Thanks Matt, I have an electrician friend I should probably ask about this stuff, he lives too far away to do the work for me but since he's a foreman for a company who does commercial only I know he knows all about 220.

And I don't think my entire lot is 80' across, so that should help with the prices.

While there are some traps a DIYer can run into, It is really not as hard as you make it out to be. It only becomes complicated when you are trying to run at the ragged edge of equipment ratings to keep costs low.

For example, the welder nameplate should tell you the ampacity you need to supply it with. Your conductor can be any size larger than this and you are ok. The calculations in the NEC for welders deal with how you can reduce the size of conductor needed based on your duty cycle.

How much current does your welder draw? I suspect you grossly overbuilt your service to your garage if your brought over 100 amps for a welder, a few lights and a garage door opener.



While I am not familiar with costs, I imagine it is cheaper to run wet rated cable in conduit than armored cable that shlammed ran. After a quick glance at the NEC, #2 THHW will fit in 1.5" conduit and will carry 115 amps (without derating for distance). You could even save on the conduit by running direct burial UF cable.

Reporting back, the gas lens is pretty awesome. Having good gas coverage makes welding aluminum much easier.

So. Because we were on the topic of hook ups...

Finally completed my box.

Attachment 184936
Attachment 184937

Willing to bet no one knows what that is.
Or even where i got my hands on it.

I'd like to see what an inspector would say about it, if he even had a clue what it is.

I didn't really want to go into the wall, to many holes, and the wall is insulated so it would have just been a huge pain.

I'm curious, At first glance I thought it was just liquid tight based on how it was flexible and the fitting on the box, but it looks more like a nylon sheathed armored cable of some kind. looks like Class 1 Div 1 stuff based on the compression fitting.

Is it Okonite CLX?

Yup. Blast proof. It's actually 4 wire, but only 3 were used obviously.
Same with the connector. Gas, liquid, rodent, chemichal and blast proof. It even came with the JB weld two part epoxy stuff to pack in the ends. Appearantly it's like a $120 connector. I wouldn't know. I don't even want to know how much the romex stuff costs per foot, we ran quite a bit of it too.

That's pretty much the definition of overkill lol.

Class 1 Div 1 is UL tested to not be an ignition source in an area saturated with volatile chemical fumes. I assume someone hooked you up with that stuff for free. It is a bit silly to go through the expense of installing it and then terminate it in a non class 1 div 1 box and receptacle. looks like a decent installation though, What size wire?

Frame repair welder
 

Looks like I have to do some repair work in the core support rails of my 2000. Everything is in front of the subframe mounting points. From the cost estimates I'm getting it looks like I may take the plunge and buy my own MIG welder. It's been a while but I used to do a bit of welding (stick) so with a bit of practice maybe I can do it.

Any suggestions on a unit keeping in mind other than my car I won't use it much. Renting is also a consideration.

I'm prepared to run the electric feed (neighbor is an electrician).

Also, I think 1/4" would be the max (this repair likely would be 1/16" plate)

Thanks for your input.

You should get a multi voltage unit. Miller, hobart, essab, and i'm sure your favorite Chinese manufacture makes one. I love my miller 211. I'm able to wheel it anywhere in the yard, down the street, or even over other peoples houses/garages if i need to.

Marathon. I know a few people that work for them. I'd like to work there someday myself.

6 gauge wire.

Thanks. I'm not sure if I trust that Chinese brand not to burn my house down.

Then be sure to unplug almost every appliance in your house.

That's funny.... :drool:

My new toy... Precision Tig 185
Other than the known encoder problem (more like the blade falling off), it should be a pretty fine unit. Paid a fair $1500 price for everything seen plus a bunch of arc rods. Time to drop in a 70A circuit

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...1&d=1399598038

So, I'm still just getting in to tig welding. During my most recent trip for a haircut, my barber (who is a retired welder) was asking how my progress was going. Among his list of suggestions was that for anything but aluminum, I get "A gas lens. The biggest mother fucker they got."

