I am trying to arrange a group buy of AC/DC TIG welders from R-tech.

This is now fixed to the 160A machines - unless there is enough for 5 off of the 200A ones. I dont mind ordering different ones if thats what people want.

The units would be these:

160 amp unit - Clicky

or maybe these:

200 amp unit - Clicky

Depending on preferences....obviously prices shown are list and dont include a foot pedal or delivery - prices quoted below do!

The kits will include a helmet and foot pedal.

I chose to approach R-tech as they are a UK based company selling good quality machines which are mostly of German construction. So yes they are a little more than the Chinese imports - but come with a 2 year warranty and full UK back up and guaranteed spares for 10 years....

Prices for the 160 amp units are as follows:

For comparison - List for a welder, helmet, foot pedal and delivery is £704.20 + VAT

5 of Packages @ £616.18 + vat. (£724.01)

10 of Packages @ £580.97 + vat (£682.64)

15 of Packages @ £545.76 + vat (£641.27)

For the 200 amp unit:

For comparison - List for a welder, helmet, foot pedal and delivery is £954.20 + VAT

5 of @ £834.93 + vat (£981.04)

10 of @ £787.22 + vat (£924.98)

15 of @ £739.51 + vat. (£868.92)


Obviously the best savings are if everyone can decide on all having a 160amp or 200 amp machine. Personally I would prefer the 160amp...

[Edited on 24/8/10 by flak monkey]

Aye lad, get them down to under £200 and I'm in

lol - dream on...

Though at the discounted prices they are a good buy IMO and not an awful lot more than a cheap Chinese machine.....

umm...bit petty, but could you add VAT to the prices so it's obvious what the end results are?

quote:

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Originally posted by stevebubs
umm...bit petty, but could you add VAT to the prices so it's obvious what the end results are?

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damn! i should have thought of a group buy before i bought mine!

i've got the 160A ac/dc and i'm very happy with the DC function. not got round to AC yet, but i'm sure it'll be good. pulsed DC welding is absolutely fantastic

well worth the brass and R-Tech are a fantastic company to deal with, genuine and on the ball.

best of luck getting the orders in david.
tom

ummmmmmmmmm very interested in the 160 amp ummmmmmmmm

I've got the 200amp one.

They're all Siemens internals only the case is chinese.

This is a cracking group buy and the 160amp would be my choice if just working on cars.

BTW, you can only use a 13amp plug top up to 160amp, then its a blue plug above.

Hi, I would be interested in the 160a model if we could get enough buyers to bring costs down. Thanks.

Thanks for the interest guys. This is now going to be fixed at the 160amp machine to make things simpler.

[Edited on 24/8/10 by flak monkey]

one on the first link is now £595+vat ?

Interested in a 160 if it continues to drop from £595+vat..


[Edited on 23/8/10 by paublo999]

£595 doesnt include a foot pedal....or delivery...

The packages I have listed above do!

[Edited on 23/8/10 by flak monkey]

cool.. thanks for clarifying

I have messaged those people who have shown an interest. I currently have 5 possibles.

If you are seriously interested then please either U2U me so I can add you to the list or reply here.

Thanks,
David

Hi David

Any chance you could give us n00bs a bit of an idea on consumables required.

For example, I guess gas of some kind is needed. What gas is needed? Is it different for alu as opposed to steel? Where do we buy it? How long does a bottle last?

What about the rods? The r-tech site lists all sorts of different grades. What is needed?

Anything else we'd need to buy to actually use the machine?

Chris

The kit comes with some tungstens to get you started along with some Torch consumables. For universal tungstens you can use Ceriated ones which are suiatble for both AC and DC welding.

Otherwise its Thoriated for DC and Zirconiated for AC. A pack of 10 tungstens will last for ages once you get the hang of things.

For best results you need Argon gas - this will cover you for both AC and DC welding. CO2 is no good as the tungsten will burn away. Argon is available in both the small bottles from Halfords or in larger industrial bottles. The welder comes with an Argon regulator to fit the larger bottles.

Filler rods - depends what you are welding. Obviously mild steel rods for mild steel. 316 stainless is suitable for most stainless welding but other grades are available for those special jobs. 4043 aluminium rods will cover 95% of aluminium welding. 5056 is for heat treatable alloys which you are going to retreat after welding.


So in summary you need:
Argon gas bottle
Filler rods - mild, 316 and 4043 will cover 95% of jobs and 5kg (steel) or 25.kg (ali)lasts ages.
Tungstens - preferably ceriated for universal use.

David

I’m in but I would prefer the 200amp. Can we try to get a mix and match deal with the supplier i.e. most people might have the 160 but maybe a few choose the 200, do a deal for the total of all units!

Just a question because I’m always one to go for a little more power if possible, you never know what bigger job is just around the corner! If they will only do a deal on one model then I’m still in with the 160amp

Cheers

Peter

Just curious, how do these differ from the 160A tig machines I see posted over from China for around £180 all in (obviously excepting the additional bits like pedals,masks etc)? They seemed to have very similar specs (though I can't find the ebay linky at the moment - I came very close to buying one until I spotted the cost of argon.

edit - ah they're DC only, just spotted it. Not much good for alu

[Edited on 26/8/10 by coyoteboy]

For £180 they will be DC only machines - certainly not AC/DC. Even from China.

2 yr warranty and parts back up for 10 yrs.

From what I can find these are mostly of GERMAN construction and not Chinese.

At the end of the day if you would rather buy a cheap machine, go for it. Personally I would rather buy something with UK support from a UK company.

I am giving this group buy until the end of next week. There's currently not enough interest.

Cheers,
David