Miller matic 200 VS Miller Vintage

[tedster]

some say these 2 welders have the same insides is that true,just curious to know i am trying to pick a vintage up

[JSFAB]

Look at the top of this page under resources, you can find owner's manuals for both machines. Download them, then compare wiring diagrams and parts lists.

[tedster]

it won't let me dowload the pdf on to my mac book

[cope]

it won't let me dowload the pdf on to my mac book

Can you open it online? They may be similar, but the Vintage has a High/Low switch, so they are not the same.

[Portable Welder]

Heres the scoop, The reason they made the Vintage was back somewhere around 1994 ( And I might be off by a couple years ) They started making mig welders that had alot more electronics in them. So I got rid of my 1988 millermatic 200 and got the new better one. ( And I think they called it a Miller Matic 250 )
Well it was by no means better. So I called my welding supplier and complained and he said ( Oh, You must like old transformer type so he gave me the vintage.

At the same time I went into a plant to do some welding and they had the new 250 and that one also had bad arc characteristics.

So to answer your question : The Vintage is a great machine and my guess is that the MM200 is also, you just dont want to get the 250 around that time.

Last summer I stumbled upon a gently used MM 200 at a garage sale just like my old 1988 model and we are currently using it and its just as good as my Vintage that I still have and my XMT 304.

[tedster]

ok picked up the MM vintage needs a little cleaning and there were no consumables but it welds decent i think its a good deal for $500

[voudoux]

some say these 2 welders have the same insides is that true,just curious to know i am trying to pick a vintage up

I have both of these machines in my shop,they may have similar "insides" but they weld completely different. the Vintage is one of if not the best and easyest welding machine I have ever used(soft easy starting arc)very pleasant to use the only odd thing I have noticed is it is finicky about the ground ,must have a good ground.The 200 ia great machine ,just different.I bought both of these new and they have and still are giving great service.Good luck

[tedster]

I have both of these machines in my shop,they may have similar "insides" but they weld completely different. the Vintage is one of if not the best and easyest welding machine I have ever used(soft easy starting arc)very pleasant to use the only odd thing I have noticed is it is finicky about the ground ,must have a good ground.The 200 ia great machine ,just different.I bought both of these new and they have and still are giving great service.Good luck

i just ordered the HIGH&LOW RANGE switch and dust cover and forgot to order the switch handle i need to install it yet, the ground on this one gets pretty hot at the clamp i am gonna shorten the wire and put a new clamp on it and put a new liner in the whip.
i hope i get a lot of years of use out it

[voudoux]

I have had very good results on the ground clamp with using a set of vise grips on the work piece and putting the ground clamp on the vise grips.I know this sounds odd but I ues the vintage about every day and it makes adifference.Good luck

[tedster]

i got the high/low range switch and dust cover back on i forgot to order the switch knob works but i still need to get a liner and put a new adjustment knob and bolt hold down for wire tensioner then it should be good to go