So uh, As I've started looking, they seem to get rather large. Best suggestion I've found so far is a 1" lens with a #12 cup. Any objections/suggestions? The majority of what I'm working with right now is Aluminum, but I'd like to practice around with some mild/stainless as well.

TEK wire. I used it to service my garage.

Liquid tight inner, shielding and then another liquid tight casing.


It was good in my case because you can direct bury it with no need for a conduit.

Attachment 184603






in your case, being internal to the garage, you really didn't need to use the liquid tight connector, but it does look pretty nice.

This is the TIG I started with, you will only need a 40a circuit. The unit will duty out before you can trip a 40a.

I was doing welding (albeit short duty) all the way up to 185a on a 20a 220v circuit and it didn't pop... but I wouldn't suggest it will work all the time... longer duty will likely put a 20a into fault... 40a will be fine unless you plan to upgrade to an old transformer unit into the 300a range to do process welding.


My 185 had an issue with the knob for choosing voltage... would have to keep turning it until it eventually got to the voltage you needed.... but it worked great.

large gas lens with a #12 is what I use on my #20 torch.

Its grossly over-serviced. I just took the recommendation of garage journal for amp size and told a local electrician what I thought I needed. then he gave me a bill of materials.


I have enough service to run everything in my garage at full duty cycle at the same time.

For a wp17 torch this kit is the tits TigDepot.net:: Product Details

Could you explain to me what a #12 is and what is a #20, would really like it if you had links to pictures and where I could buy them.

I have the same stuff as that kit for my #20 as well. its fine.


the advantage of the larger lens is being able to weld stainless longer without having to stop in fear of losing gas coverage.

That kit would only have up to a #8 cup.

Also I have heard of triggers for the tig torch to replace the pedal. Is there an actual name for that and is it possibly covered in the video posted above? I will watch the video when I get home from work tonight.

When I bought my trig welder I just went up to the local airgas and had them get me a torch and such. I plugged it in and started practicing. So I have no real knowledge of what the proper names of things are, but I would like to learn.

you mean like a thumb control? My torch has it built in, on/off button and a thumb wheel for amperage control. Its super duper nice for tack welding an exhaust while under a car thats on jack stands. and its also great when you are doing a long ass weld where you're not expecting to have to vary the amperage like at all.

The video does a real good job explaining the fucking retarded torch naming scheme.

He's talking about a #12 cup on a gas lens (the pink thing). The cup sizes are in 1/16" increments, so a #12 is a 3/4" diameter cup.

The torch styles are also numbered, but in an apparently random system. the #20 is the small sized water-cooled torch. The link below has a pretty decent run-down of the different torch styles.

Tig Torch -Air Cooled - Water Cooled ...Which one is best?

Probably says the number on the neck of the torch... where a flex head torch would flex.


My welder came with a trigger (on off, set panel amps and go) and with a pedal. I generally use the pedal to weld since you can control the amps on the fly, but I will use a trigger for things like tacking an exhaust under the car so I don't have to mess around with the pedal. I would assume that roll cage welders use a trigger vs a pedal. The issue with trigger welding is odd hand placement reaching into something like a tubular manifold where the trigger and your finger would get into the way reducing your maneuverability and reduce your vision of the weld.


most field weldors would use a trigger if not scratch start, depending on the process and the requirements spelled out by the welding contract.



The welding video leafy posted is a good start. that guy likes to ramble on, but there is a lot of good info there.

matt your trigger is a hold style? I like the one thats on mine, its a tap to start, tap to stop.

A thumb control is exactly what I mean. I am asking specifically because trying to tack weld while under the car when building an exhaust was a royal pita having to try to use the foot pedal.

It took 18 months but I finally bought a welder. Got the Everlast PowerPro 205, but haven't gotten any argon yet so I have yet to weld anything with it.

If you find yourself getting bad welds or having trouble, replace the torch.

That's the one I ended up with too. My only complaint is that I'm currently on my third plasma torch. The first two were replaced under warranty (apparently only 6 months for the plasma torch) even though I barely use them. Both failures occurred before I'd worn out my first cutting tip. I'm outside the warranty period now so I'm not looking forward to the next time it craps out.

