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10 Best MIG welders in the UK in 2024: Reviews & Top Picks

Last Updated on Jan 03 2024

Whether you are a tinkerer or a full-fledged production guru, MIG (Metal-Inert Gas) technology is the fastest and most effective way for metal fusion. There may be other welding techniques available in the market like TIG (Tungsten Inert gas welding) and MMA (Manual Arc Welding); however, MIG welding is feasible, viable, and the most widespread welding technique.

Despite being useful and reliable, fusing molten metal using MIG welding is a risky affair because it uses electricity. You need to have the right equipment for the job. There are a variety of MIG models available on the market to suit different needs and budgets. This makes purchasing an appropriate MIG welder a daunting affair, especially for the uninitiated buyer.

In this article, we look at the best MIG welders in the UK for the year 2022, with emphasis on the top 10 contenders in the market today.

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A Quick Comparison of Our 2024 Favorites

The 10 Best MIG Welders in the UK

1. R-Tech MIG Welder 180A 240V Portable Inverter – Best Overall

A product from R-Tech Company, this powerful MIG welder is excellent by all accounts. The welder features a 180 amp portable inverter with a 240v single phase input plus a long-lasting metal feed assy. 

It also offers an optional spool gun for welding aluminum materials with 6 mm welds per pass, as well as MMA for stick welding, making it a great addition to your welding kit. This makes the MIG welder suitable for creating stronger bonds, especially for load-bearing structures such as motor vehicles. It can also run at 180 amps on 16A 240v inputs or even a 160 amp at 13A input, which allows you to run the welder from any main electric outlet.

In addition, this welder has a unique duty cycle that can handle a duty cycle of 35% at 180 amps and 60% at 150 amps. The high-quality Euro-style welding torches used on this welder are also easy to obtain and replace, which adds to its widespread usage in the UK.

This MIG welder might be costly due to the modern inverter installed for power, but this allows you to fit high power into a mains-powered package. It can also run smoothly at high power right from your 2-pin plug, thus making it an ideal tool for light industrial use, workshop, and DIY projects at home.

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2. Dirty Pro Tools MIG Welder 130 Non-Live – Best Value

If you are looking for a welder that offers good value, the Dirty Pro Tools professional MIG welder is a great choice. This small, compact, and high-quality MIG welder is designed for seasoned welders. It features a range of accessories, including a clipping hammer, an earth clamp, a helmet, and a welding brush to improve your general welding experience.

Dirty Pro Tools Company designed this welder with durability in mind. It is an ideal welder if you are looking for a metal fusion that can stand the test of time while delivering excellent results.

It features a flux that protects the system while welding as well as four power settings and variable wire speed controls, which allow you to choose the setting that best suits your needs. Moreover, this welder uses solid or filler wire with a flux core, so you don’t need gas for this machine.

Furthermore, this welder features a turbo cooling fan cooling the internal components. This not only improves durability but also helps extend its duty cycle. 

Another noteworthy feature of this welder is the helper handle situated at the top of the welder, which makes it portable. You can easily carry it along for local jobs in your neighborhood.

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3. Sealey SUPERMIG180 Professional MIG Welder – Premium Choice

Sometimes even the most powerful welder for DIY home projects may not be enough for someone who intends to use their MIG welding skills for industrial use. So, if you are in the market for a robust and high-quality welding machine that is capable of handling industrial-grade assignments, consider going for the Sealy SuperMIG180 welder.

Considered perhaps one of the most compact and easy-to-use MIG welding options on the market today, this Sealy model is straightforward. It is easy to set up and use, especially among professional welders. It may be designed for high-level use, but you can utilize its features for your weekend workshop endeavors too.

The Sealy company specifically designed this robust MIG welder for professional car welding, especially for those using CO2 and argon gasses to get the job done. Its high duty cycles also allow you to use it gasless as well.

This MIG welder has a high-quality Binzel Euro torch for precision work and spatter reduction, as well as a forced-air solution that cools the inside components to extend your welding time without overheating. In addition, the set is equipped with an industrial gas regulator, a gas cap, and two contact tips to choose from.

Another impressive feature of the Sealy SuperMIG180 is the non-live torch retrofitted into the system to reduce the risk of creating arcs when moving between fast-paced jobs.

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4. Röhr MMA 200FI ARC Welder Inverter

Over the years, Röhr has combined breakthrough technologies to create and design some of the most capable and advanced welding machines in the market. The Röhr MMA 200FI ARC Welder Inverter Gasless 200 Amp DC Anti-Stick Welding Machine is one such machine.

This MIG welder is a budget-friendly machine specifically designed to fit the needs of new and experienced users alike.

The Röhr MMA 200FI features a built-in inverter which helps increase operating efficiency and power at low currents. This means you can use this machine in a wide range of welding activities including house maintenance, fabrication, and vehicle welding. This MIG welder is also capable of unconventional welding using specialist materials such as carbon steel, copper, stainless steel, and other colored metals.

