Fcaw

[Brianstick]

Do you guys ever flux core arc weld with your engine drives or just stick weld on the job site?And if so what does the additional equipment look like?

[dda52]

I run FC whenever I can. Loads more deposition than stick. Higher production means better money, esp on piecework jobs. Some jobs won't let you.....it all depends on what it is.

I use a remote feeder. Most of the time, I am running a voltage sensing feeder with FC. On the rare occasions that I have to be changing voltage a lot, I'll use my Miller 12RC feeder. My Super S-32P is always loaded with either .045 or 1/16 Fabshield 21B.:cool:


The first pic is of my S-32P working on the buildup for my shop. It was running off of my Bobcat 225G. The second is my 8VS feeder hooked up to the Trailblazer for a test run. The TB was brand new in that one. Shiny even.:cool::D

[hankj]

Don,

You forgot to mention that neither one of those feeders is, like, Northern
Tool cheap!;)

Hank

[dda52]

Hank, I paid $1050.00 total for both of the feeders in the pics.:cool: $500 for one well used 8VS and $550 for one brand new, old stock S-32P.:D Both were won on Epay.:cool:

But yes, you are right. New from the dealer they are not cheap. The 12 RC was a tiny bit over 1600 bucks.:(

[Sberry]

I use all stick for portable, just dont want the extra equipment for the amount I do. If I was welding a lot daily then it would be worth the effort.

[J Hall]

I prefer stick unless there is enough to make hauling a feeder worthwhile.
I like the LN-25 with a Lincoln k-126 gun for fluxcore, I use this same feeder with a 400 amp mig gun for dualshield. Works great.

[Brianstick]

How many feet of cable are in between the engine drive and the wire feeder?

[ShieldArc]

How many feet of cable are in between the engine drive and the wire feeder?
As many as needed. The farthest ive gone was about 500ft.

[Brianstick]

I didn't think you could go that far without getting too much voltage drop.

[Sberry]

You need to size the cable for the distance and the load.

[Brianstick]

Several years ago my local welding supply store said that you don't want to make your leads much longer than 75 feet. I haven't seen any posts on this forum about length limitations.

[enlpck]

Several years ago my local welding supply store said that you don't want to make your leads much longer than 75 feet. I haven't seen any posts on this forum about length limitations.

If your supplier told you this, either he doesn't know what he is talking about or you misunderstood. With very few exceptions, there is no limit to cable length if, as Sberry said, you have large enough cable size. Double the length, you need to go up about 3 sizes for the same drop. This means that if you can barely get away with 100 feet with 2 gauge, you will need 2-0 for 200 feet.

Of course, the 2-0 cable costs about twice as much per foot as #2, so you have four times as much money in the cables.

One exception to the rule that you can run pretty much any length is running TIG with HF or impulse start built into the source... long cables weaken the start. With a start-box near the work, or scratch starting, not a problem. I have run over 100 feet round trip (50 feet from the source) with HF start and had it work fine, but there will be a limit somewhere. I just haven't experienced it.

[J Hall]

I run 75' of hot lead and 75' of ground, just because I don't need more.
The thing to remember when running a wire feed is to have heavy enough leads so as to not have too much voltage drop.

[dda52]

Several years ago my local welding supply store said that you don't want to make your leads much longer than 75 feet. I haven't seen any posts on this forum about length limitations.


I rarely listen to one of my LWS. They have proven time and again they do not know what they are talking about. Sad part is, when shown to be wrong, they don't back down and change the story they tell.:rolleyes: I am glad such brilliance is mainly located in one store.....that way I can avoid tripping over it.:D

[ShieldArc]

I was able to ground to the building and pull 1 loong cable to my LN-25. I use 2/0 extensions.

[Sberry]

Yes, its done all the time. I was on a job where they have a whole semi load of lead, big heavy long pieces, all a man could do to carry. Whole load of welding wire too. 25 or 30 of the feeders. 4 - 8 packs of machines

[Black Wolf]

The last shop I was at, I used an inverter power source and a suitcase wire feeder with just over 200' total of #2/0 cable. In slightly less than 2 years, I never had a lick of trouble with the setup. Very handy.

Later,
Jason

[Arcpower]

http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z137/arcpower/My%20selling%20business%20products/Welding-1.jpg

[JoRoJen]

Several years ago my local welding supply store said that you don't want to make your leads much longer than 75 feet. I haven't seen any posts on this forum about length limitations.

Brian your voltage starts dropping at 50'.

It is also always a good idea to feel the leads at connection points for excessive heat. That is where you also will lose voltage.
Also if you coil your cable you will have a drop in voltage, it may or may not be enough to effect your welding arc, all depends on how many amps and how long you will be welding.

[Brianstick]

Thanks for all the pictures guys.