I "lucked into"a Lincoln 250 AC/DC welding machine, with a 12 HP. Onan engine, and before the electric start feature 12 volt battery was offered, they had a spring loaded hand lever you "cocked" and then released by a ratchet device- twin cylinders, and like a Kohler, a cast iron block, like a Continental Red Seal on a Lincoln SA-200 portable welder, they'll run forever, or darn near that.
I sold a few older shotguns and bought a near mint restored JD 520- with a Woods Bush Hog-- I love the sound of those older JD opposed twin-- rpm maxed at about 1250, but torque until Hell won't have it-- I am installing a front blade, with hydraulic lift, in case we get another heavy snowfall Winter--
I usually run Lincoln stick rods- Not a big fan of MIG for "out-of-position welding, especially uphill, as with 7018-- But for 90% of the "on the farm job" 6011 for rust, mud and/or cow poop that you cannot always remove prior to welding, and 6013 for cleaner steels- 7018 for alloy steels, and Lincoln 7016-ELC for stainless and alloyed steels- Don't waste your $ on those "miracle rods" like Eutetic used to sell-- I have welded 300 series stainless "all day long" with that rod, usually in 3/32", to maintain a lower heat input--
When you get into TIG welding full time, you'll want to use Tempilsticks to monitor pre and inter-pass temperatures of the parent metal, and use asbestos bags to wrap for post-weld temperature drop- avoiding thermal shock which can result in cracking- Also copper chill plates, and one other "tip"-- 90% of the TIG work I do in our shop is on a bench-- Make sure you wear a blue cotton shirt tightly buttoned up at the neck, plus whatever coat, jacket or even apron you prefer- Those intense arc rays can burn your neck area like a Maine Lobster at a clam bake.
I have an old hunting pal from MI that moved to "Jawja" 5-6 years ago, he lives in Canton, GA. He wants us to stop over on our next trip down to Florida, to visit my wife's older sister, who lives with her husband in Venice. We drive down I-75, love the Atlanta area traffic-- Her husband is an avid golfer, so knows the Augusta area from following the Masters Tournament each April.
If you would like, I can let you know if we are going down in the Spring of 2019, and perhaps we can stop by and say "Howdy"-- I think about Michigan's mess-up about getting a legal dove season, then I read your posts and see the pictures of your dove hunts, and wish we had such a season on the "coo-coo-mourners", as the late T. Nash Buckingham once named them.
In my George B. Evans book- "The Best of Nash Buckingham" my favorite chapter is his on "The Dove", and I believe his last hunting trip was for doves, at nearing age 90.
Happy Holidays-to you and all yours too!! RWTF