Manufactured as a gasless welder, the Röhr MMA 200FI only works with electrical power. It comes with a 200-amp inverter that can run off a standard mains 240V plug if you desire. Its small and compact build also makes it ideal for small-medium sized projects and home welding with a max of 200a and smooth AC functions.

This welder also comes equipped with a variety of high-quality accessories to help you improve your welding experience. You can expect to find a wire brush, clip hammer, a mask, and an earth clamp.

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5. Display4top Professional MIG 130 Welder

Not everyone needs a MIG welder for professional or industrial use. Sometimes you might decide to get a welder for your DIY projects and hobby use. The Display4top Professional MIG 130 Welder is an excellent choice for your home usage.

This MIG welder comes equipped with everything a newbie, a hobbyist, or an enthusiast would need to get some welding done and typically connects to the standard mains UK 3-pin sockets. Besides that, it is easy to set up and get running. In addition, it only runs gasless, so you only need to add flux wire to get the welder working.

This Professional MIG 130 Welder is specially customized for car enthusiasts and works well with most bodywork. It offers a max amperage of 120a, which is a decent amount of welding power to cater to even more serious jobs at home.

Since this MIG welder is best suited for hobby-level welding, you cannot expect to find a high duty cycle at high power like the other more powerful industrial-level welding machines. However, it performs exceptionally well for a MIG welder of its class, giving you great value for its price.

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6. Weldpro 200 Amp Multi-Process Welder

We all adore MIG welding machines for their easy learning curve and ability to produce a splatter-free finish. However, sometimes they just don’t cut the mustard, especially when working on projects like bike frames, door handles, and lawnmowers. In such an instance TIG machines are a better alternative. This presents a problem because, in normal circumstances, you might have to buy three separate welders to fulfill the different welding needs. This will ultimately cost you more. 

Fortunately, Weldpro came up with the Weldpro 200, a multi-purpose device that can effortlessly handle Stick, MIG, Flux, and TIG projects. You can even work with aluminum by choosing the Spool gun option available on this versatile welding machine.

The Weldpro 200 not only features impressive functionality worth its price but at 55 pounds, it is also small and compact. This saves you space, time, and money while working on your welding projects.

This welder features a high-duty cycle at 30% while running at maximum power and can work efficiently at 240V and 120V electrical grids. It even features an LCD with a touch screen for more controls over the settings.

Unfortunately, the welder cannot fuse metal thicker than ¼ inch. So, you might have to look for a different welding machine if you need a more robust machine. This welder is also not recommended for newbie welders as it offers more than a newbie would need.

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7. Hobart Handler 140 MIG Welder

If you are new to the welding world, you probably need a welder that is easy to set up and use. You should also consider going for a machine that runs off at least 110V but still packs plenty of amps. If you are wondering where you can get such a MIG welding device, worry no more.

The Hobart Handler 140 MIG Welder offers all those functionalities- and then some. This high-quality welding machine is not exactly the cheapest in the market, but it features a friendly design and can produce smooth welding arcs even for the most inexperienced welders, making it a worthwhile invention.

Beginners can achieve exemplary results on a broad range of welding tasks with minimal fuss and bother. Be it general repairs, trailer frames, or automotive work, you can fuse steel up to ¼ inch thickness thanks to the machine’s 140 max amp rating.

Since the Hobart Handler 140 MIG Welder functions on 110V only, it is not suitable for industrial-grade welding. It is only ideal for small to mid-sized welding DIY jobs. Moreover, at five feet, the cable is relatively short, so you must ensure the welder is always properly positioned or look for a more portable welding alternative.

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8. Hobart Iron Man 230

This heavy-duty welding machine is not for the inexperienced or the hobby welder. It is also not portable and very expensive. However, if you are an experienced welder looking for a machine for industrial-grade welding projects, this premium machine from Hobart is for you. This robust device can blast out 230 amps, enough to weld a ½ inch thick steel.

You may be wondering whether the duty cycle suffers on a device that runs on such incredibly large amps, right? Well, it doesn’t. Hobart somehow managed to set a 60% cycle at 175A, which significantly reduces the amount of time you must sit idle on long welding jobs.

The Hobart Iron Man 230 MIG welder also has varying ways to boot it. It features adjustable voltage settings and an aluminum wire drive system to fine-tune the feed speed. It even has an in-built cylinder rack to store your gas.

As a heavy-duty welding machine with 230V, it’s unsuitable to use the Hobart Iron Man 230 MIG welder at home for your DIY projects. That’s just too much juice for typical home repairs. Besides at 250 pounds, it is outrageously heavy for you to move around. You might need to install some wheels to move it around. If for some reason this unit is not robust enough for you, Hobart does offer a 280-amp version as well.

