Got a new build coming... this one is a little bigger than the last... but there's a hiccup...

[realdocBBQ]

Starting a new and bigger build than my last little 60-gallon pit. Made some progress...

But last night, my welder died. It's a cheapie Yeswelder off Amazon, and it did a good job for the 14 months I've used it. Did some heavy stuff with it, I definitely pushed its limits, I think.

But now it's dead.

D-E-D DEAD.

So I'm in the market for a new one, but I gotta figure out how to pay for it. Hopefully I won't be down for months, but... finances are a bit tight right now. And I don't want to buy cheap again, I need something that will weld heavy stuff and will last and be very durable. This is going to be a LONG-term purchase.

Here's my 'short list'

Lincoln 211i ~$1350
*Lincoln 215MPi ~$1600 after rebate
Miller Millermatic 211 ~$1550 after rebate
Miller Multimatic 215 ~$2100
Esab Rebel EMP 215ic - ~$2200 after rebate
Esab Rebel EMP 235ic - ~2900 - this is really pushing the budget too far, although I'd like to dream, for if I end up doing much work over 3/8"

I'm kind of looking at Bakers Gas, as I could use their payment/finance option to get the ball rolling (if The Wife will approve) and get back to work within a couple of weeks. If not, I'll be waiting a couple of months if I'm going to purchase outright.

So... stay tuned for updates, when I'm less heartbroken and irritated, I'll post up some pics on a new thread of the latest build - hopefully it won't take a year to complete this one! lol

[Jerod Broussard]

If ya just rolling with MiG I wouldn't bother with a MP of any kind, save some coin. I've run three small Lincolns with no issues. I thought I had issues with one but it was just user error on my part.

[realdocBBQ]

If ya just rolling with MiG I wouldn't bother with a MP of any kind, save some coin. I've run three small Lincolns with no issues. I thought I had issues with one but it was just user error on my part.

Narrowed it down to a few... I like the multi-process capability for TIG, which I'm not doing NOW, but I do want to be able to do in the future. Also running stick outside the shop in the wind and such, although flux core can do similar, but I don't want to have to unstring and rerun my wire, etc. Just a PITA to do a quick outdoor repair on a fencepost or something.

So here's what I'm considering right now:

Lincoln 211i (1350)
Lincoln 215MPi (1600 after rebate)
Miller Millermatic 211 (1535 after rebate)
Miller Multimatic 215 (2100)
HTP Pro Pulse 220 MTS (2200)
Esab Rebel 215ic (2199 after rebate plus $100 gift card)
Esab Rebel 235ic (2899 plus $550 gift card)
Primeweld MIG 285 (1000)

Was looking at the Everlast 253DPi until I saw a video breakdown of it being torn open and examined - didn't like the board layout, the cheaper construction and cheaper components. For what it costs (2250), I don't think it's worth it. The HTP is a much better-built machine, I think.

Even the newer Lincolns have had problems with Chinese boards going out... so, if I'm gonna get mostly Chinese internals, warranty or not, I might just go with the $1000 Primeweld, which seems to have great functionality and capability (up to 1/2" easy with flux core wire), a 3 year bumper-to-bumper warranty, and is pretty highly touted by one of my favorite online "mentors", Jody from Weldmonger.com and the weldingtipsandtricks YouTube channel.

I've gotten the 'go-ahead' from Mission Control, so I just need to decide what is gonna be best for me for longevity, durability, warranty and heavy capability, welding lots of 1/4" and 3/8". Occasional to rare 1/2" (not structural or load-bearing).

The three in bold are my frontrunners tonight... until I change my mind again tomorrow. lol

[Jerod Broussard]

That PrimeWeld looks like a gem, especially busting out 0.045 wire. I love my 6011 for tacking but run plenty 0.035 flux right now for the welds themselves. Looking at something that can run 1/8 rods for an offset project down the road. My LE31 burns 3/32.

[Oak Smoke]

Out in the real world where a welder is expected to perform day after day in all kinds of conditions Lincoln is what you see. In the fab shops where the stuff like you’re doing is made there are plenty of Millers too. Those two dominate the welding profession where I’ve been.

[Troutman]

The Lincoln

[realdocBBQ]

Yeah I'm still torn.

The cost is double for the Lincoln or the HTP - at least the initial purchase, then wait 6-12 weeks for the rebate.

Primeweld is a grand outright, with 3 year warranty, handle-to-handle and door-to-door shipping paid by the company. Watched some very long videos on this unit the last couple of days, seems to be pretty feature-packed. Most of the videos all ended up the same - a long walkthrough of the functions, little to nothing tearing down to show the inside of the machine and build quality.

Lincoln is $2k outright, then wait for the $400 rebate - but I read one report online of Lincoln refusing to honor one of their rebates, claiming it had ended 6 months prior, even though it was STILL UP on their website. Shady, very poor service. When the guy told them he would have bought the Blue machine if he'd known he wasn't going to get the $400 rebate, they told him to return it go his dealer and get a refund. Essentially, "No, we're not going to honor our website advertising, either eat it or go away and purchase from someone else." Very poor. Plus, the parts/boards seem to be ALL made in China these days, only 'assembled' in the U.S. And lots of board failures in recent years - likely due to offloading manufacturing to overseas. Sad to see.

The HTP is $2.2k outright, 3 year warranty, but it doesn't look like it's all in-house. Says first 90 days is total replacement (no mention of shipping), and says "91 days to the end of the warranty is a parts warranty. HTP will ship replacement parts to the customer with the shipping method of HTP’s choice. Customer needs to install the parts themselves and possibly return defective parts to HTP (in that case HTP will provide postage)." I'm not overly worried about replacing things myself, but... what if I don't know what's wrong with it? I dunno... for that amount of moneys, I'd like a little more than, "we'll ship you a new board, you can fix it yourself." It does say they will fix it if I ship it to them, so I guess that's equivalent to the Lincoln.

Still drooling over the HTP, though... something about "European built" just sounds... secksy!

[Smoker_Boy]

Europe sounds better than China.