13 replies to this topic

[minicityE-2008]

Hi there,

I'm looking to get myself a mig welder and have come across the "no-gas" welders from Clarke. They are cheaper than the gas migs and it says they can be easilly converted to use gas shroud if necessary. This is the one i am looking at Link . I am a complete welding novice and wondered whether it would be easier to learn with this (and cheaper not needing to buy gas). If the "no-gas" is deemed to be rubbish, i was looking at this one link

I just want to gauge peoples opinoins who have more experience on whether it is better/ worse or indifferent compared to one which uses gas. I will eventually be using it for doing body repairs etc on cars, if this has any bearing on which is better suited.

Cheers

Tom

[sonikk4]

Don't go there pay the extra money and go gas, some of the welds i've seen with gasless migs are atrocious. You have much more flexibility with gas for me that's the only way to go.

Clarkes range of gas migs are ok i use a 135TE Turbo and its working well plenty of power when needed but also handles thin tin as well.

[minicityE-2008]

Don't go there pay the extra money and go gas, some of the welds i've seen with gasless migs are atrocious. You have much more flexibility with gas for me that's the only way to go.

Clarkes range of gas migs are ok i use a 135TE Turbo and its working well plenty of power when needed but also handles thin tin as well.

Cheers for that. I had heard that the gasless welds are a bit splattery and not particularly good, but i would rather hear it from people who had experience rather than the people i heard it from who can't actually weld but think they know all about it!

[MiniBonkerz]

I bought a Clarke 135te for £200 delivered got a bargain it's gas and i love it already happy using it weld are strong cant fault it one bit get a gas mig save yourself buying a gas one later on

[sonikk4]

If you do go Gas then get a bottle from BOC preferably Argoshield light. My bottle is size Y (pigging heavy) bit i am doing a lot of welding. The contract is yearly payable either monthly or all up front. If you decide you don't need the bottle anymore then they will refund any full months of the contract outstanding.

If i remember right it came to about £190 but this included a new regulator (my CO2 one did not fit) and another 5kg spool of .6mm wire. I will downsize the bottle next time so it will be a lot cheaper, they do other sizes as well. The refills are not expensive either.

There are other suppliers but i found BOC to be very easy and friendly to deal with. DO NOT buy those poxy small white bottles from the likes of Halfrauds, they only last 15 mins if used in anger.

[rick.spi]

i used a gasless on my bulkhead box. made it a pig, granted im not the best welder but no matter how hard you try gasless always comes out like pigeon poop lol.

i would advose getting a gas mig very highly.

Edited by rick.spi, 05 May 2010 - 06:34 PM.

[Rich.]

Yep, gas is the only way to go. I have used gassless many a time and just not got the results i want. At home i use a clarke 150Te welder, which works perfectly for me, although i do alot of thicker welding aswell, it seams to handel the thinner stuff admerably;



And i second the bottle choice, i got a bottle from a local company which i payed £40 for, then £10 a refill, no monthy fee's or rental chages, just an upfront buy of the bottle then a refil when ever i need it!

Rich

P.s, thats not a hole in the weld, just some crap sitting ontop, i got abit worried when i saw the picture and went out to check, luckily the stuff had blow away and all looked good.

Edited by Rich., 05 May 2010 - 06:53 PM.

[minicityE-2008]

Cheers for all the advice, much appreciated

I will definately go the gas route and avoid the little white bottles which i have heard from many many people that they are absolutely pointless!

[l_jonez]

i say go gas,

glassless is ok and with enough practice you can get welds just as neat as gas ones. the problem with gassless is the flux causes *woman of ill repute* on top of the weld pool so you cant really see how its behaving. for some one learning gas is defiantly the way to go
i use gas but some times i have to use some fluxed wire (welding outside in the wind etc).

dont forget when i comes to body work you want a welder with low minimum amps. for body work i got a clarke 90 its really a hobby machine but has great low amp ability and i've never had a problem with it in the 4 years i've owned it and its used pretty much every day. any thing over 1.5mm i use my mma (stick/arc or what ever you want to call it) welder

[BGB]

i got a gasless welder and its *poop poop*.

i should have saved my cash and bought a CO2 one

[mk3cortina]

ive been using a clarke gasless welder for about 6 years now, i dont see anything wrong with the welds, and im a welder. i think people who use them and say that they are awful dont know how to weld properly, its not a dig at anyone but welding is an art of sorts, you cant cheat at it. i use gasless because its cheaper and im only using it at home in my workshop to do repairs on classic cars that ive had or done for customers over the years. also remember that most welding that you do will never be seen unless you go underneath the car, so cosmetically it shouldnt matter too much, good fusion and penetration is what you are aiming for, and with car panels etc, its not hard to get.

[MiniBonkerz]

ive been using a clarke gasless welder for about 6 years now, i dont see anything wrong with the welds, and im a welder. i think people who use them and say that they are awful dont know how to weld properly, its not a dig at anyone but welding is an art of sorts, you cant cheat at it. i use gasless because its cheaper and im only using it at home in my workshop to do repairs on classic cars that ive had or done for customers over the years. also remember that most welding that you do will never be seen unless you go underneath the car, so cosmetically it shouldnt matter too much, good fusion and penetration is what you are aiming for, and with car panels etc, its not hard to get.

Agreed but from a novice point of view gas would give better results to aid the confidence for a few evtra quid theres no point in going gasless unless you have experience to do so

[mk3cortina]

well, the first mig welder i ever used was gasless, i dont think it takes long to get half decent results, just practic a little on some scrap sheet, there are loads of websites with info on how to use mig welders. also for a novice buying their first welder, id say gasless is the way to go, as they are inexpensive (used on for about £50) but buy one of the clarke gas/no gas ones, then you can have the best of both worlds should you wish to try out gas.

[Ethel]

Unless cost is critical it's not an either or choice. Gasless is really convenient for the odd quick job so if you can afford it, buy a gasless welder and a valve and bottle to run it on gas. Try and sort a good gas supplier first, the disposables aren't much cop and expensive.