Welders, Need Mig, Help Choose!

[Cranky]

What Donny said holds a LOT of water! I traded for a MillerMatic 200 many moons ago and a few moons ago I bought a Miller 250 TIG Runner. A TIG machine 'can' generate a lot of heat and it needs to for aluminum but you can also weld two coke cans together with it when you turn it down. A pulser helps with that too. Can we say 5 amps of welding? I've had the 'little' machines too and well, there's just nothing that can hold a candle to the larger name brand machines and imo, the larger machines offer the best versatility. Before I bought the 250, I had a Lincoln cracker box 225 from the late 60's...well, the 250 blew that old thing out of the water. Never knew stick welding could be so much better plus the 250 offers not just AC but both AC and DC welding and TIG welding. Since I bought the 250, I rarely use the MIG anymore unless I'm doing something more along the lines of production work.....

BTW, you can find used machines on Craigslist for cheap!! I bought my 250 before the economy went sour for nearly half the price of new. It was nearly 5 years old but it looked new and was used by in individual and not by a company so it had low hours (you can tell) but I've been seeing them here and there for 30% of what I paid. And if you are not comfortable in looking at used machines by yourself, find someone that knows them to go with you to look. Mine came with everything needed to plug and play....