Nathaniel Carter

Aluminum punishes any welder who tries to push its filler wire through a normal MIG gun. The metal’s soft wire buckles between the drive rolls, wraps itself into a bird’s nest, and takes the whole job down with it. A spool gun fixes that by shortening the trip the wire has to travel to a … Read more

The best MIG welding gloves for hobbyists are the Lincoln Electric K2979-ALL in split cowhide, the Black Stallion top grain cowhide glove for feel, and the RAPICCA 16-inch for the longest cuff in the set. All three carry Kevlar stitching, and all three are the gloves we would hand to someone welding in a garage … Read more

A good TIG welder for home use is an inverter power source that runs 110V or 220V, reaches 140 to 225 amps, and puts a controllable arc on thin stainless, mild steel and, if it has AC output, aluminum. For most garages, a 200A AC/DC machine with pulse and a foot pedal is the sweet … Read more

Aluminum punishes a welder that is only half capable. The metal’s oxide layer melts at roughly 3700 degrees Fahrenheit while the base metal gives way around 1200, so a machine that cannot alternate polarity will push that oxide into the puddle instead of clearing it. That single fact is why every entry in this roundup … Read more

A TIG foot pedal is a wired foot control that does two jobs at once: it switches the welding arc on and off, and it acts as a variable-amperage rheostat so you can raise or lower current with foot pressure while both hands stay on the torch and filler rod. Pick the wrong one and … Read more

A good TIG glove has one job that no other welding glove can do well: disappear. The arc is intense, the heat is concentrated, and there is no spatter to hide behind, so everything travels through your hand. The filler rod, the torch angle, the bead position, the tiniest hesitation in the puddle. If you … Read more

Most plasma cutter buying guides stop at 3/8 inch and call it a day. That advice is fine for sheet metal and useless the moment you put a 1/2 inch plate on the table, because the machine that cuts 1/4 inch beautifully will leave a slag-filled, half-finished kerf on thicker stock and burn through consumables … Read more

Plasma cutter consumables are the five replaceable torch parts that create and focus the plasma arc: electrode, nozzle, shield cap, swirl ring and retaining cap. They wear out every time you cut, which makes them the highest routine ownership cost on any plasma cutter. After months of running budget kits and premium sets through the … Read more

A plasma cutter does not cut metal with electricity alone. The arc does the melting, but compressed air does the separating, and that air has to arrive at the torch at a steady 60 to 100 PSI and at least 4 CFM or the cut quality falls apart. Get this wrong and you will watch … Read more

A grinder earns its bench space in a home shop faster than almost any other handheld tool. One machine cuts rebar, trims a weld bead flush, strips paint off a steel table saw, squares the ends of hardwood legs, and scores a paver when the cold joint will not budge. If you have a garage … Read more