Just Clicked the "Go" Button

. . . on eBay for one of the pre-order PowerPro 256 machines. Been making due with an old 120V fluxcore wirefeed that I converted to MIG and have used for lots of small jobs. And while the little wirefeed does fine for small projects involving tubing, etc., it just doesn't have the "goo" (a technical term) to really melt metal. So I've been wanting a TIG unit, and downloaded a bunch of Jody's videos to get a few pointers on what to expect. On a few of them I saw Jody demo'ing a puke-green welder and decided I'd look into it. Meanwhile, a friend a thousand miles away suddenly offered me his old 400-lb Hobart for free, but then said the cost of the gas to pick it up might not be worth it, since he had just bought a new green welder that welds circles around the old Hobart. Over the years, this guy has forgotten more about welding than I'll probably ever learn, so between Jody's demos and my friend's endorsement (despite receiving one DOA machine and then having to replace the pot in the foot pedal on its replacement), I decided it was time to seriously consider going green. Read everything I could on the forum and elsewhere and figured I can handle whatever comes up, and it appears Everlast stands behind their equipment. So that's what sold me, in case anyone's interested.

In the meantime I just finished wiring 250A to the groj and learned why the 'lectrician quoted me $1100 to do the job. Now have to make some room and melt some tubing together for a cart and scrounge a gas bottle or two. Anybody seen any good designs for a welder cart?

Wish me luck.

Slartybartfast
TIG-noob

http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...Cart-for-200DX

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

. . . on eBay for one of the pre-order PowerPro 256 machines. Been making due with an old 120V fluxcore wirefeed that I converted to MIG and have used for lots of small jobs. And while the little wirefeed does fine for small projects involving tubing, etc., it just doesn't have the "goo" (a technical term) to really melt metal. So I've been wanting a TIG unit, and downloaded a bunch of Jody's videos to get a few pointers on what to expect. On a few of them I saw Jody demo'ing a puke-green welder and decided I'd look into it. Meanwhile, a friend a thousand miles away suddenly offered me his old 400-lb Hobart for free, but then said the cost of the gas to pick it up might not be worth it, since he had just bought a new green welder that welds circles around the old Hobart. Over the years, this guy has forgotten more about welding than I'll probably ever learn, so between Jody's demos and my friend's endorsement (despite receiving one DOA machine and then having to replace the pot in the foot pedal on its replacement), I decided it was time to seriously consider going green. Read everything I could on the forum and elsewhere and figured I can handle whatever comes up, and it appears Everlast stands behind their equipment. So that's what sold me, in case anyone's interested.

In the meantime I just finished wiring 250A to the groj and learned why the 'lectrician quoted me $1100 to do the job. Now have to make some room and melt some tubing together for a cart and scrounge a gas bottle or two. Anybody seen any good designs for a welder cart?

Wish me luck.

Slartybartfast
TIG-noob

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You might want to take a look at mine http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...y-Welding-Cart

ken

Please check in with us when you get your unit. Make sure you have downloaded your manual for the unit online. If you have an questions in the mean time, don't be afraid to ask, and make use of our tech support line and forum.

Here my welding cart this will be my second welding cart since Attachment 6854the first one caught on fire think i will make a metal one lol

Welcome, Slarty, good to see another HHGTTG afficianado. What kind of wirefeed projects have you been welding on so far, and good luck with the new TIG!

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

In the meantime I just finished wiring 250A to the groj and learned why the 'lectrician quoted me $1100 to do the job.

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Welcome! I too learned this lesson recently after installing a new feeder line to my detached garage and upgrading the subpanel. In the end I saved myself a couple hundred dollars in labor, but I'm not sure it was worth it! lol

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Wish me luck.

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Good luck. :)

Why did you need a 250 amp subpanel?

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Originally Posted by performance

Why did you need a 250 amp subpanel?

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Must be a big garage... A while back I upgraded the house to 200 amp and put a 100 amp box in each of the 2 garages. No sub panels... Each has its own service. Try explaining that to the lady at the building department. Had to get a 400 amp meter socket. Inspector was fine with it. Power company had to bring in 350 MCM wire.

I thought it was pretty hokey to put in 2 100 amp breakers in a 200 amp box. Was nice to have it done correctly instead of everyone (including the inspector) telling me to cut corners. I bet it would have cost me over 10k to have it hired out.

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Originally Posted by DaveO

Welcome, Slarty, good to see another HHGTTG afficianado. What kind of wirefeed projects have you been welding on so far, and good luck with the new TIG!

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Dave, thanks for the welcome. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has made sense for me out of an otherwise inscrutable world. I think Adams was onto something.

