much different at all the williams low buck tools I dont have just go to search engine on that one <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

thanks, the 105 looks bitchin!!!!!! is it worth the cost? i made out a price sheet here and for the bender, stop and degree ring, stand, handle extension, and 6" radius 240 deg 2" die comes out to $684. really not so bad, how long do you expect yours to last? i figure that if it will last a good long time i will buy this, and down the road i can just add the hydro kit to it <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

for welders, i was looking at 175A ones from Miller, Hobart, and Chicago Electric. here are the specs:

Duty cycle: Miller- 30%
Hobart- 30%
Chicago E- 16% (ouch!)

Cost: Miller- $777 direct
Hobart- $639 NorthernTool
Chicago E- $499 HarborFreight

the CE is 170A, all can do 1/4" single pass.

is the miller worth the extra $140 over the Hobart?

I'll look into Lincoln and see what they offer, any other suggestions?

thanks

<IMG SRC="smilies/sleep.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/sleep.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/sleep.gif" border="0">

id rather be welding and bending up a roll cage, but i dont got a bender or welder cuz o you <IMG SRC="smilies/smokin.gif" border="0">

My Lincoln SP-125 Plus cost me $700 and some change and the JD2 Model 3 with degree ring and 1.75" die ran $524 just to give you an idea. I bought the welder from a local place and the bender I ordered through MTech.

miller is definetly worth the extra cash. On the die I would go with a larger radius die probably a 7" with the 6" the tubing has to stretch so much that there may be a slight flat place on the outside of the tube. I think the bender will last a lifetime! <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

Hey Rdr, got a link to where you bought your bender from?

thanks guys

Hey Rdr, got a link to where you bought your bender from?

thanks guys

Hey Rdr, got a link to where you bought your bender from?

thanks guys

sorry about the triple-reply every1, my computer <IMG SRC="smilies/nuke.gif" border="0"> and somehow sent it 3 times... <IMG SRC="smilies/flipoff.gif" border="0">

will the 105 model bend .120 thickness? It mentions.095, i think. I was curious since i am looking for a decent bender also. thanks

I bought a century 230 arc , From home depot for $270 canadian , and yesterday I bought a tube bender from Princess Auto for $149 canadian . Both machines work great. My bender bends clean and has 6 dies from 1/2" to 2" . www.princessauto.com (http://www.princessauto.com)
usa$$$ will go alot farther than canadian $$$ also.

the 105 will bend upto .134 wall dom but you will need to upgrade I think 50.00 for the 5/8" arms rather than the 1/2" <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

Do not buy a chicago electric they break and they SUCK! <IMG SRC="smilies/flipoff.gif" border="0">

On the tripple reply just delete 2 of them and www.jd2.com (http://www.jd2.com) has a great price on their bender. As far as the welder goes I would go get a 100amp alternator and build an onboard welder for yourself. The post is on this BB. That will kill 2 birds with one stone.

Originally posted by KEVZUKI:
<STRONG>I bought a century 230 arc , From home depot for $270 canadian , and yesterday I bought a tube bender from Princess Auto for $149 canadian . Both machines work great. My bender bends clean and has 6 dies from 1/2" to 2" . www.princessauto.com (http://www.princessauto.com)
usa$$$ will go alot farther than canadian $$$ also.</STRONG>

Hey dude that $149 is a pipe not tube bender, So your saying it bent tube ok.

Rhino

if you are looking for good stuff, get ready to pay. the jd2 and the other benders will last you a lifetime. i would recomend the miller 210 amp mig, its on sale with a spool gun thrown in for 1125.00 delivered from welders direct, hit a search eng. and you will find it. the problem with the smaller stuff is it just doesn't hold up. i have a 175 here at work and it just doest compare to the roll around type machines. do it once and get it over with. i purchased a miller 200 mig gun 15 years ago. but i sold it to get a horbart tr250 hf. that was a screw up should have kept the mig. i like the tig machine better but the speed of the mig is great for 4x4 work. i am about to purchase a new miller 210 in the next month or so. just my 2 cents

Originally posted by the kid in the hall:
<STRONG>
for welders, i was looking at 175A ones from Miller, Hobart, and Chicago Electric. here are the specs:

Duty cycle: Miller- 30%
Hobart- 30%
Chicago E- 16% (ouch!)

Cost: Miller- $777 direct
Hobart- $639 NorthernTool
Chicago E- $499 HarborFreight

the CE is 170A, all can do 1/4" single pass.

is the miller worth the extra $140 over the Hobart?

I'll look into Lincoln and see what they offer, any other suggestions?

thanks</STRONG>

I got the Hobart 175 from: http://www.cyberweld.com
for $550. Delivered to my door.
I think they're currently running a
special on it. $555. with a cart (Delivered)
It's a killer unit too. Made by Miller you know... <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

Fat kid and I have had good luck with our's...
<IMG width=325 height=470 SRC="http://www.pirate4x4.com/ubb/uploads/5110.jpg">
<IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

Started with a JD-2 and it worked great...$ well spent!

