While tig gets a lot of press it really is way down on my list of got to have tools. I havnt DC tig anything in 30 years or more and its not that I cant or don't have a machine but the modern wire feed has really taken over as the workhorse in a small shop. Its not that it cant be tig welded but I just don't need to.
IMOP a shop needs a stick machine. One of the things that keeps the AC side is that it can actually run larger electrodes but its not really a deal for home or maintenance. I may have used AC once for some exotic alloy issue but I could take the knob off set to DCRP. This is what is used in piping and construction, I am sure ine can find some exception but 13 and 14 are still around soley due to the AC machine and used by part timers, I do know a couple guys that do use them well but they are rather limited and an Ironworker, Pipefitter or Boilermaker could go a whole career without using one.
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