Welding for Beginners: Types of Welders and Which One to Buy (NZ Guide)

The four types of welders at a glance

What is MIG welding?

MIG welding feeds a wire through the torch while you pull the trigger, so you are only steering. That is why it is the easiest type of welding to learn. A shielding gas, usually an argon mix, protects the molten metal from the air. MIG is fast, tidy enough for most jobs, and handles mild steel from thin car panel up to around 6mm in one pass.

If you want one welder for the garage, start by looking at MIG welders.

What is gasless MIG welding?

Gasless MIG uses a hollow, flux-cored wire that makes its own shield as it burns, so you do not need a gas bottle. It is cheaper to start, easy to carry, and it works outdoors where wind would blow shielding gas away. The trade-off is more spatter and smoke, and a crust of slag you chip off afterwards.

Are gasless MIG welders any good?

Yes, for steel about 1.2mm and thicker. A gasless MIG will happily build a trailer, fix a gate or patch farm gear. It is not the right tool for thin car panels or for aluminium, where gas MIG gives a cleaner result.

What are the disadvantages of gasless MIG welding?

• More spatter and fume than gas MIG, so weld with the shed door open.
• Slag to chip and brush off each weld.
• The wire costs more per kilo than solid wire.
• Harder to get a neat result on steel under about 1.2mm.

Do you push or pull with gasless MIG?

Pull. With flux-cored wire you drag the torch away from the weld so the slag stays behind the puddle. With gas MIG you can push or pull. Gasless wire also usually runs with the torch on the negative terminal, so check the polarity in your manual before you start.

You will find gasless MIG wire in 0.9kg and 4.5kg spools alongside solid wire for gas MIG.

What is arc (stick) welding?

Arc welding, also called stick or MMA, burns a flux-coated rod instead of wire. The machines are simple, light and the cheapest to buy. Stick does the one thing MIG struggles with: thick, dirty or rusty steel outdoors. It makes more spatter, and striking and holding the arc takes practice.

Which is better, gasless MIG or stick welding?

Gasless MIG is easier to learn and faster on steel up to about 6mm. Stick is better on thick or rusty steel, and the rods store well in the ute. Both work outside in the wind. If most of your work is farm repair on heavy steel, buy a stick welder. For general shed work, buy a gasless MIG.

What is TIG welding?

TIG welding uses a tungsten electrode in the torch while you feed filler rod with your other hand. It is slow and takes real practice, but it gives the cleanest, most controlled weld of the four. TIG suits stainless steel, thin sheet and exhaust work.

Should I learn MIG or TIG first?

Learn MIG first. You will be making sound welds within a weekend, and the skills carry over. Move to TIG when you need a tidy finish on stainless or thin material.

What does a plasma cutter do?

A plasma cutter cuts metal. It does not join it. It uses compressed air and an electric arc to slice through steel, stainless and aluminium far faster than a grinder. The Weldco CUT40 plasma cutter cuts up to 10mm mild steel and 6mm aluminium. You will need an air compressor to run it.

How many amps do I need?

A rough rule for mild steel is about 40 amps for every millimetre of thickness in a single pass. So 3mm steel wants around 120 amps and 5mm around 200 amps. You can weld thicker than that by bevelling the edge and running more than one pass.

How many amps is a good MIG welder?

For home and farm work, 160 amps is the sweet spot. It covers everything from car panel to 4mm trailer steel and still runs on a normal wall socket. Go to 200 amps if you regularly weld 6mm and over.

Will it run on a normal power point?

Most small welders run on a standard 10A wall socket. Bigger machines can need a 15A outlet, which has a wider earth pin and has to be fitted by an electrician. This is what the maker states for the machines we stock.

*Lift TIG needs a TIG torch and argon regulator, sold separately. "Up to" thickness is the maker's figure and assumes more than one pass on thicker steel. Prices are in NZ dollars.

What does it cost to start welding?

The cheapest complete start is a ready-to-weld kit. The MIG120 Ready To Weld Combo is $355 and includes the welder, an auto-darkening helmet, a spool of gasless wire and gloves. It plugs into a normal socket, so there is nothing else to buy before your first weld.

If you buy the pieces separately, budget for four things:

• The welder: from $284 for a stick machine or $298 for a gasless MIG.
• A welding helmet. Auto-darkening with a variable shade of 9 to 13 covers MIG and stick.
• Wire or rods. See MIG wire or welding rods and consumables.
• Leather welding gloves, closed boots and cotton or wool clothing. Synthetics melt.

Common questions

What are the four types of welding?

The four types most people use are MIG (wire and gas), flux-cored or gasless MIG (wire with no gas), stick or arc (coated rods), and TIG (tungsten electrode with hand-fed filler). All four use an electric arc to melt the metal.

Is MIG welding easy for beginners?

Yes. The machine feeds the wire, so you only control the torch angle and travel speed. Welders with synergic set-up choose the wire speed and voltage for you once you pick the wire size.

What is the best welder for a beginner?

A gasless MIG on a 10A plug. It is the lowest cost, there is no gas bottle to sort out, and it handles the trailer, gate and shed jobs most people start with. If you expect to weld thinner steel later, choose a machine that can run gas as well.

Can one machine do MIG, stick and TIG?

Yes. A multi-process welder switches between all three. You run MIG wire for general work, rods for thick or outdoor steel, and TIG for a tidy finish on steel and stainless. Check whether the TIG torch is included, because often it is not.

Can I weld stainless steel with a MIG?

Yes, with stainless wire and the right gas. For thin stainless or a weld that will be on show, TIG gives a cleaner result.