awelco

[bigdavesproule]

hi guys. just wondering if anyone here has any experience of a awelco 252 unimig welder? i am considdering buyin as it is very cheap and is almost identical to a 300amp unit i have with no make or name on it but it is an excellent welder.

 

[Justme]

I have the 210amp one. Just been using it today infact. So far have only put 2 15kg reels through it. Its solidly built. Did have to change the tourch as I managed to total fuse up the tip & then snaped the threads off in the tourch. Only problem that was down to the welder was that the earth cable came out of the dinse plug & needed tightening. I have done thin car stuff with it & thick farm stuff. I p.aid £325 inc del no VAT. From eBay trader in Ireland.

Justme

 

[bigdavesproule]

im considdering buying the 252 from a uk ebay trader. will be £489 no vat. the 300amp unit i have has gave some trouble with the digital wire speed selector. its meant to go from 1 to 99 like 1,2,3,4..... but now it jumps, 30,15,48,90 its like the lottery trying to get it set.

 

[hareng]

Also considering this with a 10% discount by not going through that auction site, plus £29 delivery. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/EURO-TORCH-TY...13743QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

Justme I take it you have had no wire feed problems then and where did you get it from?

 

[Justme]

No problems with wire feed. Its seems solidly built. Bought it via eBay. Looks like the same trader (advert style) quoted above but when i bought he said he was in Ireland & the delivery marks confirmed this.

Justme

 

[hareng]

Thanks from me any way.
Waiting on a mate first who may be able to get something robust, before i take the plunge.
£361 delivered going direct, blame inflation.

 

[Justme]

Prob the increase in fuel costs.

Justme

 

[andy82]

I was reading another website and there were buyers stating that it only lasted a few months depending on usage. (Will try and find it and post the link)

It does seem too good to be true and there must be a reason how a welder with those specs and digi display are going so cheap.

If I were spending that kind of money on a welder I would be tempted, but I would be looking for a welder that is widely recognized for lasting.

I will come back to this website next year and look for reviews on the welder and if good I would possibly buy one then, but as of yet I have not found any reviews that old.
For the moment I would look for a good 2nd hand welder or save up a bit more and buy a portamig from weldequip.

But everyone has there own view and I don’t have enough experience with the Awelco machines to judge how good they are.

 

[Justme]

A quick search in here will find some info. I bought mine in July 06.

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=583&highlight=awelco



Justme

 

[andy82]

I have been very tempted with this welder and would be curious to see how you get on further down the line. I know this mig would be good for repairs now and again, the reason that i am holding back on this welder is that i need a welder that can be used on a daily basis 5 days a week. But again i dont know these welders and cant comment on how long they last. I have purchased a 2nd hand Migatronic 180 for 75 quid, will be having it fully serviced, a new torch and earth put on.

Hopefully a couple months down the line i can get a Portamig.

Oh and the link as promised
http://www.ytmag.com/toolt/messages/182783.html

 

[Justme]

You might find more details by looking for the Unimig brand as its the same welder but a diff selling name in USA, Aus & Ns

Justme

 

[bigdavesproule]

dealed for the 252 awelco and should be here next week. i guess its die dog or eat the hatchet now! lol

 

[bigdavesproule]

welder has came, only done a bit to test it. its a 250amp single phase unit, but i had it doin 341 amps but that was with full power, and full wire speed. duty cycle is 100% - 160amp 60% - 200amp 40% - 250amp. it is identical to my uncle welder apart from the fact that mine has adjustments for burnback and ramp up and spot weld timer.

 

[Wozzaaah]

Are you saying the display on the front panel read 341A?! For how long?

 

[bigdavesproule]

not too long because i didn want to risk burning it out, was welding for 20 secconds at least like that.i didnt think it would have the grunt to do it lol

 

[Justme]

When setting the welder do all the digits display properly? Could be a dodgy display segment. Not sure what it would read though.


Justme

 

[Hitch]

One of my workmates has an Awelco Mig welder, must have had it 5 years plus. Never any problems with it. He uses it a fir bit aswell, building grasstrack cars.
Its slightly different to the one in the link, but still an Awelco

 

[bigdavesproule]

npe everything works grand, its a genuine reading, as i increased the wie speed the amps increased too,

 

[Wozzaaah]

I can't believe it would be possible to 'clock' a 250A machine at 341A, that's well over 40% more than it's design max . I wouldn't have thought you'd get that sort of reading if you were to short the contact tip straight to the work return and press the trigger.

 

[shenion]

Wozzaaah, depends on the machine. A production 250A unit will run 100% duty cycle at 250A. A high-end industrial unit will run 60% duty.

My CP-250 isa "250A unit" shows the duty cycle go to 60% at 330A. The volt/amp curves go to 400A (if you extend the duty cycle line it would be 40%). I ran it a 200A for a few welds and opened it up. I could not find anything even slightly warm

The Lincoln I had: R3S-325 was 325A/100%. Will go well over 400A. The manual just states 325A/100%, never mention how far it will go

My Airco is 300A unit but has the current dial gos to 475A at 27% duty cycle.

All are old "School-bus-size" welders. Back then, 100% duty rating was the standard. Seems most have played the ratings game and now rate current at low duty cycles. IMO, welders should be classified at 60% duty cycle with a max usable current.

341A? You must have a huge power line to it I assume it is 400V to get that kind of output.