Welding Tips and Tricks

Reserved post.

I call shotgun!

Come on down to Texas, I'll let ya test drive her! (when she gets here) lol

The Stel version still shows up on the Stel site as "Coming 2019". Hear anything new Oscar?
I guess I'll settle for a window in the back seat.

metalman21 wrote:The Stel version still shows up on the Stel site as "Coming 2019". Hear anything new Oscar?
I guess I'll settle for a window in the back seat.

Yup, it's plastered all over their Facebook page.

...getting closer.....shopping for 5/32" tungstens and other associated torch parts.....

More pics, menu screenshots, and videos in-action coming very soon! Like tomorrow!

Congratulations on the new toy. I know it's at your place bc I see your mixing system. Can't wait for the movies.

Yup, should have been here since Wednesday but it mistakenly got routed to another city by the trucking company, so I finally got to pick it up yesterday when I got back into town from my work/training meeting in San Antonio. I haven't even used the TIG side of it, but it burns E6013s like a mo-fo! That's what I really wanted it for!

Dumb question,
How did you buy this? I don't see it on the web.

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Simclardy wrote:Dumb question,
How did you buy this? I don't see it on the web.

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HTP America has a phone number.

Cool.

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I'm liking it. Doing some settings testing. I'm impressed thus far; not with my welding capability, with the machine's capabilities, lol. The arc starts and arc stability even with a big ol' 5/32" tungsten in the torch seems (to me) to be amazing! But then again, I'm just a hobbyist.

Don't mind the aluminum blobs on the left. It's just a junk piece I use to re-focus my muscle memory for aluminum MIG when I'm out of touch.

Oscar wrote:I'm liking it. Doing some settings testing. I'm impressed thus far; not with my welding capability, with the machine's capabilities, lol. The arc starts and arc stability even with a big ol' 5/32" tungsten in the torch seems (to me) to be amazing! But then again, I'm just a hobbyist.

Don't mind the aluminum blobs on the left. It's just a junk piece I use to re-focus my muscle memory for aluminum MIG when I'm out of touch.

Not bad. You can grow into the machine without having to worry about upgrading.

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Yup, and I still have the option of getting a phase converter if I ever want to use all 400A.

The on-demand cooler is really nice as it keeps noise levels down when full cooling capacity is not needed!

Oscar wrote:Yup, and I still have the option of getting a phase converter if I ever want to use all 400A.

The on-demand cooler is really nice as it keeps noise levels down when full cooling capacity is not needed!

I don't think you will ever need it. Not sure what your line current is but the phase converter might run you 1500-$2000. You might see if your utility can give you 3 phase. If they allow it the cost might be comparable and cleaner. The up side to a converter is that it is portable if you ever move
For big heavy metal i don't think of tig as a first option. I think of smaw or fcaw. If you are repairing aluminum engine blocks you might want some heft .
I know they make 800amp tig machines, do you know what they are used for?
I could be way off.
Cheers

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Simclardy wrote:

Oscar wrote:Yup, and I still have the option of getting a phase converter if I ever want to use all 400A.

The on-demand cooler is really nice as it keeps noise levels down when full cooling capacity is not needed!

I don't think you will ever need it. Not sure what your line current is but the phase converter might run you 1500-$2000. You might see if your utility can give you 3 phase. If they allow it the cost might be comparable and cleaner. The up side to a converter is that it is portable if you ever move
For big heavy metal i don't think of tig as a first option. I think of smaw or fcaw. If you are repairing aluminum engine blocks you might want some heft .
I know they make 800amp tig machines, do you know what they are used for?
I could be way off.
Cheers

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I agree with you entirely, but I might want the phase converter, like you said, if I ever need "portability". There is a company here in Texas, Southern Converters, that offers a nice 30HP phase converter for $1700 that is very appealing. My Pro Pulse 300 MIG can also use 3-phase. Thick aluminum is what comes to mind for "heavy metal TIG", but for thick steel you're completely right -- stick or FCAW-G or MCAW-G for sure, or even GMAW-P. I suspect the big 800+ amp TIG's are for aluminum mainly, as I haven't seen too many that are DC-only.

That's a good price for 30hp. Who knows, you might come across another tool that requires 3 phase, and then it's a nice bonus. I see some nice deals on 3 phase equipment from time to time.
Cheers

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Simclardy wrote:That's a good price for 30hp. Who knows, you might come across another tool that requires 3 phase, and then it's a nice bonus. I see some nice deals on 3 phase equipment from time to time.
Cheers

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Yep, I drool over the nice big ol' kneel mills like bridgeports/clones and the like, but they all need 3-phase power.

Family Picture Time! Aren't they adorable?!?! (one of those Pro Pulse 200's isn't mine, it's my Dad's).

Nice pic of the "family". Don't ever move, the electric company will go broke.

Oscar,

Ok, I will admit I have electrode envy when I look at your sig...

