amperage

[clifford210]

does anyone know how to figure out amperage on a mig welder beside using an ammeter

 

[the snooper]

may sound obvious but instructions

 

[clifford210]

my instructions say 250 amps at 26.2 v no wire speed info just wondering if there might be a mathimatical formula to figure it out

 

[the snooper]

have you thought of emailing the company for the info

 

[clifford210]

no i haven't will try that thanks

 

[shenion]

On a MIG, the controls set the volts. Use the miller calculator to see what the volts should be.

You can set the MIG to one voltage and use 0.6, 0.8 and 1.1mm wire and get different current ranges. Then vary the wire speed and get another variable.

There is not really an "amp" setting on a MIG.

 

[Bsmith]

Even if you got a guide it probably would'nt suit your requirement. Best to just set your mig up roughly then fine tune the wire feed speed while you weld on scrap practice pieces. You may find like me that you can then leave the WFS where you have it set (if you are using the same size of wire for all) and adjust your welder on the volts for various job thicknesses.

 

[clifford210]

will the gas mix effect the output of the machine

 

[shenion]

100% CO2 will have a bit lower current than argon mixes.

 

[clifford210]

so i could achieve get more amps with say 92%argon 8%co2 than 75%argon 25%co2 because i purchased a clamp on ammeter and with my machine i reached only 226amps max with 75/25 gas could that be a posible reason for that and posible meter accuracy as well

 

[shenion]

Do doubt a clamp on meter would be that accurate. The current is in pulses, you would need a meter that would do an average well. Most digital ones do not.

What size wire were you using?
What amperage are you trying to achieve?

 

[backpurge]

Unless you're working to a procedure I wouldn't get hung up on amps, go by what you hear, what you see through the screen and what the finished job looks like and adjust to suit.
A given weld size requires a certain amount of wire to achieve, set that then tune your volts in until you get the desired result

Also noticed you are using 25% CO2, thats a lot, I take it you are welding really heavy section material. CO2 additions create a "hotter" weldpool because CO2 will allow more heat to be transferred across the arc than argon, the danger is too high a CO2 content can also cause arc instability and create excessive spatter unless you get well up into the spray transfer parameters range. This is why very few "industrial" users still use straight CO2anymore, also you cannot weld in spray transfer with straight CO2 which restricts the thickness of material you can weld succesfully

 

[clifford210]

thanks guys this helps alot bye for now

 

[clifford210]

i'm using .035 and i just whated to know if i could roughly calculate the amperage i'm using during a weld and consistant stickout

 

[Bsmith]

so i could achieve get more amps with say 92%argon 8%co2 than 75%argon 25%co2 because i purchased a clamp on ammeter and with my machine i reached only 226amps max with 75/25 gas could that be a posible reason for that and posible meter accuracy as well

226amps will be about right for the output from a 250amp machine as the machine will be over-rated and we probably need to allow for a bit of current loss. Like shenion said before amps are constant, voltage adjustable on mig machines.