Playing with the Harbor Freight 80 amp inverter welder #91110- paid link Amico ARC-160, Professional 160-Amp Stick Arc Lift-TIG Welding Machine amzn.to/36BORBo
I bought mine 3 years ago for $89.OO+TX and on my way home on the side of the road was a set or 12 ft. Jumper cables ,3 of the clamps were crushed and 1 black clamp was mint.Its ironic that I just saw your video.,and it has been very good ever since.......
Very cool. I had always thought 110 volt arc welders were a novelty at best and a scam at worst. Now the dual voltage rigs are so cheap. It is cool that they can be used on 110. I picked up a Mig/Stick/Tig (if you buy the torch and the gas) about a month back. I haven't got the 220 outlet done yet (it is dual voltage). Hadn't even thought of trying it out on stick on 110. I wired the house so it has 20 amp service everywhere. When I get feeling better I will have to start playing around with it. It will be great to have the option of mig and stick off of 110V if i need to take it to a friend's house. I just need to grab that rod you were talking about in the right size.
+Patrick Whitehead Thanks! Had to laugh when I saw your comment because I just last week put up the other side of that ping pong table out in the country in an old machine shed I am trying to cobble together a shop in! It really is a great table to have, I have used it for so much more than welding projects.
Gotta admit, I bought the Parkside 80amp inverter welder and have never regretted it. It's an ideal small arc welder for any average 'Man cave' scenarios. Handles 2.5mm rods with ease and good penetration, you can lay down some pretty smooth beads with this 'pocket-sized' welder.
I bought mine about 2 years ago for 145.00 dollars with a special coupon from HF and have never regretted it yet . I only use 1/16 th or 5/64th 3016 rods and it welds great . It is still all original and if I need a longer cord I only use a 10 gauge 25 ft plugged into a 20 amp devoted socket making sure the ground is close and clean and the metal is clean and it runs like a champ ! I have made all my patio furniture and table items , 2 smokers , 2 barbi pits , 2 outside fire pits , several home and yard metal repairs and am working on a new metal gate using scrap bed frame steel and this little guy is still going strong ! Great little welder for the price . I noticed lately after a visit to HF for more rods that the design has changed and the housing is now black at about the same price , I hope mine will last a few years longer , I should have bought a second one back then , keep welding on my friend stay safe !
I have had mine for a grand total of 5 years ago last month. I even have bought a small argon bottle and started to experiment with tig welding. My ground clamp however is a bronze beast. It belongs on a real welder. I guess over the years , like every company has done, they just went to a cheaper. My best welder is also from harbor freight. It is a ac 160 amp dc 120 amp welder. They no longer sell it. That’s a shame though. These welders having both AC and Dc capabilities made it very versatile. You are 110% correct about having clean places to weld. I use my little feller. My esteemed colleagues at work actually made a custom sticker in a baby type font. It says Doug’s little feller on it. Were always putting stickers on guys stuff. One guy I work with went all in with the tool truck guy. I’m not going to say but I step on a lot of Matt’s at work. He spent well over 27,000 dollars in tools. He has a 3/4 inch complete socket set. It goes from 1/2” to 2 and 3/4!inch deep well and shallow well sockets. He said I’ve got great credit. I’m single he reminds me of my youngest son, god love him. He says one night after work we were all standing around at a local tavern. I don’t see myself getting married and having kids anytime soon. He is so driven. Just like my son. Ya know,He was the youngest crew chief in the history of The AirForce. He got his 6 stripe at the ripe old age of 24. Now he’s out and has brought that passion to college with him. God love him he wants to teach history at a high school level. So to make a long story not as long as it could be we made this big sticker to put on his massive double closet with a role out in the middle. We put this basket ball size sticker that says I blew my future kids college funds just so I could have the right tool for the right job. I put a sticker on the tallest cabinet that said. I support the student loan system. I’ve got a separate cabinet that designed and welded together for all my welders and argon bottle. That kind of small tools like that have a tendency to walk off the day you go on vacation. I love my normal tool box though. It’s an old 80s model heavy light brown ABS plastic. It pushes great. It’s light. It has mounded into the socket drawers little squares that I mounted all of my socket on to. On the very bottom open area I mounted 2 harbor freight deep cycle batteries in series. We have quite of a fleet of 12 volt gadgets like drum lifts and paint shakers. They have the heavy duty forklift style charging ports. I made a little mount for little feller. I mounted a 2000 watt inverter to those deep cycle batteries. I can run it on a full blast for about 30 minutes before my batteries are dead. It’s saved our bacon so many times I quit counting. The guys put a sticker on my tool box that says putt putt.