I was curious, the 400 seems to have some strange marketing on the power, and I recently found the marketing odd for the 221 vs. 221 DV. Turns out the DV model has Power Factor Correction (PFC) which allows it to use less amps on single phase 230v. The 221 DV only requires 26 amps for 220 amps output on 230v, where the 221 requires 36 amps for 220 amps of output on 230v. That's a big difference, and unfortunate for me where I have a 30 amp dryer circuit that I use for my entire shop (I run a 7-1/2HP RPC on it when I need 3 phase), so that kind of sucks. Although I suspect I would be able to run the 221 on the 30 amp circuit, it is only wired with 10 gauge, so could be a problem going up to 36 amps if that ever happened. In theory that will not happen as the line is on a 30 amp breaker...but...it doesn't seem good practice to me to run machines on the incorrect wire. In the future at my new shop this wouldn't be a problem, but if I want to run a welder at my home I live in now it could.

Does the 400 have PFC in it?

The part I find a bit misleading is where you only get 350 amps on single phase but 400 amps on 3 phase.

For my new shop that's not an issue, I'm getting a 320 amp service dropped from PG&E and have a PT-355 Phase Perfect (20HP, or 55 amp continuous output) which uses 100 amps of single phase to feed it. I will have 2 x 200 amp panels, one feeding the digital phase converter and the rest on single phase for the shop, and the other feeding the house with a 200 amp single phase panel.

Are you running your 400 on 3 phase? Not that you would need it, 350 amps is a lot of welding power! But since they do tout the 350 amps on a 50 amp welding circuit I was curious about the PFC and was curious if the non-PFC was just an older design on the 221. It's not that I will even be getting a 400, it's more welder than I would ever need to have for the majority of projects I do...but I like to know those details...

Alan

TraditionalToolworks wrote:Oscar,

Ok, I will admit I have electrode envy when I look at your sig...

I was curious, the 400 seems to have some strange marketing on the power, and I recently found the marketing odd for the 221 vs. 221 DV. Turns out the DV model has Power Factor Correction (PFC) which allows it to use less amps on single phase 230v. The 221 DV only requires 26 amps for 220 amps output on 230v, where the 221 requires 36 amps for 220 amps of output on 230v. That's a big difference, and unfortunate for me where I have a 30 amp dryer circuit that I use for my entire shop (I run a 7-1/2HP RPC on it when I need 3 phase), so that kind of sucks. Although I suspect I would be able to run the 221 on the 30 amp circuit, it is only wired with 10 gauge, so could be a problem going up to 36 amps if that ever happened. In theory that will not happen as the line is on a 30 amp breaker...but...it doesn't seem good practice to me to run machines on the incorrect wire. In the future at my new shop this wouldn't be a problem, but if I want to run a welder at my home I live in now it could.

Does the 400 have PFC in it?

The part I find a bit misleading is where you only get 350 amps on single phase but 400 amps on 3 phase.

For my new shop that's not an issue, I'm getting a 320 amp service dropped from PG&E and have a PT-355 Phase Perfect (20HP, or 55 amp continuous output) which uses 100 amps of single phase to feed it. I will have 2 x 200 amp panels, one feeding the digital phase converter and the rest on single phase for the shop, and the other feeding the house with a 200 amp single phase panel.

Are you running your 400 on 3 phase? Not that you would need it, 350 amps is a lot of welding power! But since they do tout the 350 amps on a 50 amp welding circuit I was curious about the PFC and was curious if the non-PFC was just an older design on the 221. It's not that I will even be getting a 400, it's more welder than I would ever need to have for the majority of projects I do...but I like to know those details...

Alan

Alan,

That "26A" rating on the 221 DV might be a bit optimistic or measured slightly different from what the electrical specifications sticker on the machine actually states, which is 32A I-eff:



I'm not sure about the non-DV model since I don't have that one. I suspect it would be fine since it is rated at about 20% duty cycle @ 220A, so 2min of 36A draw on a 30A breaker shouldn't hurt anything so long as the breaker and wiring are still in good condition and oxidation has not taken it's toll so as to create additional resistance/heat points along the line.

As for the 400 having a PFC in it - I don't know to be honest. I do know that the limitations on 1-Φ power have to to with the power supply used. I'm not an EE so I would not be able to elaborate any further because I simply don't know. I currently don't have 3-Φ power (yet), I'm running mine on 1-Φ, with a nice, stout 245-249VAC coming into my home. Perhaps later I will get a phase converter from South Texas Converters, as they are in my home-state, and price right. I can get a 40HP phase converter for around $2500 from them. That should set me up for a good while if I were to find some other 3-Φ equipment like a knee-mill.


