Has Anyone Used This: Handheld Welder Machine 110V Portable ARC Welding Machine - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: bostonman
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 02:32:10 am
content: I came across this on Aliexpress (the hyperlink is quite long so I'm just using the title):Handheld Welder Machine 110V Portable ARC Welding Machine 20-200Amp Digital Display IGBT Inverter With Welding Tool Set,FoldingI'm wondering what could be welded with it, how powerful it is, and is it worth it?Could it be used to weld a bolt onto say a stripped lug nut on a car to remove it? For the record, I don't have a stripped lug nut, but using this to get an idea of how powerful this welder is.

author: Stray Electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 02:53:44 am
content: I'm not familiar with that specific model but there has been a lot of discussion about 115VAC welders over on some of the welding forums and the overwhelming opinion is that they are useless for welding anything other than extremely thin sheet metal. Most 115 V outlets are only rated for 15 amps and few rated for 20 amps but neither one will provide enough POWER for any real welding. Most 240 volt outlets in the US are rated at 50 amps so that's considerably more power and even 50 amps isn't sufficient for welding anything heavy.Note that welding is NOT the same as brazing or soldering! I can solder thin sheet metal with a 100 watt soldering iron using lead alloy solder but that not nearly the same thing as fusing pieces of steel together with a steel filler (welding) or with a brass alloy (brazing).

author: johansen
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 02:58:00 am
content: Ive done some tig and mig welding on dual 240/120 vac machines, to include miller wire feed machines.For 250$ you can get a plasma cutter on amazon that is well worth the price.For stick welding...Its cheaper now to buy a cheap stick welder than it is to borrow 3 or 4 battery chargers and 3 or 4 12v lead acid batteries...and connect them in series and get to it.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 09:18:45 pm
content: Just cut the link to include the item number only, I assume its something like this?https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256808206703736.htmlMike had a video a few years ago:

author: bostonman
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 10:20:25 pm
content: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807154068897Per your suggestion, looks like you can copy/paste the item number in the first leg of the extremely long link because I was able to search Aliexpress by just that and found it.You're correct, that is similar to the one I referred to. For $50, it looks pretty cool, but assume if you're in the market for a welder, spending $300 or so would be more practical.This caught my eye as something safer than a larger welder, however, I have a 240V AC outlet that can supply 50A. I don't have a need for welding but wouldn't mind getting into it in the future, don't know how to weld so I don't know the safety measures to put in place (my father use to tell me that large extremely hot balls can roll on the floor and start a fire - but that was gas), but also this caught my eye as something portable for needing to weld in an area where a 240V outlet isn't available.As for questioning the strength, per the video, it looks like if done correctly, you could get a good weld on a good size piece of metal.One time I had a stripped lug nut and thought it would be cool to weld a bolt onto it so I could use an alternate way of removing it, but didn't have a welder, and now wonder for $50 if this would have made a solid enough of a weld.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 11:16:31 pm
content: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807154068897.htmlFor something like a stripped nut in a tight spot I can see it being worth the $50 yeah.I don't know how good the included "welded helmet" and "welding gloves" are, I wouldn't trust the welding glasses. So you might add another $50 on safety gear if you don't have already.

author: bostonman
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 11:18:49 pm
content: I'll have to keep this in mind for a future gift to myself.

author: David Hess
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 07, 2025, 11:45:55 pm
content: Quote from: Stray Electron on April 07, 2025, 02:53:44 amI have an old Clarke 115VAC welder and it can definitely weld up to 1/4 inch plate if used properly. It needs a stiff 115VAC outlet, and make sure the ground clamp is firmly attached to a clean area on the work.The left half of the weld shown below suffered from having the wind pick up and blow away the shielding gas.