I’ve been using my new Miller welders for about a month now. I’m pleased so far… the Dynasty 200 DX TIG machine has an amazing arc and the foot pedal felt natural from the start. I’m also applying my new knowledge of proper setup when using a gas lens (use 22 CFH rather than 16ish). Now I can use a tungsten stickout of an inch with no problem at all. Check out the size of the machine in the photo below. It weighs less than 50 lbs, and can be carried to the job site. It will even work with 110V if needed. I still haven’t tried it out on aluminum — which is why I sold my Lincoln to step up to this machine in the first place. That’s going to change soon: I’ve got a fuel tank to make in a couple of weeks.

My new Miller MIG machine (Millermatic 211) was a bit more trouble. Using the factory setup wasn’t working — I was struggling with burnback (where the wire melts at the torch end and not in the weld puddle) until I read on the Miller welding forum to turn up wire speed about 20% when using .024 wire (which I was). Now the machine is rock-solid and works perfectly. The low-spatter claims seem to be true as well.