[davepl]

Save up for MIG. You'll hate welding if you start out with flux core, unless you're working on a pipeline or something.

I wound up with a Lincoln. All the major brands are fine (my TIG is a Miller). While I went 220V to allow for frame welding, 110V is plenty for sheet metal of course.

Some of the newer ones (at least on the Miller) come with a 220V end and a 110V adapter so you can use it anywhere. That'd be the best.

Whatever you do, it's a learned skill. I didn't want to take a year's course at the community college, so I watched a lot of videos, read a lot of books, and practiced forever. I should have found a mentor, but I'm shy.

Scour cragislist and pawn shops. It'd be nice to be able to test it, but I think treadmills and guitars and welders are some of the first things to get pawned or sold...