A) not every poor man has a garage with 220vac (or wants to risk an electrical fire when they try aluminum)
B) not every poor man has nogs around him selling TIGs to support tweaking. The only drugies around me are black people, and they don't weld.
C) not everyone plans on making money with their production workshop
d) not every poor man gives a shit about making beautiful welds. Just working welds. THIS IS RHMT you niggers, did someone forget that? Most if not all birdshit fluxcore compilations outlast the motors they're used on.
E) argon and electricity is not free compared to oxygen & acetylene.
I want to get an AC TIG, but to justify even $1200 for doing an occational charge pipe setup is kinda crazy. It would be cheaper to get a spool gun & a 20cf tank of helium, tack weld with a MIG, and pay someone to TIG the rest. Or just do it in stainless & use a cheap DC TIG or MIG set for stainless. So $500 + renting tanks a few weeks a year isn't too bad. I can say I've saved money with my MIG already, but with a TIG...
The only way I can see a "real" TIG being a cost-effective option for the occational hobbyist is if all they have to do is buy a handtruck & bolt cutters, and know someone with a TIG who's on vacation...