What’s the Best MIG Welder? By the end of this article you’ll have some great models to consider and you’ll understand what you need to look for to make the right purchase.
Most DIY welders will be more familiar with arc welders, also known as stick welders. MIG (Metal Inert Gas) welders are most common in industrial settings but many home users can also benefit from this type of welding.
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Best MIG Welder
Later in the article, we’ll look at a more detailed explanation on MIG welding. For now, let’s just look at a basic comparison between MIG and arc welding, this can help you determine if a MIG welder is worth looking into. Below is a list of benefits for each welding type.
Benefits of Mig Welding:
- Easiest of all welding techniques to learn, making it ideal for novice welders.
- Very fast process.
- Perfect for continuous welding. There’s no stopping to change welding rods.
- Improved control when welding thinner metals.
- Very clean so there’s no slag to clean afterward.
- Can weld steel, stainless steel, and aluminum alloys.
- Some MIG welders can be used for flux cored welding. This means that it can have the same benefits as arc welding.
Benefits of Arc Welding:
- Works better outdoors in windy conditions because gas is not easily blown away.
- Is able to weld dirty or rusted metal.
- Suitable for thicker materials.
- Can weld steel and stainless steel.
- More convenient and portable because there’s no need for gas cylinders.
So, in general, a MIG welder can be much more beneficial. If you intend welding aluminum alloys, an arc welder won’t do the job, this could be an important deciding factor for some. MIG welders that can be used for flux core welding give you the best of both. These can be used outdoors, weld dirty or rusted metal and work well on thicker materials.
After reviewing the best MIG welders which, in our opinion provide you with great value for money, we’ll continue to look at more details about welders, welding, and safety. There’s plenty of good reading for both the novice and experienced welder.
Hobart 500559 Handler 140 | Best MIG Welder
Ideal for : Autobody panels, exhaust systems, mower decks, trailer frames & hitches, tool carts, gun/bow racks, lawn & garden equipment, metal sculpture, PTO attachments, fences.
Features:
- MIG [GMAW] / Flux Cored Flux Cored [FCAW]
- Welds 24 gauge up to 1/4 inch
- Excellent Arc Performance
- Industrial cast aluminum wire drive system
- Weighs 57 lbs.
- Convenient polarity changeover
- Sloped control panel
- Hobart’s 5/3/1 Industrial Warranty
- Operates off 115 volt household current
- 25 to 140 output amperage
- Duty cycle – 20% at 90 amps
- 5-position tapped voltage control settings
- 200 amp heavy duty work clamp
- Dual-groove, quick change drive roll
- Durable feed head with quick release drive roll lever
- Designed and assembled in Troy, OHIO USA
✓ View or download the MANUAL or the BROCHURE.
Overview | Hobart 500559 Handler 140
The Hobart Handler 140 MIG welder is a perfect entry level welder offering exceptional value for money. This is their most popular wire feed model and is MIG ready, meaning that there is no need to obtain any extra kit to perform MIG welding tasks.
This welder gives you a great deal of versatility with a 5-postion tapped voltage control selector, giving you a smooth and stable arc on any material thickness. It plugs into a normal 120V socket, making it suitable for the average home user. It draws a peak load of 20A, so check that it is used on a circuit that has a suitable circuit breaker to prevent the power from tripping.
It has a current range of 25-140A, with a rated output of 90A at 18.5 VDC and 63A at 21 VDC at a 20% duty cycle. This is a good range for most uses, though if you’re going to be welding steel higher than 16 gauge, I’d recommend a more powerful welder.
Excellent Quality | Hobart 500559 Handler 140
Wire feed is perfect for all working conditions, at 40 – 700 IPM under load and 50 – 740 IPM with no load. The drive system is all aluminum which is much more durable than the plastic system found on most other wire-feed welders. The quick change drive roll is another great advantage eliminating the need for screw adjustments when changing wire diameters, this allows for the changeover of 0.24” or 0.3”/0.035” solid wire and 0.3/0.035” flux-cored wire. The spool hub is able to accommodate either 4” or 8” spools. It has a 10 FT work cable with a very durable heavy duty clamp.