Years ago I needed a couple of ornamental steel gates to keep our kids, just out of the crawling stage, from wandering out of the front yard. So I got a quote and was told $500 each. So I explained to the wife that I could buy a cheap 120V fluxcore (a Campbell-Hausfeld from Ho' Depo' that was made by some Italian company that's supposed to make pretty good stuff), do the gates and save several hundred bucks on the deal. She went for it and I wound up with a cheap, but useable wirefeed welder. Later, I bought the bolt-on MIG conversion kit from C-H and was amazed how welding with argon/CO2 cleaned up my welds. It's really not a bad MIG welder if you have a good ground clamp. Have done a number of fences, gates, etc out of 11 and 16 ga steel tubing, made frames and racks for shelving, even a couple of vehicle tow bars that were used to tow my Xterra and pickup behind various motorhomes with no problems. Recently did my 3rd lumber rack, this one for my pickup and have had folks comment that the welds looked like TIG. Neighbors bring me odd jobs to weld up from time to time, too.

But i've been wanting to do TIG for many years, and since a lot of my DIY projects involve aluminum, I'm getting tired of not having TIG capability and the ability to really burn deep into steel. So the PP256 is where I'm at. Hoping to get a good one.

You're right. I just saw that. Did that to see if anyone was reading. :P
Left half of brain said 230V, the right half said 50A. So left hand typed "2" and "5," while the right hand typed the "0." What can I say?

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

You're right. I just saw that. Did that to see if anyone was reading. :P
Left half of brain said 230V, the right half said 50A. So left hand typed "2" and "5," while the right hand typed the "0." What can I say?

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Looks like I am the power hog with the 100 amp boxes... 250 did sound like a odd number. I thought you had a large barn/shop.

Slarty,

Welcome to the forums ...

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

So I got a quote and was told $500 each. So I explained to the wife that I could buy a cheap 120V fluxcore (a Campbell-Hausfeld from Ho' Depo' that was made by some Italian company that's supposed to make pretty good stuff), do the gates and save several hundred bucks on the deal. She went for it and I wound up with a cheap, but useable wirefeed welder.

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I actually financed the wife capital for my 256 in much the same way .... She wanted a driveway gate ;) .

A few things to think about while you are waiting for your unit to ship. You may want to sort out whether you are going to need a water cooler or not. Many folks, including myself, just plumb the torch to a garden hose, which seems to work pretty well. You should also figure out how you can best grind your tungsten .... There are a ton of threads here on the subject. Finally, if you don't yet have an Ar tank, then start looking for one. Deals can be found on Craigslist, if you are not in a rush. Most importantly, don't panic.

Cheers
Mike

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Originally Posted by posixPilot

Slarty,

... Most importantly, don't panic.

Cheers
Mike

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And be sure you know where your towel is!

I keep the towel around my neck. It's there in case I have to hitch a ride, and keeps the arc burns off my neck. Have been burned through my shirts too many times.

Just thinking that having Zaphod's Joo Janta 200 Super-Chromatic Peril Sensitive Sunglasses might have an application to welding, but my cheap-o HF automatic welding helmet works, too.

Oh yeah, got a notice from UPS that an 85 lb box had just had a label created and would arrive Wednesday. So need to get some argon.

Re: the torch, I would prefer an air cooled torch, but will just hook up the supplied water-cooled torch to the laundry sink/urinal (don't tell the wife) in the groj for now.

Re: sharpening tungsten, Friend just e-mailed me: "Sharpening tungsten is tricky and it wears out
aluminum oxide quickly. The best thing I've found is a cheap 6in. diamond lap in about 400
grit and mount it on the side of a regular bench wheel. Sometimes it takes a paper shim to
replace the hub pad and give the lap proper support." http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-6-Diamon...item5d2fa98641

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Re: the torch, I would prefer an air cooled torch

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Zoama has a couple of good threads on his CK torch on the 256. It looks like a great setup ... Light, flexible, air cooled, and a lot of amps. When I scrape the funds together, definitely going to take a serious look at it.

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Re: sharpening tungsten, Friend just e-mailed me: "Sharpening tungsten is tricky and it wears out aluminum oxide quickly. The best thing I've found is a cheap 6in. diamond lap in about 400

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Definitely go with the diamond lap .... AlOxide can contaminate your tungsten before you even start welding. Believe me, you dont need any help; you're gonna contaminate the tungsten just fine on your own ;) .

http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...read.php?t=446

Cheers
Mike

Ok, I've gotta ask. So who's the hen in your avatar?

