Be gentle it's my first post!!

I've searched the archives and can't seem to find a decent topic on the subject.

I'm about to undertake my 1st build and am humming and arring over which Mig welder to get, looking at the Clarke 160T at the moment. Any comments?

Plus any advice on an air compressor would be most helpful..

160 should be man enough for anything on a Locost. What do you need a compressor for? If you want one to run tools it's cheaper to buy the tools in electrical form as you will need a good output for most of the tools used on Locost building. If you just want one for a bit of painting, get a 1.5hp and a gravity feed gun and a tyre inflator to get you started.

I've got a clarke, thin kit's the 160t, works a treat. got apic somewhere..

Ned.

edit: pics added:


new toy

nice weld


[Edited on 22/6/04 by ned]

I've got a Clarke 151T, I think it's the older version of the 160 (looks exactly the same but mine was bought in 1996)

Adam

One bonus for Clarke products is that you can buy spares - you may end up talking to a complete plonker in their spares dept. (I did) but I got the stuff I needed in the end.

David

Buy a spare shroud and a pack of 4/5 (whatever they come in the packeet) tips. I've welded most of my chassis up and done in 1 tip so far. used a couple of small weld reels. buy the larger weld reel if you're storing it somewhere nice and dry. the small ones are ideal if you're worried about the wire going rusty which the welder won't like.
Think I paid around £220 for my welder brand new if that's of any help.

I also found that the welder is very easy to use, the trick is getting the settings right (ie voltage and wire speed) The pic above was a weld i did on day 1 of owning the welder. i have since improved the settings and my technique. if you buy that one i'll happily share my settings with you..

Ned.

[Edited on 22/6/04 by ned]

Many thanx for the help and advice guys, hopefully I'll be able to get to Machine Mart this weekend to pick up a 160T.

I'm currently bidding on a part built chassis on Ebay but failing to win that I'll just make one from scratch. (well I can but try)

Steven



[Edited on 22/6/04 by StevieC]

Steve,

Settings I use successfully on this machine:

rocker switch on max, dial on 2 for voltage, 5.5-6 for wire speed. This goes well on 1" rhs.
rocker switch on max, dial on 3 for voltage, 8.5-9 for wire speed works great for 3mm plate.
If you do blow a hole in a tube on these settings (it happens occasionally if it's an awkward angle i'm welding) wait for the hole to have cooled a little first, then use the 1st setting as above but turn the voltage down to 1. This is good for patching up, then grind back.

Ned.

Although these welders will fit a 15kg reel of wire, don't be tempted to use one. They put a hell of a strain on the wire feed and have a flywheel effect so you get a jerky start and an ill timed finish to the weld. 5kg reels are fine