Craftsman  MIG 180 Gas/No Gas Welder with Cart

Advertised as a Craftsman MIG 180, but the Owner's Manual states (page 8) that the secondary (UL output) amps is 150. I assumed it should be 180. Am I missing something?

I was looking for an inexpensive 220V welder to replace my 110v ************** cheapie that I was constantly fixing. I don't do a lot of welding, but when I do I need an easy to use reliable system that won't cause me headaches, especially when I am in the middle of a project. This Craftsman unit seemed to fit the bill, so I purchased it.

I got it home and started setting it up. If you have problems setting this unit up you shouldn't be working on anything mechanical, it's that easy. The swivel wheels on the front of the cart aren't the greatest, but that's my only real complaint. There's no need to keep the manual handy as the set-up quick reference and dial set-up chart are inside the spool house door. I've now used it with flux core and MIG, and it only took a few minutes to changeover. I found the power output consistent and smooth for both and would reccomend this welder to anyone who needs a good quality home welder.

I've already bought a 175 MIG welding(220V) and lately browesed that Craftsman had this kind of higher ampheres rating. It happened that my friend who was a mechanic had a Crafstman MIG Welding unit.

I compared mine by using his Craftsman MIg welding ang compared with the one I had bought. I was really impressed with the performance of a Craftsman MIG welding brand.The wire speed control performance is I observed the best among others.

Well I will encourage others to have a Craftsman tools as a dependable, reliable and very convenient to use.

Bottom Line: 10 years ago Sears/Craftsman would not have added items to a catalog picture and the owners manual part list that you were not going to get in the purchase. I believe K-mart schooled them up on that particular art of deception when they bought Sears. As the other two reviews noted there is no gas regulator nor welding helmet included which is going to add another $100 to your overall purchase. I called the phone number on the manual to get them to supply these items and they said "no dice". The welder is made in Italy according to the owners manual so the long term quality jury is still out on that. I had it welding fairly quickly so only time will tell. The cart is cheaply made so don't expect to move it around much or you might be picking your welder up off the ground. I would have felt better paying $400.00 or so for this welder but I paid full price and really wished I had bought a simialr sized Hobart.

OK, different day (several weeks later actually) and I have a little better outlook. Somebody, somewhere read my review (Sears or Forney) and took action. I received a call from Forney and they were very polite and very apologetic that I wasn't happy with my purchase. To the best of their ability they tried to make it right and I think that is what I was really hoping for, that somebody cared about their product. I am using the welder now and it really does a good job (of course I don't make a living welding so I think it's doing a good job). I am happy not so much with the purchase, even though that is growing on me day by day, but with the reaction that an unhappy customer had on Sears/Forney. Thats what I remember about the way things used to be!!!!

This unit came as advertised - with the exception of the "facemask" that is pictured. It is not a mask at all, but a shield that you are supposed to hold with one hand while welding with the other... Everything else came as described. I did have an issue with putting the cart together though, because the engineering of it was not that great. I managed to change around the bold configuration so that the front swivel wheels could make a 360 degree turn as they should. Now it works with no issues and is very sturdy.

This unit came as advertised - with the exception of the "facemask" that is pictured. It is not a mask at all, but a shield that you are supposed to hold with one hand while welding with the other... Everything else came as described. I did have an issue with putting the cart together though, because the engineering of it was not that great. I managed to change around the bold configuration so that the front swivel wheels could make a 360 degree turn as they should. Now it works with no issues and is very sturdy.

I ordered this welder and was very excited. When it arrived at my door I opened it and was very shocked to see that I was missing a few key components. The Gas pressure regulator was not even there and the piece of plastic they call a face shield was not even close to the what the picture shows. In the picture it shows a nice auto dimming mask and the gas pressure regulator. To top it all off, these welders are made by Clarke, who by the way just filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This will be the last Craftsman product I buy. I can get a hobart for 50 dollars more and at least it will come ready to weld. What a joke