Miller 135 (115v)
90 A at 18 VDC, 20% Duty Cycle
range 30 - 135 Amps

Lincoln 135 (115v)
90 A at 18 VDC, 20% Duty Cycle
range 25 - 135 Amps

Miller 175 (230v)
130 A at 20 VDC, 30% Duty Cycle
range 30 - 175 Amps

Lincoln 175 (230v)
130 A at 20 VDC, 30% Duty Cycle
rance 25 - 175 Amps

Translation: they're pretty much the same, which color you want?

 

my friend bought that exact lincoln electric last night for 229. we cant figure out how to plug it in though because he needs an adapter.

he now sorta wishes he bought the 110 volt for a normal outlet, but once we get this workin he's gonna start learning.

 

A couple of people have answered this Chris.

To get a strong weld at the "specified" thickness will take a good deal of skill with a lower current welder. That 1/4" and 5/16" number is a _marketing_ spec, not a technical one.

_CAN_ the welder do it? Yes it can, in the hands of a skilled operator. "Skill" in welding does not come quick... you will create a lot of crap welds before you get good enough to create a solid structural weld on a 1/4" piece of steel. As well, to make it happen, you'll be running the welder at the upper end of it's capacity. If you do this a lot, you'll be shortening the life of the welder.

Shane and others have also talked about the duty cycle of the machine. This is a VERY important spec, and shouldn't be overlooked. If you disregard the duty cycle, you'll run the risk of trashing the machine.


As I was typing this, I see that Shane posted some specs. Note the increased current capability of the 230v machines. With that power in reserve, you can get MUCH more penetration into your 1/4" target steel and a "good" weld will come a lot quicker.

In short, the cost of having an electrician come out and run a 230 socket into the garage will save you a LOT of grief over the years. You should buy this first welder once - don't buy something now because you want it, only to find out that it really won't do what you NEED it to do.

 

I hate it when people bring back old threads, gets me every freakin time. I hope that guy got a MIG...

 

Some 110v units have a 20amp plug, one leg is turned sideways. There's a few different 220v plugs, I left the "giant 110v" style 50amp one on my 251 and made the extension double as an adapter to the 30amp "crows foot" plug that dryers use. I can't max out the welder without popping the breaker, but I can get pretty close.

 

Yep, I've been there and done that. Luckily I found a buyer and got most of my money back out of it.
no worries, your concerns were valid and will help others with the same question.

 

Another vote for Lincoln here. I've had mine for about 5 years. Never a hiccup. MIG!!

 

Thanks guys! I guess I'll go with the 220V lincoln or miller 175's. I really appreciate the help with all this. I can't wait to get in class and learn how to do it well, and then practice like crazy.

You guys have been great, as always!

Chris

 

I vote for the Miller. They make great machines. But honestly you can go wrong with any of the ones mentioned here. You're gonna have lots of fun man. Best of luck...

 

I'm going to try to find a shop around here locally that carries them both, and go review which one I think would be best for my purposes, although they are probably very similar. I have decided that I'm going to get a 175, though, just to be safe and not overly stress the smaller units. Thanks a ton guys,

Chris

 

I love my Lincoln SP175. I run 75/25 gas and weld everything from body sheet metal on up to 1/4" and could probably do more w/multiple passes.

I shaved my 84 toy front housing with it, repaired lawn mowers, welded patch panels on my truck, etc. It does it all.

I got a pro deal from a lincoln rep b/c I was a purchasing agent for a fab shop... I have about 575 in mine and he threw in a bottle of gas.

 

So is that last bit to let me know that you'll do the same for me??

Chris

 

If I could, I would bro. I don't work there anymore.:cry:

 

Wow, I'm surprised to see my thread is back. I haven't been here in a while, but I got an E-mail notification. Unfortunately, anytime I try to do anything on this forum now I have to re-login every time I navigate through the pages. To make this reply, I had to log in twice....

Anyway, I ended up buying a Lincoln 225 AC/DC stick welder. I didn't have the money or space to buy the slightly larger Miller 175 plus gas tank. In total I spent about $350 on the welder, gloves, hood with larger flip up lense, lots of rods, and a magnet. Though I would have preferred the miller, I'm still glad I got this one. It's harder to learn and my welds still don't look great, but a little grinding fixes that quickly. The penatration is great with the stick welder, though thin metal (1/8" or less) does not work well with this welder, but 1/4" is no problem and I can make bumper brackets and reinforcements no problem. There actually are some advantages with the stick vs. MIG. One, I can weld outside in the wind and unlike MIG, the gas won't blow away resulting in a crappy weld. Second, the stick can be bent to fit into hard-to-reach spaces. Eventually I will want to get a Miller 175 so I can do everything from sheet metal to 1/4", but I don't need it yet. For the moment I just borrow a friend's 110V lincoln wire-feed for the thin stuff and it does just fine with that. I may even just get a 110v like it instead of the Miller.

Hopefully this post will actually work this time becuase I'm not going to want to type it a 3rd time....

 

There is a solution for that, either use flux-core wire or a combination of flux-core and shielding gas. Flux-core does the same thing as the coating on your welding rods, it creates the pocket of shielding gas.

 

So what's the difference between tap power and continuous power, because that seems to be the only difference between the 175 and 175 plus lincolns?

Chris

 

Tap = only a few settings
Continuous = infinitely variable setting

Tap refers to the "taps" on the transformer, you're only using part of the secondary coils to set your voltage. Continuous is not necessary, but it's nice to have.

 

Well, I could get a Lincoln 135 right now for $389 from welders-direct, and they also have the 175 for $584. It's $200 more for the 220V, and I'm having a really hard caughing up the money for the additional. I've decided that the most I'll ever weld is 1/4" thickness, so I would be okay with the 135, right? Is it drastically going to reduce the life of the welder pushing it that hard pretty often or is it designed to handle it?

Chris

 

Spring for the 220. I wouldn't worry about shortening the life of the 135, I would worry about it not laying down nearly as good welds. Trust me, it is worth even penny of that 200 bucks. Having welded with both setups, there really is no comparison...

 

Ok, thanks! I hate when you guys convince me to spend more money.

Chris