1966 Mustang Welding. Which Welder Would You Recommend?

Katman44 · Nov 9, 2012

I recently bought a 1966 Mustang project car and I need to replace the rear frame rails, floor panels and body panels. Which welder should I buy that will work for all three projects. I do not want to spend a fortune. Thanks for the help.

horse sence · Nov 9, 2012

wire feed is the easiest and fastest,lincoln makes a very nice small portable unit.
it can be used as core wire or with a tank. it works very well for light guage sheet metal.

rbohm · Nov 9, 2012

get the best welder you can afford. lincoln electric makes some damn fine welders. as for type, a mig welder is going to be your best bet unless you know how to weld with tig. a mig welder is the easiest to use, and to learn with. however with the ease of use comes with a price, and that is you will spend more time in clean up and dressing the welds.

horse sence · Nov 9, 2012

home depot carries the 180 hd compact

65-Fstbk · Nov 9, 2012

I use a Lincoln 140 Mig. Started off with a cheap offshore welder and did not like the quality so before I did any exterior panels I went and bought the Lincoln. Seems to do a much better job. I picked it up for just under $500.

Katman44 · Nov 9, 2012

Would the Lincoln 140 Mig work on the frame rails as well?

horse sence · Nov 9, 2012

65-Fstbk said:
I use a Lincoln 140 Mig. Started off with a cheap offshore welder and did not like the quality so before I did any exterior panels I went and bought the Lincoln. Seems to do a much better job. I picked it up for just under $500.

used the lincoln for years in construction ,metal stud work. used core wire.was able to easily pack it up scaffolding and get into tight places .loved it

horse sence · Nov 9, 2012

Katman44 said:
Would the Lincoln 140 Mig work on the frame rails as well?

i believe the lincoln 140 is 115 regular house current and the 180 is 220 if you have 220 outlet that is the one i would recamend but the 140 will work

68keyblr · Nov 9, 2012

Lincoln or Miller 140. I have a Millermatic 211 and absolutely love it. Both brands are very good

Katman44 · Nov 9, 2012

Thanks for the help!

65fastbackresto · Nov 9, 2012

I got a Miller thats 120volt plugs into any outlet and has a bottle of 70/30 argon gas that makes pretty welds on thick or thin metal. I have welded using the flux core wire and the quality of the welds just sucks compared to using the shielding gas. Just my 2 cents worth.

For whats its worth though, nobody is gonna see those welds when your done...

68keyblr · Nov 9, 2012

I agree, the gas makes a huge difference. With some practice you'll be able to lay down some pretty welds

mtaqua · Nov 9, 2012

I would say get the gas, makes things easier. I went cheap and got a 110v Clarke. I've had no problems and have done everything from sheet metal repairs, floor pans, roof repair, frame work, engine plate brackets, and a ton of other fab work.

Realmongo · Nov 9, 2012

Both the Lincoln and Miller are good units. I have had my Lincoln MIG for about 20 years now and it still works great. Clarke mentioned above went belly-up a couple of years back.

horse sence · Nov 9, 2012

yes gass is beter, but once you do a few practice welds with the core wire it will work prety well. i went whole hogg with my welder and got the millermatic 252. it's digital ,and i hated it when i first got it. i found out the gun was junk right from the start. bought a tweeco gun, now i like it but i still dont care for the digital part. the best one i ever had was a snappon . it made the pretiest spotwelds you ever saw. i finaly wore it out. they are way to expensive for me to get another one,what a shame.
bought the miller syncrowave 180 tig welder ,same problem digital, but it welds nice and cost a fortune . the didital panel went out in about two weeks. the factory replaced it and its been going for about 3 years now. the wire feed cost me about $2100. by the time i got the tank .the tig cost about $2300 with the tank and that was on sale, but i got the big tank.

mtaqua · Nov 10, 2012

Realmongo said:
.... Clarke mentioned above went belly-up a couple of years back.

Did someone buy them? I just found the same welder and parts available for the one I bought on line from multiple sources. Not that I have had anything break on it, but might get a replacement gun if they really are going out of business. I've almost melded it on many occasions.

http://www.clarkeinternational.com/shop/categories/search/welders-accessories

horse sence · Nov 10, 2012

mtaqua said:
Did someone buy them? I just found the same welder and parts available for the one I bought on line from multiple sources. Not that I have had anything break on it, but might get a replacement gun if they really are going out of business. I've almost melded it on many occasions.

http://www.clarkeinternational.com/shop/categories/search/welders-accessories

not sure if tweeco makes a gun for it ,but i would go that way .you will not believe the difference. i think the guns are universal. it was a major improvement over the origional miller.i nearly returned my miller untill i changed to tweeco

Realmongo · Nov 10, 2012

mtaqua said:
Did someone buy them? I just found the same welder and parts available for the one I bought on line from multiple sources. Not that I have had anything break on it, but might get a replacement gun if they really are going out of business. I've almost melded it on many occasions.

http://www.clarkeinternational.com/shop/categories/search/welders-accessories

Wow, looks like their back!
A couple of years ago I was going to buy a stick welder from them to use on my loader, but there were none to be had.

65fastbackresto · Nov 12, 2012

I stepped on the tip of my gun here while back, stripped the threads out of the end of it, bought a tweeco gun to replace it, and now I wish I had stepped on it years ago, works alot better now for some reason.

horse sence · Nov 12, 2012

65fastbackresto said:
I stepped on the tip of my gun here while back, stripped the threads out of the end of it, bought a tweeco gun to replace it, and now I wish I had stepped on it years ago, works alot better now for some reason.

not sure why but the weld is much smoother with no sputtering and less spattering
the sound is even different ,a smooth sizzle. did a little more than step on my miller gun.

1966 Mustang Welding. Which Welder Would You Recommend?

Katman44

New Member

horse sence

rbohm

horse sence

65-Fstbk

Katman44

New Member

horse sence

horse sence

68keyblr

Katman44

New Member

65fastbackresto

Active Member

68keyblr

mtaqua

Member

Realmongo

I prefer to be called "Evil Genius"

horse sence

mtaqua

Member

horse sence

Realmongo

I prefer to be called "Evil Genius"

65fastbackresto

Active Member

horse sence

Similar threads

1966 Mustang Welding. Which Welder Would You Recommend?

New Member

New Member

New Member

Active Member

Member

I prefer to be called "Evil Genius"

Member

I prefer to be called "Evil Genius"

Active Member

Similar threads

Privacy & Transparency

Privacy & Transparency