S7 MIG Welder with Gas and Gasless Capability, Knob-Control MIG Welding Machine for Beginners and DIY Home Workshop, Flux Core & Gas MIG Welder

For the $99 cost, this welder is incredibly effective. I've used it for a few months and put it through its paces on Gas MIG and to a lesser extent Flux Core MIG. I am an automotive hobbyist. I do occasional welding for fabrication and repair. I'm not a beginner at welding, but certainly not a professional. I did not use the stick or TIG functions, so I can't comment on them. Pros: - The synergic function works very well for me. Because of this, I can weld better with this unit than my 1997 Lincoln 175A MIG. The wire feed runs smoother, and the weld is smoother. This unit is much easier to adjust for the material and conditions. - I plugged it into a 20Amp 120V outlet and measured 135Amps maximum output. That's not 200A, but you can do anything automotive with this amperage. If you're welding 5/32" or thicker, this is not the welder for you. - It is generator-friendly because it is an IGBT. I normally run it from a 3200 watt generator at 220V. I measured 125A using a clamp on meter running 0.35 flux core MIG wire. This makes a very effective portable welding setup. - I can dial the amperage down and it does a great job with automotive sheet metal and exhaust pipe. I used 0.30 solid MIG. It is very controllable and allows me to build material and not burn through. - Lightweight and small thanks to the efficient IGBT power supply rather than heavy transformers. - The MIG wire feed works great, better than my Lincoln (sorry Lincoln), which suffers from a poorly designed spool holder. Cons: - I doubt if the 200A rating is real. However, I measured 135A on 120V using 0.35 flux MIG, and you can do a lot with this. To be fair, I did not catch the peaks using an oscilloscope, so maybe it can do 200A under the right conditions... I also did not measure maximum output at 220V or using stick. If you need 200A and you're welding 5/32" or thicker steel, you need a bigger welder. I don't think this one will get the penetration you need. - The leads are short. However, the unit is so light and small that you can usually move it closer to your work. You can also use a heavy duty 220V extension cord. - There is an exposed portion of the control circuit board in the MIG wire cabinet. It is okay as is, but I'd hate to see the MIG wire bird-nest and hit this board during operation. I'll eventually cut some milk jug plastic and use a few zip ties to protect it.

I'm a novice welder and bought this multipurpose unit to repair a couple of items for a friend who owns a golf driving range. I have done AC stick welding and some DC TIG (45 years ago) and can generally stick things together that won't come apart but the welds aren't very pretty... This unit arrived well-packaged and without damage. The unit auto-detects voltage, has good fit and finish, synergic operation, and is comfortably quiet with a five second or so cool down fan delay when the unit is powered off. It comes with an adequate stick stinger, an adequate ground clamp, an adequate MIG torch, a 2lb roll of 0.030 flux-cored wire, one 0.8/1.0 v-knurled flux core roller, three 0.8 contact tips, a spare gas shield, and a 2' long 220v to 110v adapter cable. It does not include a gas regulator, TIG torch or welding helmet. Wire, rollers, contact tips and gas shields are all of standard types and readily available for purchase at attractive prices. It should be noted that the knurled v-groove roller provided will accommodate 0.035 flux core on the 1.0 side of the roller. Cables appear to be of good quality and are about 6' long--on the short side (good for me, less bulk to stow), but long enough to do effective work adjacent to the machine which is lightweight and easily portable. Since I had to weld some thicker stock, I ran a dedicated 220v 50A drop to my preferred welding location and used that successfully. If I have a future requirement, I will put together a 220v 50A extension cord of adequate length. I haven't tried 110v operation yet. Harbor Freight has a low-end welding cart which easily accommodates this unit, its accessories, and a gas bottle should I venture into gas MIG or TIG welding in the future. It permits ready access to and stowage of the unit which is handy. I also bought their foldable welding table which permits better stability for the MIG torch when welding smaller items. Instructions for this welder were virtually non-existent. A quick internet search located instructions for a similar unit from another manufacturer that were well-written, intelligible, and effectively led me through the set-up process and considerations. As a novice welder, I'm not sure of what I don't know but was able to figure things out and make effective welds with a little experimentation. I practiced for an hour or two on some scrap of varying thicknesses I had laying around the garage to get a feel for wire speed and penetration, then had at it with the two repairs. With 220v service, I got good results using 0.035" flux cored MIG wire to overlay 3/16" plate onto 5/16" plate to repair a ball picker wheel mount. I then dialed things back to weld a probably 3/32" mounting bracket back on to a 3/32" mower deck without burn-through or other issue. The MIG torch is easier to use than my old HF AC stick welder as it enables me to get closer to and contact the work before I pull the trigger to strike an arc. Tack welding is easy even though this unit doesn't have a tack welding option. I can't comment on stick, TIG or gas MIG, but imagine similar good results. Overall, for a $150 unit, I'm delighted with my purchase!

Hooked this welder up and did some flux testing. I also connected it to a load bank and tried various resistance settings to maximize power output. Here is what I learned. The various weld settings are as follows. flux .8, flux 1.0, mig .8 seemed to all function the same. Voltage output stayed the same, along with maximum power output. stick also has the same maximum output but the output stays hot. Once the output has a load on it, the welder will not switch away until the load is disconnected. I didn't test lift arc. The leftmost dial controls the voltage slightly with a +3 to -3 adjustment. I turned it to +3 to get the maximum power. OK, the maximum power I was able to get with 233 VAC to the machine was a measured 174 amps of welding current at 16.5 VDC. I was unable to get 200 amps of current, suggest this machine be renamed the MIG-175 The welder is light, versatile and works well on both 120 and 240 VAC circuits. I didn't test maximum output with 120 VAC but assume it would trip the breaker as others reported so depends on your circuit breaker to some extent. Feeder works well but the ground cable is way too short so will be replaced soon. The Arc stinger arrived with a broken piece although doesn't affect it's operation. I didn't test as I have better stingers available.

Buena

Si cumple con las prestaciones que promete, es perfecto para el que va iniciando y si trabaja durante un buen tiempo, lo recomiendo ampliamente, hasta el día de hoy no he tenido ninguna falla, es de buena calidad.

Cumple con su objetivo, solo que la clavija trae un adaptador muy estorbos

El envío fue super rápido, lo recomiendo al 100%. La máquina está muy bonita, muy bien empacada y trae todo lo que promete, aún no la estreno pero espero que funcione bien y sea duradera.

Es una planta para soldar con excelente rendimiento, ideal para trabajos caseros, se la recomiendo mucho