how many amps am i set at?

[zachary kling]

this has been questioning me for quite a while I own a Miller Milllermatic 210, just recently bought it, great great machine!!
my ? is, how do you know haw many amps your set at and what your wire speed is, I have read and read the hand book and watched the viedo a few times but I am never sure how many amps I am set at? My input current is 230 volts and a 50amp breaker but I am never sure what my output amps are, I read where it says the wire speed controls/equals your amps but am not quite sure. also it says my machine has a wire speed of 35 to 700 ipm but the dial only goes up to 100 can someone please explain that??

Thanks,
Zach Kling

[flash_burn]

Zach,
My guess is that 1 = 30amp, 2 = 60 and so on to 7.
Wire speed 10 to 100 is percentages such as 5 = 35 IPM.
Just my guess. JIM

[mowjunk]

Zach, the numbers on the knob represent percentage with 0% = 35 ipm and 100% = 700 ipm. 50% = 367.5 ipm.

You can also measure how much wire comes out while you press the trigger for 6 seconds and then multiply that figure times 10 to get a good approximation of how much wire you are feeding.

Miller has a good book on GMAW that explains a lot of what you are asking. It is also included in the student package which is a great deal. I think you get 13 books and pamphlets, a set of calculators and a free jacket offer.

Hope this helps you....

[mowjunk]

Zach, I forgot something...In your manual, you'll find a WFS - Amp chart. An example would be if you are welding 1/8" steel. 1/8" =.125", so we need 125 amps to weld 1/8" steel. If we are using .035 wire, the graph tells us to use 1.6" per amp. So 125A x 1.6 = 200 ipm to weld 1/8". Remember, this is just a ballpark figure. You will have to fine tune it.

[Danny]

Zach

The most accurate means to know the amperage that you are welding at is by using a DC amp meter. However, a decent DC clamp meter is going to cost you around $100. Luckily, you can get a very close ball park figure by measuring your IPM as John explained, and then reference this measurement to charts that exist. Here are a few example for an .035 solid wire.


IPM of Wire = Amperage range

240-260 = 120-130

280-300 = 140-150

320-340 = 160-170

360-380 = 180-190

400-420 = 200-210