120v Welder ?

[jeepnatv4life]

Ive welded decent with a 120v welder at Home great before..

Does wire size help with the welding better??

My welder hasnt been welding the greatest it is a Lincoln 140 from lowes. Im using gas and .25 wire and just wondering why it welds worse that the Snap On Musclie Mig 140 Im using at work with .30 wire.. Its running off a 20A breaker in my new shop..

 

[American Locomotive]

I found the 120v machines tend to do best with .025" wire. 0.035" wire tends to push them too hard. I've had great results from the Lincoln 120v machines, so I'm not sure why you'd have issues.

What exactly "welds worse" about it? One thing, is if welding on the higher power settings, these machines really don't like extension cords.

 

[ndnchf]

I have a Lincoln SP135 plus. I use .025 wire and shielding gas. It works great within its limitations. For heavier work I use stick welding. Need a better description of your problem. But first off make sure you have a good ground. I replaced the stock ground clamp with a heavy bronze one from HF. It works much better.

 

[Kaizen]

Check ground and polarity.
Maybe more description of what's wrong and pics of bad welds


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[why worry]

Polarity is most likely the main issue with .025 wire. If I recall correctly reverse polarity for core shield wires and straight for solid wire. Another thing to look at is the gas 75/25 for for steel. trimix for stainless and argon for aluminium. One last thing to look at is the condition of the liner in the whip sometimes if it is bent to tight the wire can drag in the liner causing wire sputter. So double check condition of liner and tip. Replace if necessary. Also on older machines the drive rolls can get worn affecting wire feed rates.
Dave

 

[bon3s]

Biggest thing that I run in to with all welder and why 'they act weird' or 'less good' to put it is typically dirt and misuse.

Now I dont mean that people dropped them in the mud or off the back of the truck bed (yes ive seen both, at the same time and we still use that Miller welder...) ... but simply that drive rolls, get full of dirt and grease and all sorts of stuff, wire that sits on the roll in most peoples garages for months at a time not getting used up will get dirty and rust, pit, and scale up... all this then run through your liner, as well as the tip, its hard on the liner and components and will wear them out.

Its easy to get in to a hurry and bump, drop, step on a whip ... not to mention wrap them up to tight at the end of the day and put a small kink in the liner. Personally if your going to own a welder and keep one in the garage you might as well put a small box of consumables right next to it, including nozzles, tips, diffusers, and liners.


And to the OP... pictures of what it was running like and what it is now running like would be helpful... maybe your rusty and forgetting simple overlooked step and it isnt the machine...

 

[jeepnatv4life]

Cant get the weld to lay in the seam Its just wants to build up rounded like im lying a tootsie roll in the seam.. Welding 1/8 with gas and .25 wire Granted i was using a 10 ft extension cord Didnt think i was quite at the welders limits


Wheres a good pic hosting site ill get some pics in here

 

[sberry]

Some cord doesn't hurt them but the connector at the ground clamp gets wonky and really makes them sputter. The Lowes Lincoln 140 is a really good machine. It is a 023 machine though, some could make use of 030 but its really like trying to **** a golf ball thru a garden hose. The 120V circuit can only provide so much, no way around it. Turn the voltage up to get it to flatten some, or wire speed down.

 

[Gittgo]

Cant get the weld to lay in the seam Its just wants to build up rounded like im lying a tootsie roll in the seam.. Welding 1/8 with gas and .25 wire Granted i was using a 10 ft extension cord Didnt think i was quite at the welders limits


Wheres a good pic hosting site ill get some pics in here

1/8 plate with a 140 Lincoln ? Lose the 025 and put a roll of 030 in it and switch to straight CO2. Contrary to advertising myths and non welders on Toob, that 140 is maxed on 1/8 plate. 3/16 if you gap , bevel and know what you're doing. The CO2 will help a lot.I switch up from 025( and C25) to 030 (and straight CO2) at 16 gauge.

 

[Kaizen]

I think more like switching polarity and going to 030 flux core. My 135 won't do enough juice at that thickness without fluxcore. Change it over and you will be fine. Turn off the gas


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[jeepnatv4life]

Some cord doesn't hurt them but the connector at the ground clamp gets wonky and really makes them sputter. The Lowes Lincoln 140 is a really good machine. It is a 023 machine though, some could make use of 030 but its really like trying to **** a golf ball thru a garden hose. The 120V circuit can only provide so much, no way around it. Turn the voltage up to get it to flatten some, or wire speed down.

