Engine driven welder

Good luck with your decision...

Remember you get what you pay for! What I do look for is arc stability anotherwords the smoothest arc and this is the most important. I diffentley would not buy if I could not try the machine out first! If you could rent a machine for a couple hours then you would see what your buying. As far as what goodies to get, CC/CV is a must to keep all your welding options open for future use. 200A minmium DC with AC. You will also need to run AC power at the same time you draw weld amps for extra controls for add on's. For getting the most years for the bucks a water cooled engine is a must but what does a new engine replacement cost compared to a water cooled machine? I see that most offer LP option in the small machines and that I would consider because of the additional engine run time before rebuild. Cost effective tho? I see that most offer and main amp control with a fine amp adjustment, great, and the low amp range is approx the same.

If your not an experienced welder you might consider getting a friend or hire a very experienced welder to make the arc stability call.
Whats another $100 for a good opinion when your spending $5k. A pipefitter is probably the best all around welder there is. Be sure and try the machine on all three processes, Stick, Mig and Tig for arc stability. Welding machines of the past would preform great on one or two but would be lousy on the third processes.

T_Bone