I recently purchased the Miller 175 wire feed welder. I went this direction at the advice of my father that is retired from the aviation welding profession after working for TWA/American Airlines in Kansas City for the past 35 years. He did a lot of research for me on the Hobart, Miller, Astro, Lincoln and a few other manufacturers I have not heard of. I run .030 wire and CO2/Argon mix. I have replaced floor pans, kick panels, rockers and some light structural components with this machine. I really like the performance of the machine and I am able to get gas, wire, tips, nozzles and any other parts from the local Praxair location. There are cheaper machines available, but it is hard to beat the performance of the Miller, Lincoln and Hobart for value, local servicing and available supplies.
Best of luck in your decision and purchase. It is nice to have the peace of mind knowing that you can weld up panels, steering columns, brackets or whatever else you need instead of depending on the local weld shop, especially on a Saturday evening when you are trying to finish up that Stovebolt project.
