Lotos CT520D 50 AMP Air Plasma Cutter, 200 AMP Tig and Stick/MMA/ARC Welder 3 in 1 Combo Welding Machine, ½ Inch Clean Cut, Brown

Certified welder mig/tig and stick. My honest opinion straight out of the box I was hesitant for how light the whole machine was. No instructions were necessary for installation of hoses, adapters torches etc..for everything is fairly cut and dry. So here are my unbiased opinion(s);Cons: I didn’t care much for the 30 amp twist connect prong plug at the end of the whip. I removed this and added a 50 amp 3 pole connector. (Lincoln plug) no big deal just didn’t fit my shop outlets. Second, I didn’t care for the 1/4” hose barb adapter on the rear for your comp air and argon connection. I removed this and added a 1-4 male npt threaded adapter and also installed two ball valves on a tee for faster air to argon change over. Then I put quick connect air chuks coming out of the ball balves. Attached an air chuck to the provided hose for the argon(which I cut down and use my 500psi fire rated air hose mainly for the plasma cutter). No big deals really just suites my faster paced commercial worksite in the shop. Not being negative towards these things but wasn’t my preference so no loss of starts there. Thirdly, the argon gauge worked perfectly but is a bit soft and on the cheaper side l. I get this due to the amazing low price of this machin so no biggie. I used my own gauge and regulator. Again, nothing wrong w product just not my preference. Lastly, I don’t like how you have to run the argon gas thru the machine and use the setup provided. I have my own tig rig that I clamp my stinger to and run argon directly from bottle to torch. No big deal after a bit of brainstorming I came up with a fix to use my rig. No big deal the factory tig set worked great I just like my stuff better. So No negatives really just a preference type opinion.Pros: First, ( I only run 220 on all my machines. Won’t use the 110 adapter unless I truly have to-not provided)I fired up the arc welder and burned 3- 7018 3/32 rods. They went smooth and good bead. The machine was quit and didn’t sound like a Harley but more like a Vespa scooter. None the less it burned fine. Then I fired up the TIG setup, and keep in mind I used all the factory components first, the button on the torch is a bit different but the high frequency start worked 100%. Very nice. The amp gauge was a bit tricky. Either too hot or not enough, will need to play a it more. Otherwise the tig worked perfect as did the arc welding. The plasma cutter cane next and I layed out a piece of 3/16 diamond plate 4 ‘ long by 2’wide. I cut thru the 2’ side in about 25 seconds. A bit of slag on bottom and had to hit a few places twice but if you go slow, like you’re supposed to, it left a nice clean top surface and cut thru it like warm butter. I sliced thru the 4’ side in about 45-55 seconds. Never phased the tip or cullet whatsoever. You need plenty of good air pressure but unit and component work flawlessly. Overall I am 100% percent satisfied with this machine. Not one single problem or glitch to contend with and for that I’m giving it a 5 Star. Would buy again and would recommend. Hope this helps and good luck

I weld a lot at work, I am an ironworker. I bought this machine for home use on projects. The SMAW (stick) function works ok. I am used to the hot start function on most welders so this one kind of pisses me off on out of position welds especially with 3/32 rods they tend to stick very easily. Otherwise the arc is smooth and I can lay a very nice bead . I normally use 7018 and 7024. Plasma cutter works well. The description on this page says it has a pilot ark but does NOT. If you turn up the air pressure and make sure the electrode and tip are straight when you put it together the consumables last quite a while. I can get about 200 inches of cut on 1/4 inch plate. I just tried the TIG today. I was impressed. It welded better than the 3000 dollar machine I learned on at the union training center. Used it on stainless and also on mild steel. Doesn't have a.c., pulse, or modified wave functions but very smooth arc and you don't have to scratch to start it. Just hit the pedal and arc starts from 1/4 inch away. Makes tungsten last a lot longer.

I think the value for a plasma cutter tig combo is very good, however, since tig is my primary interest, I should have gone for AHP instead, which has more functionality on the tig front, including AC.Observations:0. Ground Cable is very very short which is a huge pain. I'll need to replace that.1. Doesn't come with the Pedal, that will cost you another $1002. Doesn't come with 120 plug (pigtail). From vendor, that is another $353. Tig torch is decent (WP17), but hose is not flexible (pretty lousy). The torch connector is the same as for the Eastwood and older AHP, so you can get an upgraded CK flex cable. The connector coming from the welder is a "M16" threaded adapter. The folks that sell HTP have a CK hose/torch combo you can upgrade with.4. Plasma cutter works decent. It doesn't have pilot arc, so you might have to touch off to get it to work. The lotos combo machine that does have pilot arc is LTPDC2000D. I blew through the first set of consumables pretty quick, so you should buy extras if you plan to use this very much at all. The better torches get more mileage out of their consumables, but those are relatively cheap for this cutter.5. Although this welder doesn't have all the features of the better tig machines, the arc seems stable and consistent. The high frequency start is "freaking awesome". If you are doing DC only, for the price, the performance of this machine is good.6. If you are looking to weld Aluminum, you need AC, and this machine does not do that. Look at AHP or other dedicated machines.7. Finish: Machine looks very good and feels solid. It is the prettiest machine in my shop.8. The quality of the additional stuff, like the argon regulator/flow meter, and compressor regulator (for plasma) seems cheap. The first regulator didn't work at all, and I've had minor issues with the second. These components should probably be upgraded.

I have been using this welder for two months now and I love it. Great machine for the money. The plasma cutter leaves a little slag on the bottom so I'm trying a different torch gun on it. I'll update when I try it. The directions seemed fine too, don't know what others were referencing.So even with a different type of gun, still a low end plasma cutter one, it leaves some slag. I switched it back to the original one because I like it better.Had this for five months now and it works great! I use this machine at least twice a week. My other machine is a millermatic 211 mig, and I have an oxy/acetylene torch, which primarily just gets used for heating now.Great bang for the buck!

I do a lot of metal fab and trailer repairs and building. this machine has performed way beyond my expectations. I'm very impressed

La máquina no funcionó. No daba chispa estaba muerta.tuve que devolverla y solicitar reembolso. Es una marca muy mala. Nada recomendada