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9. Lincoln Handy MIG Welder 

If you enjoy hobby welding that does not necessarily entail heavy-duty projects, you should opt for the Lincoln Handy MIG Welder. This unit is budget-friendly and agile, best suited for home use.

Well, the Lincoln Welder may not compare to the other high-end welders on the list in terms of power (at a maximum input of 70A) but what it lacks in power, it makes up with its low price and portability (at only 11.8 kg, it is very easy to move around).

This single voltage device uses 115V, so you will not be able to run it in an industrial-grade workshop. However, you can comfortably run the welder at your home while working on minor repairs and hobby projects.

In addition, the low duty cycle of 20% at 70A makes the Lincoln Welder only suitable for casual welding for people who are not in a rush to finish their projects. Also, it uses a flux core instead of shielding gas, which reduces the time spent stuffing around while increasing the time spent welding. So, when you need a nice clean weld, hook this portable unit to a gas cylinder and get your welding on.

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10. Reboot MIG150 220V MIG Welder

If you are looking for a low-budget machine with basic functionality that still delivers a good weld, the Reboot MIG150 DC 220V Inverter MIG Welder is the best choice for you. This welder is straightforward to set up and use, and anyone with a basic understanding of welding machines can utilize it.

There may be other lower-budget MIG welding machines available in the market; however, they cannot produce a cleaner weld than the Reboot welder. It is a low-quality option suitable for light welding projects, but it produces a tidy bead with minimal spatter.

The MIG150 Welder also welds at an average temperature with a maximum of 150-amp output. Therefore, we do not recommend you purchase it if you need to fuse materials thicker than 3/16 inches unless you are willing to weld multiple passes. Moreover, this welder can only run at 220V power. This makes it less desirable to people who don’t have access to that kind of power in their homes. So, it is not ideal to use it in different locations or if you don’t have access to 220V.

Lastly, while Reboot may have reasonable customer service and try their best to serve their customers, their English is not always the best, and never seem to know as much about welding as they should. Reboot MIG 150 may not be our favorite pick of the best MIG welders in the UK, but it is an affordable option for those looking for a budget-friendly option.

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Buyer’s Guide: Selecting the Best MIG Welders in the UK

Factors to Consider When Buying Your MIG welder

Amperage

The power used by welders is measured in amps. The higher the amperage, the more powerful it is and the thicker the materials can weld for longer. When welding thick metal parts or heavy weight-bearing structures, you must use stronger welders. For lighter metal work, such as car bodywork, lower amperage is ideal. Typical high-power commercial welders tend to put out 300a, unlike hobby welding units, which put out approximately 150a.

In addition, many welders are equipped with a UK plug that runs off the mains to 150a maximum. In case your welder has an amperage above 150, you may have to run off a generator or get a 16a or 32a power supply.

Gas/Gasless

Some welders use gas to protect the weld, while others don’t and have to be equipped with a compatible welding wire, specifically designed for gasless elders. Gasless welders use flux instead of gas to protect the weld. However, many modern welding machines can function with or without gas. It all depends on your preference and the types of materials that you intend to fuse.

Duty Cycle

The duty cycle measures the time a welding unit can work at a certain amperage until the welder needs to cool down. Even though it is unlisted in old welders, the system always automatically cuts out before overheating.

Cooling System

When a welder gets hot, the cooling system helps extend their working time by reducing the heat. Most commercial welders use air in the cooling system, but some also use water to cool the welder.

Inverter vs Transformers

Welders tend to have two different types of power supplies—namely, transformers and inverters. Inverters run more efficiently with 13a mains power, while transformers run with a higher maximum power. However, you will need a 32a or 16a power supply to use the welder at higher amperage.

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Conclusion

There is no shortage of capable MIG welding machines in today’s market. The MIG Welder 180A 240V Portable Inverter covers all bases and is easily our top brand overall. It is a robust and efficient MIG welder, thanks to its inverter. It can fuse most materials to produce a clean and neat weld. The welder also creates stronger bonds for load-bearing items.

The MIG Welder 130 Non-Live from the reputable company Dirty Pro Tools offers the best value because it is designed with durability in mind. This small and high-quality welder can fuse metals that can bond for longer periods, perfect for seasoned welders hoping to get the best value for their money.

The Sealy SuperMIG180 welder represents a solid premium brand owing to its robust and high-quality welding. It is capable of handling industrial-grade assignments suitable for the seasoned welder. The Weldpro 200 Amp Multi-Process Welder is also a premium choice if you are looking to upgrade your business with a welder that offers more versatility. It is, however, better suited for experienced welders.

The 10 best welders in the UK may represent our top picks, but the rest of the welders are equally great brands that can suit various welding needs. While no one can definitively recommend the right MIG welder for your needs, the insights above should provide you with the necessary information about the highest-rated and top-selling welders available in the market today. However, as you continue honing your welding skills, you might find a welding style or brand that best works for you.

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Featured Image Credit: Bo Smeets, Unsplash