M-Tech (http://www.mtechsales.com/)

Your going to want a notcher at some point and then you going to want a bigger welder and then your going to think your shop is too small and then your going to start doing work for other people as a hobby and then and then and then.

no and then no and then no and then no and then. <IMG SRC="smilies/thefinger.gif" border="0">

Buying tool is always cool but your talking about cash and time to make somthing your going to be happy with.

Originally posted by Glenn:
<STRONG>I got the Hobart 175 from: http://www.cyberweld.com
for $550. Delivered to my door.
I think they're currently running a
special on it. $555. with a cart (Delivered)
It's a killer unit too. Made by Miller you know... <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"></STRONG>
DAMN! I just bought the Hobart Handler 175 at Northern onsale for $599 at a local store with the cart and had to pay tax! Was still cheaper than the catalog with tax. I don't recall if the nortern catalog price included shipping. Wish I knew about the sale at that place. I'll have to see if I can get them to knock down the price <IMG SRC="smilies/smile.gif" border="0">
I just got mine and have only played with it for about 15 minutes but VERY impressed so far. I was happy with the price till I saw this hahaha.
I played with a buds Lincoln 110 with the mig stuff added when I replaced some floors in my truck. It worked ok for the sheetmeal but the Duty cycle blew. Kept poping breakers. That was on lower settings. To weld .120 you need more heat so the cycle would get even worse. That's why I waited till I could afford the 220v units. They have better duty cycles. They way I looked at it is for a 110 welder like the Lincoln or the Century you at $450 by the time you get the regulator. Still had the poor dudty cycle and not going to work good for above 1/8.
The little I played with it I have had much better results than I ever got the the lincoln. I welded some scrap 3/16 together with excelent penetration in one pass. 3 inches fat bead and the thing didn't break a sweat. For a cage you will stop every 3 inches to reposition and you should never hit the duty cycle.
I did have a local welding suply place show me why the Miller 172 is more expensive. The biggest being the wirefeed part is all metal on the Miller. The Hobart is part plastic. for home use it will probably never be an issue and the warranty on the Hobart is 5 years I believe. The guy also said if it did fail that the Miller 172 steel drive will bolt right up <IMG SRC="smilies/smile.gif" border="0"> Also the Stinger and clamp are not as nice as the miller. but for home use it will be fine.
I'd jump on the $555 price. That's a darn good deal with the cart. Cart is pretty decent also. The 172 will not come with a cart and that was the deciding factor with me. I had the guy down to $640 on the miller and then asked about the cart. He wouldn't throw it in.
Now GET THE BIGGEST BOTTLE OF GAS YOU CAN. the littl bottles do not last long. You starts some big work you will run through a little bottle in a couple hours. Yest the outlay up front is more. Pye Barker charges $150 for the 80#. $25 to refill. a #30 was around $100 but a refill was $17. You do the math. <IMG SRC="smilies/smile.gif" border="0">

You can save a lot of money and get a stick welder, or like 66cj said, do the under hood and your in. I have a Century 220/145amp. Works fine, but I also have a AC stick for anything heavy.

Ok, i think im gonna order the Hobart 175 for the $555... now which helmet should I buy? Wire? Anything else? <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

immmmm gonna have a weeeeeeeeeelllllderrrr!

<IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

Originally posted by the kid in the hall:
<STRONG>Ok, i think im gonna order the Hobart 175 for the $555... now which helmet should I buy? Wire? Anything else? <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

immmmm gonna have a weeeeeeeeeelllllderrrr!
</STRONG>

<IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">You're welcome... Oh man, get the 'Hobart Hood' from Cyberweld too. I got the one with the flames. Works great and looks hott too. It was $175. delivered... Oh, get the big spool of .35 while you're at it. Little spool don't last long when you're having fun. <IMG SRC="smilies/bounce2.gif" border="0">

Almost forgot... Leather... Gloves, etc. And don't weld in your Birkenstocks. Get some Anti-splatter spray and some extra tips and just go crazy. Careful though. Don't burn down the garage the first day... LoL... <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

[ 10-26-2001: Message edited by: Glenn ]

LoL, thanks guys. since ive never welded before, how long do you think it will take me to get this down with my new Hobart 175 and Hobart Helmet, leather gloves, and other stuff? I think ill keep my fire extinguisher next to my welder from now on... <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

My Lincoln has a 20% duty cycle. I was going yesterday on some .120 tubing and never came close. I was going about 45 seconds to a minute on each bead, no problems.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!!

it feels good to say "I have a welder."

<IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0"> <IMG SRC="smilies/biggrin.gif" border="0">

it shopuldnt take u too long if u try at it and ,maybe get a book or know some one that can weld show u. just make sure u get lots of the tips

I bought my stick welder about 4 months ago and athough it is very differnt from a mig, the best advice I can give you is....practice, practice, practice.

Originally posted by Sound-Man:
<STRONG>I bought my stick welder about 4 months ago and athough it is very differnt from a mig, the best advice I can give you is....practice, practice, practice.</STRONG>
Yeah practice is where it's at. Build something non critical like a bumper or a rack before messing with a roll cage. I learned on a stick welder. Once you can stick weld mig is a cake walk.