Best Mig Welder UK 

Thanks for taking your time to read our reviews on the best Mig Welders that are currently available on the United Kingdom marketplace. These are Metal Inert Gas models and that's what the MIG stands for. They are extremey popular and have many types of uses. With a small amount of practice you will be able to use one of these machines pretty well and they are so handy that you won't want to be without one.

Just below, we have also completed some summary reviews on each of these, so as you can see which is the best option for you.

Mig Welder Buying Guide

What level of power do you need - Maximum?

When you are buying a mig welder, your biggest decision will be based on what type of thing you want to weld and how often you are goin to use it. That sounds simple but really it's the most important thing. I would use this chart below to give you an idea of what you might need.

What level of power do you need - Minimum?

Minimum amps are quite important too. Most of the smaller MIG welders have a minimum of 30 amps and that will be ok for 1.0mm sheet or with 0.8mm steel, but you dont want something that will burn straight through the metal. A bit less than 30 amps would be better for this type of light work but you can get away with it if you are careful.

For instance, if the minimum is any more than 30 amps then it would be no use for car bodywork. So be careful and make sure whatever you buy has a low minimum as it will be very important

What level of power supply do you have? 

You can run a welder up to around 150 amps on a UK 13 amp plug with no real problem. Anything more powerful than that then you might need to get a stronger supply, if you are aiming at regular use. I've never had any problems, so I expect unless you are doing a lot of heavy work then a 13amp plug is fine, though it's always better to check.

Quality over Price

The quality and prices of MIG welders seem to be getting lower and lower as more of them are made in Eastern Europe and China. Expensive MIGs, well compared to these cheap models, have much better electronics fitted, habe better wire feed units and are a much more rugged construction. The low end models are just not built to last. I would always go for a name you recognise and read as many reviews as you can.

Another good feature of the more expensive welders is the wire feed control automatically varies to suit the power. The wire speed knob on these automatically changes when you change power settings. If you can afford one with that feature you will be really glad. Another good feature of better welders is a good qualitywire feed motor and feed mechanism. A decent wire feed is one of the most important things for pain free welding and really you want something decent in this department.

Generally speaking, welders get nicer as they get more expensive, and there is a great deal of choice in the £150 to £300 hobby to semi-professional market

Duty cycle 

This is the percentage of a 5 or 10 minute period that you can weld before the welder overheats. For example if a welder has a 60% duty cycle at 100 amps over 10 minutes, then the welder can be work flat out at 100 amps for 6 minutes before it will need a 4 minute break. Pretty straightforward really.

Usually the duty cycle isn't that critical for automotive repair work, as the amps tend to be low but would be a big consideration for a fab shop welding steel beams together all day.

Smaller welders without fans are more likely to have the over heating problem and cut out

Which Manufacturer? 

Not at all welders are made in many countries and the brand should give you a fair idea where it is made. Some of the brands have their welders manufactured in cheaper labour countries like China or Eastern europe. If the brand has specified the design and the quality of the component and they have decent quality control then these brands might offer you an equivalent product at a cheaper price. You will easily be able to tell if this isn't the case by reading a few reviews.

The Welder Chassis

The chassis is just the box and wheels that hold the MIG welder. The main things to make sure is that it has wheels for a start. Anything bigger than the smallest hobby welder will need them and whether it has a shelf on the back for a decent gas bottle. Most small welders don't have a gas bottle shelf these days, although you could soon weld one up !

Gas vs Gasless   

All MIG welders need some sort of shielding gas to keep oxygen away from the weld. The choices are gas shielded or flux cored wire.  So with the coated wire you dont need to have a bottle of gas. There are advantages and disadvantages with both, but gas is much easier and more pleasant to use, so unless you know you'll only want to weld with flux cored wire it makes sense to go for a welder that can do both. 

Things are much easier with gas shielding. You can see the weld pool, the welds are a lot neater and there is much less spatter. So the gas might cost a bit more money but it's a much better job and far easier to use. 

The gas comes in various sizes and you will use about 10 litres per minute, as a rule of thumb. So small disposable bottles costing around £10 will last for 6 minutes of continuous welding and that would do about 1 meter. The large industrial type bottles hold 2,300 liters and cost £50 per year bottle rental plus £30 per bottle full of gas, so obviously this is a lot cheaper if you intend to sue the welder regularly. 

What else will you need with the welder? 

Torch

Nearly all models will come with a torch supplied, but there are differences to consider. Torches can wear and may need to be replaced at some stage. If you have to do that then go for a eurotorch - these have a universal quick release connection to the front of the welder, are readily available and cheap. If the welder has a built in torch a replacement will have to come from the manufacturer and will probably be poorer quality and cost twice as much as a good eurotorch. So worth checking that when you are making your decision.

Gas Regulator

The only real choice for gas regulators, for a full sized bottle, is either a single or a twin gauge one. The twin gauge ones will measure the flow rate as well and are only around £10 more expensive, which you would easily save that in gas if you have the incorrect flow rate.

Safety Equipment

As always, saftey is key, especially  as Molten metal is hot, and the UV light is extremely powerful. Cotton overalls and welding gauntlets (thick heat resistant gloves) are a must. As well as some form of mask.

Welding Mask

Most hobby welders come with a hand held mask which I think is a total waste of time as you are losing one hand straight away by having to hold it. A full face mask will only cost £10 for the cheapest model though i would recommend spending around £50 to get something decent The good ones will remain transparent until the welder starts and this makes positioning of the torch easier.

Features on more expensive welders

A hobby welder will normally have two controls - one for the power and one for the wire speed. Top end hobby welders or semi-pro welders might have an additional control for burnback. This controls the amount the wire burns back towards the tip after welding, and is useful on thick metal where a machine without burnback will leave a long piece of wire that would need to be trimmed with wire cutters.

Another common control is a spot timer. This is simply a timer that cuts off the power after a certain time and is used for "spot welding" by building up weld on one side of a panel until it penetrates through to the other. A stronger and more fail safe alternative for DIY welders is the plug weld.

Moving higher through the price range (£1000 and more) and synergic or pulsed MIG welders start appearing on the market. These introduce an alternating or pulsing current into the power supply which provides improved arc stability and hence increase control and result in a neater weld. Anyone considering this sort of welder will probably know more than I do about them.

A very quick video review

We have looked over all the video reviews and found this great short presentation on these tools. It gives you an instant idea of what to expect as well as telling you all the features and spec in and easy to understand format.

I hope you enjoy watching it as I always think its much better to see a tool in action rather than just reading about it or seeing pictures. This guy is particularly good at explaining the features and he is well known for demonstrating tools.

I hope this article has been of some help to you. There are many other tools you need when you are welding such as a good angle grinder, wire cup brush or clamps, so make sure you have everything you need before starting into any job. At least have plenty of welding gas and welding wire before you start. You may also consider an Arc welder.

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