Tool Reviews

A Euro-style torch connection makes a MIG welder easier to maintain and gives you more choice when a torch wears out. It does not, by itself, make the machine weld…

What a workbench weld needs A steel workbench is a practical MIG project: mostly straight joints, common mild steel and enough room to work around the frame. The welder still…

Choosing between a fixed-shade welding helmet and an auto-darkening lens comes down to how often you weld, which processes you use, and how much convenience you want. Both can protect…

Custom exhaust fabrication is a good test of welding technique. The material is usually thin, the joints are visible, and leaks show up quickly. MIG welding is faster and cheaper…

The short answer For most general-purpose MIG welding on mild steel, C25—75% argon and 25% carbon dioxide—is the better starting gas. It usually produces a calmer arc, less spatter, and…

The short answer For cutting steel plate, a plasma cutter is usually the faster, cleaner, and more versatile tool. An angle grinder is cheaper, easier to own, and perfectly adequate…

What the Terms Mean “Flux-core” covers two different welding processes. Gas-shielded flux-cored arc welding, usually called FCAW-G, uses a tubular wire and an external shielding gas. Self-shielded flux-cored arc welding,…

An air plasma cutter and a CNC plasma table use the same basic process: an electric arc turns compressed air into a hot, fast jet that cuts conductive metal. The…

What a 120V TIG welder can handle A 120V TIG machine makes sense for small repairs, thin sheet, brackets, exhaust components and light fabrication where a controlled, neat weld matters…

Reliable MIG wire feeding starts at the contact tip. The tip transfers welding current to the wire, guides the wire into the arc, and must tolerate heat, spatter, and constant…