It’s quite a compact piece of equipment and not too heavy either. It weighs 57 LBS with dimensions of Height: 12⅜”; Width: 10⅝”; Depth 19½”. The slanted control panel gives you a good line of sight with easy to read control knobs. It has a polarity changeover switch for switching the feed to negative when required.
This is an excellent welder for auto body and household repair jobs and can also be used for a lot of medium to heavy duty repairs, though I wouldn’t recommend it for thicker steel and it is very limited when it comes to aluminum welding where a higher current is required.
Heavy-duty MIG Welder Cart | Hot Max WC100
The Hobart 5/3/1 warranty is one of the best. It may seem a little complicated to understand with some components being covered for 5 years, some for 3 years and some for 1 year. Having gone through the warranty in some detail, I’m quite impressed. Heavy duty components like transformers and certain inverter parts are covered for 5 years while most components are covered for 3 years and it’s only really the accessories and the MIG gun that are only covered for 1 year.
Tech Specs — Hobart 500559 Handler 140
- Rated Output at 20% Duty Cycle
- 90 A at 18.5 VDC
- 63 A at 21 VDC
- Current Range : 25 – 140 A
- Max. Open-Circuit Voltage : 28 V
- Wire Feed Speed Range : 40 – 700 IPM / 50 – 740 IPM at no load
- Amps Input at Rated Load, 60 Hz: 115 V=2.9 / kVA=2.9 / kW=2.5
- Dimensions:
- Height: 12-3/8 in (315 mm)
- Width: 10-5/8 in (270 mm)
- Depth: 19-1/2 in (495 mm)
- Net Weight : 57 lb (26 kg)
Includes the following: (Hobart Handler 140 MIG welder)
- Comfortable 10 ft. (3 m) H100S2-10 gun
- 10 ft. (3 m) work cable with clamp
- Built-in gas solenoid valve and dual-gauge regulator with gas hose
- Spool hub assembly accommodates 4 or 8 in. spools
- Sample spool of .030 in. (0.8 mm) self-shielding flux-cored wire
- .030 in. (0.8 mm) contact tips
- Quick Select drive roll for .024 in. (0.6 mm) or .030/.035 in. (0.8/0.9 mm) solid wire, and .030/.035 in. (0.8/0.9 mm) flux-cored wire
- Power cord with plug
- Welding guide and material thickness gauge
- Owner’s manual with installation, operation and maintenance guidelines
Hobart 500554 Handler 190 | Best MIG Welder
Ideal for: auto body panels, exhaust systems, mower decks, trailer frames & hitches, tool carts, gun/bow racks, lawn & garden equipment, metal sculpture, farm equipment, fences and many other D-I-Y projects. Weld aluminum with the optional SpoolRunner 100 spool gun.
Features:
- MIG [GMAW] / Flux Cored [FCAW]
- 7 voltage selections, enhanced magnetics and infinite wire feed speed control offers easier fine control of the output parameters for improved arc performance with less spatter for a better bead appearance and less cleanup
- Welds 24 gauge up to 5/16 inch steel
- Spool gun control circuitry is built-in to the Handler 190 for the optional SpoolRunner 100 direct plug-in spool gun. Alleviates feeding problems with soft aluminum wires. Also useable with mild or stainless steel welding wires.
- Proven built-in wire feeder with quick-release drive roll lever
- Built-in contactor eases use and is an excellent safety feature which makes wire electrically “cold” when not welding
- Easy access to polarity changeover includes storage holes for spare tips
- Dual groove drive rolls make it easy to switch from one wire size to another. One knurled groove and one smooth groove for .030-.035 in. (0.8-0.9 mm) wire.
- Self-resetting thermal overload and motor protection
✓ View or download the MANUAL or the BROCHURE.
