Welder Servicing?

[Astro_Al]

I've got an old Cebora Mig - big old thing, had a hard life making trailers apparently. I picked it up for free, well, I expect my former boss is still waiting for that 50 quid, but given what he paid me I don't feel too guilty!

So... How do I keep it running nicely. I know I should remove the side panels and give it a hoover occaisionally - even I know that grinder dust conducts electricity. Also, clean the rollers and check the tension (I heard triggering the motor and increasing tension until you *just* can't stop it being pulled through is a good rule of thumb?). Obviously keep the torch, tip, shroud, earth lead etc in good fettle.

What else can I do? There seems to be a problem where the solenoids (or whatever it is that quietly goes /bang/ when you press the trigger) sometimes just click on and off when I'm not using it - I guess its a maintenance problem - maybe carp shorting it out? The torch is new and my third while the welder has exhibited this problem, so it's not that.

I love the fat old dino, so I don't want to 'upgrade' to some modern lightweight POS if I can avoid it...

How can you be sentimentally attached to a flippin' welder...?

Anyway - any suggestions regarding either my apparent solenoid issue, or welder maintenance in general?

Ta Al.

[minivin]

just wondering if the solenoid armature is retained by a spring and that has relaxed or rusted, allowing the contacts to drop and make contact without any input from the pistol grip, worth a look

[FridgeFreezer]

Could also be a chafe in the wire somewhere, a breakdown of insulation, or a bit of metallic crud across a contact. Crud like that can be "blown off" when it conducts, creating a very hard to trace intermittent fault although there should be signs of arcing nearby.