The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Tool Chest 110 or 220 Mig??

Which is better to have and get more use out of for fixing frame, patch panels, ect. Not for alot or heavy use, the 110 or 220? I hear the 110 is not always hot enough and the 220 on patch panels gets to hot. True or not?

For your use I would recommend a 110v. I have welders all the way up to 440 amp at the shop, but I have a Hobart 140 at home. http://www.hobartwelders.com/products/wirefeed/handler140/ I found Amazon.com to have the best deal on it. It does everything they say it will do. I even take it to the the shop to weld light stuff. I have welded patch panels with a 200A 220v, but it isn't easy. I use .025 wire in my 140 and use CO2/Argon mix. It has a short duty cycle which means you cannot weld steady for long periods of time, but that is no problem. I have welded 1/4" with my 140 and got the same penetration as I would have with a heavier welder. I would recommend either a Hobart, Lincoln or Miller. Anything less will be frustrating and a disappointment. It is not that difficult to weld with a good welder after practice. A cheap welder will make you so frustrated that you probably never will

I have owned both and have a 220 unit at present, and after using both extensively, the 220 unit wins hands down, and you can set the latter to weld just about anything from 22 guage to 3/8 plate, I have the linclon 185 mig. it replaced a smaller lighter duty unit...

Mike Bourg

I would say if you have a choice, go with a 220. Especially if you plan on doing frame work.

Buy the biggest heavyest brand name welder you can afford that will work in the ranges you need, most of the light weight welders will be a disapointment.

Do what I did and get the best of both worlds. I bought a Miller Millermatic 211 auto-set. It's 110v and 220v and has the auto set feature. All you have to do is set the thickness of the metal and diameter wire your using and the Machine will set the parameters up for you.You can weld 24ga to a max of 3/8 inch steel and with the right spoolmate you can weld 18ga to 3/8inch aluminum. I've had this welder for about 7 months and I have no complaints. I can do bodywork and frame work with absolutely no problems. Highly recommend. Josh

In the hobart line, the Handler 187 will weld the thinnest.. It will outdo all the 110v models and all the other 220v models for thin material... And does well all the way out to 5/16.... We have one at where I work and it will weld WAY thinner materials than my handler 125 will....... And will weld up to 3/8 material OK if you vee it good and get it really clean and do multiple passes......

I'd recommend the 187 as a good restoration welder for you guys.. And very affordable too.

I have never used a 187, but I'm sure it does what they claim it to do. I still like my 140 at the house because I can plug it in anywhere. If you forsee welding anything 1/4" you will want a 220 welder. I have a 50 amp plug at the breaker box at my house just in case I want to bring a heavier welder home, but I have never found anything on my old cars and pickups that I didn't feel comfortable welding with my 140. I don't think there is such a thing as one universal welder for everything. I guess that's why I have 7 or 8 of them out at my shop.

Yah, Like I mentioned, I have my 125 and wouldn't get rid of it for anything...... I was just saying that if a guy was on a budget and could only afford one, the 187 seems like the best setup to have for the kind of stuff us truck restorer guys are doing.......

I use a 140 pro by lincoln . I picked the 110 you can use a heavy cord and run it out into the yard if you can not get it close to your shop.

True, although, with a 220 welder, you can run more (welding) amps over the same extension cord...... Granted, you have about $30 in the big ends to go on each end of the cord, but you can cut the standard plugs off of a garden variety cord and turn it into a 220 cord........ When you double the voltage, you half the amperage.. So you could theoretically run DOUBLE the amount of welding power into your project with a 220 unit on an extension cord, or run farther at the same power...... Just a thought.

I would not use a cord rated less than the breaker.

Yes, that is good advice. BUT, if you're just doing sheetmetal, you won't be using ANYWHERE NEAR the welder's max power, which would be fine for a lighter cord. Point in case, at work, we have a welder that we use for welding exhaust systems on vehicles. We have a 25 foot extension cord that's just 12 gauge wire. Now, that's completely undersized for that welder's max draw. BUT, at the highest, we never run higher than range 3 (for thick exhaust pipes). Now, if you're doing sheetmetal, probably range 1 or 2.... So an extension cord that's had the ends replaced will work just fine... And no matter what, if you cant use it with a 220 welder safely, then you DEFINITELY can't use it with a 120 welder on the same work piece because you're drawing double the amps....

Im looking into this as well. I really like the versitility of the Miller 211 metioned earlier. I dont know if I would need to do anything bigger than 1/4" though. When do you guys weld thicker than that?

Alright, This has been great getting all this advice. I think you have me talked into the 220. I know I'll be welding very little, but.....might as well buy a welder only once. What do you think of this Miller.
http://www.bakersgas.com/907312011.html

I think it is a good machine, but you can get the same machine from these guys with free shipping. http://www.weldingsuppliesfromioc.com/servlet/the-1894/MILLER---MILLERMATIC/Detail I have bought a half a dozen welders from these guys and buy all my supplies from them and they are very reliable.

I have to agree with deerefanatic. I have the 220 hobart and love it. The only problem is if you want or need to go to another location to weld something, they have to have a 220v outlet. I have access to a large heated space to work on the truck, but it only has 110v so doing body repair is not possible. It is great for most other operations, but not so much for welding.

Well, if you absolutely can't get 220 at all, there's always the generator card.. Just sit her outside and shut the door.....

In my opinion the welder is the person, the machine is just a tool and results may vary. My buddy is THE welder, does amazing work.