Nigelw Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 I tried the flux cored wire and found it almost unusable for me, no idea why but a whole afternoon playing with 2mm practice plates saw 2 in over a 100 welds come out passable not exactly good enough for me and no matter what I tried it didn't get better, back on normal wire and gas with polarity put back it was A ok. Offer of a cheap second hand stick welder rated for 145A seeed too good to pass up, used it for the 1st time last night on some 3mm plate to repair some metal work in the riding hall, 3.2mm rods and max power saw barely 5 inches of weld before it thermally tripped Welds are good though Is there anything I can do? Has anyone done anything similar to get a longer running time? I will try with some smaller rods to see how it goes but not really wanting to bin it in a hurrry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 You could use forced air cooling of the welder possibly. There should be a current range stated on the box of rods, different grades of rod also effect the current requirement as well as the different thicknesses. Obviously lower current usage will increase your duty cycle allowing you to weld more and wait less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 Is the fan running? Does seem a bit quick for it to trip out, it could be the trip is faulty.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 I had a cheap 130amp welder with 3.2mm rods and the amps wound up I could only get similar duty cycle. A friend did suggest a better/bigger fan as over heat is the biggest problem with this type of welder. However a murrex 130amp oil cooled welder came up so I swapped instead mind it's about the same size but 4 times the weight. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 With smaller rods you shouldn't need to have the power up so high ? 1.6 or 2.0 mm rods should be enough for 3mm material thickness I'd say , but I don't stick weld as much as MIG/MAG cheers Steveb 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejparrott Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 Pretty normal I'd say, drop down a rod size and power Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertspark Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 Don't think anyone rates flux cored mig unless you are outside plus don't want to drag a cylinder about. Don't think I'll go back to arc unless its really thick stuff with high deposition rates as the rods are cheap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelw Posted December 17, 2014 Author Share Posted December 17, 2014 Right then, there is no cooling fan, or at least nothing comes on when I turn it on, can I fit one on it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertspark Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 Yes you can just choose a 220v one (you in France edit: muppet!!! Netherlands... easy to see that when you're not on an iphone!! are you not?). Need one that fits in the casing (although I saw one screwed to the outside once) and just wire it across the live and neutral. It's an easy way to increase the duty cycle. May need to cut a hole in the casing to improve the discharge fan airflow (most fans of this type are axial fans so have very little static head (pressure) but a fair flow if unrestricted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Briarston Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 I've got a SIP 180amp set. Had it about 30yrs. Single and 3ph. switchable, but always run on 1ph. No fan cooling, but have never had it trip on thermal cutout. I find that 70-90 amps and 2.5mm rods work well enough on 1/4" plate/angle iron with suitable preparation. Don't wish to criticize your efforts, just my experience of stick welding. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted December 17, 2014 Share Posted December 17, 2014 usually flux core mig welders should be setup as DCEN rather than DCEP, this makes for a much nicer weld (for some reason) swapping the polarity wont damage the welder but should make a large difference. mind you i still prefer a stick welder than flux core. as above try a smaller rod Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelw Posted December 17, 2014 Author Share Posted December 17, 2014 I have done tons of stick welding, but I was lucky enough to have a rather large 3 phase oil cooled Lincoln in the past, will try with smaller rods and fit up a cooling fan to begin, cheap fixes until I can afford a decent welder for the heavy jobs to come. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studmuffin Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 As above Nige. Lower amps +smaller rods. I still prefer stick welding and use an inverter welder, which is so much easier to use and light weight. ( also if using an extension cable stick welders hate weedy cables and not being fully unwound). Cheers Barry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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