Welding Tips and Tricks

Good evening everyone. I am having some issues with a ranger 9 I resently purchased and was hoping I could get some suggestions. I have done all the testing in the sevice manual. The issue I have is the weld current is very low when the range selector switch is set to 160 max. Can't even get a 3/32 rod to run. All the other range selector settings work fine. During the testing I found that the voltage regulator is at spec on the AC site but way below spec on the DC side. The battery need to be charged before starting each day. I would think if this were the issue all range selections would be affected.
Any information would be helpful.
Thank you
Drew

The contacts in the range switches tend to be self cleaning so they ought to be run through the ranges fairly often. Try running the range switch through all the ranges a dozen or so times and see if that helps.

Have you tested the battery separately and do you know how old it is and its condition?


Lance

Thank you for the reply Lance!! I have not tested the battery but the guy I got it from said it is fairly new. I ended up cleaning the contact area for the selector switch with a wire brush in a dermal and it welds great now. I just need to get the voltage regulator replaced and the welder will be in great shape and ready to make some money

Regarding the battery, making sure everything is off just remove a cable end and touch it back on the post. If you have a short somewhere draining the battery overnight it will spark. If not get a load tester to check the charging system and the battery itself. You will need to charge the battery if it's down to properly test. I used to have a lot of vehicles and it's not unheard off to have a fairly new battery die prematurely.

I don't know what the climate is where you live but the water and electrolyte in a discharged lead-acid battery settle out into separate layers after which the water can freeze. The expansion of the ice will damage the lead plates and ruin the battery and it will still happen to a brand new discharged battery.

The moral of the story is to keep all you batteries charged. I use Battery Minder brand charger/maintainer/deesulfaters on everything. They will easily more than double the life of your batteries. A few years ago, on our central /NY farm I had to retire the batteries in a Chevy diesel truck....after 11 years.

The desulfater part of the unit will rejuvenate an old weak battery most of the time too although you'll get the best battery life when they are used from new.


Lance