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Practical welding guides, clear process explanations, and carefully researched equipment reviews for beginners, working welders, and home fabricators.
Three flame-resistant welding shirts with every figure taken from the maker's own spec, plus the difference between a shirt that passed a flame test and one certified to NFPA 2112.
May 5, 2023 · 16 min readThe best welding jacket for most people is the Black Stallion FRB9-30C: a 9 oz flame-resistant cotton body with split cowhide sleeves, which puts the leather where the spatter lands and keeps cotton where you need to breathe. It costs $62.90. If you only weld occasionally, the all-cotton FN9-30C from the same maker does the same job for $31.89.
Read guideThe best auto-darkening welding helmet for most people is the Lincoln VIKING 3350 with 4C lens technology: 1/1/1/1 optics, a 12.5 square inch window, a 5-13 shade range, and sensors Lincoln rates down to 2 amps on both AC and DC. If you ever weld at low amperage, that last number is the one that decides it.
Read guideA TIG welder is bought for control, not speed. One question decides what you spend: if you weld aluminium you need an AC/DC machine, and if you only weld steel and stainless, a DC-only machine does the same work for a quarter of the money. Every number below comes from the manufacturer's own published specification.
Read guideTo MIG weld sheet metal: use the thinnest wire your machine will feed, an argon-rich gas, and the lowest settings that still give a stable arc. Then stop welding before the panel gets hot. Almost every hole blown through thin steel is caused by heat that accumulated over several seconds, not by one setting being too high.
Read guideWe compare features, performance, reliability, and value so you can choose gear that suits your work and budget.
The best flux-core welder for most people is the Lincoln Weld-Pak 90i FC: 90 amps at a 30 per cent duty cycle, 15 lb, and the most owner experience on the shelf. This guide explains why three machines sold as 120 and 140 amps are all rated at the same 90, and why the cheapest one publishes the most honest thickness figure.
View recommendationsThe best stick welder for most people is the Lincoln Weld-Pak 225i DV: 225 amps at a 30 per cent duty cycle on 230 volts, 82 volts open-circuit, and lift TIG in the same box. This guide explains the three numbers that decide a stick welder, and why a 250-amp claim on a 110-volt plug is arithmetic that does not work.
View recommendationsThe best welding jacket for most people is the Black Stallion FRB9-30C: a 9 oz flame-resistant cotton body with split cowhide sleeves, which puts the leather where the spatter lands and keeps cotton where you need to breathe. It costs $62.90. If you only weld occasionally, the all-cotton FN9-30C from the same maker does the same job for $31.89.
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Set up your machine and run a clean bead — MIG, TIG and stick, explained without the jargon.
Understand the processes, rods, gases and current types before you strike an arc.
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