Hey, great video. With some pretty good modification ideas. I would have never thought about using jumper cables as an extension. Also good idea on using hinges for your folding work table. I just might borrow that idea. Keep up the good videos.
Thanks, I originally used the cables full length but thought it was causing problems with weak current so I shortened them but it ended up being the rods I was using! Yes, the table folds down and my bender flips up, welding table, grinder, cutoff saw, tool box all roll, good for saving space and I get to still use my garage.
That's a good price. I paid $150 for the HF 80A which puts it up with the Amico 160A that I paid $160 for and it is a dual voltage machine, I just did a comparison video on them. Thanks for the comment! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rWJlNTogmgE.html
Your talking about your ground clamp the new little welder gets twice as hot as that older model best all purpose junk rod as i call them are 6011 burn through rust, paint just about anything on a farmfire up or even new steel works great and i dont have to fire up my big engin driven miller or even my mig for that matter just great all around little welder that easy and light to use.
That is amazing! I am an experienced welder and, for me, this little thing sticks like flypaper 4 out of 5 strike attempts on clean metal even at full power on a 30 Amp circuit. So frustrating....I guess you have "the touch." I ended up with the little AHP 160ST for field work when there is only 110 volts available. Thanks for the video!
I use mine at least once a week. I use strictly 3/32 7014 rods. Very rarely though do I weld much thicker steel than 1/8 inch thick metal. I have a 240 volt 165 ac 125 dc welder for any big work. These little welders are great for small stuff though.
I had all kinds of problems just starting an arc with this thing. Damn rod would just stick like a bastard. With enough practice, it definately makes up for it. Been using this same rig for, five years maybe. I'd say it's more for doing tack welds and small repairs, mine seemed to overheat with light fab work.
We've been burning 3/32 electrodes with this little box with great success. It does, however, take a very steady hand and arc length to keep it going, not for novices. I plan on buying another box so I can run two in parallel to double amperage and duty cycle. A simply 'buddy whip' is all that is needed. We'll be able to burn up to 1/8' electrodes at that point.
taiden yup... parallel equals double amperage, series is double voltage. Ohms law. However, the supplying circuit must be able to supple enough current to run both together. A DMM should be used to make sure both are set the same as well.
I have brought this but it gives a lots of troubles. I used 3/32 rods but it's not starting arc. Rod sticks with the metal with very little arc (80amps). I just touch the rod with the clamp then it created nice solid arc. Can you please advice me to make this correct.
Thanks! It is 1/2 of an old 2 piece ping pong table that I added a few strap hinges and attached to the studs and raised the legs about 10" or so for a better height, the other 1/2 is out in barn set up the same way. My brother in law gave it to me and it sat in the garage for years before I used it! I may have an old video of it from 6 or so years ago on my channel. Thanks again!
The connections are called dinse plugs. The ones that come on harbor freight welders are usually dinse 25s, being the small versions. Miller's and other big brands use dinse 90s which are the standard ones
Happy New Year's to you again. lol I thought I had sub to you I will do it now. I like your channel and will be going over your video's. Stay safe/warm. Later
You may want to check out the Amico inverter welders, they are dual voltage 160 amp for about the same price. Funny you commented, i am working on a comparison video right now!
For what its worth, I welded 2 clevis type hooks from HF onto each side of the front top of my tractor loader bucket to lock chains onto it. I used 1/16" rods and cleaned after each pass and both hooks are still holding after several years. Good luck! Thanks for watching! I did a video last summer where I welded another hook in the middle of the bucket but you can see the other 2 I am talking about.
Unfortunately no, I just needed to get more length out of them after pulling it onto the floor a few times . I guess the best advice I could give you on starting is , angle the rod and drag it, then as it starts to spark, tip it up and try to maintain the arc. I have found once the rod has been run a little it is easier to re-start. Hope it helps, thanks for watching!
nice video---Ive got a millermatic 140---but I'd like to have something super portable where I can work outside on small stuff. Question: the arc seemed to start very easily---does it have some kind of EZ start feature, etc? These are on sale now at our local HF at $80 as a clearance item...
If the rod has been started already they start OK . $80 sounds like a good price, check out the Amico DC inverters on Amazon , little more than the HF but they are 120/240 160A machines. Lot more versatile . I did a video on them a few months back comparing the 2 welders. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for this video. I'm going to buy one of these machines for light welding pretty soon. Is your unit still working? There aren't many video reviews on this machine, even though its been around a while.
Hey I want to change the cables like you did. Did the boots just slide off for you? Forward or backwards? I know it seems like an idiot question but I just don't want to mess up the ends that plug into the welder. I don't think there are any replacements for those.
