Tig welders from China

Silent Shrill

Hi people,
Does anyone out there own a tig welder from China? I'm in the process of buying one and have done quite a bit of research into them, but am finding difficulty in hearing of owners of said tig's. There must be a multitude of owners of them, as the sales of them are very high. Maybe the owners dont want to admit they own one......I dont know.
We all know the thoughts of those that say that the Chinese tig's are crap, but that's usually said by those that have never owned one, and want to justify the high cost they paid.
I have read on other forums of owners that have purchased a Chinese tig, and they say it does everything the "dearer" one's do with excellent results. Unfortunately they never post pics of the welds, or give more insight.
The usual response is, "spares are unobtainable", "they burn out", "only last a year".........but those that say this have never owned one.
We'd all love to go out and spend 3000 on a Miller, but for the vast majority it aint gonna happen. Those that are doing light work from home or even making the odd item for sale could not justify the high cost of branded goods.

I dont want this thread to turn out to be a "free-for-all" on the Chinese or their goods. You can find those discussions on practically every forum. I'd like to read comments from those that have actually owned/used them, not their mate who had one.

I'm sure there are many like myself that are interested in the useability of these tig's.

P.C.

Dd not know what this has to do with motorbikes, and this is the only place that I could think to move it.

Silent Shrill

P.C. wrote: »

Dd not know what this has to do with motorbikes, and this is the only place that I could think to move it.

Tig's are used to weld motorbikes. There's no "metalworking" forum on boards. The diy forum is not really appropriate. If you're not really sure where this thread belongs, maybe it's best to leave it where it is, but unfortunately that did not happen. I've read welding methods on car forums at boards, but seeing as I'm a biker who wishes to use a tig on bikes, I thought it appropriate to put it in the bike forum.

I knew deep in my heart that asking such a question here at boards would get some daft response.....and that's what I've received.

fergal.b

There is a lot of info on them on the net, it seems the biggest problem would be getting parts or getting it fixed but when you look inside them I'd say nearly all welders have parts made in China Here are some links that might help you make up your mind.

http://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/chinese-tig-welder-review-video.html

http://www.woodworkforums.com/f160/chinese-tig-welder-comparison-99893/

http://weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=65811




.

Max Headroom

P.C. wrote: »

Dd not know what this has to do with motorbikes, and this is the only place that I could think to move it.

More to do with bikes and cars than Home and Garden.....why move it at all.....:rolleyes:

Heard a few stories about these things breaking down after a short while, inferior parts breaking etc. I guess you get what you pay for, but a lot of this asian stuff tends to be muck....as youve read already...

CJhaughey

Probably best in 4x4, tractors, diggers and plant.
Fair few threads about welding in there already OP.

TPM

Silent Shrill wrote: »

Hi people,
Does anyone out there own a tig welder from China? I'm in the process of buying one and have done quite a bit of research into them, but am finding difficulty in hearing of owners of said tig's. There must be a multitude of owners of them, as the sales of them are very high. Maybe the owners dont want to admit they own one......I dont know.
We all know the thoughts of those that say that the Chinese tig's are crap, but that's usually said by those that have never owned one, and want to justify the high cost they paid.
I have read on other forums of owners that have purchased a Chinese tig, and they say it does everything the "dearer" one's do with excellent results. Unfortunately they never post pics of the welds, or give more insight.
The usual response is, "spares are unobtainable", "they burn out", "only last a year".........but those that say this have never owned one.
We'd all love to go out and spend 3000 on a Miller, but for the vast majority it aint gonna happen. Those that are doing light work from home or even making the odd item for sale could not justify the high cost of branded goods.

I dont want this thread to turn out to be a "free-for-all" on the Chinese or their goods. You can find those discussions on practically every forum. I'd like to read comments from those that have actually owned/used them, not their mate who had one.

I'm sure there are many like myself that are interested in the useability of these tig's.

I cant comment on Chinese tig welders, but I have used various non Chinese portable TIG welders and the difference in them actually surprised me, some were far smoother and easier to use than others. For this reason alone I personally would not buy a Chinese one.
When making your own decision take into account the amount you intend to use it, and what you are going to weld, the thinner the more critical the quality. And the difference in price to non Chinese TIG welders.