Build Thread Harley Orange, a 1969 camper van build

[Pontus]

Got the $20 nos ebay pulley (F6TZ8509AA) in the mail today. It's not a perfect fit because it needs the holes widened outward, but the center is exactly right. So looks like the same situation as the 5.0 pulley that @Frank mentioned. This one is 5,1/8" wide which matches the description on the AC pulley FOTZ8509A.

 

[Pontus]

If you only plan to do steel and Stainless steel, and not Aluminum, then you can lower your welder acquisition cost by getting a DC only inverter welder.
They are much more efficient than the older transformer tech, and can output around 200 Amps from a 50 Amp 240V shop plug. Duty cycle won't be continuous, but at the gauges you would use for exhaust you won't want to throw that much heat very long anyway.
If you don't have business contracts riding on service, you could buy outside the Blue and Red 'domestic' brands.
Just be sure to research recent reviews from a source you trust, and maybe open the case to make sure they included the Transistors they SAY are in their product.
There is a lot of jockeying for various market segments among the mid-teir makers.

If I'm gonna do TIG welding, I'm not going to limit myself to only steel. I already had some aluminum projects in mind too (like replacing the fiberglass turtle top, awnings, etc, lots of aluminum to limit weight in a camping van). And every time I check reviews, even for some of the cheaper Miller products, I see reports of issues with these transistor based units, more with the chinese brands, and then you can't get them fixed, or have to ship them, not to mention poor customer service reports. I spoke with my teacher last night, and he pretty much told me to go for the $4800 Miller Dynasty and don't look back. The sales guy at Airgas told me to get the Multimatic which does everything in a complete kit for $3700. And if I'm gonna spend money like that, it's not going to be just a hobby. And since I'm already getting pretty good at this, I'm now looking to perhaps go for my license eventually. I "own" a business already, although never got it off the ground because my day job became the opposite of questionable. So it was a simple matter to add welding to my services. And of course, I already have a job lined up as soon as people heard I was taking classes, which is what everyone who starts welding for a hobby says, the work is always there. I've also seen welding jobs posted on freaking street signs around here! So I think I can make the money back eventually (and then some) making it a good investment.

But locally, I saw a low hour Syncrowave 200 for sale for only $1600 which for only a 200A tig is a tansformer based beast, but I could make it work I guess. It does AC and pulse. Those things last forever, right?

Edit: funny story, the guy selling the Syncro just addressed my power input concerns by saying it's fine on a 30A breaker. Miller clearly states in the manual that it draws 54A on full power, so I hope he wasn't doing that on 30A wiring. It's sold though.

 

[THE FRENCHTOWN FLYER]

My Miller Dynasty 210 is a great machine. I have yet to explore all the features it has. Kinda like my new car that nearly drives itself.
My philosophy on buying shop tools has always been buy the best you can afford, pay for it by doing work for others, or fixing your stuff that saves you money from farming that work out. Then it doesn't owe you nuthin'.

 

[Sevensecondsuv]

I bought an Everlast 190DV tig machine back in 2017. I've already worn out one torch and several bottles of gas, welder works great. Even on aluminum it's good to go. We have the $10k millers at work and honestly it's hard to say the Miller is really much better running a bead, at least on stuff within the 190's thickness capabilities (about 1/4" aluminum if you really push it). Even the Millers and Lincolns use chinese electronics inside their machines, so there's really no escaping it short of buying an analog industrial unit. So my perspective is an Everlast is perfectly fine for hobbiest use and there's not really a reason to spend used truck money on a welder (unless of course you want to).

Also keep in mind that air cooled torches get hot in a hurry at even 150 amps, especially running AC, so buying a big machine is kinda pointless unless you're also going to get set up with a water cooled torch. And then you'll want a heated shop to keep it in so it doesn't freeze. The madness never ends!

 

[sixtseventwo4d]

Tool insanity is only offset by motor madness. All the voices agree.

 

[Bronctopia]

I bought an Everlast 190DV tig machine back in 2017. I've already worn out one torch and several bottles of gas, welder works great. Even on aluminum it's good to go. We have the $10k millers at work and honestly it's hard to say the Miller is really much better running a bead, at least on stuff within the 190's thickness capabilities (about 1/4" aluminum if you really push it). Even the Millers and Lincolns use chinese electronics inside their machines, so there's really no escaping it short of buying an analog industrial unit. So my perspective is an Everlast is perfectly fine for hobbiest use and there's not really a reason to spend used truck money on a welder (unless of course you want to).

Also keep in mind that air cooled torches get hot in a hurry at even 150 amps, especially running AC, so buying a big machine is kinda pointless unless you're also going to get set up with a water cooled torch. And then you'll want a heated shop to keep it in so it doesn't freeze. The madness never ends!

I got the Everlast 205 Tig/Stick/plasma box about 10 years ago.
Had to adjust the Hi Freq spark gap. Called in and got a fluent tech who told me where and what gap range.
Haven't had a problem with it since.
Would have preferred the Dynasty, but couldn't justify the 3x cost at the time for a Maintenance tool.
Also stand alone plasma boxes weren't as cheap then, and I had stainless to cut...

 

[Wesman07]

I’m another happy Everlast owner. While I always prefer to buy quality tools that last, everyone has a budget. A $3,000 difference in welders is hard to justify. That’s a lot of more side jobs you would have to take on to pay off.

My friend works for Timbersled as a fabricator/ engineer. They use Miller’s at work, and he has an Everlast in his garage.

 

[Bronctopia]

SevenSecSUV is right about the internals, even line assembly.
But what you get from the Blue and Red brands is dispatchable support techs, training, and domestically warehoused parts.
This is incredibly valuable in a business where downtime cost is high.
Also, most businesses really don't like the idea of their employees opening high energy, modestly high voltage equipment to troubleshoot via tap-a-talk and sketchy forum diagrams.
Real support carries a high labor cost, and some of that price will be carried into the physical product.
For the garagista and hobbyists, a benefit of paying that premium is that Blue and Red are probably doing a lot of component verification behind the scenes. In an age where even aircraft manufacturers can be duped by faux timkin bearings, I have leaned to trust no brand.
I would not buy another welder, Everlast or otherwise, without doing a lot of research including reviews, manual downloading, borrowing some arc time on one if possible, and opening the case on arrival to make sure the components advertised were the ones soldered.

 

[Frank]

Pontus, did you get your head yet?

 

[Pontus]

Pontus, did you get your head yet?

Yup, but be patient cuz my garage is full and my workshop has been taken over by its owner, so the motor is sitting in my car until I can get it onto the stand and in the warm, dry shop. My wife fought me tooth and nail over putting it in the living room, so that's out too.

I will say that, despite the wait, I am very happy. My machinist said all the right things without prompt. He balanced the crank and did the valves exactly as you guys said he should. Everything that was mentioned here about machining, he repeated to me without my asking/suggesting, so he definitely knew his trade very well. He opened up and gave me a lot of great building advice, gave me some product recommendations, and said to call him anytime, no stupid questions, he's happy to help me with the build.

One thing that was concerning though was the fact that, once he reamed out the guides to .357 and diamond honed another .001 clearance, he said the valves sat in there with big gaps on the seat. He of course was already planning to recut the seats, but he was surprised that a piloted reamed guide like that would be so far off and wondered what the original valves looked like.