Newbie in Northern California

Hey all, I've joined your group because I'm in the market finally for a new or used AC/DC tig welder to add to my fabrication capabilities for the purpose of restoring vintage motorcycles and custom vintage motocross racers. My small shop is outfitted fairly well with a mill and lathe and several other essential tools but I need a tig welder and am finally going to buy one and so I hope to learn here how to be a better welder as well as gather some information on which welder to buy. I've also joined the Longevity forum as these two brands are my main considerations for purchase and while it seems the vast majority of members of both forums are clearly partial to their specific brand, I'll want to know why so I can perhaps use the same criteria for making my purchase decision. So thanks in advance for any assistance you may be able to provide me in deciding which brand and model to buy and for imparting any wisdom you can on me that will help me become a decent welder. Mike

Welcome, Mike! You've found a great forum with a lot of information flowing- I'm sure you'll find the right machine for your needs.There's a number of motorcycle builders and riders on the forum, and a number of self-taught TIG welders too. There are a couple sources of TIG welding instruction, including WeldingTipsAndTricks.com for instance, but post a question here and you'll get help too.

Got any photos of ongoing projects? We'd love to see what you're doing.

DaveO

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Originally Posted by McGillicutty

Hey all, I've joined your group because I'm in the market finally for a new or used AC/DC tig welder to add to my fabrication capabilities for the purpose of restoring vintage motorcycles and custom vintage motocross racers. My small shop is outfitted fairly well with a mill and lathe and several other essential tools but I need a tig welder and am finally going to buy one and so I hope to learn here how to be a better welder as well as gather some information on which welder to buy. I've also joined the Longevity forum as these two brands are my main considerations for purchase and while it seems the vast majority of members of both forums are clearly partial to their specific brand, I'll want to know why so I can perhaps use the same criteria for making my purchase decision. So thanks in advance for any assistance you may be able to provide me in deciding which brand and model to buy and for imparting any wisdom you can on me that will help me become a decent welder. Mike

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Welcome Mike and good luck with your research.

Looking forward to seeing some pics of those vintage MX bikes.

cheers
JohnG

Welcome to the forum McGillicutty. I really want to see pictures of your projects. They sound pretty interesting.

I looked at both companies pretty closely as well before deciding. I think what really convinced me was looking at what products both had in 2012 and what they introduced in 2013. Everlast has brought out some really leading edge stuff this year and has clearly listened to their customers when making enhancements to their existing products. There's some real product management progression going on here. Everlast also visits the factory frequently during the year. None of this seem true for the other guys.

Welcome to the forum. We all like project pics, hope you can post some up.

I decided on Everlast when I researched all the Chinese importers a few years ago for the following reasons:

3) Tech support reputation. (I have yet to use it myself though)

2) Duncan's trips to China to supervise production runs.

1) Oleg is a man of integrity and does right by his customers.

Welcome Mike. I think it's safe to say that most of us on here ended up shopping around before making our purchases, and I was no different. I looked at Miller first (HA-I'd have to sell 3 kidneys!), then Lincoln (only 2-3/4 kidneys), welders from Summit Racing and Eastwood (not much reviews were out there at the time), and finally Longevity and Everlast.

The one thing that sold me on Everlast was watching the weldingtipsandtricks.com videos on youtube that Jody produces. He did a demo on the exact welder that I purchased, but more importantly, I watched a TON of his videos and immediately noticed that he was one of the few REAL WORLD welders that I could not only relate to, but learn from. I also noticed that Jody demo'd a lot of Everlast welders (not just one or two) and his impression of them was very positive. Plus he shows all the features of the machines in his videos, so you get a clear explanation of what the knobs and settings do.

I also liked seeing positive reviews, feedback, and support on this forum. I didn't see much on the Longevity site that was very persuasive at the time, especially in the product support department. It seemed like many spoke of Everlast as the better Chinese welder due to it's support AND for being much more innovative.

As mentioned further up in the responses, post some pics of your projects!;)

Welcome Mike,,,I choose Everlast early on and haven't looked back since,,,spent about $6,000.00 on their products and think I got great value for my money...A pp 50 , a pp80, 2 Imig 205's , spool gun, 250 EX , water cooler, PA 200...great people to deal with,,,they stand behind their stuff...you won't be sorry..








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Welcome aboard Mike,

Now sure what the budget is. But I have our 250EX and 210EXT for TIG. We have a 200DX that will cover any bike needs as well.

Can't wait to see the older bike pictures. I raced MX and YZs years ago. Suzuki, Honda, CZ, Husky, Zundap (spelling on a few) were popular too.

You on the right forum, a lot of support here if you need it as well. We are always improving on what is already a great machine. My EX is 3 years old. Some people here have machine over 7 years old. And we are priced right.

I have use Everlast welders for many years. Current units (similar to Geezer), PP50, PP80, IMIG 200, IMIG205, IMIG250P, 250EX and 210EXT spool gun, only the cooler is not Everlast (bernard).

200dx will do everything you will need for the bikes.

Everlast haven't put it in their literature yet, but there is an added benefit of a 200dx...it will make your bikes faster. I'm not sure what was put inside teh green box, but mine made a sub 7.50 1/4mile pass after welding on it with a 200dx!

John

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Originally Posted by sportbike

200dx will do everything you will need for the bikes.

Everlast haven't put it in their literature yet, but there is an added benefit of a 200dx...it will make your bikes faster. I'm not sure what was put inside teh green box, but mine made a sub 7.50 1/4mile pass after welding on it with a 200dx!

John

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Looks like Oleg needs to add that "feature" to the website and product literature .... ;)

Most of us don't ride bike anymore (I am to old). So it was probably not a priority. Wait for the video on that though. :D

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Originally Posted by sportbike

200dx will do everything you will need for the bikes.

Everlast haven't put it in their literature yet, but there is an added benefit of a 200dx...it will make your bikes faster. I'm not sure what was put inside teh green box, but mine made a sub 7.50 1/4mile pass after welding on it with a 200dx!

John

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The magic of the green :)