That's Goog ... she is one of four hens that we keep as pets. She always tries to follow us into the house, because she knows that our kids are sloppy eaters and they drop all sorts of treats on the floor. ;)

Attachment 6876

Cheers
Mike

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Originally Posted by posixPilot

That's Goog ... she is one of four hens that we keep as pets. She always tries to follow us into the house, because she knows that our kids are sloppy eaters and they drop all sorts of treats on the floor. ;)

Cheers


Mike

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OK, now I've gotta ask. How many people have asked you about the hen! LOL :D

For a welding cart, I like using a small roll around tool box. The drawers are handy to have for all the torch parts. I move the bottle around with a small hand truck. Sometimes I stick weld, so not having to move the bottle around everywhere is OK with me.

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Originally Posted by undercut

OK, now I've gotta ask. How many people have asked you about the hen! LOL :D

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Yeah, I do catch some crap about it ;) . There are a few other members with birds too, but my avatar seems to derail some threads.

Cheers
Mike

i use the cheap rolling carts lol work good and have storage space

chickens are cool i had one for a pet growing up on the farm and a pet pig. now have my 2 buddys lol there so spoiledAttachment 6881

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Originally Posted by Rodsmachineshop

chickens are cool i had one for a pet growing up on the farm and a pet pig. now have my 2 buddys lol there so spoiledAttachment 6881

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Dog is God spelled backwards. Mine is a bed hog as well.

Not trying to go further off track, but the lap disks, how thick are they, do they need a backing plate?

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Originally Posted by Trip59

Not trying to go further off track, but the lap disks, how thick are they, do they need a backing plate?

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I haven't used them but seen them before. They look like thick paper. Along the lines of Emory cloth. They don't use a backing plate. Usually used flexible for polishing or sanding.

Check ebay they have a bunch for sale and it can give you some pics...

Update: An 85 lb box was delivered to my place this afternoon. Too bad 'cause I'm 1100 miles away right now. Would otherwise be out in the groj unpacking and admiring the fresh green paint. Home in a few days. I'll tend to it then. In the meantime I'm thinking of all the metal things I'm going to melt together.

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Update: An 85 lb box was delivered to my place this afternoon. Too bad 'cause I'm 1100 miles away right now.

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Don't you worry yourself one bit. Just let me know your address and where you put the spare key and I'll make sure your package is put in a "safe place" .... ;)

Congrats on your purchase! Melt some metal when you get back and take some pictures for the rest of us.

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Originally Posted by undercut

Don't you worry yourself one bit. Just let me know your address and where you put the spare key and I'll make sure your package is put in a "safe place" .... ;)

Congrats on your purchase! Melt some metal when you get back and take some pictures for the rest of us.

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Or you can let me know that address :)

Enjoy!

Too late, I'm home.

Opened the box yesterday and checked for damage. For the benefit of the folks at Everlas, there was none, though the shipping box had clearly been dragged around by the guys in the brown truck and it showed evidence of spending a lot of time on its side, which the package was not designed for. Perhaps some stickers "This side up" and "Glass" would be helpful.

Spent some time looking at the PP256 and my old MIG cart. The 256 is about the same size and weight as the MIG, and can stack on top of it without becoming too to-heavy. Will post pics as I proceed.

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Too late, I'm home.

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I need to find out who at Everlast to complain to. The PM feature doesn't seem to be working anymore. I didn't get your note with your address .... ;)

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Perhaps some stickers "This side up" and "Glass" would be helpful.

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Had to chuckle when I read that. I've heard of people who have seen the guys in brown "rolling" boxes of furniture end onto end down the block to deliver it. Not all of them are like that but some of these guys don't / won't read the labels.

There's no reason for them to--their job is to get it there, that's it.

I had a friend who worked at a UPS distribution center for a few months unloading/loading trucks. They'd run over something on accident with a fork lift and laugh/ship it on through.

"Fragile" they called "projectile" and threw them harder. The goal was to get a glass shattering sound out of whatever was in the box.

Not saying everyone there is like that--but you better package your stuff good, because they're going to move it in the fastest way possible regardless of whether it damages it

Yeah, you're probably right. I'm probably expecting that they actually care. The foam pieces covering the front and back bezel did their job, as did the one on the "bottom" of the box that the welder stands on (when it's upright).

Haven't yet applied power to it. This weekend . . .

Got my tungsten and filler rods in from McMaster.com 16 hours after I placed my order. Their truck stops by my work, so that's a no-brainer. Last time I went by the local welding supply shoppe, they had plenty of SMA rod and plenty of MIG wire, but nothing remotely TIG-like. And their prices are always higher than I can buy online, so . . .

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Originally Posted by Slartybartfa

Haven't yet applied power to it. This weekend . . .

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Weekend?!? You, my friend, have a lot more restraint than I do .... :D