- Joined
- Oct 27, 2013
- Messages
- 124
Welding :welding: up a 5 antenna mount bracket for a ham radio enthusiast. It will eventually sit on top of a mast bolted to the top of his pole building. 1.5" X 1/4" 6061 angle with some machined mounts for securing various geeky radio antennas. They give him the ability to do everything from act as a input point for truck and aircraft transponders on something called APRS, to talking with other hams half way around the world...and then all of the sudden I had a fire. Welder burned up internally. First it shorted out with a shower of sparks, then tripped the main in the shop and was under a pretty good flame-e-age, so I though what the heck, I might as well get the extinguisher. Fortunately, after the breaker tripped, I could see my way around the shop with the flames... Really didn't know what to do since the flames were inside the box, so I just discharged the extinguisher into the welder case, just as it started roaring black smoke. I only panicked 
anic: when I couldn't wheel it out of the garage because the plug was trapped behind other immovable stuff! Thank God I had the garage a whole lot more organized than I did when I had the machine tools all apart recently, or I'd have never been able to get to the welder. I put off the urge to call 911 and hit it one more time with the extinguisher instead. That was over an hour ago. It's sitting outside now. I think the fire is out for good. I'll check it one more time before bed, but I'm out an expen$ive welder. 
Might be a while till I get the bracket done now.
I hardly ever used the high voltage side of this machine. Thick aluminum requires the most amperage, so I was closer to the duty cycle limits. It's a 40% duty cycle machine. Without water cooling however, and asking for 130 amps or 65% power, I likely came closer to the limit than I have in a long time.
The machine is one of the first single phase industrial TIG welders Miller mass produced. Every supply house counter guy, or pro welder I ever discussed it with, said that it was the best all around stick machine money could buy, but only marginal as a TIG source. I think it's about 943 years old. still called it a Heli-arc machine back then, a precursor to Miller's Dialarc 250 series and the "synchrowave" line. I know because I shop them every year :ebay: and check craig'slist from time to time, but can never justify the price for the full aerospace or a 260DX. Those are all solid state electronic. Mine actually has two giant commutators that manually screw in and out to increase or decrease induction, thereby controlling amperage. It was originally designed to be water cooled. They sold a plastic 10 gallon tub that sat under the machine or you could hook up supplied water and drain it to waste. I've never hooked up water to it, because the previous owner never did and he ran a fab shop. It wasn't behaving well tonight. Sparked and spattered a lot as the high frequency selector seemed to be misbehaving. I was having a tough time getting the arc to stabilize for any length of time. Now I know why.
Photos in the morning once I get the shroud off, but only after a good night's sleep.
anic: when I couldn't wheel it out of the garage because the plug was trapped behind other immovable stuff! Thank God I had the garage a whole lot more organized than I did when I had the machine tools all apart recently, or I'd have never been able to get to the welder. I put off the urge to call 911 and hit it one more time with the extinguisher instead. That was over an hour ago. It's sitting outside now. I think the fire is out for good. I'll check it one more time before bed, but I'm out an expen$ive welder. Might be a while till I get the bracket done now.
I hardly ever used the high voltage side of this machine. Thick aluminum requires the most amperage, so I was closer to the duty cycle limits. It's a 40% duty cycle machine. Without water cooling however, and asking for 130 amps or 65% power, I likely came closer to the limit than I have in a long time.
The machine is one of the first single phase industrial TIG welders Miller mass produced. Every supply house counter guy, or pro welder I ever discussed it with, said that it was the best all around stick machine money could buy, but only marginal as a TIG source. I think it's about 943 years old. still called it a Heli-arc machine back then, a precursor to Miller's Dialarc 250 series and the "synchrowave" line. I know because I shop them every year :ebay: and check craig'slist from time to time, but can never justify the price for the full aerospace or a 260DX. Those are all solid state electronic. Mine actually has two giant commutators that manually screw in and out to increase or decrease induction, thereby controlling amperage. It was originally designed to be water cooled. They sold a plastic 10 gallon tub that sat under the machine or you could hook up supplied water and drain it to waste. I've never hooked up water to it, because the previous owner never did and he ran a fab shop. It wasn't behaving well tonight. Sparked and spattered a lot as the high frequency selector seemed to be misbehaving. I was having a tough time getting the arc to stabilize for any length of time. Now I know why.
Photos in the morning once I get the shroud off, but only after a good night's sleep.