Overview | Hobart Handler 190 MIG Welder (500554)
If the Hobart Handler 140 is a little limited for the type of welding work you’re doing, the Hobart Handler 190 MIG welder could be a better option. It’s a step up with a current range of 25A to 190A. This gives you a wider range of metal thickness and is better for aluminum welding with a higher duty cycle. At a duty cycle of 30% the welder will deliver 130A at 21.5 VDC – maximum open circuit voltage is 31 VDC. The Handler 190 works well on 24 gauge steel up to 5/16”.
The extra power of this welder is made more versatile with a 7 position voltage control switch and infinite wire feed control. This makes it easy to obtain a perfect weld on a wide range of material thickness options with little to no spatter. Wire feed rate is 40 – 700 IPM and 50 – 740 IPM with no load. The built-in wire feeder is easy to use with a quick-release drive roll lever. For smoother wire feed, which is especially useful to eliminate the problems associated with softer aluminum wire. You have the option of using the SpoolRunner direct plugin spool-gun. This is an optional extra with the circuitry already built into the welder.
What may be disappointing for many domestic users is that the Hobart Handler 190 uses a 230 VAC supply and draws a 20.5A current. Though I would expect that if you’re doing the type of welding that requires this kind of power, you will have a workshop with a high amperage 230V circuit. This is not the easiest piece of equipment to move about, as with any welder of this size it’s quite heavy – 68 LBS. Dimensions are Height: 12⅜”; Width: 10⅝”; Depth: 19½”.
This is perfect for those who require a heavy duty welder capable of welding thicker pieces and aluminum with a reasonable duty cycle. It has the standard Hobart 5/3/1 warranty as described above.
Tech Specs (Hobart Handler 190) :
- Rated Output at 30% Duty Cycle : 130 A at 21.5 VDC
- Current Range : 25 – 190 A
- Max. Open-Circuit Voltage : 31 V
- Wire Feed Speed Range : 40 – 700 IPM / 50 – 740 IPM at no load
- Amps Input at Rated Load, 60 Hz : 230V=20.5 / kVA=4.7 / kW=3.88
- Dimensions :
- H: 12-3/8 in (315 mm)
- W: 10-5/8 in (270 mm)
- D: 19-1/2 in (495 mm)
- Net Weight : 68 lb (31 kg)
Includes (Hobart Handler 190) :
- Comfortable 10 ft. (3 m) H100S4-10 welding gun
- Built-in gas valve
- Dual gauge regulator and gas hose
- Power cord with plug
- 10 ft. (3 m) work cable with clamp
- Sample spool of .030 in. (0.8 mm) self-shielded flux cored welding wire
- 8 in (203 mm) wire spool adapter
- Extra .030 in. (0.8 mm) contact tips
- Weld set-up chart
Hobart 210MPV— 500553
Best MIG Welder for your DIY projects.
Features:
- MIG [GMAW] / Flux Cored Flux Cored [FCAW]
- Dual-voltage input (115V/230V) with the MVP plug makes the unit easy to find a place to plug it in.
- Max 210 Amps output in a small portable case makes transporting to job sites easier and provides power to weld 3/8″ steel.
- 7 voltage selections (230V), 4 voltage selections (115V), enhanced magnetics and infinite wire feed speed control offers easier fine control for improved arc performance with less spatter for a better bead appearance and less cleanup
- Spool gun control circuitry is built-in to the Handler 210MVP for the optional SpoolRunner 100 direct plug-in spool gun. Alleviates feeding problems with soft aluminum wires. Also useable with mild or stainless steel welding wires.
- Built-in contactor eases use and is an excellent safety feature which makes wire electrically “cold” when not welding
- Easy access to polarity changeover includes storage holes for spare tips
- Dual groove drive rolls make it easy to switch from one wire size to another. One knurled groove and one smooth groove for .030-.035 in. (0.8-0.9 mm) wire.
- Self-resetting thermal overload and motor protection
✓ View or download the MANUAL for the Hobart 210MPV.
