My new power tig 200 DX review , I just told Lincoln Electric goodbye!

[cled]

Well I have been looking for a tig welder for a little while and was searching craigslist for weeks for a used one. Everyone i found was about 5 to 6 hrs away and that was just one way . Then the other problem I encountered was that people wanted just under 300.00 bucks for thier 8 yr old welder then what they orginally paid for the machine . Another problem that the old tranformer machines weighed a ton and would use up valueable floor space in my garage. I had been given a mig welder , it was a lincoln sp-250 when i bought my dads welding business. It was computer operated , and dad being old school never used it . Well when i began using it it worked good for a while then I started having problems with it . Comes to find out that lincoln had issues with mother boards and capastitor banks which they knew about . Well after asking for thier help the only option they gave me was to buy one of thier new boards for and easy 900.00 , Ya like i have that kinda money to fix thier equipment . Well any how I sent the board off for repairs to another company that took 2 tries to get it right . That was 250.00 get to get the machine running again . Now are you really scared to try a chineese machine? Tell me what kinda gamble are you going to take ? With what Lincoln offered me for help to soak me for 900.00 I felt i dint have much too loose . With Everlast offering a 30 day money back and 5 yr wareentee I thought I would take a chance and try one of their welders. I got a machine that weighs 50 lbs, is small and very portable , runs on a 50 amp breaker, has a 35% duty cycle , just about infinte amount of adjustments, has high fequency, comes with foot control , ( not an extra 150.00) . and a on off on the torch . I got all that shipped to my door for 1000.00 bucks. It great cause when I am done with it , i can lift it without a crane and put it away on one of my shelfs . You also gotta know something as well . If you buy a used machine some companies have a (do not touch list ) for repairs on PC boards for certain machines . So you very well could be stuck with either 900.00 repair for a 1300.00 machine or boat anchor .

I am however very pleased with my purchace of my Everlast 200 DX Tig , I have been welding for about 22 yrs and used many many machines . I am mostly a mig welder guy , but currently employed as an industrial mechanic in a food processing plant and I fequently tig weld stainless . But I bought the 200 DX for a home project for weldingup a extra hoop on my paramotor frame and cage . The 200 DX welded up my aluminum 5/8 's.065 tubing without so much as a cough or sneeze . I was also using for the first time the switch on the torch all the way up to 95 amps and not even once tripped the breaker. Thats a nice option when tacking things up in place and outta postion . Believe me if this welder was going to be a Harbor Freight hybrid and didnt work I would be posting a different story , but it works good for me and my needs. This tig welder exceeds my abillities as welder rather than the other way around . The machine only goes downs to 20 amps on AC which I was worried about before it had arrived . I thought 20 amps would blow holes in my thin wall aluminum tubing since i had a bad experince with a old tombstone tig that went down only to 30 amps one time. Not so . It worked great on my tubing. With the down slope feature you can dial in the duration of the heat, or shut off of the arc. .I still have lots to learn on this machine since I only set it for what worked best for me and went to fabrication my fame . Set it and forget it , lol . I dont need to weld cans together but on DC with 5 amps I could do razor blades just for braggin rights . lol

[everlastsupport]

Cled,

Welcome aboard.

I to came to Everlast thanks to Lincoln (had red and blue at the time but Lincoln/Prax drove me here and VERY happy). It was $200 less to fix my machine over a brand new one, in other words buy a new welder. Tons of calls (to Prax) and a couple trips and could not justify the cash layout. Long story, but sounds a bit like yours and years later, all green here and working for Everlast.

On your project. I don't like heights myself, but looks cool as heck and glad to see 22 years of welding under the belt, so we know it will not come apart on you. Just that blade bugs me and I am sure I can get my hand, arm, body in there somehow.

Not sure why one feels the need to join two "thin aluminum" beers cans as a first project, could be the contents of the cans that cause that.

[sportbike]

Glad you like th e200DX. I also have one.

No need to worry about tripping a breaker, I run mine on a 10AWG extension that is over 100ft long and I plug it into my dryer plug int eh basement. Haven;t so much as made teh extension warm, let alone trip the breaker. If I recall, I only measured high 20's amps input current (@ 240V) when running at MAX AC output when I took it into work to test it.

[hooda]

Thanks for the REAL WORLD testimony, from a REAL WORLD, experienced welder. This is the type of information that I would like the rest of the world to see more of, and it makes me feel that much more confident in my belief in EVERLAST. Please continue as a forum member, and keep us in the loop on how a veteran welder making a living welding uses the machine in the real world. Your experience shopping for a used TIG welder is the same here in Minnesota,(where are ya from, by the way?) People here think that they should see 80-120% of their original investment. Case in point: Recently, I called on a CL ad that was close to me (I have an order in for a new 250 EXT, but I still need to know the market). Ad was for a Dynasty 200DX with air-cooled torch and pedal. No regulator, nothing else. No price. So, I call, and the guy says he bought it used in 2005, uses it rarely, and is asking $2600.00...FIRM... Huh??? First, I have heard that the older dynasty 200's were notorious for having issues with the HF starting circuitry, for which there's no easy fix, plus this is a USED, 6-plus year old machine (remember your board issue with the lincoln?). Now, you can get a NEW dynasty 200dx, with warranty, and the HF issue allegedly fixed, for under 3 grand, delivered. OR, what someone who does their homework, and sees testimonials like yours, can do, is put a PowerTig 200dx on the floor for about 1/3 of that, with a 5 year warranty, and a support staff second to none in the industry. Looking at the specs of the 2 machines, and other than the option to use 120v input (which would be for LOW output anyway), I don't see anything that blue had to offer to sway me that way, except a shorter warranty, significantly lower duty cycles, and the opportunity do give them 20 more crispy $100.00 bills for the privilege. As far as the repair costs for older machines, that was robbery on lincoln's part, and just one more reason I don't have them anywhere on my "favorite company" list. What they do is take a guy like you, in a dismal economy, and hit you for 2/3+ the cost of a new machine to get your older unit functional. Gee, what a way to build brand loyalty!! Good luck with your new Everlast unit, I'm sure it will serve you well. Please keep us updated, as we all get a charge out of seeing pictures of what folks are out there doing with their everlast equipment.

[Jake98]

Great post Cled.

[SeanMurphy265]

I love my 200dx, whenever some one ask me I always tell them it's a much better machine than I am tig welder!