Problews with euro torch causing pinholes.

[Exuptoy]

Just picked up a Taskmaster 160/30 which wasn't working.
Fiund the feed wire for the torch pulled out of a crimp. Remade and it works but had no gas flow. Checked solenoid and line and found blockage in the euro torch. *
Turned the reg and bottle valve up full and partially cleared the line but it wasn't passing much gas but welded a reasonable weld.
I had a loan of another euro torch and have dropped the gas pressure a little to compensate but my welds with it look terrible and are full of holes along the top of the weld! Is this caused by too much shielding gas? I have gone back to my partially blocked one and it is back to normal! The weld looked horrible with holes and troughs everywhere.
Unfortunately my reg is a converted CO2 one with no flow reg so I cannot tell the flowrate.

 

[GrahamGKD]

I'm not sure about your other problems but if you get hold of one of these you could set the flow rate at the torch?

 

[Wozzaaah]

You're on a hiding to nothing until you sort out the 'blockage' and get yourself a different regulator with an output gauge or a separate flow meter.
Too much gas will give you just as many problems as too little.

 

[Exuptoy]

Cheers guys, thought as much. Just ordered a new MB15 torch and I'll splash out on a new reg.

 

[Exuptoy]

So what flow rate then, 8/10 litres min?

 

[cumbriasteve]

So what flow rate then, 8/10 litres min?

Yes thats usually enough for indoor draught free welding.

 

[Luke]

Your 'blockage' is possibly a leak.

I had a cheap euro torch where the internal hose came away from the barbed fitting on the inside of the euro connector. All of the gas was leaking away.

 

[Exuptoy]

Your 'blockage' is possibly a leak.

I had a cheap euro torch where the internal hose came away from the barbed fitting on the inside of the euro connector. All of the gas was leaking away.

Nah m8, I'm almost unable to blow through the gas line to the torch whereas I could with my m8's torch.

 

[Exuptoy]

New earth clamp (found the lug missing and twisted copper under the bolt!!!), new euro mb15 and new regulator purchased. Lets sort this machine out properly eh?

 

[Exuptoy]

Machine now sorted with new euro torch, earth clamp and regulator.

Tried a few practice runs to see how it performed on 2mm plate.
Did 4 runs,
one with power set to 3 (of 6) and wire set to 5 (of 20) this was pretty good
one with p-3 w-6 this gave poor penetration and kept pushing back the torch
one with p-3 w-5 but a slower pass and the back shows hanging grapes
one with p-4 w-6 this had a big pool and a shallow hollow before the surface tension caused the pool to collapse.

All welds carried out with arcing back and fore motion. Very happy with its performance!

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