New Chinisium Tig

Well I bought a cheap Chinisium Tig welder. I have been looking at for 6 months. Just couldn't pull the trigger. Last week I'm watching Walter Sorrels and he reviews the exact welder I was looking at! Well I bought it, now in the process of getting all the accessories to weld with! Ill end up spending more in that stuff then the actual welder! LOL! Those in the know is it worth getting the 20CF Argon tank or should I get the biggest one I can own 80CF. Does anyone own one of these machines? I bought it mainly for doing layered stacks of steel(Damascus, San Mai etc...) and my little art projects. PS this machine won't weld aluminum.

You got a link to the one you purchased?

For Damascus I've never felt the need for actual TIG welding, MIG with cored wire has always worked just fine without having to deal with the argon gas.

KenH said:

You got a link to the one you purchased?

For Damascus I've never felt the need for actual TIG welding, MIG with cored wire has always worked just fine without having to deal with the argon gas.

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In all honesty I've never had an issue either but have always wanted a TIG (LOL!!). Couldn't justify spending a lot of money on it.

This is a link to his YouTube Channel and the actual video I watched. I hope it works? If not check out his YouTube Channel. The video was pretty informative and got me to pull the trigger.

PS He has a 5% discount code on his link to the welder also.

I have watched many of his videos - and am subscribed to his channel. Amazing how cheap those Chinese welders are these days.

That's a really good price!

The Welder I bought recently, An ArcCaptain 200 will do TIG. Though you have to buy the TIG torch separately. I really like the multi-functionality as I can also do stick, MIG with gas or not and Aluminum with a spool gun. And it will also do spot welds.

I don't think you can beat the price on the unit you bought though. Mine was just over $400 when I bought it. Though Amazon has it for $379 now.

Also on the Argon tank I would go with the 80. But that's not entirely an informed opinion. I don't have a tank (yet) for my welder, but I've been looking extensively and I think the 80 is a better buy in the long run. But I suppose it also depends on how much you are going to use it. If all you are going to do is weld up billets for Damascus the 20 might be plenty. However I have a feeling once you start using it, you are going to find a lot of projects that you can use it on. I'm discovering that myself.

Sean Im sure the welder you got is way nicer than the one I bought! But I've wanted a Tig for a while did a lot of research and came up with this one. After seeing Sorrels vid and discount code it was a no brainer for me. I can arc weld with this machine as well. And if it works decent I may get rid of my antique tombstone. If I scrap it should get half the purchase price of this welder! LOL!

Wow, that is indeed an incredibly >>cheap<< price. I've MIG welded for years, and have a pretty good TIG setup (however I'm NOT a good TIG welder). You likely know the benefits of TIG - but here are the issues that I have with TIG. It uses lots of pieces and parts in the torch (eg $$), requires dexterity to feed a separate wire filler while at the same time regulating the heat input with a separate controller and keeping the TIG rod from contacting the base metal (which then requires resharpening). Plus a TIG machine should have controls that set: gas preflow, ramp rate, pulse duration, post flow, etc. which can be tricky to figure out. TIG is much more complicated to own and operate than MIG. TIG is all about "hood time", it takes a lot of practice. However, a good TIG welder will prefer TIG over MIG, particularly if weld penetration is critical.
In general I find TIG welding much like patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time. But, when the stars all align, it sure makes a nice weld. I use it mostly on delicate parts where I need careful heat control and precise weld location. I've also found it useful for brazing.
I highly recomment watching Jody Collier, Welding Tips and Tricks, https://www.weldingtipsandtricks.ht...icks.com/tig-welding.htmlcom/tig-welding.html There are a bunch of YT welding videos, but Jody's are the best - in my opinioin he sets the gold standard for welding information on the internet.
Regarding Argon - it's expensive, I'd recommend renting your tank, getting a small one, and then decide whether to increase the capacity based on how much you use it. Also, you can more efficiently control gas usage by installing a Flow Meter, rather than guessing the flow with a typical regulator pressure gauge. https://www.amazon.com/BETOOLL-HW9003-Argon-Regulator-Welding/dp/B01I67VKFW

One more thing - I just finished watching all of Walter's video about his welding machine. He's a terrific knife maker and makes superb videos, I've learned a lot from him. But as a welding video - ugh, not good. Like I said, watch Jody Collier if you want to learn about welding, either MIG or TIG.

Jody Collier is one of the best teachers around. Here's a good link to his page: https://www.weldingtipsandtricks.com/ and from there you can access the "Welding Videos..." about TIG and MIG as well as other types of welding.

Bob, I agree with all you said about TIG welding. MIG does what I need for welding billets and stuff.