For the welding thread:
"BUT.. you will need to take the tank down and get the gas changed. It was set up for aluminum wire, which uses a different gas mix than steel. The aluminum wire was too soft and kept jamming in the feeder. "
Sorry Chris, welding might give you a tan but it won't make you a man =)
We do a lot of welding. For aluminum you definitely need a "spool gun" that feeds the filler wire locally rather than attempting to push it all the way from the welder when you push the wire it will just build a birdnest in the welder. We tried and tried to do this on the cheap without the spool gun and the results were both frustrating and ugly... damn ugly. Randi finally broke for the spool gun and even I, who have never ever done an inch of MIG, I can lay down a nice clean MIG bead in aluminum. I do the TIG welding, she does the stick and MIG.
...Chrissi