Hobart Ironman 230

Found this pretty thing on Northern Tool and Equip. with the spoolgun for $1850 and free shipping. Eager to start burning some steel and aluminum!!

I hope you have lots of fun with that crappy thing of a spool gun. My suggestion is you run the thickest aluminum wire it'll run, otherwise enjoy the mess.

I have tips for .045" wire. What issues does it have exactly moving wire smaller than that?

If it pops on the tip the feed rolls will wad the chit out of it behind that clear cover on the side and it's a real sob to clean out when it does. My dad bought that same setup, besides it has the Miller name on it, and we used it a few times and decided it wasn't worth the trouble. Miller does make larger spool guns that are decent but the cheaper ones have just proved more trouble than they are worth to us. We are both certified welders, not hobby welders and didn't have time do deal with that setup. Tig welding aluminum is our preferred method period.

I had that happen a few months back using a Miller 350P. Only happened a couple of times though. Maybe if the machine gets dialed in just right, it might ok?

I'm assuming Miller guns will work on this?

I'm not really sure how much aluminum I'll be welding but with the pontoon boat I have, it could be a bit. I bought this to upgrade from the 110amp Harbor Freight mig welder I have.

Congrats on your purchase and good luck!

I have the Iron man 210 and it blows. I can only weld with it if the lead to the gun is as straight as possible with the machine. Supposedly this issue was fixed on the 230 as it has dual feed rolls.

Thats not a bad deal at all, l puchased a yr of so ago a Miller (Miller own Hopart) 212 for around 1500, and just this week bought a spoolmate 200 for 650. Had this deal been around when I bought mine I would have looked into it.

As far a spool guns go, just remember alum mig is spray arc once it set-up correctly you wont have an issue. I have run mine(at work) down to .023 alum and had it working just fine.

RD TRCTR said:

Congrats on your purchase and good luck!

I have the Iron man 210 and it blows. I can only weld with it if the lead to the gun is as straight as possible with the machine. Supposedly this issue was fixed on the 230 as it has dual feed rolls.

Click to expand...

This spoolgun does have dual feed rollers in it and it came with a spare set, too. This particular model has been reviewed by Jody, the guy who created Welding Tips and Tricks. He had good things to say about it and liked it as well. As a hobbyist, I'm sure I'll enjoy every bit of it.

turbom700 said:

Thats not a bad deal at all, l puchased a yr of so ago a Miller (Miller own Hopart) 212 for around 1500, and just this week bought a spoolmate 200 for 650. Had this deal been around when I bought mine I would have looked into it.

As far a spool guns go, just remember alum mig is spray arc once it set-up correctly you wont have an issue. I have run mine(at work) down to .023 alum and had it working just fine.

Click to expand...

It was too hard to pass up. I just looked the other day, and they're running a sale on it. Not much cheaper but $1830. Others suggested the Miller 252. While that's ultimately the same machine, it was in the neighborhood of $2200 and a spoolgun would've added that $600-650! I'm not opposed to buying a quality product but it was just more than I was wanting to spend. When it comes down to it, I still got a Miller! LOL Will Miller guns work with this machine??

I do remember the video Jody made when testing this exact machine. He talked about the process and the arc needing to be a spray transfer which has more of a hissing sound. It'll take some time burning scrap pieces to dial the machine in just right and I'm sure I'll be opening the spoolgun to clear some bird nests but it'll be worth it. I'll spend some more time calculating exactly how many inches per minute each wire feed setting gives and build a chart to keep next to the one inside the door.

Nice machine. I purchased one recently myself and so far it's been great. My other Hobart machines I've had years of trouble free service from and I don't expect this one to be any different.

Glad to hear it! I'm excited.

I was working earlier to change out a 30 amp electrical outlet to a dedicated 50 amp for this thing. I also got about 110ft. of shielded 4 conductor, 8awg cable to build an extension cord. Both ends with 50amp plugs as well. I'd have to look and see if it's NM-B or UFB rated. I'm gonna look for a cable spool and maybe build a small bracket off to the side of the tank at the rear of the machine for easy coiling and storage of the cable.

I'm hoping I'll have a little time to burn some material tomorrow.

307diesel said:

If it pops on the tip the feed rolls will wad the chit out of it behind that clear cover on the side and it's a real sob to clean out when it does. My dad bought that same setup, besides it has the Miller name on it, and we used it a few times and decided it wasn't worth the trouble. Miller does make larger spool guns that are decent but the cheaper ones have just proved more trouble than they are worth to us. We are both certified welders, not hobby welders and didn't have time do deal with that setup. Tig welding aluminum is our preferred method period.

Click to expand...

I have the Ironman 210 and your correct, that spool gun is a POS. Mine is constant maintenance. For every minute I weld, I work on it for 5min. McDonald's toys are made from a better grade of plastic. Mine is all melted and patched together. If your planning on welding much aluminum upgrade your gun.

I have the same Ironman 230 welder I bought last fall, although I don't have a spool gun. I've been very satisfied with the welder thus far. The machine itself will work just fine for you.

I'm glad to hear everyone's opinions on the spool gun because that is my next upgrade for my machine.

After building a 110ft. extension cord and replacing the 30amp wall receptacle with a 50amp, I got it fired up and burned some scrap pieces of 3/16" together. A $15 air hose reel from Harbor Freight holds all 110ft. of the cable, surprisingly. The box said it would only hold 50ft of 1/2" air hose.

Not only does this machine run super quiet (even with the door open) but it produces a very good, stable and smooth arc. The chart settings are accurate so far also. Initially, I had the wire feed speed a touch too high for as slow as I was traveling. Backed it down to what the chart suggested and it laid down good beads.





This is the first pass with slightly too fast of a wire feed speed.



After the correction.

I have a iron man 210 bought it from a local hardware store and love it I've had it for 8 years and not 1 problem ever and all the guy in the shop that can't weld can with my Hobart just a great machine!! Looks like you already have the hand of things!! Good luck