How many amps

[SignWave]

That was a good one SignWave. I laughed so hard I almost blew a hole in my computer chair.

glad i made ya laugh... that was the point!

heres another silly electrical lesson.

one a 110 v welder the duty cycle would be about (lets say) 20%. The most likely reason would be the fact that the tiny little transformer in it is going to get hot from the arc- essentially a short circuit. SO, the more you weld, the more heat builds up and the less current will be able to pass through the xformer. Its a simple fundemental of electricity. The hotter the device gets the more its resistance goes up and the less current it will be able to pass. So bigger Xformers can handle more heat for a longer period of time, but they too will eventually over heat.

when they overheat, the windings can burn and lose their varnish insulation and then BZZT! no more welding ever... or other things like the core laminations can seperate and then the xformer is noisy and most annoying... like that one floro light at the back of the shop... uhg.. If i recall correctly, there is also a point at which the xformer magnetic field will not get any bigger..its a limitation of the device itself. the core has a specific permiability, the windings as well have some limitation that i can longer remember.. " you can only put a gallon of water in a four quart pail..."

if you need power, there is no other cure than to go big(ger).

[shorerider16]

Basically, what everyone here is trying to say is that size DOES matter.

[Steve]

That's what she said.

[6010]

OK fellas,
Thanks for the input, you have answered my question. I guess I will go for at least 250 amps, although with my bad attitude I think I need to go after Martha's big,fat, twin sister.

Maybe it is one of these " old dogs new tricks " type things but it is hard for me to visualize something with an electrode just a little bigger than frog's hair doing the same job as a 1/8 or 5/32 rod in a stick welder. I guess I will have to cut some welds and take a look at the penetration as I am sure some of you have and maybe compare it with my stick welder. I am sure even my stick is a little small by some of your standards; it is a little Miller 300/200 AC/DC Thunderbolt. But she has been able to do everything I have ask of her so far, and being way smaller than Martha she had no trouble getting through the front door.

And there is something to be said about asking a question and being open ended about it. We started off with amps ... and look where we ended up

[SignWave]

Does Martha's big fat twin sister light her farts? Mind you she might have trouble reaching around...

[Steve]

As a matter of fact we do have Martha's twin sister. She eats 3/8 carbons on a steady diet. Ya its a miller with a crank handle to adjust the amps. I'll take a picture of them together for us if you don't comment about their age. Sensitve the darlings are.

[Steve]

Here they are. Martha and her twin sister in the upper left back ground. You reeeally don't want to be around them if they do fart. LOL

[Steve]

For those smaller rods we use this jewel 6010. And you are correct the machine can be to big.

[shorerider16]

Maybe it is one of these " old dogs new tricks " type things but it is hard for me to visualize something with an electrode just a little bigger than frog's hair doing the same job as a 1/8 or 5/32 rod in a stick welder.

It can be a little hard to grasp at first but look at it this way. A wire feed welder is feeding hundreds of inches per minute into the weld puddle where as it takes close to a minute to burn some stick electrodes and they are almost always less than 24" long.

[tonyrico]

I did some play welding in another lifetime. I'm close to retirement and want to "make" things, do things and have some fun to boot. I went to a welding open house last week and of course Miller and Lincoln had the 18 wheelers with every welder the ever made. Miller even had one of the Orange County Chopper inside a plexiglass enclosure.
Anyway, the good thing was that they had welding booths set up so the public could try different machines. I've been doing my homework and really wanted to try the MM180. I did and welded aluminum with the new (less than $200) spool gun that miller just came out with. I was very impressed that I laid out some dimes my first time holding a MIG gun.
Because of the 220 requirement, instead of having to run a new circuit and being married to one physical location, I'm going to run it off my generator which has a 230/30A outlet. It is a 5500 watts run and 8500 peak generator. Miller said it should be fine since the welder only draws 21 amps. Makes me much more portable if I have a tractor problem in the woods...
Anxious to see who reads and responds to my post here.
Good luck.