You’ll find that both the Lincoln Handy MIG K2185-1 and the Lincoln 140 are wire feed welders. And you’ll get good, strong welds from both. Welds you can take pride in.
They will both weld with flux core wire. Or you can put in solid MIG wire and weld MIG using shielding gas.
The Handy MIG is Lincoln Electric’s entry level MIG welder. It’s the cheaper, smaller welder with lower welding power.
And the Lincoln 140 its bigger brother allows you to weld a wider range of metals. And metal gauge thicknesses.
And that is reflected in the Lincoln 140’s price.
Head to Head At A Glance Lincoln Handy MIG vs 140
| Handy MIG | Lincoln 140 | |
|---|---|---|
| Duty Cycle | 20% @ 70 Amp | 20% @ 90 Amp |
| Weld Output Range | 35 Amp to 88 Amp | 30 Amp to 140 Amp |
| Steel Weld Width | 24 Gauge to 1/8th | 24 Gauge to 5/16ths |
| Weld Aluminum | No | Yes with Spool Gun |
When you’re looking for a MIG welder. And you want the fantastic track record of the Lincoln Electric brand. Plus your need is for a welder for your home garage or workshop. When would you pick the Handy MIG?
Or move up to the Lincoln Electric140.
And when your budget is tight would the Lincoln Handy MIG get your weld repairs done?
First Thing To Know About The Many Lincoln 140’s
In your Google search you may have come across the Lincoln Weld Pak 140 HD. Or the Lincoln Pro MIG 140. Or the Lincoln MIG Pack 140. Or Easy MIG 140.
And they look so similar.
Well don’t worry. They are the same welder. Lincoln has many distribution partners. And they market and sell the same welder under different brand names.
The advantage to you is that if you decide that Lincoln’s 140 MIG welder is the one for you. You can search through their distribution partners. And find that’s offering a good price on the day you want to buy.
Lincoln 140 vs Handy MIG Duty Cycle
The duty cycle is the first thing for you to look at when you want to know how much welding you can get done. And the relative strength of one welder versus the other.
They both have a duty cycle of 20% which is pretty good for a MIG welder.
Duty is the job of work a welder can do. And it’s measured over 10 minutes. The 20% figures relates to 20% of 10 minutes. And equals 2 minutes out of the 10 minutes.
The two welders differ on duty cycle output Amps.
Your Handy MIG has a duty cycle of 20% @ 70 Amp.
And this means you can weld for 2 minutes at the Handy MIG’s 70 Amp setting.
In contrast your Lincoln 140 has a duty cycle of 20% @ 90 Amp.
You’ll see straightaway that the Lincoln 140 can weld at a higher setting.
So what?
A higher setting means you can weld thicker metal.
And it’s the reason you can weld Aluminum with the Lincoln 140 because Aluminum takes power to weld.
Lincoln 140 YouTube Video
You can watch this 3 minute YouTube video and take a look at what the Lincoln 140 can do.
Lincoln Electric Easy MIG 140 Flux-Core/MIG Welder
Video Credit: Northern Tool
Handy MIG v 140 Welding Output Amp Range
The welding output range tells you how hot your welder can go. And it directly relates to what your welder can weld.
The Lincoln Handy MIG can weld from 35 Amp to 88 Amp. And the Lincoln 140 from 30 Amp to 140 Amp.
Here you’ll see the Lincoln 140 is the more flexible welder. It can start welding at a lower temperature and go higher. Much higher than the Handy MIG.
So what?
When your welding thinner mild steel gauges. You have just that bit more leeway on the Lincoln 140 because you can start at a lower heat.
And that slightly lower heat maybe just what you need to not blow through and ruin your thinner steel.
Thickness Of Steel Welded Lincoln 140 vs Handy MIG
Your Lincoln 140 can weld from 24 Gauge to 5/16ths. And your Handy MIG from 24 gauge to 1/8th mild steel.
Here you can clearly see your Lincoln 140 can weld thicker steel gauges. The extra duty cycle and power allows it to do that. And it’ll be what you want if your weld repairs. Or the projects you have in mind are going to mean you’re welding thicker steel.
If that’s true for you then the Lincoln 140 is the clear winner.
Are your weld jobs and repairs on nothing thicker then 1/8th steel?
Then you can save your dollars and buy a Handy MIG for yourself.
Welding Aluminum?
And here you’ll see a clear difference between the two.
The Lincoln 140 can weld Aluminum using its optional spool gun. The Handy MIG can’t.
If Aluminum welding isn’t on your must do list for your new welder. Then the Handy MIG could be for you.
You can read more about the Handy MIG and Aluminum in this article on the site.
Handy MIG Versus 140 Overall Size
You’ll find the Handy MIG is the smaller welder at 12.8″ high. By 8.8″ wide by 18″ long.
The Lincoln 140 is a little bigger at 13.7″ high by 10.15″ wide by 17.9″ long.
If being able to carry your welder around with you is important then the Handy MIG is just that more compact.
140 v Handy MIG Weight
To go with its smaller size you’ll find the Handy MIG lighter at 46 lbs. Compared to the Lincoln 140’s 50 lbs. weight.
Warranty Handy MIG To Lincoln 140
On your Handy MIG you’ll get 1 Year Parts and Labor warranty from Lincoln Electric.
And to reflect the Lincoln 140’s greater all round welding you’ll get 3 years on your Lincoln 140 MIG welder. 1 year on your gas regulator. And 90 days on your welding gun.
Quick Round Up Of Other Differences
Gas Regulator – In both Lincoln MIG welder boxes you’ll get a regulator for your gas cylinder. With your Handy MIG you’ll find no visible gas gauge on its regulator. And that makes it more difficult to tell when your shielding gas bottle is running out of gas.
On the Lincoln 140 your gas bottle regulator has dual gas gauges. Making it super easy to set your gas and clearly see how your gas is running.
Size of Welding Wire – To reflect it’s a smaller welder. And lighter welding capabilities your Handy MIG takes a maximum 2 lb (4 inch) spool of welding wire.
And the Lincoln 140 can also take 2 lb. spools. Plus you can put in the larger 10 lb. (8 inch) spools. This means you take advantage of the cheaper lower cost per pound of the larger wire spools.
Setting Your Welding Output – A small difference. Your Lincoln Handy MIG has 4 welding output settings.
You can set these by two rocker switches on the front. And how you set them give you your welding output setting.
The Lincoln 140 has 4 tapped dials
You use those to step through your welding output settings.
Grounding Clamp and MIG Hose Cable Lengths – You’ll find 8 foot of cable to your ground clamp and 8 foot of cable to your MIG gun on the Lincoln Handy MIG. On the Lincoln 140 you have 10 foot of cable for each.
And that means you have a much wider reach across your welding area on your Lincoln 140.
Last Words
And there you have it the two red Lincoln home use welders compared.
They’ll both give you great welds. And are MIG welders with solid track records.
When you’re welding is simple and straight forward. And you don’t need to weld thicker metals or Aluminum you’ll find the Handy MIG is for you.
But when you’re welding demands more.
You’ll find the extras on the Lincoln 140 are for you.
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