A low quality welding machine is difficult to work with and, in my experience, leads to a lot of unnecessary re-work. Every shop owner wants to buy the best and newest machines, but this is often way out of the equipment budget. So they settle for cheap machines built offshore or used welders bought at auction.

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There is another option.

Instead of buying new or renting the machines, you can buy one on the used welder market that is several years old, but you must be smart about it. There are advantages and pitfalls to purchasing used welding machines, and in this guide, I will give you the knowledge you’ll need to make an informed purchasing decision.

Once you’ve read through this guide, check out Red-D-Arc’s used equipment sales page to see all their used welders for sale.

Before You Buy a Used Welder

“Ultimately, the only way to ensure you’re getting a quality machine is to rely on established retailers who have a track record of supplying reliable, well-maintained welding equipment.”

You can’t just run out and buy any used welding machine. You must go into the search with a plan and understand exactly what you need. Take the time to think about what welding processes you’ll be using and the features that you need a machine to have.

Also, consider the skill, experience, and training of your welders and fabricators. It doesn’t make sense to spend extra money on a high-end welder with the most advanced features if your employees are not able to use them. I’ve worked in several shops where top-of-the-line machines were used to tack weld simple parts together. These machines had all the best features, but they never got used.

Another consideration is the welding processes that you will be using. Many shops have welding machines for processes that are either rarely used or not used at all. I worked at a welding shop that had several machines collecting dust because they were SMAW or GTAW machines, and that shop never used those processes. These machines were very expensive and bought brand new but no doubt suffered internal damage from the metal dust that was collecting on the circuit boards.

Also, consider where these machines are used. If you have a mobile welding business, you’ll want welder generators or welding machines that use common voltages such as 110 or 220 volts.

Red-D-Arc has a selection of used welder generators for sale.

In a shop environment, you want to think about what your staff will be working on. If you build large fabrications, the welders that you buy must be able to move around the structure, whereas if your products are small and built on a fab table, you can get used welders which are fixed in place.

You can even get small suitcase-sized welders like the Lincoln LN25 PRO Wirefeeder Suitcase at Red-D-Arc

Advantages of Buying Used Welders

Buying a used welder is always cheaper than buying the same welder new and this is the main advantage of used welding machines. Since these machines are several years old, their cost has depreciated over time. As long as a machine is well maintained and cared for, you can get a top of the line welder at a fraction of the cost of a new one.

I have used welding machines that were older than I am and they worked flawlessly because they were maintained and cared for.

Do you really need all of that?

Modern welding machines have a lot of advanced features, but most of these features were introduced several years ago so there will be many machines on the used market that have the premium features you want. Even though Red-D-Arc stocks many new machines with cutting edge welding technology, most shops can get away with buying used welding equipment that is several years old but has been expertly maintained.

While many shops go to the local auction to buy used welders, there is a significant advantage to buy through a company like Red-D-Arc. They have access to a large inventory of welding machines and have the staff to maintain, inspect, and certify that the welder you buy is in top condition.

Even large expensive machines like the Miller AMP Digtial Subarc which is used for SAW, can be found at Red-D-Arc at a significant capital savings.

Considerations When Buying Used Welders

Used welders can be a great option when you are setting up a brand new shop and trying to cut costs or make your hard-earned dollars go further, but they have some pitfalls you must look out for.

Buying from auctions

Many welders have encountered welding machines in their careers that seemed great on the outside, but once they started welding, problems surfaced. Inconsistent arcs, erratic wire feed, power drops or surges, and inadequate gas flow can all lead to extreme frustration.

One of the main pitfalls of buying used welding equipment from auctions is that while it may look great in the pictures, it may not function as hoped. The equipment might appear to be in excellent condition visually, but its performance can be significantly different once put to use.

This discrepancy between appearance and functionality can result in costly setbacks and delays in projects. It’s crucial for welders and fabricators to be aware of this risk when considering purchasing used equipment, especially from auctions where thorough testing before purchase may not be possible.

You also never truly know how well-maintained a machine is. Even though it may work perfectly when you buy it, there may be issues lurking just under the surface that can lead to costly repairs.

The only way to know for sure that a used welder is still good is to lay down some beads.

Parts nightmare

Potential parts availability issues is something we wouldn’t want to overlook prior to spending thousands on used equipment. This is particularly problematic with cheaper Chinese brands, which often use proprietary components that can be difficult to source. Wire reels, coolant pumps, torches, switches, displays, and so many other parts for these machines may become a nightmare if replacements are needed down the line.

In contrast, reputable sellers often provide comprehensive repair services and can supply parts as needed. This accessibility to replacement components and expert maintenance can significantly extend the lifespan of your equipment and minimize downtime.

