Thread: BOC Smootharc MIG welders

Originally Posted by Psimpson7

I have a single phase 250amp ESAB MIG Welder which is excellent.

They were made in Sweden, not sure if they still are?

I have only heard good things about Esab. I believe that Kemppi is still made in Finland?

the 175i is a good home / light farm use unit with easy to get spares...

when my current old unit dies that is what i will be buying...

flux cored wire is good for chassis work... good penetration and really not that messy if you get your wire speeds right... and the polarity

I cant believe a MOD just talked about chassis welding

seriously though Im not sure flux core would meet the basic AS codes for any of "that" type of welding

all mine have passed

Originally Posted by steveG

I'm looking at getting a decent MIG in the coming months, so have been having a read of the other "which MIG" threads on here, and elsewhere.
My current cheapie MIG runs well on gasless wire (but its a PITA to clean up etc), but sucks when run on gas. Inconsistent wirefeed etc Have you changed your polarity when going from gasless to gas? May be a source of your problems and I'm sick of it. Most of the time now I end up dragging out the stick welder.

So, I'm looking for a decent single phase unit, as large as I can get - probably in the $1-2K range.

Migomag have a really good reputation, so they are definitely on the list, but I also had a look at the BOC offerings today.
They currently have their Smootharc Advance 275 for $1133 ex GST. Its an 275A inverter unit, 4 roller wirefeed (2 are driven) and 60% duty cycle at 213A.

Anyone got one, used one, or have any feedback on them?

Steve

First I would be figuring out the source of your problems first before going and spending the coin on a new one. You usually go done a size in gas wire from your gasless, Have you chosen the correct drive roller for the wire size?

Originally Posted by uninformed

I cant believe a MOD just talked about chassis welding

seriously though Im not sure flux core would meet the basic AS codes for any of "that" type of welding

He has been known to successfully change his own oil too

Originally Posted by incisor

all mine have passed

Im guessing it depends on which state you are in, whos doing the inspection and what part you are welding. From what I have looked into here in QLD its hard to get a black and white answer about what can be done, who needs to do it etc for it to be road legal. And if its not road legal I can forget about insurance coverage.

If I was buying again I would research the following brands:

Kemppi
Esab
Lincon
Cig
WIA

Im sure there are some others but these are the good names I know of.

dont just look at duty cycles, but actual components used. Look at the wire feed units. Mine is not an inverter, and as is the case with most of them in this range it only has 2 knobs for voltage 1 coarse and 1 fine adjuster. The wire feed controls wire feed and amps. However I think some models now have display of actual volts and amps which is very handy.

With the inverters that will mig, tig and stick, and if shopping at a certain price range, is it a case of getting more functions at the cost of quality when compared to a conventional mig?

Originally Posted by rovercare

He has been known to successfully change his own oil too

as have I.....but like most things in life a simple small stuff up can sometimes lead to a cluster f.............welding is not void to this.