buying a used mig welder from marketplace

[paradigm]

A guy local to me is selling a Lincoln Pro Mig 135 for $150. Not sure on the age of the welder, some googling tells me these things came out 20 years ago.
Anything to watch out for when buying a used Mig welder? I have never welded before; this will be my first time as I attempt to repair / replace floor pans on my 87 GN.

 

[Malibu795]

That will be good for sheet metal and general anything under 1/8-3/16 stuff.. I have a 140 version of that though with plastic drive housing...

Generally the pro mig line comes with aluminum drive housing vs plastic drive housing..
I've been watching for a 180-210 version show up.. missed a few of them 🤦🏻‍♂️

 

[paradigm]

That will be good for sheet metal and general anything under 1/8-3/16 stuff.. I have a 140 version of that though with plastic drive housing...

Generally the pro mig line comes with aluminum drive housing vs plastic drive housing..
I've been watching for a 180-210 version show up.. missed a few of them 🤦🏻‍♂️

I was also looking at this chinese amazon welder for $380 which apparently has good reviews:

https://www.amazon.com/YESWELDER-Digital-MIG-205DS-Multiprocess-Aluminum/dp/B07TVCWDGW/?tag=gbody-20

 

[Malibu795]

I was also looking at this chinese amazon welder for $380 which apparently has good reviews:

https://www.amazon.com/YESWELDER-Digital-MIG-205DS-Multiprocess-Aluminum/dp/B07TVCWDGW/?tag=gbody-20

WHats the consumables replacement parts look like?

Generally the vevor/Harbor freight stuff isn't rebuildable like Lincoln/Miller and their lower tier lines Hobart being one of them are.

 

[paradigm]

WHats the consumables replacement parts look like?

Generally the vevor/Harbor freight stuff isn't rebuildable like Lincoln/Miller and their lower tier lines Hobart being one of them are.

I have read for the amateur / occasional use, the made in china stuff is generally fine. One guy said his was working without issue for 5 years of steady use but then the output MOSFETs blew. It doesn't sound like they are too rebuildable, and for $380 I would expect it is pretty much throw away stuff.

I am just concerned that the Lincoln I am looking to buy is close to 20 years old. I hear the Hobart is older Miller internals, and that the Hobart Handler 140 would be good for my needs with the floor, exhaust and other light duty welds.

 

[Malibu795]

Yes Hobart got bought out by miller 10? Years ago, and yes everything gets shuffled down stream when upgrades happen..

My Lincoln 140 is 20+ years old.. nice thing about it.. I can drop it off at a local weld supply shop and have it fixed.

 

[86LK]

A guy local to me is selling a Lincoln Pro Mig 135 for $150. Not sure on the age of the welder, some googling tells me these things came out 20 years ago.
Anything to watch out for when buying a used Mig welder? I have never welded before; this will be my first time as I attempt to repair / replace floor pans on my 87 GN.



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for auto sheet metal this should be fine. anything bigger get a bigger unit

 

[Hurricane77]

That Lincoln shouldn't be too bad. I have a 240V version of the same and it's probably >15 years old. Haven't had any issue with it. Since it's a pretty popular hobby welder, it's easy enough to find consumables and replacement parts for it. But for $150, anything major you're probably not paying too much to fix it.

I would double check if it has the gas conversion kit already installed with regulator etc. That might have been sold as a flux core welder with optional gas conversion kit. I don't see a gas line or regulator in that pic. There's a lot of people out there that don't know the difference between MIG and Flux core welding. You definitely want MIG. So put a couple hundred bucks for a bottle of gas in your budget