Trailer hitch..Millermatic 175 230V problems?

[trickard]

Ok I went to weld up my custom trailer hitch today and much to my surprise my Millermatic 175 MIG unit wouldn't operate..How can this be? it has less than 10 hours of use on it. ???
It has power, the fan turns, when I close the trigger argon flows out the torch. What I dont have is any wire feed or and Voltge at the torch, i.e. it wont even make and arc of any size, even with both knobs on MAX

I took the cover off and the thermal circuit breaker has voltage on both sides. I verified 230V is geting to the circuit board.. The board had a green LED that glows and a red one that blinks "on" when I squeeze the trigger..

Any IDEAS.. I'm calling th repair shop tomorrow?

... TJR

[fyoung]

Ok I went to weld up my custom trailer hitch today and much to my surprise my Millermatic 175 MIG unit wouldn't operate..How can this be? it has less than 10 hours of use on it. ???
It has power, the fan turns, when I close the trigger argon flows out the torch. What I dont have is any wire feed or and Voltge at the torch, i.e. it wont even make and arc of any size, even with both knobs on MAX

I took the cover off and the thermal circuit breaker has voltage on both sides. I verified 230V is geting to the circuit board.. The board had a green LED that glows and a red one that blinks "on" when I squeeze the trigger..

Any IDEAS.. I'm calling th repair shop tomorrow?

... TJR

I don't have any idea..please keep us up updated on this.
thanks, Farris

[PAToyota]

Are the feed rollers going? Could be as simple as the wire fused to the tip.

[MAC702]

Could be as simple as the wire fused to the tip.

He would still get hellacious arc action when he shorted the tip to the weldment, though.

CALL Miller (920-734-9821) and ask for Tech Support. They will ask all the right questions and probably save you a trip to the shop.

[fyoung]

Ok I went to weld up my custom trailer hitch today and much to my surprise my Millermatic 175 MIG unit wouldn't operate..How can this be? it has less than 10 hours of use on it. ???
It has power, the fan turns, when I close the trigger argon flows out the torch. What I dont have is any wire feed or and Voltge at the torch, i.e. it wont even make and arc of any size, even with both knobs on MAX

I took the cover off and the thermal circuit breaker has voltage on both sides. I verified 230V is geting to the circuit board.. The board had a green LED that glows and a red one that blinks "on" when I squeeze the trigger..

Any IDEAS.. I'm calling th repair shop tomorrow?

... TJR

Hi, just wondering if you got it fixed?
Thanks, farris

[Miller Kevin]

trickard,

I'm sorry to hear you are having a problem with your machine. There are a number of things that could cause a no wire feed condition in the Millermatic 175. You have eliminated some of these possibilities with the checks you made and you can leave the rest to your local warranty service center. Get the unit over to them and we'll get it taken care of ASAP.

Kevin

[DDA52]

Sure wished it worked like that, Kevin. Around here, it is a two to three week wait, just for a diagnosis. Actual repairs will take longer...and btw, would you like a rental machine while you wait?. Drives me nuts. My last warranty work on my MM135 took three and a half weeks. It was diagnosed, and had parts ordered and recieved all in three to four days...it took the rest of the time to wait in line for repair.

[trickard]

Ok here's the scoop. The welder is fixed. I did bring it to a Miller repair center. They confirmed my findings, No wire Feed, No OCV , Nothing to repair, needs a replacment PC (Main ) board. BTW the retail on the PC board is 1/2 the price of the welder!!! I was covered under warranty for the Board, but no the labor , travel expense...etc...etc. I was not provided an explaination as to why the original board failed, other than Miller Tech indicated they had a known problem w/ some of the boards. There are several obsoleted (down change) part numbers. It came with a new Amp/Wire speed setting chart to attach to the flip up cover., so there must be some changes/ improvments. Overall I am very pleased. The Cust Service was very great. The repair Center (Somersworth in New Hapshire) was alo excellent, 1 week turnaround, and 3 days was waiting for parts.


The unit seems to works fine again! I will be testing this weekend!

...TJR

[fyoung]

Ok here's the scoop. The welder is fixed. I did bring it to a Miller repair center. They confirmed my findings, No wire Feed, No OCV , Nothing to repair, needs a replacment PC (Main ) board. BTW the retail on the PC board is 1/2 the price of the welder!!! I was covered under warranty for the Board, but no the labor , travel expense...etc...etc. I was not provided an explaination as to why the original board failed, other than Miller Tech indicated they had a known problem w/ some of the boards. There are several obsoleted (down change) part numbers. It came with a new Amp/Wire speed setting chart to attach to the flip up cover., so there must be some changes/ improvments. Overall I am very pleased. The Cust Service was very great. The repair Center (Somersworth in New Hapshire) was alo excellent, 1 week turnaround, and 3 days was waiting for parts.


The unit seems to works fine again! I will be testing this weekend!

...TJR

that sounds high for a new board..that makes me wonder what the boards cost for the bigger welders..such as the 210's,250's,251's etc. !?!?
Glad to hear it was covered under warranty.
Thanks for the up-date,Farris

[AxleIke]

Sorry for the bump on an ancient thread, but I am experiencing nearly this exact problem

I have a 175 machine that we've had for several years. It has operated flawlessly. This machine is a home "project machine" so hasn't seen much actual operating time. I would say ACTUAL weld time would be under 5 hours.

I have been working on a big project with my truck, and have welded several things over the last month or so. It's worked great.

Today, I go to begin welding some brackets up, and I make the first tack, but the line speed seems sluggish. I am able to get 2 tacks out before the wire feed motor stops completely. I measured voltage at the motor plug, and it was something like .05-.1 VDC. Not what I'd expect.

I did not check to see if I was getting arc at the tip.

however, I see the same progression as listed above: I pull the trigger, a red LED comes on on the main board, and gas comes out of the nozzle, but ZERO wire feed. I can hear a relay clicking on the board.

I'm on a tight schedule to get this done, and would LOVE to avoid a repair center.

Any advice? To me it looks as if I can either just call Miller, and get the Board, or wait for repair.