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Oscar wrote:That "26A" rating on the 221 DV might be a bit optimistic or measured slightly different from what the electrical specifications sticker on the machine actually states, which is 32A I-eff:

Well, I must admit that is very odd, HTP has 26 amps plastered all over their web site. They have it on the web page for the DV and they have it in the specs. It's not like it's an accident. If that's the case there's not very much difference between the single and dual voltage models, which makes more sense. As I said, 26amps and 36amps is a huge difference.

Oscar wrote:I'm not sure about the non-DV model since I don't have that one. I suspect it would be fine since it is rated at about 20% duty cycle @ 220A, so 2min of 36A draw on a 30A breaker shouldn't hurt anything so long as the breaker and wiring are still in good condition and oxidation has not taken it's toll so as to create additional resistance/heat points along the line.

I'm pretty sure I could run it on the circuit, as I wouldn't be using it balls to the wall very much if any of the time. I really don't need that many amps, but there could be times I want it, especially with aluminum. I don't have any experience with aluminum to date.

Oscar wrote:I currently don't have 3-Φ power (yet), I'm running mine on 1-Φ, with a nice, stout 245-249VAC coming into my home. Perhaps later I will get a phase converter from South Texas Converters, as they are in my home-state, and price right. I can get a 40HP phase converter for around $2500 from them.

I lucked out and found the Phase Perfect for 2500. Unlike an RPC, it's more like pure 3 phase, and much quieter. I can start up to 20HP. In the case of an RPC, some machines require 1-1/2 times to start, I don't know if welders fall into that category, but CNCs do, bandsaws, lathes, anything that needs to spin up. The PT-355 I bought sells for about $5200, so I got a good deal on it. I can't run it at my house. It requires 100 amps and I only have 125 amps for my entire home, 30 amps for the shop and a 20 amp 120v circuit. inside the garage.

That is some fine welder you have there. Quite a nice family there, but Pappa Bear is sure sweet.

I keep flip flopping, but cj got me to thinking about the Primeweld once again. It could tide me over for the welding I do, I have more woodworking to do as I'll be working on my log home. I plan to keep my current house, so the log home will be more like my man cave, but it will finally get me a shop with some space and enough power to comfortably run all of my machines.

I will say that 50 amps is not very bad to get 350 amp output. As I said, I have electrode envy! I could easily run that in my new shop when i get it, not that I need it, and it's hard for me to justify as I have most of a home to build.

Alan

TraditionalToolworks wrote:

Oscar wrote:That "26A" rating on the 221 DV might be a bit optimistic or measured slightly different from what the electrical specifications sticker on the machine actually states, which is 32A I-eff:

Well, I must admit that is very odd, HTP has 26 amps plastered all over their web site. They have it on the web page for the DV and they have it in the specs. It's not like it's an accident. If that's the case there's not very much difference between the single and dual voltage models, which makes more sense. As I said, 26amps and 36amps is a huge difference.

Oscar wrote:I'm not sure about the non-DV model since I don't have that one. I suspect it would be fine since it is rated at about 20% duty cycle @ 220A, so 2min of 36A draw on a 30A breaker shouldn't hurt anything so long as the breaker and wiring are still in good condition and oxidation has not taken it's toll so as to create additional resistance/heat points along the line.

I'm pretty sure I could run it on the circuit, as I wouldn't be using it balls to the wall very much if any of the time. I really don't need that many amps, but there could be times I want it, especially with aluminum. I don't have any experience with aluminum to date.

Oscar wrote:I currently don't have 3-Φ power (yet), I'm running mine on 1-Φ, with a nice, stout 245-249VAC coming into my home. Perhaps later I will get a phase converter from South Texas Converters, as they are in my home-state, and price right. I can get a 40HP phase converter for around $2500 from them.

I lucked out and found the Phase Perfect for 2500. Unlike an RPC, it's more like pure 3 phase, and much quieter. I can start up to 20HP. In the case of an RPC, some machines require 1-1/2 times to start, I don't know if welders fall into that category, but CNCs do, bandsaws, lathes, anything that needs to spin up. The PT-355 I bought sells for about $5200, so I got a good deal on it. I can't run it at my house. It requires 100 amps and I only have 125 amps for my entire home, 30 amps for the shop and a 20 amp 120v circuit. inside the garage.

That is some fine welder you have there. Quite a nice family there, but Pappa Bear is sure sweet.

I keep flip flopping, but cj got me to thinking about the Primeweld once again. It could tide me over for the welding I do, I have more woodworking to do as I'll be working on my log home. I plan to keep my current house, so the log home will be more like my man cave, but it will finally get me a shop with some space and enough power to comfortably run all of my machines.

I will say that 50 amps is not very bad to get 350 amp output. As I said, I have electrode envy! I could easily run that in my new shop when i get it, not that I need it, and it's hard for me to justify as I have most of a home to build.

Alan

Would it be hard to run a piece of 8/3 and upgrade? The 10awg is good for 35 amps but is derated for small conductor correction. So as oscar started, probably not the end of the world. Just not kosher.




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