185 Micro Goes Bang!!??!?!?!?!?

[GUNNER]

..........................

You were mad ........ admit it !! LOL!!!!!!!!! Temper, temper ............

[performance]

I was responding to Brad's question Gunner. The policy is there for the benefit of establishing a procedure and CLEAR understanding of what is the company backs across the board as a minimum action.

[Oleg]

You were mad ........ admit it !! LOL!!!!!!!!! Temper, temper ............

yes i was Mike .. haha

[Oleg]

I would think this explains everything..... Oleg had you posted this in this thread my original post here wouldn't have ever took place... But since you had already posted about a cross dresser...... OH yea a cross shipment I couldn't understand why you didn't follow through and Mark started with all this company policy stuff since you had already spoken and indicated that you were cross shipping..

In some cases we can cross ship it .. but costumer DID get the lost dual voltage unit. Nothing we could of done.

[Oleg]

last one....... Some cases

thanks you , i had a looooong day

[D2junky]

Thought I would give everyone an update.........I received my new unit. Face plate on this one is cracked too. No biggy....I have some lumps and bumps as well. Been waiting for the gas man to arrive with Argon and it came Friday morning. I live in the sticks....its a pain. Anyway off the bat I'm experiencing rough arc starts on AC. Initially no problem on DC but now on DC as well. With the AC balance turned down to about 9 oclock on the dial I get no arc start at all. Once I have the balance up to about 10 oclock I'll get a rough start but then things smooth out when I give it more pedal. I'm welding some 1/8 inch 5052. I'll get a great bead going and about halfway through the arc stuttters and spits until it just plain wont weld. Figure I'll check the points gap and go to open the case and there are NO SCREWS HOLDING THE BACK COVER ON. Frustratiion is mounting as I wait for the west coasters to come in but I'm not happy at all at this point. Ugh I'm two months behind on a motorcycle I should be riding at this point.

[performance]

It sounds as if it could be bad gas...if the arc is sputtering. That would account for it in DC and AC. It is one possibility. The other is indeed point gap settings, if it is a problem with starting.

What Tungsten are you using?

[D2junky]

2%lanthanated 3/32. Changed cylinders and same thing. The arc start is not near as rough on DC on the pedal. The initial start on AC is once again rough but once the AMPS come up it smooths out for a while and then starts sputtering after about two inches of bead. Its hard to describe I guess but I'll have a great bead going after the inital rough start and then it just all goes to crap.

[performance]

Where are you running your AC frequency? 9 on the dial for AC cleaning is a good place to set it. Also if the arc is fading out, try adjusting your work clamp or repositioning it. If necessary, try to ground the cable directly to the metal. If gas isn't the cause, the next most common issue is with workclamp placement or malfunction. Pics might help

[D2junky]

just checked the point gap......was nearly closed. I'm guessing theres some heat going into these points during operation and the gap was close enough that it was closing down and the cause of the sputter. Ill fire things up and post the results.

As an aside while im pissin and moaning......spend the extra bucks on some quality screw for the case.. im using a properly sized phillips drive and every damn one of them is so soft that after about two turns they strip.

[D2junky]

I've tried the frequency all over the place to see if that changed the problem. Acts pretty much the same bottom to top. More noticeable at higher frequency. Work clamp is as close to the weld as possible on stainless brushed and cleaned metal. Clamp is always grounded to the work piece. And am usually at the 9 o'clock positioni on AC balance.

[performance]

Before they were too loose, now they are too tight. That seems to be a constant battle. They are small screws, and do not tolerate overtorquing or cross threading. I typically keep a bag of quality fasteners from Fastenal close at hand to replace mine, or any that I work on. We have discussed that issue at the factory...Hopefully with a little more pressure we can get items like those resolved. It a major rework of the suppliers for changes like these...and it takes more time to fix the small issues than the big ones.

Edit: Clamps can be defective or the bolt holding the cable or the lug at the bolt can be oxidized...creating issues. That is why I suggest removing the clamp, and directly grounding the lug if you can to try it. Likely its primarily the gap issue. On AC, if the tungsten becomes contaminated, it can create the arc destabilization as well.

Are you trying to ball your tungsten? Using it in the negative side right?

[D2junky]

Not trying to ball it and yes using it on the negative side. I actually get much better arc performace with a tapered tip. I get really nice welds once the arc starts until it started sputtering but I think it was the gap issue as much as anything.
I understand on the screws and suppliers. I completely understand when you buy a bin of screws you better use them up and it can be a bitch to switch the small things. I'm a big fan of allen or torx heads and since point gap maintenance is a common deal with any TIG i'll be replacing my screws with such.

[D2junky]

And i hope it don't come across as being to much of a pain. I love this little machine and understand how stuff happens. The features are great and lead me away from a diversion. I"m a hardcore hobbiest at best but would like to perfect my skills before I jump to a bigger machine.

[D2junky]

After alot of screwing around tonight with collets cups tungsten gas glow etc. etc. I finally unplugged the damn pedal and tried things just using the switch on the torch. Nice stable arc and nice stable arc start right off the bat. Tried with the frequency turned all the way down and up and AC balance everywhere in between and its a nice steady arc all the way with no spitting sputtering etc. I been fighting this damn pedal the whole time and never once thought to unplug and go back to the torch switch. Makes me wonder if it was the cause of the original kaboom. Unfortunately im still screwed on progress for this weeks project as welding .062 3003 aluminum with no foot pedal is a bitch and a half. I'll be in touch tomorrow with you Mark to see what we can do on the pedal and lets hope they aren't all this bad. As long as you are in the last half of the pedals range things work fine but the first half sucks.

[srp]

If I don't take a straight punch and run it in to the holes on my collet body and tighten it up good and tight, mine will act kinda like that.

[zoama]

If I don't take a straight punch and run it in to the holes on my collet body and tighten it up good and tight, mine will act kinda like that.

Check for corrosion in the torch threads... they should look like brass or copper, not white or green.

[D2junky]

Check for corrosion in the torch threads... they should look like brass or copper, not white or green.

It's definitely the pedal in my case if u didn't read my last post. Unplugged the pedal and went back to using the switch on the torch and all is well. I'll be contacting them for a new pedal today.

[SimpleSimon]

It's definitely the pedal in my case if u didn't read my last post. Unplugged the pedal and went back to using the switch on the torch and all is well. I'll be contacting them for a new pedal today.

Solid troubleshooting. Not much on a pedal that can go wrong I would think.

[JBnID]

D2- There was a trailer picked up by UPS but not trans-shipped last Friday of about a hundred machines. Mine is on the truck for delivery now. Yours probably is too.