I know I should have asked BEFORE I bought it but you know how it is at a yard sale, and I have been wanting a welder even though I have never welded a thing in my life. That's why I want one, to practice and get familiar with welding. So I see this arc welder and all the stuff that goes with it for $150... Good deal / Bad deal?? for someone just starting. Thanks.

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a327/PaulT2037/welder1.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a327/PaulT2037/welder2.jpg

Sell it and get a mig welder. You can not weld sheetmetal very good with that. There are guys that tell you, you can but I have yet to see a good stick weld on car sheetmetal. I have never seen a stick welder spot weld something either which is what is on our trucks 95% of the time.

it's a good deal but like stated it's not for sheetmetal work but it's excellent for frame and heavier such repairs like engine mounts and boxing plates on the frame and crossmembers etc

I'd keep it and buy a Mig welder to go with it. The little 110V Lincolns are pretty inexpensive and will do pretty much anything you'd need to weld on a vehicle if you take your time.

Shame you're so far way...I'd gladly give you your $150 back on that welder. ;)

What they said.
I'd love to have a little stick welder like that for 150. It was a good price.
Glad I bought the MIG for the panel truck though. A stick would have been the wrong machine for the things I needed to do.

Thanks for the feedback I think I will keep it but still look for a mig and /or a tig...you can never have too many tools, money or women.

Thanks for the feedback I think I will keep it but still look for a mig and /or a tig...you can never have too many tools, money or women.
That's right!:D

Hell yeah; that there's a good deal for a little Thunderbolt!! Those things last forever. You won't regret buying it. I would ditch the rods though. Well actually you can just use them to practice on. Good deal man!!

like 87blazer said //welding rods go bad quickly if the coating is chaulky fuzzy coating cracking etc dump them// when useing welding rods i liked to warm them up in an oven 200-250degrees for a half hour or so// buy small quantites at a time for best results

As Cdowns said an oven for warming them up gets out any moisture in them but some rods don't work well hot and some rods must be used hot. Look up the spec sheet for the rod and you may have to cool it before use. Low hydrogen rods need to be used at 100 - 300 degrees F. Always store them in an air tight or original container and if you have one, a small frost free fridge will prolong the shelf life.

There is always a place for stick welds and if you can stick you can mig.

Is it OK to put them in my kitchen oven or do I need an old one in the garage. I know with powdercoating you have to have a separate oven. If my wifes brownies taste like welding rods I will have to weld myself a doghouse to sleep in.

Also the plug is bigger than the 220 plugs in my garage. do i need to change mine or get a cord with a adapter?

I would recommend a seperate oven because they will gas off when heated. The brownies may be a bit tangy. you can even use a toaster oven if you have one.

i actually had an old toolbox with a hole cut in one end and a few 1/4inch holes drilled in the other and used a hair dryer to heat them up on high and keep them warm on low while i was welding/// did most of my frame building during the winter when i lived up north

she kept wondering why her hairdryers never lasted that long

she kept wondering why her hairdryers never lasted that long


boy i am glad i wasn't the only one. that REALLY ticks em off. getting ready for work in the AM and ....."click" .....no hair dryer :lol:

[QUOTE=dwcsr] Always store them in an air tight or original container and if you have one, a small frost free fridge will prolong the shelf life.

I can just see it now, after the brownies taste like welding rods, she opens the fridge and it's got a bunch of welding rods in it! :lol:

I worked as a pipe welder (certified) in the early 80s in Tulsa OK and one of the rules about rods was you were issued 6-8 at a time-they were HOT carrying them required a rod bucket we used to call them,after 1 hour you were to destroy them and get fresh hot rods.In a rod such as a 7018---8018 they absorb moisture quickly and once that happens they cannot be brought back.I was a member of the AWS American Welding Society and every month they published weld failures and their cause----mostly due to moisture in the rods. For other uses and types of rods such as 6013 ect I myself use them at home without drying but I am not welding structures or high pressure either.