Welding Machine Buyer's Guide and tutorial for students CU eC RU UO kal ee entre SoU aia ee Sea a rere a cis} De RG oe ea Umar asker! Scr Rene ee oe ee Ne ea ee ey Re Mi ee bn NO erat tae teat Lee Lome” er eee ee uni ss Ree ee er eek ee powered) welders for work off the electrical grid. if you're unfamiliar TT eel d etre ee ere thes As a new or aspiring welder, your prospects for employment will PE eR Ce OR oss od Cet ee ne ht oe particular assignment, and which filler rod, wire or stick electrode best meets code requirements will help qualify you to work as a eae at aoe ecu cu cute col EL he ee) machine, then shows you how to read spec sheets included in the Re tee ee eee tt ce oie ia evaluating the pros and cons of two sample machines on the DocsPe ye Rem B em eae) etal Type rca Concustve Cutting Process Most welding is done on carbon steel, in the form of either pipe or sheet metal. Cae ec eu eis og er hak bunt tek ean Nearly all welding processes accommodate carbon steel. And you Ce ee eee Pe Re is much more finicky in how it deals with heat. Composed of steel, chromium and nickel, this alloy steel is used for Pee ee eee ee eed een de cl its anti-corrosion properties. It's typically welded using MIG or TIG Se ae ere find stainless steel stick electrodes. This allows you to use a stick welding machine to get the job done. Of course, the base metal must Pee UR ce is on another planet entirely. As a non-ferrous metal, aluminum conducts heat so well that you constantly need more of it Pe Re eee aed distorts easily if it gets too hot. Consequently, aluminum frequently eee eu os Ben ee ee Ong SA eau Re seer ens Ree ee eke ate ed eee Wee TO REC uke emu ee logs rca Fee a ee eee Roto’ See mee a er ee es features add to the product cost. Ce sed ee ee eer ce ea) also weld aluminum. Like stainless steel, the base metal must be Pieteet ukecu kaiCer rae (used EO Ree eee uke PR Re ua leg Pe eae eet ee eee em Cn ahd want to be making mistakes when you weld on them. Hence, they generally require a sophisticated TIG machine, along with plenty of Perea eile h crn a ek ci Step 2: Establish a current range that covers all possible metal thicknesses. Bua te Cle nd Dm ee a Ee Since the cost of a welding machine is based in ice it generates, you'll have to determine in Se ea ree ees Ure ee ree Pare enue em URL are tee id Perr aca ck cas Pas eer tac = Bee) Rei eee tr cere Stainless steel needs about 10% less Juice than carbon steel, whi trent eer ks tie keene Re eas Conversely, working with very thin metal requires different settings e welding machine. Now the objective is to provide just enough heat to get the job done. Sometimes a low Re eeu eo en Besides that, if too much heat enters the base metal, the area surrounding the weld weakens or melts. So many of the features Te on extremely thin stock for any metal type. ere a ee huts material, but make sure the torch can accommodate a tiny three- See a hea Eee eee hae koa mete Cs Step 3: Decide if your welding will take place inside a Lee) ae RCCL a RRC ee ee Se cc ack time figures into what sort of equipment you should purchase. There are a couple of things to think about: Power supply: If you're plugging the machine into the wall (i.e. the power grid), your choices are as follows:115 volt AC - the standard power provided to every customer of the utility company, residential and commercial. A few entry-level arc welding machines are rated for 115 volts input power, but not many. PET Cen ET era ev eet ate |g ene me ed ble. Residential wiring is another matter. Since most See ee ee eee Aa bee ak roc) Pace Single-Phase vs. Three-Phase - Most electrical equipment is. Ce Ry es oe ea ica Pee he ea ee a aa See aed ee ee et ee option is available. In this scenario, a third hot wire joins the circuit, making more amperage available to power large motors. This option also gives you better energy efficiency, so Se heh ee eters! uk sie a Ce esau eu Tike et ee Pe er eC Lo tube cco cee generator to complete the assignment. Farmers and welders who PURO C RT AU kee eo) Pe ene earners hemes hath) yicy ee Re ee ee ee hee RL) torch, or a MIG/Flux-core wirefeed unit and gun. The low end of this eee eee ELE te Ramee Pre tate eM lain symbols CC (constant current) and CV (constant voltage). CV Gee ee ee ee Te Ue MiG/fiux cored welder into it. You'll also need to know your power requirements (i.e. maximum watts) in order to choose the right sized Pe ee ee ek eae ee Pe te Een nC aan es eee a CRU Tee ie e d Seer ae ect tae Deru er ne Sacchi era ts until it solidifes will be ineffective, resulting in oxidation and aL Oe Cer cue eke to flux-cored mode (or use a straight flux-cored welder). Alternatively, a stick welder will work in a breezy environment (but Se eet eee ue) deoxidizers within the wire or rod. They vaporize directly over the puddle during welding, leaving a protective layer of slag behind.Step 4: Read product spec sheets so you can compare similar machines and choose one with the