Hobart 187

cburgin

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2005
Location
statesville/boone NC
I don't have much to spend for a welder so I think I might going with the Hobart 187 (really a 185). I guess it replaced the 180 series. Anyway, does anyone have any input? I don't need anything to elaborate. All I weld is my personal equipment. Its $600. I'm going to make my own stand so the price seems right. csudman and I used the old version Hobart 180 on all our stuff in the past and it did everything we needed. Just wondering about the new design..
 
I'm sure the Hobart is a fine welder. They're Miller's cheaper line, and everything I've heard is they're well-made and work well. However, for another $200, you could have a Miller 180 with Auto-set. http://store.cyberweld.com/millermatic175.html I was skeptical of the Auto-set function at first. Seemed gimmicky. Then I tried it. That shit works! And it doesn't get easier! And while you're blowing your wad, drop $180 on a good Miller auto-dark and skip the Horrible Freight vision blurrer.
 
The Hobart 187 is a good machine for the $$$. It will do all you need, for the most part. If you are a very experienced welder, then it may not be good for you as there is not a lot of tunability with it on the volts. For the hobbiest or home welder, its a great machine for the $$$. If you weld a lot and need the fine tuning of the volts, then I'd upgrade to a Miller or Lincoln, otherwise, the Hobart will do great.
 
rockcity said:
The Hobart 187 is a good machine for the $$$. It will do all you need, for the most part. If you are a very experienced welder, then it may not be good for you as there is not a lot of tunability with it on the volts. For the hobbiest or home welder, its a great machine for the $$$. If you weld a lot and need the fine tuning of the volts, then I'd upgrade to a Miller or Lincoln, otherwise, the Hobart will do great.
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I will be using it to build my YJ. Other than that, it will be used for vehicle and trailer maintenance when things break. Im not a novice welder nor a expert. I am confident in my welding and trust it to hold up to anything but in reality the Hobart could probably weld better than my capabilities!
 
The auto-set feature on the Miller does a great job of taking the guesswork out of setting up the welder. Also, I really liked the arc characteristics of the Millermatic 140 I played with. I can only assume the 180 is better. Also, compare warranties. I'm not sure what either one offers, but I'd assume the Miller carries a better warranty, and their customer service is top-notch.
 
I'm more than satisfied with my HH187. Great machine for the money. While the autoset on the Miller is a nice feature, I've never had to make more than one adjustment on my machine for any given project. After you use the machine for a little while and learn which voltage tap you'll need for the material thickness, it gets really easy really fast. Once you learn the machine, it'll (the sound and puddle) let you know if the wirespeed is off. One adjustment from there if needed and burn some wire.
 
I think james O2 in Boone has the mm175 for within $100 of what you're paying for the hobart. Little less power but still a nice machine.

I can't tell you an exact price, but I know he's got them left over and would probably be willing to deal. I talked to him a couple months ago about it and then just asked him about it 2 weeks ago when I was buying some electrode. He's still got plenty he said so I can only assume he's not moving many of them.

Will's right about tapped welders, I mainly use a tapped linc and you'll just learn to use wirespeed & torch speed to control heat. I've got a continuously adjustable stick machine at work and I almost always go for the lincoln mig if I can. I've heard nothing but good things about those hobarts so if you go with that it won't be a bad move either.
 
We got a "War Wagon" at work. It's a steel skid with a Miller Bobcat generator, HH 187 Mig, torch outfit, ect, ect, that I use almost daily for breakdowns in the plants. I've been very impressed with the HH187 in field conditions. I've really been thinking getting one for home use this spring. Hell one jackass that used to work with us dropped the thing 5ft onto cement a while back! We snapped the door back on it and it ran like a champ! The HH187 is a good, reliable, piece of equipment in my book. :beer:
 
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