A little off the header fab. subject, I have a Miller DIALARC tig & stick welder maybe 25 or more years old. The question is, are the newer tig welders such as Miller SYNCROWELDor other solid state machines much better tig welders?
Not necessarily better. The old transformer machines are tanks and hold up well. The inverter machines have more features. Built in pulser, timers, etc that old machines don't have or were add-ons. I have both and I tend to use the old transformer machine for general tig use but if I get into some thin wall stuff or something a bit out of the ordinary then the inverter machine is nice because you can really dial in the machine to make up for my lack of skill.
I bought an inverter machine so I could take it with me and tig/stick in a lightweight package. I wouldn't, and didn't, replace a good working transformer machine for an inverter machine.
I am less of a fan of red and blue machines these days, although that's what I've always run in the past. Their inverter machine are mostly built in China and they plug a few IGBT cards into them once they get off the boat and are called built in USA. I've bought a few other brands to try and the grass isn't greener but the price is better!