power and BOR te Here are a few key things to look at: PAS CRs Sema eee Rey be eee gk mice ama ed Ce eu ee eee can weld at the highest current the machine offers. After reaching ed eee ee eek tori eas Duty cycle is given as a percentage. So you have to do the math in Me a ue ue Rk kd Dee et Re aC you exceed the duty cycle, the machine heats up and the circuits inside may fry. eM eee ee Lee Cee eeu renee I for 1 minute out of every 10 without the equipment overheating or PU ars CO ee a Ce ig cycle of 20%, medium duty 40-60%, and heavy duty 60-80%. But ROM cr hk Mi cn Ree OCR ae ea tarts amperage setting. So with a machine that provides a maximum 140 amps with a 10% duty cycle, you might see a rating of 30% at 115 esaU ea eg i ine that otherwise fits all your needs. Just buy the Us ks sce emg way, you effectively increase your duty cycle. eee RR nes TO Ree hak ta eae as it's sort of dangerous to have a live circuit sitting around on the Pee ee a A OSHA limits OCV on equipment, On the other hand, OCV affects the Tee ea aaa eae et cd Pe eee eT ee Lie PTD RC era SS CT eM Anca cise aeecut ke ou scratches the rod against the metal to begin the weld. A frequent problem for students is the inability to strike an arc, so a low OCV Returner kaa eke ue) you should take note of this figure in the specs. An OCV of about 80 Volts is considered normal in a stick welder. In a MIG welder, it can drop to about 36, but it's not a big deal, since in MIG welding the are Pere eRe ee URC Racks SU ee ia eee a cog lea ee ae re ee ety automatically cuts output power to your torch or gun if the circuit Pree eM a oe mele ek continue running to help disperse the heat (assuming you leave the Pu tu eu ee Rs ee SLU Sete cars a sales rep. (See the samples below for more.)Step 5: Determine if you need to use compressed gases and how you will purchase, transport and store them. A variety of gases (CO2, argon, oxygen, etc.) are used for different ea en Et tele) ae ura Pt a A Cake tks) oxygen and a fuel gas. And a TIG machine typi TS literature carefully, you'll want to consider a few other things: + If you buy a welding machine that requires a compressed gas (Le. gas stored in a tank under pressure), you'll need to Pee Ra ee mee Pe Ae es gun cea Be ee sack ae aoe * The tanks themselves can either be purchased or leased from De eee sc De eee ed el eet cto) you'll be using it. As a rule, it doesn't cost too much more to fill Ae a eer eae De eget eet eee aca’ associated with gas, so be sure you understand what's involved before buying welding equipment that uses it. If you're dE eat rk agree to fill it before purchasing. Always keep your sales receipt and other documentation handy. OSHA requires that all etc cam Cree Bee coe ene ere and La enemy 100% C02 with good results. Welding aluminum in MIG and TIG usually calls for all argon gas. Stainless steel requires a tri-mix eC unary es To you don't have to mix the gases yourself. You just buy the eens SL Re eect eee ara machine adds to your costs, you save money on filler rod. MIG Se ee Res Cee ee eek ee ecu eg gas.) + Both acetylene gas and oxygen are nowadays extremely expensive. That's why the oxy-acetylene process is generally used for torch cutting rather than welding.Looe welding machine has a great online price of $299 (plus shipping), with an impressive current range of up to 235 amps and an OCV of 80 volts max. It's recommended for steel and stainless steel, can handle stick electrodes up to 5/16" diameter and a base metal thickness up to 3/8”. It also requires a 230V input power source ee Ret ee ao) Pe et eee Now dig a little deeper and you'll discover an irksome deficiency. On the stick electrode chart provide in the specs, one of the most common rods in the business, E6010, can't be used with this machine. E6010 rods are common in pipe welding and are part of the certification test. They require a DC current and this machine is AC only. (E6011 rods are the AC equivalent of E6010, so you can still Se ee) Besides the AC-only drawback, at 225 amps the machine has only a OC ie artsy Ce a ee ee eas thermal overload protection, just a note saying the fan stays on all CC nee attr ae aie Ce ee te ait hone ae? rs the tinier Hobart LX 205 for $299 with free shipping. This one can be Pel Ea ele Te Le ag $375 on Amazon.)dee hae aed CUE LOR CU Oa el md Pree ae eee he ee ees Peetu nea hase tue ud os precarious with the polarity changing 60 times per second. (That means the current stops flowing 120 times per minute.) Probably a Peri ogo a rae ere cree cra Dee Ur eee Product #2 Pata em ne Cena es Rei olats Ce i re Co ey range of 30-180 amps in DC only, and requires input power from a 230V source. It can weld steel, stainless steel and aluminum up to eee ht Saeko s Pee eas TOE Ae mE Eu cece nee There's no mention of thermal overload protection, either. It could be Pee ee es Pre ke a Pe ee ea er eet ae eee eee an) Lincoln sales rep, who roforred us to Pago D-2 of the product fe Re eed pa ee Re Pres