welder

[Ben]

Regarding consumables..................

Tip dip makes a huge difference and makes the tips and nozzles last a hell of a lot longer!

you shouldny really go above 180a on a 13a 240v supply really. 210a is a bit ott for home use. i have welded 10mm steel with a 180a no worries like ben said just grind the edges.

have you tied ali yet Ben? thats really funny you will think you have not touched a welder before when you first have a go!!

I've done a tiny bit of ali and also stainless but I'm concentration on the steel pipe at the moment as thats what the big exam is on.

Seems kind of weird that in most industries TIG is used on alluminium and stainless yet to be a qualified TIG welder the test is on steel! So in affect you could be a fully qualified TIG welder and have never touched alluminium!

That said a lot of the steel pipe lines in factories, oil refineries and mines are done with TIG so its good practice for me.

 

[warrenpfo]

quick thought on this. i cant quite tell if its 3 phase or not but it looks like it could be a a thermal arc fabricatoer 250.

i have asked for some more info

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=271525830344

 

[Chris]

Looks like a lot for not much. 2nd hand? Distressed sale? No details? I think you can get more for your money.

 

[warrenpfo]

Thanks Chris

If i am honest i have my heart set on a kemppi 200 evo which is more welder than i will ever need but it will do all i want and more and should last me a life time.

Its just bloody expensive.

 

[Chris]

http://www.weldequip.com/portamig-mig-welders.htm

 

[stumog]

I thimk the eblag welder is 110v if you look at the plug on the bottle?
I use a kempi if I do some work for a friend and will say its the best welder I have used. All you do is poke in the thicknesses of metal and it works everthing out. Perfect welds everytime. He has the 180a which is more then enough.Stu

 

[Ben]

One of the most important things to consider when buying a MIG is the duty cycle.

For example the Portamig 185 on the link that Chris posted has a duty cycle of 30% @ 130amps.

Meaning that machine will only weld at 130amps for 3 minutes then the thermal cut out will kick in and you have to let it cool down for a while.

So you might think your buying a really great, powerful welder but if it can only weld at X amount of amps for a minute or 2 then its not so great!

The welder I bought for the building company I used to work for in the UK was a reasonable sized machine, cost about £600, but the thermal cut out was forever cutting in so obviously the duty cycle on that machine wasnt great!

 

[warrenpfo]

Thanks Ben

I take it Duty cycle is calculated as a percentage of 10min then. I will keep this in mind.

 

[Chris]

True Ben, but not everyone is a welding demon like you. A three minute bead is quite a bead. Inch beads with a pause would extend that considerably. Duty cycle is important and I don't think mine has ever cut out. Not sure what it's rated at. I shall see if I can find the specs.

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

One of the excuses to get a higher amperage machine is it should have a better duty cycle at the power levels you are likely to use

 

[Ben]

Yeah percentage of 10mins.

 

[warrenpfo]

This looks promising if I can get it for £500...just need to sort out collection

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/mig-mma-w...356?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item1c42302f34

[h=2]MIG Welder R-Tech Pro-MIG250-1[/h][h=2]The Pro-MIG250-1 MIG Welder is a 250 Amp Portable Inverter MIG Welder with a 240v single phase input, MMA (Stick) Facility, durable metal feed assy and takes 5KG and 15KG reels. Ideal for Automotive, Fabrication & Industrial use.[/h]

• 250 Amp Output MIG
• Ideal for Automotive work with minimum current of 30Amps
• 32A 240v input required for welding at 250amps , 160 amp MIG output at 13A input
• LED display shows actual welding amperage
• Generator Friendly - Generator must be minimum of 7KVA and fitted with AVR (auto voltage regulation)
• MIG Welding range 30-250 amps
• High duty cycle - 35% @ 250 amps
• High duty cycle - 60% @ 200 amps
• High duty cycle - 100% @ 160 amps
• Output in MMA mode: 200Amps
• Infinite control of welding voltage/amperage
• Industrial robust metal chassis
• Cooling fan with thermostatic protection
• Takes 5KG & 15KG reels sizes
• Takes 0.6mm, 0.8mm and 1.0mm wire sizes
• Fitted with 0.8/1.0mm rollers
• Allows easy polarity change - Enables use of gasless wire
• Clearly marked controls for quick adjustment of weld parameters
• Nett weight 17KG
• Size 280mm wide x 350mm high x 510mm long
• Package Includes, R-Tech ProMIG 250-1 MIG Welder, 3M MB25 Air Cooled MIG Torch, Earth Lead, Gas Hose, Mains Cable, Gas Regulator, Owners Manual

 

[Ben]

I did a few days welding for the company I used to work for back in the UK, using the machine that I chose for them a few years ago.

Now that I'm used to using a big 3 phase MIG at work it was a real struggle using this one, it seemed so gutless and under powered. In hindsight I should have got a bigger one as this is fine for anything under 3mm, but above 3mm it struggles.



I was welding 3mm sheet and on this setting I couldnt do a fillet weld more than 500mm long without the thermal cut out kicking in.



But I found that by positioning a fan in front of the machine I could beat the thermal cut out and duty cycle and weld all day long without it cutting out once!