Unknown MIG wire feed units?

[Bill Edwards]

I picked up these cheap a few years ago and thought they looked interesting but haven't done anything with them.
Can anybody tell me anything about them? Are they just wire feed (and gas supply) units that you plug into an existing welder? What is the volt setting that is on them, they don't look big enough to be a welder as well?

Are the torch connectors for a Eurotorch?

 

[wheresmejumper]

Esseti are italian I think? More popular in germany than the uk though.if your luck they might work off constant voltage and constant current supplies

 

[wheresmejumper]

The volts display is probably just to show actual welding voltage

 

[500e]

http://www.techweld.co.nz/index.php?page=shop/flypage&product_id=10377&PHPSESSID=1
Expensive when new

 

[mike 109444]

Very nice units there. 4 roller feeder, nice

 

[Robotstar5]

They are SWF (seperate wire feed) units and normally plug into/control a matched power source which contains the transformer.
Yes that is a euroconnector

 

[Bill Edwards]

Thanks for confirming what I was wondering.
What shall I do with them?

Presumably if I picked up the matched power source I'd then have a pretty good welding setup, but I don't imagine I'd get one cheap. Would they be single or three phase? I forgot to mention as it isn't that clear in the photos that one unit has a 110v plug on the rear, the other doesn't for some reason (yet they both look new).

The thought has crossed my mind that if I could get them to power up and connect them to the output from my cheap Sealey MIG then I could have a Eurotorch and a decent wire feed unit. How practical would this be? Could I get the unit powered up somehow to control the wire feed and gas supply, or would I need to find a way to connect the wire feed motor straight to the Sealey supply and control it from there? What kind of voltages are they likely to need?

Should I just sell them?

 

[mike 109444]

The wire feed motor should have it's voltage marked on the motor, 24vdc or such like. Same with the gas valve, should be marked. If it would fit then fitting the 4 roller wire feed part of the unit inc the euro socket would be nice. Things to take into account. Is the voltage of motor same as the Sealey?. If so can the Sealey power supply supply enough current for the motor? If your Sealey does not have a gas valve then it should not be to difficult to add one. If you can find some one that has added a euro connector and valve to there Sealey (of a similar model) they may still have the wiring/install guide that came with it.

 

[Bill Edwards]

I'll take a look at it all and see what I think I can do. It seems a shame to pull apart such a nice unit, it would be better if I could keep it intact, but I don't suppose it'd be a simple job to stick power to it and avoid fiddling with it too much - i.e keep the wire feed unit with its own wire speed control system and just use the Sealey purely as a power source for the actual welding.

 

[mike 109444]

If it's a 110v input (ref your mention of the plug fitted) you could try it on one of the yellow box type transformer. This will allow you to power it up. Then try the inch wire button to see if it will operate the feed motor. If it does then try shorting the two small holes in the euro socket. This should also operate the feed motor. If that works then you can try to see of operating the buttons on the front changes the speed of the motor. If it does then it should be possible to feed it the welding power f(and ground clamp) from your Sealey but you will also need to find which of the pins on the various plugs gives the "WELD" on signal to then send to your Sealey. This would need to go into the Sealey to operate it as the original torch gun would do. Which Sealey do you have?

 

[mike 109444]

If all that works then it would be possible to do a quick test weld by connecting with a set of car jumper leads, the two units together. Pity you are not a bit closer as for low bucks I would have had one off you and got the other connected to yours.

 

[Jim Davey]

Tech arc could make you a power source to go with that feeder, you might need to let them have the feeder if they haven't come a cross that particular make before but you'd end up with a pretty decent mig at the end of it.

 

[Bill Edwards]

My Sealey is a SuperMig 150. Not exactly the greatest of machines (it normally leaves me cursing and abandoning it in favor of the stick), but I'm giving it another go with argoshield instead of CO2 and probably a new wire liner, in the hope I'll have something that will be just about workable.
The trouble is the only MIGs I am used to are what I call decent with decent length torches and wire feed mechanisms that simply feed wire at a reliable, constant speed when you pull the trigger. Hence I am wondering if I can use these wire feed units and make something half decent, the only drawback being the low power, low duty cycle and stepped power adjustment...

I'll see if I can get a 110v supply. What about the other unit which has no socket though?

Jim, do you have any idea what sort of money I would be looking at to get a power source? Presumably it'll be fairly costly?

 

[Jim Davey]

Oh yes, expensive compared to a Clarke 150, £6-700 I would expect. A 300-400 amp separate wire feeder mig is around £1,200. 4-500 of this cost is the feeder and umbilical cable, this makes the welding power source the remainder of the cost, minus the torch reg and earth.

 

[Bill Edwards]

If I had good (and secure) workshop facilities available then I'd probably be quite interested in that route. As it is, I may be better trying to convert what I have, assuming they work or can be made to.
If not, I can hang onto them and one day...

 

[wheresmejumper]

There are inverter units out there for reasonable money, that will stick weld and power a mig feeder.
always a few on ebay.at the moment theres a lincoln v300, and a few powcons.both are single and 3 phase,3-400 amps.

 

[Jim Davey]

Yes but they won't just power any feeder, "across the arc" feeders like an LN-25 yes, but not the feeders he's got, not without modification.

 

[wheresmejumper]

As you probably know Ln25 or similar dont need constant voltage and will work of any source.the esseti above id imagine just needs power to turn the unit on, at whatever volts.welding power could be provided by what I mentioned.lincoln v300 didnt sell at £300 a couple of weeks ago.

 

[wheresmejumper]

The powcon has a few different voltages at the multipin connector for that reason.i think the lincoln has 24 and 42 as I looked into getting one

 

[Bill Edwards]

I was under the impression that ordinary inverter welders could give MMA and TIG but the voltage was wrong for MIG? Or have I become confused?

If the supply from any inverter welder would work then that would leave the temptation to get an inverter welder for the stick work, connect it to the wire feeder for the MIG and get some argon and have it as a basic TIG as well - all in one.