Trailblazer 325 questions and need feedback

[sjohn]

Hello

i' am doing some more talking with a few other welders. and after doing some more reading. it may be a better choice to buy the Trailblazer 325 cause its best to go bigger then to be under sized machine. anyways after reading online about the Trailblazer 325. it sounds like it will cost more to fix this machine cause it has more circuit boards in it


also I was told that this Trailblazer 325 can't not be jumped started if the battery is dead. or it will knock out circuit boards we I live it gets very cold!!


So I would like some feedback on this model any feedback would be great

Thanks!

[cruizer]

Well,if you do get it, best to buy an insulated cover for it. Take advantage of the low cad dollar if your in the states as a full cover will run you $350 cad. Really a good thing to have to prevent component freezing. I designed them, and sell lots

[sjohn]

Well,if you do get it, best to buy an insulated cover for it. Take advantage of the low cad dollar if your in the states as a full cover will run you $350 cad. Really a good thing to have to prevent component freezing. I designed them, and sell lots

funny you say that I already told the wife she will have to make me a cover! she has an industrial singer sewing machine. **** thing has a 1/2hp motor with a clutch.. that machine will sew thru anything!!!

she has made covers for the equipment I have now

[sjohn]

hummm I have been reading about the TB325 hot and cold weather problems did miller fix the problems?


hummm maybe a Lincoln ranger 305? would be better

[sjohn]

the sad thing is the more I read about the TB325... the worst I feel about buying one..


it seem the bobcat 250 which cost less has less problems with it!!!!

[Tryagn5]

hummm I have been reading about the TB325 hot and cold weather problems did miller fix the problems?


hummm maybe a Lincoln ranger 305? would be better

Thats why i have 2 305g's...great welders.
Kevin

[sjohn]

Thats why i have 2 305g's...great welders.
Kevin

I am still checking and reading about them but sure seems that's the way to go

[bjfab]

Welder comparison

305 has twice the noise and uses twice the fuel. Welds are similar

Byron

[cruizer]

Same engine, only dif is low idle excell, and small rod not reving the engine up. Yes the weld is the same, as technology is identical. Quiet cause engine is reversed and exhaust pipe is longer. Really same economy with the Efi in the Ranger or the 325.

Both have their own sets of problems, spent days on each finding solutions.

[bjfab]

Fuel

Fuel is considerably less. Have owned both. About half

Byron

[Railmen]

Tb 325

I bought a 325 not that long ago, used to have the 302 then went to a pro300D, it's a great little machine lots of power for welding the weld at a idle is really nice at first it scared the **** out of me thinking that everytime it went back to idle I was going to have a defect in the weld, just did not seem right to have a welding machine go down in RPM's while welding, if you ever had a SA200 and you heard that sweet sound of the flat head change you knew something was going to happen with the weld.

I'm not sure where your located but here in south western Ontario it's been fricken cold here -25F to -30F and no problems with that little machine, some of my Lincoln diesels have not started.

Yes jumping starting is bad on those machine,😢

I bought the base model, if I was buying one again, it would be the one with EFI and excel power.....

I've had a few guys come by with the 305G and they say the to machine do weld really close to each other but the miller is quieter and use less fuel.

Railmen.

[sjohn]

Same engine, only dif is low idle excell, and small rod not reving the engine up. Yes the weld is the same, as technology is identical. Quiet cause engine is reversed and exhaust pipe is longer. Really same economy with the Efi in the Ranger or the 325.

Both have their own sets of problems, spent days on each finding solutions.

could you please list the problems you know of with both models?

[sjohn]

also I see the Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) & Excel™ Power ARE Options and that will cost more so with that being said in my case lets compare basic models of the 325 and 305

[Tryagn5]

half of what....

Fuel is considerably less. Have owned both. About half

Byron

If you take a carbed 325 vs a carbed 305g, set the welder at 210 amps and weld away, both machines will use nearly the same amount of fuel. They both are the same engine. However if you use a 325 with excel power simply to run power tools, then yes it is going to shine in fuel savings.
If your welder is to be used day in and day out, efi is the way to go. Efi repays with fuek savings over hours of use.
Kevin

[cruizer]

Excell power is basically an 120vac inverter running off a winding, same thing could be done with a standard 1500 wt Canadian tire inverter running off your battery.

All the same its a neat idea to incorporate it into a welder.

The throttle encoder and fuel vac solenoid tend to freeze in the 325. Cover stops this in the winter. Another problem is that. You cannot mount these behind the cab, and ever expect to change your oil. Hot summer time issues have not been resolved, other than plugging the air intake ports, removing the plastic air cleaner cover and propping open the top cover. This allows more air to go over the engine fins and cool it down.

Problem with the Rangers has to do with emissions. This problem is with guys filling the tank neck up. Lincoln changed the position of the tank vent 3 times. Easily solved on the units by cutting the tank vent line ( next to the right side spark plug on a plastic nipple) I cut the hose back farther and stick in a 1/4 " screw. Then remove the hose from the air cleaner side and seal the hole with some Rtv. The fuel cap has to come out, just stick long pliers into the tank and pull up the plastic cap holder. Micro drill the shiny side of the cap to the centre, and a couple of holes under the cap to the centre. Now you can fill the neck up for an extra day of welding.

The EFI units are basically the same except the line going into the intake has to be plugged with a screw, and the line to the high pressure fuel pump is to be left open

Now both the Miller and Lincoln should be set at 62.5hz, the Miller can't as a throttle encoder is supposed to keep that engine under load at 60 hz. It doesn't and there is a new design I think that recently came out.

The ranger must be set at 62.5 hz warm. Works very well at that setting. However there is another problem, and won't happen till the engine has a few hours on it and that is that the low idle moves to high. It must be set to approx 38 hz. Top cover has to be removed to adjust the position of the idle solenoid. Don't bother with the carb or efi settings. Besides you want to inspect things anyways, like tightening the chopper board bolts.