I bought my Lincoln SP250 mig from a friend that passed for 800 including the bottle and regulator. I traded some labor and a very expensive air tool for my Lincoln Precision tig 225 that had 5 hours of run time on it.
I have been acquiring torch items for years, I am partial to the Oxy welding J28 and J40 aircraft series victor setup, but most would probably be better off with a 100 series. I have a nice 550 series Esab plasma, I got it on a local advertisement used, its a nice machine but the consumables are ridiculously expensive. I also have a Hobart TR250 stick machine with a Tig attachment, this is old school scratch start tig without a hand or thumb control. I used it like a torch to weld, start, weld, when it gets too hot, pull the handle away, start over when it gets cool enough.

Take the class and then start looking for a name brand machine. Transformer machines are robust but larger compared to the newer electronic machines. I