I swear by my 225/125 Lincoln ArcWeld AC/DC welder. I know a lot of people like the MIG's and wire-feed welders, but first of all, most hobbyists who get wire-feed never end up getting the gas or don't refill it, and end up with straight up flux core when they need to weld something. Not to mention the fact that even when you have everything you need, and you go with the 220V, it still takes a LONG TIME to run beads on the thick stuff, 3/16ths or better. Meanwhile I can literally FLY thru it with my $450 stick welder. The only downfall of it is you need the 220V outlet to run it, so it's a PITA to take it over someone else's house and do some welding. But then again, that's the same downfall you'd have with 220V wire-feed, and if you stick with the 110V, expect to take an eternity to do things like boulder bars and bumpers.

Not that I'm really knocking the 220V wire-feed and MIG welders, they certainly do the job, and very well if you're good at it... But that's the beauty of the powerful stick welder -- you don't HAVE to be good at it to make nice welds.

Oh, and all that safety equipment that Matt talked about, don't worry about it -- just a pair of sunglasses should be all you need. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

**Note: For those of you that don't know me, that's a joke, although I don't think I've ever welded with anything more than a helmet and regular clothes on -- and most of the time I don't even have that. I've been known to spark it then look away while I weld, with no eye protection at all. I've also spent nights lying in bed feeling like I have sand in my eyes from welding all day like this, so beware. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/notooth.gif" alt="" /> Note the sig file below.

<edit: I changed the sig file, but it used to say, "Ladies, you don't need no stinkin' tanning beds, just stand next to us naked while we weld.">

-Chris