i'm not a pro (used to stick weld some at a job years ago) and only need it for "want to build" stuff &
minor repairs.

used ok; I know Lincon buzz boxes are the standard, but what about the Harbar friegnt & other
BB store brands?

thanks

Daisy chain a few car batteries together, get a set of jumper cables and pitter patter, let the slag splatter..

Serious though, just find a used Lincoln or Miller on CL, FB marketplace, or local auction site.

Seriously though? Why not a used Lincoln buzz box?

Hell I paid $60 for mine. Spent another $15 on some 6011 rods and I can make metal stick together!

I've toyed with the idea of getting a tiny little inverter stick welder. They're about $75.  Won't do really thick stuff and has a shitty duty cycle, but for how frequently, and what I'd use it on, it would suffice....but then it dawns on me that my MIG with flux core would do everything I'd want the tiny stick welder for.

Can't remember the thread but was pointed to this Youtube video
doesn't look too bad for the price..some language NSFW

I just used on an old Montgomery-Wards buzz box I was given for free years ago.

Still works on steel.

Think it has around a 5% duty cycle at maybe 50 amps.

yea, i'll just have to keep haunting craigslist for a Lincon buzz box; last few i saw on there were near
the price of new ones, just have to keep looking

@FW_wife

I don't really know how to weld, but I did pick up the HF stick welder a few years back.
It allows me to stick metal together.
had a couple of minor parts I needed to weld up and it worked for that.
in the near future I plan on doing a bit more practice with it.
been watching some teaching video's on you tube.
If I find that limits me to the beads I can make I will worry about upgrading then.

I look at it like a lee press.
It is cheap and works ok. If I get good enough with it and decide to use it a lot, I will step up then to something better like rcbs.
but it has been basically like my lee press.
I bought it to use it, but only get to it once every couple of years if even that. no reason to have hundreds of dollars just sitting on a shelf.

What I found was the few items I wanted welded that were not easy, were not in my league or needed tig welding not stick.
I don't think I will ever pony up the money for a tig, though I did see a video on how to convert a stick welder into a basic tig. I also know I don't have skills for that at this time either.

Top of the line is miller and Lincoln.  Runner up is Hobart now owned by miller.   Tractor supply carries Hobart and have sales.   You probably just misssed a Black Friday sale.

If you’re not looking for show room beads and long duty cycles harbor freight is cheap and regarded as fairly priced value.

ETA  if want a welding cart and don’t want to make one the Harbor Freight carts are a great value.  I have the middle size one which at the time was the biggest.  It’s great, since then they came out with one with a little more room that is a bit better set up.  I wish I had that one.

You don’t need a cart for a small buzz box until you start welding with inert shielding gas..

Yep. I too am a beginner.  I have good welds and some homely looking welds.

I went in deep and bought a miller 211 and a bottle.   Also bought the spool gun for aluminum as there was miller cash to spend.   Have not used the spool gun.

yeah that is pretty deep.
I will consider something like it if I decide to take on a floor pan welding job I have been putting off for years.

You'll want a mig welder for that job for sure. I did all the rust repair on my 66 C10 and I couldn't imagine trying to stick weld in some of those spots.

Be very careful trying to use old rods.
If they are coated they coating absorbs moisture and makes them not work correctly.

We used to bake any rods more than a few weeks old in a heat treat oven to make sure they had NO moisture in the coating.

Not all rods are sensitive to absorbing moisture. Some rods can actually get too dry
Low hydrogen rods (7018, etc) must be kept sealed/into rod oven/out for not more than x hrs, etc. to produce welds for "code work" things such as structural welding, but they still work just fine in my experience if kept moderately dry. They still run well, and produce a clean weld with plenty of strength for my non important stuff. I doubt it would pass an X-ray test, but for hobby stuff they are just fine