[BeNos]

Hey all
Out in the shed playing with the mig today. Anyway I have come to the conclusion that there is something wrong with it. The unit is an older unimig craft 180. Prob round the 10 yr old mark. But with not ALOT of use in the last 8 or so.
Anyway was welding up some 2mm box section and basically had the thing on decks highest power setting and approx 2 3/4 put of 10 wire speed and was really struggling for penetration. Now I'm only a novice but I would have thought a 180 amp mig and the second highest setting would be blowing holes in that kind of material. Or am I barking up the wrong tree.
It's an argon mix with.9mm wire. Mild steel.
Any ideas.
Thanks

 

[Bushscrubber]

Take a pic of the leads where they plug into the machine please.

 

[madk1w1]

Does it leave blob type weld on top with little to no penetration?
My CIG was doing this, described as cold weld in owners manual, it turned out to be a faulty power diode, had to replace the complete diode pack to fix.

 

[LordBug]

Got a good earth connection?

 

[Dirt Devil]

Had simalar with mine, found I had to run heavy wire to power point 6mm square.
Was ok after that. also if using an extension lead you will get voltage drop.
I have also had the problem of where the gun/lead connects to the mechine it does not quite make a good electrical connection, this gives a impression that its running at lower amps.
They are good when working but a pain in the ass when not.

cheers

 

[bloke83]

These help

*20 METRE 15 AMP HPM HEAVY DUTY EXTENSION LEAD* (eBay item 180591751889 end time 28-Nov-10 16:28:30 AEDST) : Industrial

And a 15amp powerpoint aswell.

 

[71MUD]

try taking off some of the covers and give it a good blow out, sounds too simple i know but it may help

 

[BeNos]

alright so general concensus is lack of power.
its i will admit only running thru a 10amp plug. but the bloke i bought it off said it had run like this all its life and was always fine. but would definately be worth getting bigger wire installed.
and mad k1 thats exactly what its doing. big blob of rubbish on top and no penetration. also good earth to material. was thinking it could be something like that or the transformer inside the machine has given up the ghost.

 

[madk1w1]

Yeah transformer dies you will smell it,rip the covers off transformer damage will be obvious, bonus of being sparky I had the gear to test, unimig not bad stuff use to see alot in panel shops, should be able to get spares easy enough.
Supply cable not necessarily going to be a problem if machine is rated at 10amp standard outlet should be fine, if a mile from switch board still should be rated to 10amp at outlet.

 

[BeNos]

na thats the only problem been bodgied from 15a plug. i being nieve have always thought it would be ok. but obviously not. might have a quick play monday and see what and if i can find anything.

 

[billabong]

When my electrician wired my shed he put in about a dozen 10 amp and 2 15 amp power points. I said "you are using the same wire on the 15 amp" He said "yeah, there's just less power points per circuit on 15 amp". If this is correct, providing nothing else is running on the same circuit, you should be fine with 10 amp.

 

[bloke83]

We use to run 10amp in a simple shed with nothing else running and it constantly blew the safety switch (nothing but welder, not even lights), got it then set up for 15amp and no furkin worries now ay

YMMV

 

[LordBug]

Yeah, reckon it'll be the 15amp machine running on a 10amp line. You probably got on a circuit that can't handle the load.

For a bit of a read up on the no-no behind bodgied plugs, this is a good one: 15amp welders on 10amp circuits - Woodwork Forums

Good quote on the second page:

"One point perhaps missed here, a 15 amp welder WILL run better on a 15 amp circuit. Skinny wires will limit the amount of current entering your welder. A thicker conductor will carry more current, just as a bigger pipe will carry more water.

Yes, a thinner conductor will heat up more. Heat has an inverse relationship with conductivity.

Safety concerns aside, it will choke your welder so that it works harder, especially at full noise, limiting duty cycle and shortening the life of your gear."

 

[chicken]

When my electrician wired my shed he put in about a dozen 10 amp and 2 15 amp power points. I said "you are using the same wire on the 15 amp" He said "yeah, there's just less power points per circuit on 15 amp". If this is correct, providing nothing else is running on the same circuit, you should be fine with 10 amp.

X2,
got my shed wired up the other week, and me mate said the same thing, i thought he was being a tight arse so ask a few other blokes i know that are elecy's they all said the same thing, its just run on its own curcuit. 2.5mm wire is what they use with a 15 amp piont.

 

[BeNos]

yeah the plan is to get a 15 amp socket put in. but i would have never thought it would affect it like it is. guess i should have known better. well il try get a sparky to come out monday and throw one in and see what it does. failing that though id say it will need looking at.
it does sound promising thought for a pretty simple fix.
thanks for the help all.

 

[ozz]

If the circuit couldnt handle the load it would trip the circuit breaker.
I'd say the problem is somewhere in the welder

 

[GUtsy ute]

Hi,
Try turning off everything else plugged into the circuit your'e running the welder from.
Aso do as 71MUD suggested and take the side covers off and give it a good blow out.(Unplugged of course)
A lot of welder problems are caused by grinding dust and dirt being sucked in by the cooling fan over time,leading to overheating etc.
Next step involves money, and do as madk1w1 suggests and get a diode check done. (Most likely suspect.)
Hope you get it sorted at minimum cost and get back to your project ASAP.
Cheers

 

[mickyd555]

tried turing your wire speed up? could be the liner in the gun lead and your not getting the true wire speed you need.

 

[chuckles]

tried turing your wire speed up? could be the liner in the gun lead and your not getting the true wire speed you need.

x2 i would be replacing most consumables on the machine i.e. tip, diffuser, liner and make sure your rollers run smoothly and not eractically.

are you welding galvanised? my 180 struggles sometimes to get through the galvo coating but after a quick rub with a flappa she runs good.

good luck

 

[Bates]

I run a CIG 160 gasless mig on a 10amp circuit. It welds faultlessly. The only time it spatters, feeds unevenly, or like the above problems is when the fault is with the welder.

From experience, this is what I would try:

1. Check the tip. Pull it off and check the feed hole for back spatter.
2. Replace the copper (?) feed tip and make sure it is the right size for the wire.
3. Check the rollers are the right thickness for the wire.
4. Adjust the wire feed tensioner up/down to see if the feed changes.


Just my thoughts ......