Anyone ever use one of these?

[scrumblero]

I stopped by "Chinese Freight" to check out the parking lot sale and they had these wire feeders for $89! , thats $60 off the regular price. :shock:
My ancient PennCraft welder is not doin so well as of late, so I really want to get a wire feeder.

anyone ever use one of these or a flux wire feeder in general? I have only ever used stick and MIG..

 

[udallcustombikes]

That is what I use. The welds are not clean but they stick metal together pretty good. Not a bad buy for the price. Go ahead and pick up one of their $20 grinders and a pack of grinding/sanding discs and you are in business.

 

[oldgreaser]

I've got that same one for about 5 years now. As far as welding; I'm by no means professionial. The unit itself I haven't had any issues with it. if I remeber correctly on about the 5 or 6 th spool of wire. It has gotten a work out, my other projects are floor pans in my 81 Monte Carlo, and panel patches on 66 buick, for that stuff Sheetmetal it works well, my skills are the short coming. just recently tried welding some bike tubing and I have to say lo feed lo voltage setting, made some of my personal best ever. The thickest I 've hit is 1/8 angle and got to say it did the job.

 

[scrumblero]

Thanx guys!! I am gonna try one out and see how it goes. The price is just way too right!! :roll:

you using the skinny or fat wire?

 

[Tailwinds]

Maybe I'm crazy but I've been seriously considering taking welding 101 at a local community college and then enrolling in one of those bike frame building schools out in Oregon over the winter.

 

[udallcustombikes]

I would suggest shelling out the extra cash for the warrenty just in case.

 

[X-RAY]

tailwinds thats not crazy at all, thought about it myself!
oldgreeser- thats the coolest avitar ive ever seen!!! 8)

 

[Uncle Stretch]

Really those courses that you take a few nights a week at a high school or college are really worth the money. They will teach you how to get over the fear of actually putting two pieces of metal together. Unless your a road bike rider , I can't see that taking a course on how to braze set lengths of tubing into lugs would help you learn how to scratch build a cruiser. Maybe its your cup of tea and will be advantageous.

 

[Tailwinds]

I don't want to hijack a thread but it is quite to the topic....
I kinda chuckle sometimes at the number of hands-on activities, challenges, skills, etc. that I've been confronted with yet still have no knowledge of some activities. I'm an electrician by trade and can make soldering into an art, built houses with my father during the summers all the way back to 13yo, I own a victorian from 1873 which requires regular skilled maintenance and craftsmanship, own an old european sports car which requires its own unique set of skills to maintain and preserve, well, the list goes on.

BUT I'VE NEVER WELDED! (Used a plasma cutter once, it was thoroughly awesome.)

I really would like to learn how.

I've looked into those bike building classes, rather than simply being precut lug brazing some of the classes touted teaching all forms of frame building/ fixing. MIG/TIG, and scratch tube cutting, bending.

 

[Philphine]

i've got one. that same one i think. i'm not too good but i've gotten some things together with it. i have to say though i got shown some on a better gas wire welder and still take things to work to touch up a lot of what i do at home. still glad i got it though.

 

[vibr8shun]

That is what I started out with...those are pretty decent for what you will be doing. I now have a $900 Miller and my welds still looks the same as my old $100 mig. My old welding instructor always pushed the idea that practice and technique constitute most of experience and output....and to prove it, he took the same $100 welder and put out perfect mig welds. Granted your not welding anything over 3/16 steel for long runs (shorter duty cycle). I would still be using my old welder, but for me, I have to weld for a lot longer and not be hampered by cool down periods.

...with that said, I say go for it, see how you like it and not worry that you paid nearly a grand for something you use once in awhile. Besides, you will be doing a lot of grinding, sanding and painting over it anyways. Take a class, buy a book or borrow a welding book from the library ...then practice, practice and more practice

 

[Buck Masterson]

I crack up at the "chinese" comments, and yet people still buy it. I don't get it. Now be sure to drive to "Chinese freight" on the roads paid for by funds borrowed from China. Sorry don't mean to rant, but it does no good to complain if you are still going to buy the product, and I'm just as guilty of it as anyone, but I am starting to wake up. The very fact that so much that can be produced here in this country, putting Americans to work comes from China bugs the living bajesus out of me. NAFTA killed American manufacturing. Yes that is a very good price on that welder, but remember that is 89.00 you are paying for Communism. Just some food for thought.

 

[outskirtscustoms]

I remember hearing something that if you get the good welding wire that they do a lot better than they do with the cheap Chinese wire they give you with it.

 

[Tailwinds]

I crack up at the "chinese" comments, and yet people still buy it. I don't get it. Now be sure to drive to "Chinese freight" on the roads paid for by funds borrowed from China. Sorry don't mean to rant, but it does no good to complain if you are still going to buy the product, and I'm just as guilty of it as anyone, but I am starting to wake up. The very fact that so much that can be produced here in this country, putting Americans to work comes from China bugs the living bajesus out of me. NAFTA killed American manufacturing. Yes that is a very good price on that welder, but remember that is 89.00 you are paying for Communism. Just some food for thought.

I agree completely.
But not knowing the welder market, is there an American made equivalent to the Harbor Freight model above for double the price? $180? Triple the price? $270?

I'm just a young guy but when I see 60-70yo guys, guys that should know better, driving Toyotas, that's what infuriates me. I saw a newly retired couple riding nice looking, matching his/hers brand new Roadmaster Walmart cruiser bikes 2 days ago. I thought, "You should know better, go buy some old Schwinns!"

So, the point is, how much does a guy have to spend to get an equivalent light duty welder that's AMERICAN MADE????????

 

[id5000]

Um, China, communist? They're just as capitalistic over there, that's why you see their wares on the shelves. The big difference is that they don't have nearly as much rights to free speech and the like.

 

[maddogrider]

I have that welder and i have no complaints. Im glad china stepped up and started building stuff, i like stuff i can buy for cheap and it works.

 

[vibr8shun]

Taking a step back and looking at the big picture, No one forced us Americans to buy products from China. They just happen to provide it for much cheaper than any other country out there...thanks to corporate greed and corrupt labor union leadership (yes I'm ex-union) whom they can't see eye-to eye... and Joe public demanding low cost stuff now even though its on credit...we as a whole (not everybody) created the biggest Chinese made supercenter called "Walmart". Like most Americans, I try to buy U.S. made goods...but in this economy, I find myself stretching my dollar at these various discount super stores...and if you have kids, you know what I'm talking about.

...yeah,those welders may not be the best but they pass U.S. Underwriter Laboratories (UL) standards...and that is all it takes to get it in the country.

How ironic is it when you want to buy a new car made in America by Americans, It would have to be Mazda, Toyota, ect... and looking at my neighbors New Chevy truck made in Mexico

Me? I drive an older Jeep Cherokee made in the U.S. Breaks down a lot, not reliable, but I love it :?
The most reliable vehicles that I own- My vintage Schwinns 8)

 

[Tailwinds]

...The most reliable vehicles that I own- My vintage Schwinns 8)

Love it!