itsarebuild
itsarebuild GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
9/15/14 1:27 p.m.

My 120v MIG welder seems to have kicked the bucket. Was working fine tacking on a mirror support to sheet metal then just stopped arcing. Wire feeds, gas feeds. Wire glows a little when it touches metal but won't arc no mater what heat or feed speed I use. Ground lead is intact with good conductivity. Any ideas?

NGTD
NGTD SuperDork
9/15/14 1:34 p.m.

Check your feed from the breaker panel to the welder. Maybe you have a bad connection?

itsarebuild
itsarebuild GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
9/15/14 1:43 p.m.

Nope. That circuit is fine. Still can run a full 20a draw on my hoist without issue. I also looked for a breaker in the case without any luck and unplugged it let it sit for an hour and tried it again in case it had a thermoswitch

Dr. Hess
Dr. Hess MegaDork
9/15/14 3:14 p.m.

I take it that this thing is out of warranty. Start pulling it apart and look for burnt components. If it's a HF unit and you can find what's burnt, you can probably order the part if you call them up, or it might be cheaper to just replace the unit and keep that one for spares. Look for diodes which probably have a heat sink, look at the transformer. Smell around for burnt electronics smell (like on a Lucas electrical system.)

Kenny_McCormic
Kenny_McCormic PowerDork
9/15/14 8:49 p.m.

Was it a constant hot tip model or a cold tip model? Might check the contactor that makes that happen. If not that, probably a diode, those are pretty cheap.

itsarebuild
itsarebuild GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
9/16/14 7:36 a.m.

I haven't noticed anything visibly burnt and it never had a burnt smell when it was working. It was used when I bight it so no warranty exists. Ended up ordering an Eastwood 135 to replace it as used hi arts were the same price and used Lincoln's cost more. I may tinker with the old one and see if I can find anything fixable in my "spare time". Unless anyone here wants to try to revive it.

4cylndrfury
4cylndrfury MegaDork
9/16/14 7:38 a.m.

nothing more expensive than a cheap welder...

patgizz
patgizz GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
9/16/14 8:43 a.m.
4cylndrfury wrote: nothing more expensive than a cheap welder...

a cheap VW or free boat?

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