AC/DC TIG welders

[Robin GrahamParticipant @robingraham42208]

I'm contemplating buying an AC/DC TIG welder and came across this . Seems a bit too good to be true for the price and mixed reviews on t'internet. Wondered if anyone here has one and could comment?

Regards, Robin

[Robin GrahamParticipant @robingraham42208]

[pgk pgkParticipant @pgkpgk17461]

I'm curious as to whether that price includes vat and what they charge for delivery. It also looks that they don't list gas regs etc so might e an extra. A 60% duty cycle on a cheap machine strikes me as optimistic.. but great of true.

I was wonderign about this one..**LINK**

[WorkshopPeteParticipant @workshoppete]

Stay away from them they are Chinese and have a very poor back up service I had a second hand one which lasted a couple of weeks. I tried and tried to get it repaired after a few months I found a very helpful chap who did repair it. His take was that they all were fundamentally the same but the components varied as they used what was cheaply available at the time.

Peter

[John Stevenson 1Participant @johnstevenson1]

Robin,

Got basically the same welder but mine did cost a bit more at the time. OK Chinese but I have found this to be very good.

Basically bought it as a backup welder for the Murex 200 amp AC / DC welder as it was cheap [ compared to the Murex ] but TBH it's now the front line welder as it welds better, uses less power than the Murex being inverter technology and you have far more control over the quality of the weld.

In fact was contemplating this week selling the Murex whilst it still had a reasonable resale value.

Spares and repairs are not a problem as a firm in Loughborough know these inside out and carry spare board with latest spec components on them.

Mine is always used on quite heavy stuff, broken castings etc as opposed to light sheet which is something I don't do but I know it can, in fact it far go far lower than the windy knob Murex.

Not sure what the duty cycle is but I have welded an aluminium tailgate off a transit tipper truck that had been badly bent and split and was welding for a good 45 minutes are around the 130 amp mark with no trip outs.

If you are uncertain Robin, have a pop round and try it out.

[Nick HughesParticipant @nickhughes97026]

I've had an R-Tec 201 AC/DC Tig set for around 8 months with no problems. R-Tec also have a fantastic reputation for their customer support.

There's also a lot of helpful people and information, for ALL types of welding processes on this site:-  http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/ 

Nick.

Edited By Nick Hughes on 25/04/2015 10:17:51

[LathejackParticipant @lathejack]

Hi Robin.

I bought a new Giant 200 Amp Single Phase DC Tig/Arc Inverter set a few years ago, I still have it and it works fine although it is not used too regularly. It has done prolonged cast iron welding repairs on a full size Aveling & Porter steam roller in Tig mode, and it also operates extremely well when stick welding in Arc mode.

It came complete with a good quality Tig torch and has a more robust, solidly made and quality feel than the new and much more expensive Clarke Arc/Tig 155 set I had from Machine Mart.

The Clarke was Italian made but was tiny and toy like with sloppy control buttons and was really just an Inverter Arc set that could be used as a basic scratch start Tig, but the Tig torch had to bought separately at over £100. I quickly got rid of it and bought the Giant 200 which I am using at the moment to Tig weld a new small fuel tank for a 1940's AEC single decker coach.

Opinions, reviews and experiences of the Chinese Giant brand are, as you say, mixed, but that is also true of most Chinese made machinery, including the Chinese made lathes a lot of us own and use.

[mark mcParticipant @markmc72333]

I also have a r-tech tig and a plasma cutter and they are very good units for the cost, with very helpful staff.

[Robin GrahamParticipant @robingraham42208]

Thanks chaps. Sounds like it should be OK especially as if upgrade boards are available. It's only for occasional use so the R-Tec ones are a bit pricey for me. Chinese is not necessarily bad!

John, thanks for the invite to have a go with your welder, but if it's good enough for you I'm sure it'll be more than good enough for me!

Regards, Robin

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