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Tooliom 135s

D

Dan Dubeau

Ultra Member
I've had this thing in my Amazon cart for months. Curious, but very skeptical about it's quality. It went on sale this week for $89 so I figured what the hell, I've blown $100 on dumber stuff before....

First impressions are that it's hilariously tiny. The stinger is decent for the price, same with the ground clamp. The high gloss on the cables made me sigh thinking they'd be that stiff plastic stuff, but they are very flexible. Same for the power cord. They've finally figured it out......
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I also bought 5lbs of 3/32" in 6011, 6013, 7014, and 7018. Just playing around with stuff so far, but it's ran every rod just fine. Below are my attempts of a 7018 multipass tee, and a 7014 on the other side. My first time running 7014. Nice rod, I like it, but I need to play around with it more.....

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And a crappy 7018 vertical run on top of the other weld...
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For under $100 this little thing is awesome. I want to see how it welds off a generator next, but even for mobile site work this is going to be great. Will be very handy out in the blacksmith shed too. I made those full pass welds, ~3" long and never tripped a 15amp breaker. You can get these in dual voltage, but I didn't see the point. I have my big 240v welder for that, and lots of cable. This fills a different need, and as long as I could burn 3/32 rod with it I'd be happy. And I am. Very :D.

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It's smaller than a battery grinder....
 
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Ok I thought this was a joke at first. It's comically small!
 
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Hmmm..... I've been wanting to try stick (I have a small MIG). Worth a try or would it just frustrate a beginner?

Please link to the welding rods you got.....
 
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That's even got a 60% (advertised) duty cycle. I would've expected closer to 20% or 30% for a machine that physical size.

We'll need a review after you've put a few lbs of rods thru it.:)
 
YYCHM said:
Hmmm..... I've been wanting to try stick. Worth a try or would it just frustrate a beginner?

Please link to the welding rods you got.....
Click to expand...
7018, 6011, 6013, 7014 I didn't need to buy the 6013, as I forgot I already had a box of 3/32. Oh well, two lifetime supply's now...

Any welding can be frustrating as a beginner. I'd recommend some hands on instruction to get you going, and pointed in the right direction with some direct feedback. I am entirely self taught from books, internet forums, and Jody Collier at welding tips and tricks over the last decade or so. But being in trade school the past 6 weeks, I've been taking a basic welding course learning stick, and Oxy/Acetylene. It's been fun, and my first hands on/in person welding instruction ever and I've learned a ton. Corrected some bad habits too, and now have a MUCH better understanding of the variables, and how to better control them. Something that's really tough to learn on your own with no feedback. I still have lots to learn, but I feel like I'm pointed in a much better direction now than I ever was. If you can get someone to get you started, you'll be much further ahead IMO, the rest is just burning rods and building muscle memory and experience.

Oxy/Acetylene welding is awesome. Kinda of funny that it's usually the first thing people learn on, but it was the last process I learned. I can totally see why it's the first though, as the way you can control the puddle is amazing. Transferable skills to every other process.
 
YotaBota said:
That's even got a 60% (advertised) duty cycle. I would've expected closer to 20% or 30% for a machine that physical size.

We'll need a review after you've put a few lbs of rods thru it.:)
Click to expand...
Ya, I thought it was too good to be true too. I have some projects to do in the blacksmith shop, so I'll be using it in there a bit. When I'll get to that I don't know, but hopefully soon. I'd really like to burn a lot more rod with it, as it honestly welds really nice. I dare say MUCH better than the Miller suitcase we have at work. This lights up a 3/32 7018 with zero trouble, and the Miller sticks rods like crazy..... It's less than half the size too....
 
Dan Dubeau said:
7018, 6011, 6013, 7014 I didn't need to buy the 6013, as I forgot I already had a box of 3/32. Oh well, two lifetime supply's now...

Any welding can be frustrating as a beginner. I'd recommend some hands on instruction to get you going, and pointed in the right direction with some direct feedback. I am entirely self taught from books, internet forums, and Jody Collier at welding tips and tricks over the last decade or so. But being in trade school the past 6 weeks, I've been taking a basic welding course learning stick, and Oxy/Acetylene. It's been fun, and my first hands on/in person welding instruction ever and I've learned a ton. Corrected some bad habits too, and now have a MUCH better understanding of the variables, and how to better control them. Something that's really tough to learn on your own with no feedback. I still have lots to learn, but I feel like I'm pointed in a much better direction now than I ever was. If you can get someone to get you started, you'll be much further ahead IMO, the rest is just burning rods and building muscle memory and experience.

Oxy/Acetylene welding is awesome. Kinda of funny that it's usually the first thing people learn on, but it was the last process I learned. I can totally see why it's the first though, as the way you can control the puddle is amazing. Transferable skills to every other process.
Click to expand...
I have read that oxy/acetylene is the training ground for TIG as it helps train puddle control.
I went straight to TIG and as a result I'm like a pilot that can fly the plane once in the air but cannot take off or land :D:D:D:D
 
Dan Dubeau said:
I can totally see why it's the first though, as the way you can control the puddle is amazing.
Click to expand...

My first shot at welding was OA, then stick, then MIG. I did ok with OA but hated it. Hated stick even more. I sorta like wire but it's a love hate thing.

Wish I'd had someone to look over my shoulder and yell at me but never did. At my age nobody will yell at me anymore. I doubt I'll ever get any better.
 
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