Who writes the guidesMeet our editors
Three of us write and edit every guide and ranking on Multiprocess Welders. The work is reading: spec sheets, operator manuals, duty-cycle tables, parts lists, warranty terms and a great many owner reviews, especially the ones written after a few months of real projects. Then we line the machines up side by side, and we reopen a ranking whenever a price moves or a model drops out. Every guide names the person who wrote it and the person who edited it.
Senior editor
Carla is the senior editor of Multiprocess Welders. She decides which machines make each ranking, reads the packing list line by line (a 3-in-1 with no TIG torch in the box is a 2-in-1 until you buy one) and goes through the one-star reviews before the five-star ones. Her first question back to any reader: what are you actually going to weld?
- MIG, TIG or stick for the joints you weld
- Multiprocess vs dedicated machines
- A first welder for beginners
- What really ships in the box
- Keeping the rankings current
Power & duty-cycle writer
Terrence writes the power guides: duty cycle, input voltage, amperage and the plasma combos. He reads the spec table in the manual instead of the big number on the box, and he's the one who checks whether a 200-amp claim holds on 120V or only on 240V. His standing complaint is a duty cycle quoted without the amperage it applies to.
- Duty cycle at its rated amperage
- 120V vs 240V input and breakers
- Amperage vs plate thickness claims
- Welder and plasma cutter combos
- Plugs and extension cords
Consumables & safety editor
Elise writes the consumables and safety guides. She matches contact tips, liners and nozzles by part number instead of by photo, checks the spool-gun line first on any listing that mentions aluminum, and reads warranty terms down to the exclusions. If a guide says something about your eyes, your lungs or an open arc, she's the one who checked the wording.
- Contact tips, liners, nozzles and part numbers
- Spool guns and aluminum wire
- Flux-core vs gas-shielded MIG
- Helmets, gloves, fumes and PPE basics
- Warranty terms and exclusions