Overview | Hobart 500553 210MPV
Wouldn’t it be great to have the versatility of a high current welder and the ability to use it with a regular 120V household power socket? Well, the Hobart 210 MPV offers exactly this. The Multi-Voltage Plug allows it to operate with an 115V or 230V AC power supply, the welder will automatically detect the input voltage. This is great for contractors who do most of their heavy prefabrication work in the workshop where they have a 240V power supply but also need to do installation or repairs on site where they may not have access to a high-volt power circuit.
Using a 230V AC supply, you have 7 voltage settings that will provide up to 210A of welding power. Maximum open circuit voltage is 34 VDC. So at a 30% duty cycle, you’ll get 150A at 23 VDC. This provides you enough power to weld ⅜” steel. For these power specs, you’ll require a power outlet providing 230V with a current rating of 24A.
Video | See an overview of the Hobart 210MVP
When you only have access to household power the machine draws 20A at 115V. Using this voltage you’re obviously limited in terms of the output voltage and current. At 115V there are 4 voltage settings up to a maximum of 28 VDC (open circuit) and a current range of 25A – 140A. At a duty cycle of 20%, the rated output is 90A at 19 VDC.
The Hobart 210MPV is essentially a hybrid of the Hobart Handler 140 and the Handler 190. At 115V, it delivers the same output as the Handler 140, though with one less voltage tap setting (4 instead of 5 as on the Handler 140). At 230V, the power is slightly higher than the Handler 190. The wire-feed does not go as high as the other two Hobart welders but is pretty close, 40 – 680 IPM and 60 – 770 IPM with no load.
For the rest, the features are exactly the same as the Hobart Handler 190 with the same wire spool, contactor, and thermal protection. It also has circuitry for the SpoolRunner 100 gun and the same gas valve and gauge set-up. The versatility of this welder pushes its weight up slightly to 79 LBS and the dimensions are the same – Height: 12⅜”; Width: 10⅝”; Width: 19½”.
SpoolRunner 100 Spool Gun | for Handler 210MVP and Handler 190
The Hobart 210MVP offers outstanding versatility for those who prefer the option of a high-powered 230V welder and the convenience of using it at a lower voltage. As with the other two, it has the 5/3/1 Hobart warranty.
Your Purchase Includes | Hobart 500553 210MPV
- Comfortable 10 ft. (3 m) H100S4-10 gun
- 10 ft. (3 m) work cable with clamp
- Built-in gas solenoid valve and dual-gauge regulator with gas hose
- Spool hub assembly accommodates 4 or 8 in. spools
- Sample spool of .030 in. (0.8 mm) self-shielding flux-cored wire
.030 in. (0.8 mm) contact tips - Quick Select drive roll for .024 in. (0.6 mm) or .030/.035 in. (0.8/0.9 mm) solid wire, and .030/.035 in. (0.8/0.9 mm) flux-cored wire
- Power cord with 5-15P (115 V, 15 A) and 6-50P (230 V, 50 A) MVP plugs
- Welding guide and material thickness gauge
- Owner’s manual with installation, operation and maintenance guidelines
One of the best MIG welders for the money due to its value in relation to price. Overall, it’s hits the sweet spot for people who are looking for a professional quality MIG welder. Ultimately, you have to determine your budget and needs before making your final decision.
Learn more about the Hobart brand which has been in business since 1917 – over 100 years of experience; and see their full range of products by visiting their site.
Lincoln Electric | Power MIG 216
Model : K2816-2 — Best MIG Welder
Features:
- Diamond Core Technology – Delivers a forgiving arc, excellent out-of-position arc action, low spatter and a wide voltage sweet spot for steel, stainless steel or aluminum.
- MAXTRAC Cast Aluminum Industrial Wire Drive – Features dual driven rolls, regulated wire feed speed control, brass-to brass connections and Lincoln’s 100% wire supporting split wire guide system.
- More Output and Better Efficiency – Compare the best in class rated output, wide amperage range and efficiency.
- Spool Gun Ready – Just remove the standard MIG gun and plug in the economical Magnum® PRO 100SG spool gun for enhanced aluminum wire feeding performance.