Opting for well-known brands from established retailers not only ensures better performance and reliability but also guarantees easier access to parts and servicing. While this approach may require a higher initial investment, it offers long-term benefits in terms of equipment longevity, consistent performance, and reduced frustration from parts-related issues.

Looks can be deceiving

When purchasing used welding equipment, it’s important to consider more than just appearances. While a machine may look pristine in photos or at first glance, its true performance can only be determined through many instances of actual use. This is particularly true for equipment bought from auctions or sites like Craigslist, where testing is often not possible or very brief.

To mitigate these risks, buyers should consider purchasing from reputable sellers who thoroughly test and refurbish their equipment. These sellers often provide warranties and stand behind their products, offering buyers peace of mind. By choosing a trusted retailer, welders and fabricators can significantly reduce the chances of encountering unexpected issues that could lead to project delays and additional costs.

Ultimately, the only way to ensure you’re getting a quality machine is to rely on established retailers who have a track record of supplying reliable, well-maintained welding equipment. This approach may cost more upfront but can save considerable time, money, and frustration in the long run.

Final Thoughts

Over the years, many welders have opted to purchase used equipment, often with mixed results. Some sources have been proven to be particularly unpredictable, with some machines performing well while others fall short of expectations. In contrast, welders purchased through reputable retailers like Red-D-Arc have consistently demonstrated superior quality and reliability.

How To Purchase High-Quality Welding Automation Machinery At Affordable Prices?

Finding the right welding automation supplier for your business’s welding operations is a very hard task. There are a ton of suppliers that offer similar equipment, but fail to deliver the right product for your business’s specific needs.

There are also a lot of pricing and quality issues that you may encounter while dealing with unreliable suppliers.

If you are looking for new suppliers, or change your old suppliers for better and high-quality welding automation machinery, you have come to the right place.

In this article, we’ll be explaining to you the reasons behind some problems you may have encountered when finding the right supplier and purchasing welding automation machines in China and how you can overcome these problems.

We’ll be explaining to you some online and offline channels through which you can connect with new suppliers and how you can verify it those suppliers can be trusted to provide you the best quality product.

Ways To Search For Welding Automation Suppliers

There are several ways you can find and connect with the welding automation supplier of your choice. These include both online and face-to-face methods. We have listed down a few of these methods, what benefits do they offer you, and what are the cons that you might encounter while exploring your welding automation suppliers through these platforms.

1. Google Search

The most common and easiest method of searching welding automation suppliers is the Google search engine. Search the products you want on Google directly, or search the factory which provides welding automation, for example, welding rotator manufacturer or welding positioner manufacturer.

You can then select the suitable one as one of your suppliers. One issue that you might face while using Google to search your supplier is the presence of too many suppliers. As excess of everything is bad, so does the presence of so many suppliers in the market.

All of these suppliers claim to have the best equipment, however, that’s rarely the case.

2. B2B Platform

Another way of finding Welding automation suppliers online is through platforms such as Alibaba or Made in China. You just need to search the products directly instead of the supplier’s name, All factories or suppliers register on these platforms. Therefore, you only need to enter the weld automation machinery name, and you’ll find both the product as well as the supplier.

In this method, an issue that you may encounter is that instead of finding an official supplier, you may end up with a third-party dealer. Dealers not only charge extra for the machinery but are also less reliable.

3. Welding Machinery Exhibition

Various exhibitions are held worldwide every year where you can meet new suppliers and find out what they have to offer. These exhibitions are similar to the auto-shows. Lots of new welding automation machinery is put on display for you to find out the right one for your business application.

Through face-to-face communication, you can get contact information, and finally, connect with the right suppliers for your business. For example, Germany Essen Exhibition. Easy to find a good weld automation supplier.

4. Follow Up Through Emails Or Calls

In this method, you’ll not be looking for the suppliers, but they’ll be looking for you instead. This usually happens through emails and calls. Emails are one of the most important marketing tools in the modern world. Many businesses send emails and calls to turn their prospects into customers.

Usually, you may not reply to these emails or mark them as spam messages. But there is a high chance that you might become interested because of the subject or the content of the . Not all emails are spam messages and thus you can find a really good supplier by follow up through emails and numbers.

5. SNS

As we discussed marketing emails in the last point, we’ll be discussing other forms of marketing ads and posters you’ll encounter online. Almost all popular platforms use AI to understand their customers’ preferences and show them the ads accordingly. If you’ll be searching for welding automation machines on these platforms, you’ll encounter a lot of advertisements from many suppliers.

