A Story of Indecision and Frivolous Spending

An expensive welding hood is only expensive until you compare it to a cheap one. When I started I bought the typical garbage HF auto darkening hood. I then upgraded to a Lincoln hood and my welding improved immensely.

I would focus less on the shiny trinkets and spend the money where it will do the most good.

If the welder is mostly going to be for Jeeps, there isn't any reason to get one that will weld (correctly) more than 1/4" steel. Unfortunately, that's a little too much for a 110v welder (unless you do some tricks with flux core and two passes or pre heat) but you really don't need to get a production grade welder.

Hobart and Miller are owned by the same company now. My friend has a Miller 211 autoset welder. It's a fine welder, but the autoset feature is IMO garbage and deceiving. It doesn't weld any better than my old (at half cost) Hobart 187.

Get a couple of cheap grinders so you don't have to change heads (but get nice consumables), get a 220v mid-range welder you can get parts for, get a nice $300ish helmet, and get the supporting cast of stuff you need to weld. Like welding pliers, tip dip, gloves, welding shirt, magnets.

I would go to a well respected welding specific store and at least get your first set of gloves and helmet. You'll probably also want to rent a cylinder and some gas from them too.
 
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Clint Rivera said:
You'll probably also want to rent a cylinder and some gas from them too.
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Comparing to buying a cylinder is a good option too if you expect to keep at projects.

I personally will advise against buying multiple cylinders from the same supplier. I've had one run out of gas so it's nice being able to go to the other supplier across town to get gas (or in my case several towns over).

The biggest cylinder they'll sell you is going to be the cheapest per CF and in some cases cheaper out the door price than buying the smaller sizes. So it doesn't hurt to ask.
 
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Chris said:
So let me pose another question then:

If someone was learning to weld, but wanted a good MIG welder that would that would last them beyond just the "learning" phase, what would you want to look for?

For instance, I know that there's probably certain features one would want, and other features you wouldn't want (or need).

Apologizes in advance if I missed any of this that may have already been pointed out.

So far I've gathered that I want something that is 220V, correct?

I wouldn't mind spending up to $1000. Maybe a little more if necessary. I'd look at it as an investment.
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Why not ask the experts at MIller, Lincon, or Hobart?
 
Chris said:
Exactly. I'll measure it and post photos when I get it back today (if I get it back today), but from what I saw, it looks like they have a lot more down-travel as oppose to up-travel.

I don't know, maybe that works for some people, but it doesn't work for me.
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You should at least wheel it on some trails that it's built for first...Use this as a chance to take a break from building it for these badass trails and take it on them. Find out what works and what doesnt. I do not mean this with malice, its just build, build, build, and no wheeling. I feel like you are building your Jeep in big steps and not wheeling it in between.

If I am sounding like an ahole, I apologize and flame on.
 
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jgaz said:
This is a picture of the 4” we used at work.
View attachment 66696
Let me know if this is enough info. If not I can try to get more info from the guys I used to work with.

I’d really like to know your thoughts on these. Now that I have to buy my consumables I’d like to get the most bang for my buck.

Hell, mrblain if you PM me your address I’ll send you a couple to try out if you’re interested.
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I appreciate it. Let me see if I can source some easily first. If not, I'll get in touch.
 
jgaz said:
No comparison as far as getting into tight spaces. You really need both. You’ll see once you start cutting.

Tip: Save your die grinder cutoff wheels when they are worn down to various diameters. Sometimes that half or more worn out wheel is just small enough to allow you to get into some tight spot where the full diameter wheel just won’t fit
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Yep, exactly why I don't buy 3" cut-off discs for the die grinder. I have a bunch that used to be 4".
 
Fouledplugs said:
You should at least wheel it on some trials that it's built for first...Use this as a chance to take a break from building it for these badass trails and take it on them. Find out what works and what doesnt. I do not mean this with malice, its just build, build, build, and no wheeling. I feel like you are building your Jeep in big steps and not wheeling it in between.

If I am sounding like an ahole, I apologize and flame on.
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If he’s bottoming out his shocks before he runs out of bumpstop he’s not going to be impressed with the result.
 
