User Profile

[G-ManBart]

There's really nothing you should have to replace to get started. I don't like the work clamp they tend to put on factory machines, so I tend to just replace that from the start with the heavy all-brass one they sell at Harbor Freight for around $15...identical to the name brands now and a fraction...

[G-ManBart]

I've had three bottles that were contaminated so far. All three had just come back from hydro with a new valve, new paint, and new stickers. They came from two different suppliers but I believe they were all tested at the same hydro shop. I suspect they had something other than argon in them previously...

[G-ManBart]

I haven't seen SOOX before, but I'm sure it's fine. S stands for "Service" which is the general kind of wire. OO stands for Oil resistant insulation and oil resistant jacket. Often the last letter will be a W for "weather and water resistance" so X has to be something along those...

[G-ManBart]

Yeah, we've all said it, and I hate coming off like someone just being picky to be picky, but it does seem to cause confusion when you get to people trying to troubleshoot. I figure "work" is easier to type than "ground" so it's worth trying to make the distinction...I'm sure someone...

[G-ManBart]

This is why I object to people calling the work cable and clamp a "ground". In no way is it a ground and it shouldn't have continuity to the ground lug on the bottom of the chassis. The work cable is simply the negative lead and it's supposed to carry current. Ground cables aren't supposed...

[G-ManBart]

You'll need to take a step back and check a couple of things here. For one, look at the face of the machine and fine the data plate with the serial number. That will tell you if your machine is a 200/230 or 230/460 machine. If it's 200/230, you have the jumper link correct. If it's 230/460 you have...

[G-ManBart]

I sold two XR AlumaPros on eBay and neither one took more than a couple of days. One went to Alaska and the other the Pacific Northwest...both guys who build/work on boats....

[G-ManBart]

A 50A breaker with 8ga wire doesn't need to be a dedicated welder circuit. A 50A breaker with conductors smaller than 8ga would need to be dedicated to a non-continuous load, which may or may no be a welder.

[G-ManBart]

Yes, that will work perfectly....

[G-ManBart]

I keep pretty close track for the prices used welders go for at the local equipment auctions (within say 500 miles of me) and they've jumped in the past year. People/companies are playing nearly new prices for decent machines....that tells me they're not happy waiting.

[G-ManBart]

The way the selector lever works the contact points can't be touching both AC and DC positions at the same time. If you're getting an arc and enough power to melt the material you're getting current passing through the contact points. It won't hurt to clean them, but they make pretty robust contact,...

[G-ManBart]

It won't hurt to check the roller alignment carefully and then set the tension on the rollers the way the manual recommends. The tension spring on the wire feed can weaken over time and need to be replaced. If it's too soft it won't put the proper amount of tension on the top roller.

[G-ManBart]

You're entitled to your opinion, but I think 2% thoriated is a poor choice for aluminum. Pretty much every reliable professional source of information on tungsten selection shows 2% thoriated for DC use only with no qualifiers about transformer or inverter.

My primary TIG is a Synrowave...

[G-ManBart]

That's not too likely. If you were to open the machine you'd find three sets of fingers that are 90* to one another. When you rotate the handle one set of fingers moves out of contact and another set moves in, but there's a pretty big gap between them. By the time the handle has moved maybe half...

[G-ManBart]

Thoriated won't work well on aluminum, so I wouldn't bother trying that. One thing to make sure is that you haven't used the tungsten on steel before switching to aluminum...that will cause problems. You have to at least lightly grind the tungsten after steel when switching to aluminum. There is...

[G-ManBart]

A couple of things could be happening here but I'm sure it can be fixed. As far as balling the tungsten goes, you want to have it free of contamination and shaped to a blunt point. At that point you switch the machine to DCEP, start an arc and hold it just long enough to get the shape ball you want...

[G-ManBart]

How is the wire feed with no load (wire)? Can you just hold the trigger and the motor will run for minutes on end smoothly? Have you checked the internal connections and wiring? Loose or degraded work clamps and cables can cause oddball symptoms as well.

[G-ManBart]

I have a couple of 50lb cans of opened 7018....Atom Arc and Excalibur. They've been open for a couple of years and burn perfectly. The only difference I see to rod straight out of a sealed container is the start a touch easier. For anything but code work or something like a truck frame that Ryan...

[G-ManBart]

Was the work clamp on the work, or on the table? If it was on the table, how close was it to the work, and was the work secured to the table at all? You were clearly in the circuit somehow.

[G-ManBart]

I had a couple of XR AlumaPro guns a while back....two 25s and one 15. As I recall I looked into whether it was possible to replace the lines/hoses/etc on the 15 to make it a 25, and I'm pretty sure it was, so the reverse would also be true. With that said, I think it would have been too expensive...