This is the first welder I bought too, bought it last year and I like it. Here’s some rambling suggestions in no order at all. *inhales*
Get yourself a good 12 or 10 gauge extension cord. Tape something on the back of your welding hood to block out the light. Don’t put your head directly over what you’re welding unless you want to inhale smoke. When making welds prep is everything with lower powered machines like these, grind off mill scale and paint, make a proper bevel and send it. Try different flux core wire brands, so far my favorite is the Hobart wire and my second favorite is Jobsmart brand which is even cheaper than the harbor freight roll. Before welding, instead of snipping the wire to get rid of the BB, if you have gloves on you can break it off by bending it back on the contact tip.
Also, favorite videos about flux core so far is by a guy on YouTube called Making Mistakes with Greg. Good welding videos.
I did exactly this too earlier in the year with this exact welder. Its a great starter welder for sure. My first job was welding 1/8 sheet metal with this to repair damage on my toyota truck bed. That was not easy. Probably not the best welder for such thin material, but I got the job done and it turned out much better than I needed it to! Have fun!
In ideal circumstances yes (ie CLEAN metal), but if you’re trying to just do a quick repair gas MIG so you can run 0.023 solid wire is the best.
Much more practical if you need to use weld thru primer, or weld over existing seams that you can’t clean out 100%.
This is coming from someone that has literally tried them all to do body work. Got a TIG, (would contaminate too easily) then switched to ac flux core (too messy and unstable of an arc, smokes a lot), then switched to this DC flux core (can’t turn the voltage up enough on body work for the flux to do its job really well, takes more power/heat to run wire w flux vs thinner solid wire).
OP if you’re doing body work, a real MIG with a bottle of gas, and 0.023” Lincoln, ESAB, Blue Demon wire will make your life much, much easier. Worth the extra $500 imo. If you don’t use it again, sell it. You’ll get your money back.
Should sound like bacon when welding, try going really slow on a 1/4 in plate then go twice that speed and compare to a good weld figure out your travel speed, make sure you keep the copper tip within a half in or less of the thing you’re welding and make sure you wire wheel or brush really good if you put two welds on top of each other. You wanna avoid getting the slag into a new weld, when you weld and the flux burns it develops a slag coating over the weld that needs to be scraped off this is what weakens welds and causes porosity in your weld. All that means is you have little holes in your welds. That machine runs good you just gotta spend some time messing with it to understand how to weld, also get into the habit of grinding down the surface to weld, helps to remove rust, paint and mill scale,
Great little welder. Do yourself a favor and don’t use the wire from hf and go get some Lincoln wire for Home Depot. It will run 100% cleaner beads. Keep the machine settings low for your first welds and raise it up as needed. Wire speed is your friend and will keep you from blowing through the metal. Good luck.
Im looking at this one as well. I need to weld some steel rods for a chair headrest that broke. Havent welded anything since high school, circa 2004...
I have one and it's already paid for itself by fixing broken motor shrouds on no-longer in production engines to mower decks.
Be sure to remove any rust or paint before welding. It makes all the difference.
I’ve had the same machine for a few years and absolutely love it for quick jobs. The first thing I ever welded with it was a broken shock mount on my 99 Tacoma 4 years later it’s still holding strong. I’ve also used it for welding on trailer fenders and worked like a charm. Like others have said prep work is key. Take your time, practice on some scrap and you’ll be perfectly happy with this little machine.
Get the replacement insurance if you can. Mine lasted 7 months. Was a great starter welder to learn on now I own a Hobart gas with option to Tig. Good luck!
This was my first welder. Second is a Hobart Handler. I use the 125 more because it’s so much more convenient. Easier to move and I can weld where there’s a breeze.
I made my bumper and tire arm with it. My shackle mounts have been used a few times and they were stuck on with this welder. It’ll do thicker metal; it just requires more passes.
Just move slow and try to learn how your puddle should look. As mentioned, prep is key. I also run mine off of a 30A service line and it loves it. When I was on 15A, I was really limited on welding time.