- Coil Claw Cable Management system keeps your work station neat.
- Convenient top-mounted gun expendables tray.
- All metal case front.
✓ View or download the MANUAL or BROCHURE for the Lincoln Electric Power MIG 216.
Overview | Lincoln Electric Power MIG 216 — K2816-2
This is a really great industrial strength welder with loads of power and excellent features. They’ve incorporated a system that they call diamond technology which makes for a versatile “forgiving” arc and makes it really simple to use. It also has a durable industrial-strength cast aluminum wire drive.
Video | Learn About the Lincoln Electric Power MIG 216
If power is what you’re after, the Lincoln Electric Power MIG 216 has plenty. Seven voltage settings give you perfect fine tuning for any material thickness and the Amp output of 30-250A allows for fantastic duty cycles even on very thick pieces. For a 60% duty cycle, it will deliver 170A at 24 VDC and 216A at 22 VDC for a 30% duty cycle. The split wire guide system provides for both flux-cored and solid wire with a range of 0.35”-0.045” cored wire. The wire feed has a speed range of 50-700 IPM with a well-marked control knob that makes it incredibly easy to get the perfect speed setting.
It has a 10 FT power cable and perfect storage with a cable coil hanger on the side of the machine and a hanger that holds the gun neatly in place when stored. In addition to this, it has a compartment at the top to keep all your tips and small accessories neatly packed away and easily accessible. There is also onboard storage for gas cylinders – a very neat and compact unit. It has a gas pipe and regulator kit for argon gas blends. However, if you want to use CO₂ shielding gas, you’ll have to order this gas kit separately. It has an easy-load compartment for the spool that also fits neatly into a closed compartment.
This is a big heavy duty welder that requires a 230V 30A power supply. Of course, a welder of this caliber isn’t going to be light either, it weighs 250 LBS with dimensions of 32.56” X 19.15” X 39.92”. Fortunately, it has four strong wheels to make it easy to move around. There are two large wheels at the back to support most of the weight and two smaller steerable wheels at the front.
The Lincoln Electric Power MIG 216 is a seriously built piece of machinery, for the serious workman (or workwoman). I like the excellent storage aspects of its design and its robust quality. The welder comes with a 3-year limited warranty, though there’s quite a long list of items that are limited to 1 year – most importantly the gas regulators. The gun and cable assemblies are limited to a 90-day warranty, I suppose this is because the gun wear will depend a lot on how it is used. The warranty is applicable for industrial use, which is a good thing because it is most likely going to be used in a professional hardworking environment.
Professional Quality Parts
Tech Specs (Power MIG 216):
- Input Power : 208/230/1/50/60
- Rated Output
- 170A/24VDC/60%
- 216A/22VDC/30%
- Input Current : 33A / 30A
- Output Range : 30-250A
- Cored Wire Size Range : .035 – .045 in (0.9 – 1.2 mm)
- Wire Feed Speed Range : 50-700 IPM (1.3 – 17.8 m/min)
- Dimensions (H x W x D) : 32.56 in x 19.15 in x 39.92 in (827 mm x 487 mm x 1014 mm)
- Net Weight : 250.00 (113.40 kg)
Included with Purchase of the Power MIG 216:
- Magnum PRO 250L gun and 15 ft. (4.5 m) “quick-connect” cable assembly equipped with fixed gas nozzle assembly.
- Top-mounted gun expendables tray.
- Built-in undercarriage with easy-load gas cylinder platform.
- Work clamp and 10 ft. (3.0 m) cable.
- 10 ft. (3.0 m) 230V input power cable with plug.
- Drive roll and wire guide to feed both .035 in. & .045 in. (0.9 & 1.2 mm) wire.
- Gas regulator and hose kit for argon blend gases. (For use with CO2 shielding gas, order a Lincoln Electric S19298 CO2 shielding gas bottle adapter.)
- Large color coded procedure recommendation sheet.
This is a fantastic heavy-duty welding machine and easily one of the best MIG welders you can buy. A big step up from traditional consumer MIG welders.