+Corey Williams Yes there are plenty of replacements for the connectors out there. They are called dinse 25, dinse mini, or dinse 25mm connectors, The big ones that hook up to larger machines are usually dinse 50mm connectors. These are just a miniature version. Try searching online, you'll find them.
HI 1st I like your video u talk about in detail that home users , DIYers can use at home. I got mastercraft 75A Arc Stick Welder. Will this work on 15AMP circle brake? I bought in home depo E6013, 1/16 inch x 1 lb., Steel Electrode. Waiting for pickup. Is this going to work to weld steel receptical on 15AMP circle? If i upgrade to 20 AMP will my wires in my condo can get on fire? Whats ur opinion? Whats the best electrod for the 75amp welder i got? What AMPrage should i set the welder to weld? min is 20am andm Max is 75amp? Ur help is appreciated
The welder in the video is supposed to be on a 20 amp circuit. I have only ran it on a 20 amp circuit.The info that comes with your welder will probably specify what size circuit minimum it should run on Changing out the breaker is not advised because the breaker is usually determined by what the circuit is feeding ,then wired accordingly. I am not an electrician.
Never welded a thing in my life, however, I own a pressure washing business, and I have several trailers that always need some welding and/or fabrication. Will this welder be able to handle welding the square tubing typically found on utility trailers?
I would go with a newer dual voltage machine that can put out more amps. Check out the Amico or Yeswelder machines . I have a 16’ tandem utility trailer and I don’t think I would use the little HF on it. Thanks for watching and commenting!
you figure some car batterys put out alot of cold cranking amps so in theory would be fine for a welder, but battery cables, will remember that if I get one of these small welders
Thanks man for the video. I've been looking at this welder and considering it. I've got a cheap flux core one (AC) and it isn't great. Never stick welded before so I might pick one of these up and practice. Good to know you were able to weld those hooks on the tractor. Still holding strong? All the best! Matt
Thanks for watching! I would check out the dc inverters out now, way better for about the same money. I got an Amico 160 from Amazon couple years ago , way easier to control and use ,I did a video on comparing the HF and the Amico. Hooks are still holding on the bucket though!
This little welder has come down in price. I can do just about anything a man should be able to do, except weld. Have always wanted to learn. So I'm considering this little stick unit, and a 110 flux core wire feed as well. I come from an electronics background, with many years of soldering. I think I read that 6011ac/moisture resistant, mr, (good name brand) will work with these little 110 stick machines, as long as 3/32 or smaller. Get into 1/8 and amperage is a limiting factor. Thanks for the review. Think I'll get one of these after all. Still trying to decide on an inexpensive 110 flux core feed box. Cheers!
Great video, I just got this welder and tried it out. Is it normal for the fan to slow way down and for the unit to make a slight whistling noise as you make the arc? The whistling noise only lasts for a second but the fan going way down lasts the entire time the rod is making contact with the metal. As soon as I pull the rod off the metal, the fan comes back full force.
6013 runs well on both polarities, to be honest, I haven't used it much since I got the Amico 160. Lot nicer and not much bigger! Thanks for the comment!
being a new student to the welding trade would this little welder be good for practice outside of class, say running beads and doing lap joints, butt joints, etc ? the price seems almost to good to be true at 150$ or so ?
The fact that you can run it on a 110v 20a circuit is an advantage. I would say it would be a good one to practice with, or the 90a flux wire welder they sell at HF.
Trisco Hell yes. This unit is as we saw is portable, affordable, 110v, functional, and easy to store in your bachelor pad. You can pull it out in the weekend to stack beads or take it to welding class. When you try to weld your 1st exhaust manifold or muffler, you will come to appreciate a dedicated low amp welder like this because thin gauge metal is THE most difficult to weld with any system but nearly impossible with the SMAW system. Once you become proficient with thin gauge metal, you will find that 1/4- 1" material is a joy.
Would it work well enough to say weld a go kart frame together safely? I have a 120v mig welder from tractor supply, (jobsmart) would that stick welder work better or the mig I have?
I guess it would depend on the thickness of the metal. I welded 3/4" thick hooks onto the bucket of my tractor with it. Although I made a lot of passes on them, using 1/16" rods! they are still holding. I would try your wire feed first before I spent the 160 on another small welder.
+TheFearedhorizon Not sure about automotive welding, I have welded some pretty thick metal, lots of passes but it worked. That was flat work that I was able to clean real good. If you have a HF close pick one up and run it for a week see if you like it ,you can always take it back.
are all of those rods from harbor freight I just got 5 lb box of 5/32 6011 Lincoln's for 15 bucks at lows because I know the harbor freight 6011 run terrible.also did you whip and pause or circle motion
The only rods I used from HF are 1/16" . As far as rod movement I just use small semi-circles like ))))) back and forth, or just straight, no side to side movement . (sorry for the bad description). I have never used a 5/32 rod. 1/8 is the biggest i have ever used on the Lincoln 225. 3/32 is the biggest I have used on the HF Inverter. I like to use 7014 rods.