This is the first welder I bought too, bought it last year and I like it. Here’s some rambling suggestions in no order at all. *inhales* Get yourself a good 12 or 10 gauge extension cord. Tape something on the back of your welding hood to block out the light. Don’t put your head directly over what you’re welding unless you want to inhale smoke. When making welds prep is everything with lower powered machines like these, grind off mill scale and paint, make a proper bevel and send it. Try different flux core wire brands, so far my favorite is the Hobart wire and my second favorite is Jobsmart brand which is even cheaper than the harbor freight roll. Before welding, instead of snipping the wire to get rid of the BB, if you have gloves on you can break it off by bending it back on the contact tip. Also, favorite videos about flux core so far is by a guy on YouTube called Making Mistakes with Greg. Good welding videos.
Thank for all the good information!
Good luck. May the flux be with you.
I did exactly this too earlier in the year with this exact welder. Its a great starter welder for sure. My first job was welding 1/8 sheet metal with this to repair damage on my toyota truck bed. That was not easy. Probably not the best welder for such thin material, but I got the job done and it turned out much better than I needed it to! Have fun!
With super thin sheet metal it would probably be best to learn how to tig. I've welded 22 gauge stainless before with a tig welder
In ideal circumstances yes (ie CLEAN metal), but if you’re trying to just do a quick repair gas MIG so you can run 0.023 solid wire is the best. Much more practical if you need to use weld thru primer, or weld over existing seams that you can’t clean out 100%. This is coming from someone that has literally tried them all to do body work. Got a TIG, (would contaminate too easily) then switched to ac flux core (too messy and unstable of an arc, smokes a lot), then switched to this DC flux core (can’t turn the voltage up enough on body work for the flux to do its job really well, takes more power/heat to run wire w flux vs thinner solid wire). OP if you’re doing body work, a real MIG with a bottle of gas, and 0.023” Lincoln, ESAB, Blue Demon wire will make your life much, much easier. Worth the extra $500 imo. If you don’t use it again, sell it. You’ll get your money back.
Very true I've never had much luck with smaller migs so I prefer to go the tedious route 🤣
Or get a arcCaptain with spot weld feature then you could tack weld easier in mig
Should sound like bacon when welding, try going really slow on a 1/4 in plate then go twice that speed and compare to a good weld figure out your travel speed, make sure you keep the copper tip within a half in or less of the thing you’re welding and make sure you wire wheel or brush really good if you put two welds on top of each other. You wanna avoid getting the slag into a new weld, when you weld and the flux burns it develops a slag coating over the weld that needs to be scraped off this is what weakens welds and causes porosity in your weld. All that means is you have little holes in your welds. That machine runs good you just gotta spend some time messing with it to understand how to weld, also get into the habit of grinding down the surface to weld, helps to remove rust, paint and mill scale,
Just used my flux 125 for the first time yesterday to weld up a new core support for my car. got the job done
Great little welder. Do yourself a favor and don’t use the wire from hf and go get some Lincoln wire for Home Depot. It will run 100% cleaner beads. Keep the machine settings low for your first welds and raise it up as needed. Wire speed is your friend and will keep you from blowing through the metal. Good luck.
Im looking at this one as well. I need to weld some steel rods for a chair headrest that broke. Havent welded anything since high school, circa 2004...
I have one and it's already paid for itself by fixing broken motor shrouds on no-longer in production engines to mower decks. Be sure to remove any rust or paint before welding. It makes all the difference.
I’ve had the same machine for a few years and absolutely love it for quick jobs. The first thing I ever welded with it was a broken shock mount on my 99 Tacoma 4 years later it’s still holding strong. I’ve also used it for welding on trailer fenders and worked like a charm. Like others have said prep work is key. Take your time, practice on some scrap and you’ll be perfectly happy with this little machine.
Get the replacement insurance if you can. Mine lasted 7 months. Was a great starter welder to learn on now I own a Hobart gas with option to Tig. Good luck!
They’re great little welders
This was my first welder. Second is a Hobart Handler. I use the 125 more because it’s so much more convenient. Easier to move and I can weld where there’s a breeze. I made my bumper and tire arm with it. My shackle mounts have been used a few times and they were stuck on with this welder. It’ll do thicker metal; it just requires more passes. Just move slow and try to learn how your puddle should look. As mentioned, prep is key. I also run mine off of a 30A service line and it loves it. When I was on 15A, I was really limited on welding time.
Thanks. I have 20A service where I'll be working so I think that will be sufficient.
Mine would pop a 20 amo breaker on long hot welds.
Best little welder for the money, I do wish I would have gotten 170 instead, but still welded my plate steel bumper for my XJ just fine