Hullo Marc. I haven't fully read all the postings and so am jumping in a bit with my two bobs worth. I have pressure tickets for both tig and mig welding. Tig is slower but gives control and finnish, think bicycle frames. Mig deposits the weld faster, think constryction. Mig to the novice or cowboy appears to be quite easy, just pull the trigger and point the gun..........................

When I was looking at buying my first mig, my elder brother gave me the excellent advice, 'buy the biggest single phase machine you can find'. That means about 250 amps, the brand doesn't matter to much. That first machine of mine has paid for it self a hundred times over by now.

Last year I brought a Kempi 180 (180 amps) Mig Inverter. They are light as, take gas or gasless wire, can throw them over your shoulder and weld from a ladder, they bight into the steel, can deposit a good 6mm weld leg length on max settings and retail for about $2300. They have such a good rap that I formed a pod of three buyers, we ordered three machines and got the price down to $1650 ea. The only weak point I have found is the light weight gun got so hot on my first job that the gas line melted and slipped off the gun. Kempi replaced it with a heavier one, definitely a design fault. This is the most beautifull of machines and the digital interface makes it easier for the novice to understand the settings and paremeters.

And if you really want to hone your skills I suggest giving TAFE a Captain Cook. The welding courses are cheap and modular so you can pick up units as it suits.

Is there a forum like this for steel eyes?

Gumnut.