red vs blue

Date 06-12-2002 14:17

I'm looking into replacing my old Century 105 amp Mig with a 200+ amp Mig for my small home race shop. I'm considering the Lincoln Power Mig 200 & 255 or the Miller 210 & 251 Millermatics.

I already have a fairly new Lincoln Squarewave 175 Pro Tig setup and have no problems with it. I am wondering what difference there is in quality and actual welding performance between the two companies? Will a welder actually see a difference in how either machine performs or does the decision come down to features, specs, warrenty, price and customer support from the manufacturer?

Thanks for any inup on the decision
Todd
http://www.malibumotorsports.cjb.net

By DGXL

Date 06-15-2002 17:00

Goose,
I noticed your post has gone unnoticed, so, just my 2 cents:
I learned to MIG weld on Red. I learned to TIG weld on Blue. But let's not forget Yellow, Purple, and I don't know if Hobart is still Tan(?). The old Airco (Orange) machines where very reliable when they were producing equipment. They are for the most part all good pieces of equipment. It is your personal choice, which should be based on your requirements (or your customers requirements).

I tend to go with Red for some applications, Blue for others, but I now own Purple at my workshop @ home. My little Thermadyne kicks butt for GTAW. VERY smooth arc, even compared to much larger and more costly power supplies. Trained a client on a new Lincoln MIG welder a couple of weeks back, the welder decided he liked the old Blue one instead (so did I). He passed his 6GR no problem, without the aid of a brand new piece of high-end welding equipment.

Yellow has some good stuff out there right now, it's like a Ford or Chevy or Dodge. They all have potential at the race track. What's your flavor?

By welder_guy2001 (***)

Date 06-17-2002 01:32

what one person likes, another person hates...hard to tell ya. i think Miller has more products for their machines...not sure on that though. but i will say this...i don't like the Hobart Beta-MIG 251. it just seems to have an irregular arc. you can set it up good one day, then come back to that set up a few minutes later and it welds differently. that's not something i've experienced w/ other MIG welders.

what you can do is go to your welding machine retailer and ask them if they have a trial booth for you to try out some machines. if the retailer is worth anything, they'll gladly let you try out anything they sell.