Mine a hold.

Tap on, tap off wouldn't help in the case I mentioned. You still need post flow on the part. to tap off in tight spaces you would have to pull off of the part similar to scratch start (no post flow)

Couldn't you use downslope or whatever it's called to gradually lower the amperage with either kind? I wouldn't trust myself with a 'tap to start tap to stop' style, I'd be afraid of dropping it.

I'm not sure how you'd drop it. The little button you hit is right on the torch, and thankfully it gets disabled when you have the pedal plugged in on my machine.

Thumb control is for precisely these types of situations. But I find thumb control is harder to operate than foot control, so I end up using foot control most of the time (e.g. whenever possible). But if you're a boss, then you practice all the time and get proficient so you can handle both thumb and foot controls with ease!

I hadn't heard of the encoder problem until I read this. I bought a pt 225 last month. Works great but the guy holding the torch.....well....

My amperage knob is strange. It steps up and down correctly, one amp per notch. It doesn't work like the post flow knob, where 12 o clock is the same every time. Does your pt do the same thing?

Eastwood has their tig on sale for STOOPID cheap money right now. TIG Welder | TIG Welders | TIG Welding ? Eastwood TIG 200 AC/DC Welder

Damn, that is cheap. I picked up a used Miller Maxstar 90 Tig machine a few weeks ago. I like it quite a bit, but it's DC only and only 90A. It can do up to 0.10 single pass, but if I bevel it enough, preheat, and make a few passes it shouldn't really be an issue if I want to make myself a few parts.

For bigger stuff, I just use the big boy mig machines at work at the end of the day. Sadly, we don't have a tig machine at all so I guess I have to pay someone to do aluminum.

I would still not recommend the Everlast. So if you are debating the Everlast, Eastwood or HTP. Choose the last 2. I have had great experiences with HTP.

any suggestions on a mig? I went to eastwood and tested out the 175, for my first time laying a bead it didn't look to bad. Now that they have a retail store in Illinois i could always run and get parts if needed. Are there any other good knock offs? This will be for light hobby usage. I have 220v. The guy at Eastwood said they have a new 250 mig coming out soon it was at sema but they are not sure when or how much.

Well, as a result of Hot Wheels' mig thread, I ended up with a TIG, so I thought I'd post about it here...

Bought an AHP AlphaTIG 200X.

AC/DC 200A, 110/220

$760 + shipping ($30 for me) on Amazon

I was looking at the Eastwood TIG when it was on sale, but this one has a little more adjustability for about the same $$, still has a 3year warranty. I was torn over the great customer service provided by Eastwood, compared to an unknown from AHP, but decided to pull the trigger.

Welder showed up in 3 days, and this morning I picked up a gas bottle, splurged on an HF cart and fired it up. I know the first thing you're supposed to do with a new welder is build the cart yourself, but I did that with my MIG years ago. I really didn't want to take the time to do it with TIG, and when you figure the time and materials... well fuck it, I just bought one.

Machine:
Attachment 184492
Attachment 184493
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18...ps171cc71f.jpg
Attachment 184494

On the cart:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18...ps86a64f38.jpg

So, I've built a bunch of stuff with MIG, but I've never TIG welded, and haven't gas welded since Jr. High (Carter was in office!). Today, I mostly wanted to make sure the welder worked, so I was just trying a few butt welds with some scrap 3/16" flat stock I had laying around. I used a 3/32" 2% Thoriated Tungsten (Red), ground to a point. Top amps varied from 100-130, as I was playing around with the settings.

Top left is the first arc I struck with the machine. No filler, just getting a feel. Bottom right is a little more power, with filler rod. I was weaving around a bit, and lifted the torch too fast. Bottom left I was trying to move a little faster, but still lifted too fast.

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y18...ps9628af1d.jpg

Same setup in this one, far left is no filler. I think I may be moving too slowly, 'cause it seems I'm getting too much heat into the piece. What say the experts? How am I doing?