The company is the world’s best welding manipulators for sale supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

Some of these popular social media platforms include Facebook, Linkedin, and Youtube. Therefore through the supplier’s marketing and promotional content, and a period of communication and transactions, you can find the ultimate supplier of your business.

6. Recommendations

Lastly, you can find your welding automation suppliers through word of mouth. You can find recommendations from your friends as well as other customers to figure out the right product and supplier for yourself. Customer reviews truly matter a lot.

They give you an insight into the user experience you’ll be getting after your purchase, as the reviewer has already gone through the same procedure you are going through. Thus, if they made a mistake, they’ll warn you and if they bought a great product, they’ll urge you to take action.

The problem with this method is that it can be incredibly slow. You can’t wait for other people to show up at your doorstep and give you recommendations. Instead, you’ll have to find out these customers.

The above-mentioned list is not a full and final conclusion. There are several other ways to obtain supplier channels, of course. You must keep in mind that there are a lot of suppliers out there that will equally be eager to find you as you are eager to find them.

Therefore, the struggle to create a connection between the buyers and suppliers should be a collective effort. While you search for your supplier, they can also look out for you through their marketing efforts.

Classification Of Weld Automation Machine Suppliers

Welding automation suppliers are divided into two broad categories. Either the manufacturers supply the machinery themselves or traders supply the machinery, acting as agents by earning an extra commission on the sale of the machinery.

Trading Company:

Chinese trading companies are mainly concentrated in coastal areas, which are developed cities near ports and convenient transportation. For example, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Ningbo, etc.

Manufacturer:

welding automation factories are mainly concentrated in Wuxi city. There are also many factories in other regions, but overall, the weld automation machine factory in Wuxi city has a long history, high quality, and advanced technology.

Disadvantages Of Dealing With Traders

Most businesses and markets have traders that act as a bridge between customers and manufacturers. Some businesses create these traders to improve the market, while in other markets, traders do the opposite. When it comes to the welding automation market, traders exploit both the customers as well as the manufacturers.

Most customers can not identify the difference between traders and manufacturers. They do want to connect with the manufacturer directly, but due to lack of information, they get connected with the trading companies. These companies charge high prices to the customers and low prices to the manufacturers to maximize their profits.

This difference in prices is a burden that is then shared by both the customer and the manufacturer. The manufacturer deals with this issue by reducing the costs attached to the product to maintain its profit.

Thus, it is only the customer that ultimately bears the extra cost of the trading company’s commission. Following are a few of the basic methods with which the manufacturers reduce the prices of the welding automation machinery.

1. Reduce The Use Of Raw Materials

One of the easiest methods of reducing the costs of the welding machines is to reduce the quantity of the raw materials which ultimately reduces the quality of the machinery. The thickness and weight of the machine will be dropped due to this practice. This is one of the major setbacks of dealing with a trading company that you’ll not be getting a product of the highest quality.

2. Number Of Workers In The Production Process

The built quality of a product is also affected by the number of workers involved in the manufacturing of the machinery. For example, in the processing of a welding rotator part, if one person completes the work in half a day, the quality will only reach 60%.

If two workers are engaged in the same process for half a day, the quality will reach 100%. While the part with the dropped quality will still be eligible for the work, but it will never be as durable as the one with a high-quality part.

The effectiveness might not be affected but the usefulness of the equipment will definitely be reduced. The machinery will depreciate and wear off more quickly than a piece of fully fit equipment.

Customers won’t notice the difference right away as it will only appear after a specific period of time. Therefore, The manufacturers can reduce the quality by employing half the number of the required employees to the job.

3. Outer Machining Parts

The manufacturers don’t manufacture and process all the parts themselves and thus, rely on some sort of outsourcing. They send some parts to the machining center for processing, which also increases the cost of the machinery.

If traders do not lower the price and profit of the manufacturer at the time of placing the order, the factory can give more money to the processing center to process this part. The processing company also has to deal with reduced costs and thus they also reduce the quality of the processing operations. This reduces the overall quality of the product which is ultimately the burden of the customer.

4. Surface Treatment

Another method of reducing costs associated with welding automation machinery is to reduce the paint quality. Because the profit margin of the factory is very small, the quality of the surface treatment is reduced by a great margin. There are also many particulars about spray paint treatment that can be altered to reduce the costs.

These particulars include the skill level of the worker, the thickness of the paint, the treatment of details, and other surface treatment methods. This issue can also be solved if the manufacturer is presented with a number of profits to manufacture welding automation machinery. Enough profits will ensure a high-quality surface treatment of the involved equipment.

