hello all,
im not trying to cause a big argument and i am not a mainline pipeliner however all of my dads side of the family are and have been and i can tell you what they have used through the years, my uncle used a 79 sa 200, and his sons use lincoln 300G,
the other family members one used a 300D lincoln and his son uses a lincoln air cooled 250 with a deutz diesel and is a 798 union member
in 2002 he finally had to have someone go into the motor he had close to 5000 hours on the machine and still using it, like i stated im not a pipeliner i have a truck rigged out and weld on alot of construction equiptment and farm equiptment i have a 301 trailblazer but am looking at getting a pro 300 when i upgrade simply because i am tired of the 3600 rpm i am wanting to get a lower rpm machine
You would have a VERY hard time getting a test on a mainline construction job in the U.S with a 305D or Ranger on your truck. It doesn't have anything to do with the brand. Pull up with a Miller PipePro and no body will bat an eye, those machines are working on pipeline spreads all across the country.
It doesn't have anything to do with "turning up your nose", it's what is the appropriate tool for the job.
I have either an old SA-200 or a Classic II on my truck, both will work just fine for pipeline construction, neither one will do for heavy equipment repair involving a lot of air arc and a lot of 3/32" wire. That's just simple, my tools are appropriate for some work but not for other work. That doesn't offend me or hurt my feelings, I'm aware that my truck won't cut it in several different welding situations. It's set up for a fairly limited scope of work.
The people who actually do the work, know and understand what tools are needed, and what won't work. In every field
My take.
JTMcC.