Im gonna play with wire speed and see where that gets me Guess the 120v snap on welder at work has spoiled me speed wise Ill turn the feed back a little and then slow down

 

[63spyder]

Make sure your extension cord is actually 12 gauge wire.

 

[ed_v]

It is a 023 machine though, some could make use of 030 but its really like trying to **** a golf ball thru a garden hose.

This very well could be the issue. I've seen this happen many times before. Another thing is the ground clamp. Most of the ground clamps that come with the smaller machines these days are garbage. Double check your polarity and make sure you are getting a good ground.

Ed

 

[MP&C]

I always say to try the cheap fixes first, i.e. Don't spend any money until you've tried changing METHODS first. A 120v machine is a bit weak for 1/8" metal but you can "cheat" by either preheating the weld area with a torch or chamfering about a 45* to remove about half the thickness at the edge so the machine doesn't "see" so much thickness. See if either of these helps. The other question for you, it sounded like you hadn't welded on your home machine for quite a while and then when you tried it after that time lapse you had issues. How humid is your garage that it's stored in, notice any surface rust on the wire?

 

[MoonRise]

1/8" steel plate with 0.025 solid wire and C25 and a 120V MIG machine (even a decent 'name brand' wire feed machine)?

Even with everything going 'right', that combination is really asking too much of the machine.

Some 0.035 NR-211MP FCAW wire and that exact same machine will have enough power to blow a hole right through that 1/8" plate.

Those small 120V MIG machines usually top out IMNSHO at 'gauge' thickness materials. Meaning 14 or 16 gauge workpieces.

Hmmm, "new shop" you said, on a circuit with a 20 amp breaker? Nothing else on that circuit?

Check your voltage at the actual outlet, preferably when you are running the welder. You might be running a bit low on the actual voltage, which can make life difficult (or more like impossible!) for a 'little' 120V welder when you are trying to run it flat-out. POCO might be running a bit low on the voltage coming off the pole/transformer, then into your house and main meter, then out to a sub panel in your shop and finally to the outlet you are trying to use and you might end up just that few more volts 'lost'.

Also double-check all your electrical connections (breakers, junctions/splices, outlet, etc) to make sure everything is snugged up and tight.

And of course, double check things at/on the welder. Clean tight connections for the electrical connections in the welder (by the wire spool), good clean connection in/on/to the work clamp (aka 'ground' clamp) and a decent connection from the work clamp to the workpiece. Good tight connection of the contact tip inside the torch head. Correct size contact tip for the wire. Correct polarity for the wire type (DC +, aka DCEP, for solid steel wire, + to the torch and - to the work clamp).

 

[jeepnatv4life]

1/8" steel plate with 0.025 solid wire and C25 and a 120V MIG machine (even a decent 'name brand' wire feed machine)?

Even with everything going 'right', that combination is really asking too much of the machine.

Some 0.035 NR-211MP FCAW wire and that exact same machine will have enough power to blow a hole right through that 1/8" plate.

Those small 120V MIG machines usually top out IMNSHO at 'gauge' thickness materials. Meaning 14 or 16 gauge workpieces.

Hmmm, "new shop" you said, on a circuit with a 20 amp breaker? Nothing else on that circuit?

Check your voltage at the actual outlet, preferably when you are running the welder. You might be running a bit low on the actual voltage, which can make life difficult (or more like impossible!) for a 'little' 120V welder when you are trying to run it flat-out. POCO might be running a bit low on the voltage coming off the pole/transformer, then into your house and main meter, then out to a sub panel in your shop and finally to the outlet you are trying to use and you might end up just that few more volts 'lost'.

Also double-check all your electrical connections (breakers, junctions/splices, outlet, etc) to make sure everything is snugged up and tight.

And of course, double check things at/on the welder. Clean tight connections for the electrical connections in the welder (by the wire spool), good clean connection in/on/to the work clamp (aka 'ground' clamp) and a decent connection from the work clamp to the workpiece. Good tight connection of the contact tip inside the torch head. Correct size contact tip for the wire. Correct polarity for the wire type (DC +, aka DCEP, for solid steel wire, + to the torch and - to the work clamp).

just the distance from the panel is probably my problem... I am a good ways from the house panel to my shop 120' or so.....

 

[Abeo]

I have trouble with my Lincoln 140, plugged directly into a dedicated 20A outlet, using .023 wire on 1/8th. If I'm welding anything other than sheet metal, I go to 0.030 flux core to get some penetration.

A 240V MIG is in my very near future.