5. Electrical Components

All welding automation machines are composed of various electrical components. These components are either manufactured by the manufacturing company themselves or bought from international brands. These components are the main factors behind the performance, efficiency, and effectiveness of welding machinery.

Just like all the above-mentioned factors, these key components are also subject to the cost reduction process and hence their quality is also affected due to the low-profit margins offered to the manufacturer. Both the design and build-quality of these products are compromised and hence the machine itself loses its integrity as compared to a fully optimized product.​

After discussing all the above-mentioned factors, we can conclude that dealing with a trader is not a good and viable option for a customer. They charge undue commissions and put the burden on customers and manufacturers.

While manufacturers cannot afford to reduce the profits because of a lot of factors at stake, they ultimately reduce the costs of manufacturing and processing the machinery. Thus, the ultimate burden falls on the shoulders of the customers.

Customers can simply avoid this problem by dealing directly with the suppliers rather than involving the traders. They can directly get a price quote from the manufacturers and thus provide manufacturers enough resources to build welding automation machines of the highest quality without dropping the costs.

​How To Distinguish Between Trading Companies And Manufacturers

A major difference between trading and manufacturing companies is access to a manufacturing plant. Manufacturing companies can let you visit their manufacturing plants and can provide you enough evidence to ensure that they have the access to such a facility. A trader can’t do such a thing.

Therefore, if you come across a supplier and you don’t know whether it’s the trading company or the manufacturing company, you can ask for the video proof of the manufacturing plant. If you can get access to a plant or any similar proof that can ensure its existence and access to the manufacturer, you’ll most probably be dealing with a manufacturer.

SENLISWELD provides its customers with proof of its manufacturing plant to build trust. We treat both the new and old customers with a high level of commitment and dedication.

We can give you a better answer because we are the earliest team in Wuxi who started welding automation machinery design and manufacture. We are also familiar with all other companies in the region. If you are looking to enquire about a supplier, we can guide you by providing you with the most accurate information about the traders and manufacturers in Wuxi.

Why Do Most Chinese Manufacturers Don’t Supply Welding Automation Machinery?

Welding automation manufacturers in China have not invested much capital to improve communication channels with international customers. Many manufacturers actually have no foreign trade department. Not many people in these organizations can speak English either.

The true potential of the internet hasn’t been fully utilized by these organizations. The Internet provides a gateway to promote your brand and your products to an international community. There are more online marketing channels than ever before. Through these channels, these manufactures can get access to a wider pool of customers. So far in China, this hasn’t been the case.

Another problem with these manufacturers is that the factories are located in the countryside or industrial parks. While traders are located in more accessible positions than manufacturers, the customers have a higher chance of connecting with the traders than the manufacturers.

Many young people are more willing to go to work in the city center, rather than working in the less prosperous countryside. Therefore, many buyers are quite confused and not clear whether these suppliers are manufacturers or trading companies.

Conclusion

This article has been written to guide you about the buying process of welding automation machines. It highlights how you can find a supplier, and how you can distinguish between a supplier and a trader.

As a rational decision-maker, it is vital for you as a customer to fully understand the welding market, before spending your money. This easy you can buy the right and high-quality machines for your business and save yourself from future worries regarding the usefulness and wear and tear of your welding machinery.

You have to make sure of two things to ultimately get the best product at a reasonable price. One, you have to verify that you are dealing directly with the manufacturer and secondly you are paying the right price and profits to them so that they don’t have to cut down the costs and produce you the machinery of the optimum quality.

Things are now changing gradually in The Chinese manufacturing industry. More and more manufacturers are interested in connecting with their customers themselves so that they don’t have to find them on the internet. One such example of these efforts is the incremental online presence.

SENLISWELD is a leading Chinese manufacturing company that is changing the traditional methods of connecting with its customers.

We have created a new website to connect with both local and international customers to reduce the involvement of the middlemen, which are the trading companies. This website is an effort to reduce the information gap between us and our customers.

This website is also the stepping stone to the branding and promotion of business through various online marketing programs. We are the final manufacturers of welding automation machines including welding rotators, welding positioners, and welding manipulators. You can contact us directly through our website to inquire about the right machinery for your business.

We have realized the urgency of this matter. Many international brands are more quality conscious about the welding machines and want optimum value for their money. These are mostly European and American buyers who don’t want the involvement of traders to hijack their deal with the manufacturers.

SENLISWELD is one step ahead of its competition and looking to seize this opportunity through its website. Thus, these international customers can not only get the best products at a very reasonable price but also top-quality customer services from us.

This effort has been greatly appreciated so far and we have succeeded in earning the trust of many international buyers. Many customers who are the representatives of some international brands communicate directly with us. We have a lot of confidence and strength to complete every order.

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