While welding may not be everybody’s cup of tea, it certainly is a marketable skill and requires a great deal of practice, care, and dexterity. This is why it doesn’t feel wrong at all to peel some serious bucks for a welding job well done. This is what we’ll be discussing today: the right tools for a good job. You see, whenever something breaks and needs to be repaired, a permanent solution for that would be to have it welded, but sometimes, a conventional welding setup won’t work. This is where you will need a portable welding machine. Here is a list of the best portable welding machines for 2022.
The best part about a portable welding machine is that you don’t need to be a professional welder and have a few burn marks on your arms and a light tan to use a portable welding machine. No sirree. It can be used by both the professional and the amateur, and since it is OSHA regulations certified and pretty safe to use, you could get one for your home if you are the more hands-on type of person and want to do your own welding. Our list includes picks from the top manufacturers, Miller Welding Machines and Lincoln welding plants, and offerings from other manufacturers to form our list of the best portable welding machines for 2022.
What Should You Look For in a Portable Welding Machine?
Now before we get into the list, you might ask yourself: do I really need a Miller or a Lincoln welding plant when I’m not a welder? Well, as we said, if you’re the kind of person to tackle your problems by yourself, a portable welding plant can come in handy, especially for repairs that you’d rather not lumber up to the nearest welding guy, who could potentially rip you off.
With that aside, let’s get into the list.
The Best Portable Welding Machines for 2022
Here are the best portable welding machines for 2022 that you can get for a nominal price on Amazon.
Lincoln Electric K2278-1 Handy Core
At the top of the list, we have an offering from the Lincoln welders, which is the Lincoln Electric K2278-1 Handy Core. As Lincoln is rightfully at the top of the welding game, this is one of the portable welders that both professionals and occasional users can try their hand at. It welds up to 1/8 inch of mild steel and is compact, lightweight, and really easy to use. And, it also comes with a one-year warranty, so it’s a good buy. Price is around $340.
Millermatic 252
From the catalog of Miller welding plants, next on the list is the nimble little Millermatic 252, which is a favorite for many professional welders who stay on the job with their portable welder. It comes with a bunch of really useful features: infinite voltage control, self-calibrating digital meters, and Auto-Gun Detect. Uses superior quality aluminum MIG welding and has a flux core. Quite an energy conservative as well, with a Fan-On-Demand cooling system that only kicks in once the portable welder, reaches a specific temperature. Comes with a bunch of useful accessories. Certainly, one of the best in the business; go for a Millermatic 252 if you can.
MagicWave 230i Welder
From Fronius, the MagicWave 230i Welder is a definite all-rounder, with TIG welding that caters to chrome tubing, aluminum sheet metal, and stainless steel pipe. It has some amazing tricks up its sleeve like non-contact and gentle high-frequency arc ignition, which is quick and energy-conservative. What’s more, it is a fully digitized DC/AC TIG power source, and you can set the portable welder to your exact requirements within minutes. It is designed for the professional welder, and they will feel at home with the MagicWave 230i Welder which makes an otherwise difficult task an absolute breeze.
CADDY TIG 2200i
The CADDY TIF 2200i is a portable welding machine from ESAB, which is a great option for professional welders looking for a relatively inexpensive machine that does all the work and is built of quality materials. It is an easy-to-use portable welder that has all of its parameters displayed in an easy-to-understand format. It also has a Pulse TIG and ArcPlus II, which improve welding characteristics. Large coolers and an innovative cooling system make it so that the machine can run at its peak even in harsh temperature conditions. IP23 compliant. It’s the Cadillac of portable welding machines.
AXT SuperMIG 255
AXT SuperMIG 255 is a portable welder from AXT which has been designed exclusively for professional welders looking to make their work easier. The SuperMIG has a roll capacity of around 15 kg or 33 pounds and has four rollers. It also sports a microchip that regulates the parameters through custom-coded software, making reading the parameters a lot easier than the rest. It is also quite nifty and portable; well, it is a portable welder, but at 42kgs or 92 pounds, it’s the easiest to use and transport, especially if the situation calls for a job up a flight of stairs or two.
HITBOX MMA Welder ARC-200
The HITBOX MMA Welder is a compact, all-rounder portable welding machine that is perfect for both professionals and the occasional users, as the HITBOX MMA weighs only 6 pounds and is an easy-carry model. It features a rated cycle duty of 60 percent and can weld 7018 1/8 inches of steel very well, not to mention 6013 and 7018 3/32 inches. It also comes with a one-year warranty and if any problem occurs while usage, HITBOX’s agents will fix it for you for no cost it comes with an electrode holder, and earth clamp.
Goplus 250 AMP MMA Welder ARC Welding Machine
The Goplus 250 AMP MMA Welder has a professional-grade ARC stick electrode welder, which makes welding very efficient, easy and practical. Works with AC, and is perfect for welding mild steel or stainless steel. It is also very easy to use and move, and features a sturdy grab handle and wheels to ensure moving this portable welder doesn’t take out your back while doing so. It is also priced very moderately, at $135, which will get you a good portable welder that makes all welding jobs easier.
Forney Easy Weld 261
Forney Easy Weld 261 is one of the best portable welders out there, and with its flashy green color, you can find it out of a bunch of portable welders. Chock full of features like 0.30 flux core wire, wire feed speed control, and infinite voltage, it also has up to 140-amp output and an 8’ MIG gun, and an 8’ ground clamp. It also has a rugged and strong build, enough to handle up to 10 pounds of wire rolls on it. And at $250, it is an absolute steal; you cannot get a better portable welder at this rate and not claim that it hasn’t been stolen. The Forney Easy Weld 261 really lives up to its name and is a welder that both professionals and occasional users can enjoy working with.
ANSEN Power 160
The ANSEN Power 160 is a great portable welder for professionals looking for a straight-cut tool that doesn’t break the bank and does a good job. The ANSEN comes with an output voltage of 230 volts and has a 60 percent duty cycle, electrode holder, work clamp, and a 10 ft cable that is multipurpose. It is also great for people who want to learn how to weld but don’t want to spend much on it to avoid breaking the bank. The ANSEN is a great bargain tool then.
SUNCOO 130 MIG Welder
A gasless welder, the SUNCOO 130 MIG Welder is a great option for small household projects and small-scale repairs that aren’t much of a headache. Running with a 15-amp breaker, the SUNCOO 130 ships with a bunch of stuff that you won’t normally find on a portable welder: face mask, flux core welding gun, weld brush, contact tips, and ground clamps. How this is not a MIG welder, so there’s a little downside, but it can still weld up to ¼ inch of milled steel, so it’s quite a good workhorse. A practical and efficient workhorse.