TIG or MIG welder

[mekanik]

Hi IanS1
I own both, cheap DIY MIG set and a combination of bit's that allows me to do TIG. I got my TIG gear about 30 years ago after watching a pipe welder repair a three branch manifold off my Mini Cooper(got to get me one of these i said)
The amount of times it has pulled me out of the *hit it was money well spent, it is so versatile, you can see exactly what your doing and you know you have got penetration, and with Argon you will be able to weld Stainless & possibly Ally if you flash a bit extra on a decent inverter set. don't get your gas from BOC as the yearly rental is extortionate. and i had mine in my shed for years just to have it on hand for when something hits the fan. I have used the MIG set and i think with practice i could become competent, but still prefer TIG.
Regards
Mike

[magicniner]

with Argon you will be able to weld Stainless & possibly Ally

If buying a MIG pick a good one and it will be easier to learn and produce good work than one with less-good characteristics. I have an ESAB MIG that's great on light mild steel with CO2, for heavier sections a mixed gas like Argoshield is better and with pure Argon and the right wire it happily deals with Aluminium, Stainless Steel, Bronze, Copper, Brass and makes a lovely job on Cast Iron (with pre-heat and insulated slow cool), pick the right gas and wire and you can weld/braze most of the above (except Aluminium) to any other of the above.


Tig is easier to pick up if you've gas welded to a standard where your welds are a lovely neat series of half-moon shapes, you understand about maintaining a weld pool and where using filler keeping the rod tip at the right temp and dipping it to add filler. If you need to work with thin Stainless or Aluminium Tig and Gas are by far the best options.


MMA (Stick) is brilliant for heavier work in most materials, building up worn surfaces on machinery and hard facing, it's also excellent for outdoor work as not relying on gas for shielding it's tolerant of wind and even a bit of rain when you need to weld a hinge back into your neighbor's gate post on an inclement day.


I would have all three if possible, but if choosing one it depends on the intended use.
If you want pretty welds in light materials then your only option is TIG, also TIG if you're predominantly working in Aluminium and Stainless in a workshop.
Generally speaking if you're working with materials above 1mm and you're happy with some post-welding cleanup on finer work then a MIG will do the job nicely, I've built Mini-Skips outdoors on a calm day with a MIG ;-)
Never underestimate Stick, on fabrication work it will perform and produce a lovely job outdoors where MIG and TIG will struggle to function,
Regards,
Nick