Attachment 184495

I already LOVE this thing. It's so much more controlled than MIG, I can tell I'm going to have a lot of fun with this! :party:

Here is my practice part with Eastwood 200. 3/8" piece to 1/8" x 1" flat bar.
This was within first hour or two of playing around, and it felt good after starting with real thin extruded door mold of unknown aluminum, and ending up just making it ball up.

Attachment 184491

Roda, i am no expert and only have a few months experience, but i believe the grayish color weld is either too much heat (slow speed or high setting) or not enough gas.

I agree on the control. I always felt like mig was rushed without being able to really work the puddle. With tig, i can get just the right amount of heat with the peddle and really watch the puddle. Tig has made me a more confident mig welder even though the techniques are way different.

So I played around with some aluminum just to make sure the AC side of the machine worked. I had the settings FUBAR'd starting out and melted a couple of tungstens (had the AC Balance way too high), and uglified some aluminum before I got in the ball park. The below pic is 1/8" aluminum (unkown Ace Hardware flat stock), 3/32 Lanthanated tungsten (gold), with 5356 1/16" filler rod. On ~120A, 120Hz and 35% on the AC Balance. Cratered the finish, but I was pretty pleased considering this was around 35 minutes into my aluminum welding experience... :noob:

I'm now wishing I hadn't thrown out a bunch of scrap pieces a few months ago... I can see I'm going to be doing a LOT of practicing! :loser:

Attachment 184490

Haha, well at least you didn't plug the torch into the wrong terminal. That cost me a tungsten electrode and even got hot enough to crack the cup before I finally figured out what I was doing wrong. :facepalm:

Picking up an Everlast PowerTig 200DX-D for home use now that I have completed the wiring for it in the garage. Pretty excited to see how it does as it is my first transistor/HF unit!

My somewhat local guy has the 2015 ahp's for 750 picked up. Decisions......i have thought about selling my lincoln pt225.

Those are freaking cheap! Would you guys get the AHP instead of Everlast? It's almost half the price?

Never mind, it does not have AC frequency adjust...

The 2015 AHP has freq adjust on A/C.

Seems like the comparable Everlast is the PowerTIG 200DV at ~$1350, almost double the price. I bought the AHP, but the Everlast was out of my budget...

Here's some more practice welds with the AHP on 1/8" mystery aluminum...

Attachment 184480

I'm still having some issues with too much heat in the material by the end of the run... need more practice...

Oh it does? I don't see the knob! Wow if that is the case I just get the AHP! However I do not see a Canadian dealer.

Take a look at the pic of the control panel in my post above.

Can't help with a Canadian dealer, though...

Cool, what is the difference between the 200X and 200DX? I looked up the 200DX and the layout of the control panel is different.
And would you happen to know what the duty cycle on these things is? I just want to make sure that when I do thick aluminum getting close to 200AMP, it does not $hit the bed.

I think you were looking at the 2014 version. They updated it for 2015... I have the 2015 model which has the 9 dial (3x3) control panel.

Specs say 60% duty cycle @ 200A.

Wow, sounds good. I guess I am picking up an AHP! Thanks for the info.

Looks like I can order it on Amazon with my Canadian address and send it to my US box. SWEET!

I have the 2014 version ahp. It has the same knobs but they're along the bottom. It's been great. I have some novice aluminum welding on my oil pan shown in my build thread

Currently shopping for a welder.

Found these two so far.

PowerTIG 200DX - TIG Welders | Everlast Generators

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Eastwood...158502&vxp=mtr

Why is the Everlast $500 more?

I ended up getting the PowerPro 205s.

The Eastwood is a more simple machine, but it has the advantage of working on 110v (if you're doing light duty stuff) or 220v. The Everlast is 220v only, but has a bunch more features, like adjustable cleaning for AC, pulse, upslope and downslope control. The Everlast also has a 5 year warranty (why I chose it) vs 3 years for the Eastwood (also Miller and Lincoln are 3 years).

The PowerPro205 is more expensive, but I plan on getting a compressor at some point and I've heard good things about the plasma cutter part.

Simadre Plasma Cutter CT5200D with Foot Pedal 25 Cons 50A 200A Welder 110 220V | eBay

Or something like that. Too good to be true?