+1rustytree darn I ment to say 3/32 6011 Lincoln rods that's what I bought at lows they run pretty good on 80 amps welding 3/16 steel but my favorite is the 7018 low hydrogen anyways thanks.for the info
is an 80 amp welder but how many amps does it draw? I need to get one of these small welders, but Normally 110 /120 ac circuits has 20 amp fuse.....Would I need to connect this to a circuit that has 50 amp fuse. A little confused. Good video.
H Max I have only used it on a 20 amp circuit with nothing else in use on the circuit at least while welding. Not sure exactly how many amps it draws but I hear it throws 15 amp breakers! Never had a problem with the welder or breaker on a 20a circuit! Thanks for watching!
I bought 2 on clearence for $125 each , have my friend welded a few pieces , and did not performed well . I noticed he did not have a clean ground , and trying to weld rusty, or painted metal.
1rustytree You can weld almost anything with an arc welder but the ground has to be solid. It took me ten minutes (that is a lot of time for me) to figure it out on a little project of mine.
thats something i kinda remember from shop class in high school .. clean metal an good ground for easier welding an starting arc.. buying one of these tomorrow
Unless you are getting it real cheap, I would look into the Amico welders on Amazon, they are are about the same price but way more versatile. I just compared the 2 on a video.! Thanks for watching!
If you have access to 220v power , get a bigger machine. Harbor Freight texted a sale couple days ago and it looked like the 225A(220v) stick welder was on sale for 185 , had decent reveiws,. If not, it will do the job, but slower, with more passes. Just my opinion. Good luck!
+CaptAmericaUSAF They say reverse digs deeper . I always say I am going to sit down with it and play with the polarity/rods and see what's best for what I usually work on, but I never do!
. I'll definitely will do that and see. I like the idea of the longer cables as well. I fabricate stuff, between the wire feed and this welder, I'm ok. Between go-kart frames, ornamental work and home made turbocharger jet engines I get by. I have a much heavier Montgomery Ward Power Kraft AC/DC 230/140 Arc Welder, just need the electrician to stop by and wire up an outlet in the garage. I need to buy a TIG and learn on that for detail and cosmetics
+CaptAmericaUSAF Sounds good! That's another reason I don't use the small one as much, I always fire up the Lincoln AC 225 because its so much faster on the rebar I work with.
+21oneshotonekill Certain rods run better with different polarity. With few exceptions, electrode-positive (reversed polarity) results in deeper penetration. Electrode-negative (straight polarity) results in faster melt-off of the electrode and, therefore, faster deposition rate. From Lincoln Electric.
+tony montana Hey Tony, Its just a standard 3 prong but I would get the heaviest gauge I could find not knowing how far you have to go. I have never used it with an extension. Other guys on RU-vid have said that you should use it on a 20amp circuit also.
+Ron S I think there were a few, 1/16 in 6013 and 7014, and 3/32 7014 . The 1/16 rods were Harbor Freight and the 3/32 7014 were either Hot max or Blue Demon, cant remember exactly.
Ok. I feel pretty stupid. I was running 1/8 7018 and it kept sticking and could not get the arc started. Maybe I should read the instructions. I’m used to the Lincoln welders.
I welded hooks onto a bucket of the tractor with it it took a lot of rods.I was using those 16th rods and they are still on there . I just did that to see if I could do it . I would not recommend it for anything thicker than an eighth or so
I would say its the "least resistance" thing. There is a lot less resistance between the metal and the electrode, than there is between my hand and the metal/or electrode. I have never been shocked by welding but I know, for sure, it can happen.
whatever an electric shock could cause I guess would be a possible result from welding shock. If I had a heart condition I would study up on that before I started welding. I know my neighbor can't weld anymore because of a pacemaker and the electronic/magnetic interference (I think) it may cause.
Actually, that is a bad weld, especially running 55 amps. Should be at 90 amps atleast. I run E6010 @ 90 amps DCEN using a weave pattern. The E7014 is what you need to use for what you performed, a drag pass.
SilentOneCorajuda13 if you knew anything about welding besides pretending that you do you would know that amps very with rod size. you may run 1/8 rods at 90 amps but try running a 1/16 rod at 90 amps all it will do is melt won't even weld. plus if you paid attention you would see that the welder is only 80 amps max.
well duh. Just like using a E6012 or 6011, it is almost the same as a 6010, other than the loud crackling sound that they produce. Thinner rods on high amps wont have good penetration and crappy toe.