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Clint Rivera said:
If he’s bottoming out his shocks before he runs out of bumpstop he’s not going to be impressed with the result.
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Ha! Maybe its just me, but I would think taking it out and using it, seeing it in action, and getting out of the Jeep when hitting some obstacles that its built for, he may find it beneficial to seeing what needs to be fixed, changed, and or modified. Im just thinking it could be more than just the shock towers...

Im just a fan of wheeling.

To dive a little into my post...I am 100% sure a number of folks here could and would have somethting to say about each of these Jeep builds (not a bad thing, its human nature, I suppose) how this and that isnt right and could be better (OH NO! Long arms) but look at what they are doing; they are enjoying their Jeeps in the woods.

Simple, Alabama rock crawling with some locally built Jeeps.
 
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cliffish said:
what if you are getting old like me and need reading glasses? do you wear them under the helmet or do they make magnifying lenses?
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They make "cheater lenses" that you replace your inner lense with, they make them in different levels of magnification.

For what's it's worth I weld daily, mainly tig, with a Lincoln Viking 1740 or a basic flip down if in a weird spot that won't get the auto darken to go.

I wouldn't spend $300 on a hood to start out with, not to say cheap out but it's a little overboard unless you have money lying around.

You shouldn't need a bunch of extra lenses, whatever hood you buy should come with a few extra lenses, keep your head up and out of the puddle, as a beginner you'll probably want to do this a lot, keep a mental note to try not to, you should do this to not breathe in as many fumes anyways.

Mess with shade settings, lighter doesn't always mean you can see better.
 
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Fouledplugs said:
Ha! Maybe its just me, but I would think taking it out and using it, seeing it in action, and getting out of the Jeep when hitting some obstacles that its built for, he may find it beneficial to seeing what needs to be fixed, changed, and or modified. Im just thinking it could be more than just the shock towers...

Im just a fan of wheeling.

To dive a little into my post...I am 100% sure a number of folks here could and would have somethting to say about each of these Jeep builds (not a bad thing, its human nature, I suppose) how this and that isnt right and could be better (OH NO! Long arms) but look at what they are doing; they are enjoying their Jeeps in the woods.

Simple, Alabama rock crawling with some locally built Jeeps.
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I completely agree with this! Wheeling the Jeep the way it is will not damage it. Chris, so why is this shop wrong about the way they did things? Is it because others tell you it shouldn't be done that way? Possibly.....

The reason Blaine and several others have so much info and knowledge is from first hand mistakes and having the ablity to ride in and build many jeeps. How does that seprate you from them? Your resources are probably limited to only your Jeep. Take your Jeep as it is and learn from it. Sure you could stuff it in the garage for a month and make it right but there's so much to learn from the state it is in currently.

Rather than hopping the bandwagon of telling others how it should be done you could guide them and inform them as Blaine and others are doing by expirence. Get some dirt on those tires. Push it hard for a few weekends keying in on what it is or isn't working well off road and why. Go home correct the shops "problems" and go wheel again.

By doing so you just gained more useful knowledge. Other than how to cycle axles, measure a thousand times, cut and weld. You just learned why. Remember how kids always ask "why" well there's your answer.
 
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Fouledplugs said:
Ha! Maybe its just me, but I would think taking it out and using it, seeing it in action, and getting out of the Jeep when hitting some obstacles that its built for, he may find it beneficial to seeing what needs to be fixed, changed, and or modified. Im just thinking it could be more than just the shock towers...

Im just a fan of wheeling.

To dive a little into my post...I am 100% sure a number of folks here could and would have somethting to say about each of these Jeep builds (not a bad thing, its human nature, I suppose) how this and that isnt right and could be better (OH NO! Long arms) but look at what they are doing; they are enjoying their Jeeps in the woods.

Simple, Alabama rock crawling with some locally built Jeeps.
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What part of Alabama? Looks a lot like what Tennessee offers.
 
Did we ever get measurements for the shock shafts? I may have missed it buried in here somewhere.
 
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toximus said:
As long as the BS is checked this should be true.
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It would also be good to hang the axles and make sure the driveshafts are safe from bind. Specifically the rear, because I know very well how mine came together. If what we believe it true, Chris's travel arc is shifted lower than mine is. But his rear output might also be a bit lower than mine is. The short Rubicon drive shaft doesn't like to hang too low.

Or just make an effort to not put both front or rear spinning tires in the air... ;)
 
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