Everlast PowerPro 205 tig welder / plasma cutter, Wow this thing is awesome!! Options

[presure2]

hey guys!
my welder arrived this past monday in perfect condition, and i've gotten a total of about 2.5-3hrs to play with it some since.

here are some pics right out of the box.











got it all connected, and hooked up the plasma cutter first.
this thing is TOOOOO COOL!!! i had some 3/8" steel plate hanging around, this thing sliced thru it like a hot knife thru butter!!
i forgot to get pics, but ill get some prolly later today.
next i tried the stick welder with some 6010 rods that i got from work...i've never stick welded, and now i know why. i SUCK at it.
i didnt take any pics, cause there isnt much to see, other than a big brown mess (yes, like a big pile of sh*t..lol but what matters, is that the function works, if i wanna take the time to learn it (which i will, down the road)
now, on to the main reason for me getting this unit, the tig welding function.
took me about 1.5 hrs to get going and actually get the feel for how it works, (i've never tigged before monday) but by the time i finished up last night, i made what i consider some decent looking beads!
i guess all the time i spent reading and researching paid off, im able to pretty quickly see and fix the mistakes im making, which is 100% the result of watching the vids on weldingtipsandtricks.com and reading there and a couple other sites.

now on to the pics!!

i am practicing on a peice of scrap aluminum dimond plate that cam (ted95) gave me, looks to be ~3/16"
3/32" thoriated tungsten
3/32" 4043 filler rod
ended up settling in ~ 125-130 or so amp range, playing with the footpedal some as the peice heats up.

friday nights practice:



too cold



the bead in the middle of this pic was my best of the night IMO

[presure2]

yesterday i got another hr or so of practice



pretty obvious where i started getting the hang of it..lol the black marks are spots where i dipped the filler into the tungsten (bad) lol
once i started getting the feel for it, things started to get much smoother:



and started getting the idea of finishing properly so i dont leave craters:



pretty happy with that last bead, dispite the hot start..lol
hopfully ill be able to get in some more practice today!

[Ted95]

lookin good manny! practice practice practice lol

[Bitter]

Thoriated tungsten? Lanthanted last longer and are not radioactive.

[epocsirhc]

That's a good start.

Here's some of my aluminum welds.



I enjoy Aluminum more than mild and stainless steel. However stainless is cool because of the colors!

[presure2]

Thoriated tungsten? Lanthanted last longer and are not radioactive.

I know, it's all the lws had in stock at the time.
I plan on trying diffrent stuff over time, I only bought 2x 3 packs one1/16and one 3/32.

[presure2]

That's a good start.

Here's some of my aluminum welds.



I enjoy Aluminum more than mild and stainless steel. However stainless is cool because of the colors!

Good stuff!
What are you welding with?

I tried a little steel, I've read that steel is supossed to be easier for a beginner, but I guess since I spent so much time concentrateing on aluminum, it seems easier.
Haven't got a chance to do anything since last weekend.
Prolly won't get any practice this weekend either, hopefully I'll get some time during the week next week.
I did get a "real" welding helmet from the snap on guy today, it's SO nice compared to the 40$ harbor freight deal I've had for years.
Hard to beat those cheapo helmets for getting started, but it was time to step up, lol.
Pics tommorow.

[epocsirhc]

I believe I was using the Dynasty 350 that night. Usually I'm on a synchrowave at school though.

Isn't Tig welding awesome?

[presure2]

I believe I was using the Dynasty 350 that night. Usually I'm on a synchrowave at school though.

Isn't Tig welding awesome?

HELL YES!!!

hoping to get a bit more time in this afternoon, and get some pics of the new helmet finally.

I got it thru the Snap On guy @ work, it was expensive, but WOW is it nice compared to the HF one, tons more confortable (i could never get the HF helmet to adjust properly, the adjuster thing just never worked 100% correctly), the lens is SO big compared to the hf one, and way clearer ( the "clear" shade on the snap on one is a 3.5, the HF is like a 7 or somthing.)
and fully adjustable.
big money, but worth it, and because its thru the snap on guy, it costs me as little as 20$ a week till its paid.

heres a link for now:

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item.asp?P6...amp;dir=catalog

[Bitter]

The interest on that Snapon $20 a week is ludicrous! like 25%!! Pay it off sooner, or it costs more than it should.

[presure2]

The interest on that Snapon $20 a week is ludicrous! like 25%!! Pay it off sooner, or it costs more than it should.

0 interest, bro, its not financed thru snap-on.
snap on financing is only for the bigger stuff..this is just pay the snap on dude directly 20-30$ a week, or whatever i wanna give him..and when its paid, its paid, no financing or anything involved.

[Bitter]

Ah, good.

[presure2]

And finally, a few pics of the helmet.









Here's the view thru it. Clear shade is 3.5



I'll tell ya, never realized how much of a diffrence the quality of a helmet matters.
Everything is so clear and crisp thru this helmet, making the whole learning process easier.
I love it!!!

[epocsirhc]

Yes, a good helmet does make a huge difference!

[Bitter]

Just don't forget about the hot tungsten and lean forward across your work to grab something...I have a dimple on my stomach from that.

[presure2]

haha yea, i've already burned and shocked myself a bunch of times!
good stuff.
got a little practice today on some steel, no filler wire.
getting pretty good control of the torch, just need more time, and a bigger argon tank, this one is about done, pressure is under 500..lol
also figured out that i had assembled the torch with the cup in backwards. i dont think it was affecting anything, but at least now i can use more than just a #7 cup.
you guys using those gas saver cups? think i wanna try a setup here in the next couple weeks. i got a project to weld up for jims motor where im gonna need lots of stickout to reach down into a tight spot.

[Bitter]

yea, I've used the tight cups before. I actually like them more than the fat wide ones because you can see what you're doing better...but you do need to turn down the flow otherwise air will get pulled in due to the nozzle shape. lil venturi action.

[presure2]

yea, I've used the tight cups before. I actually like them more than the fat wide ones because you can see what you're doing better...but you do need to turn down the flow otherwise air will get pulled in due to the nozzle shape. lil venturi action.

Cool, I'll keep that in mind!

[D-Man]

awesome. i want one now!! and daaaaaaamn those welding skills are coming about!! You want a job? ;p

[D-Man]

haha yea, i've already burned and shocked myself a bunch of times!
good stuff.
got a little practice today on some steel, no filler wire.
getting pretty good control of the torch, just need more time, and a bigger argon tank, this one is about done, pressure is under 500..lol
also figured out that i had assembled the torch with the cup in backwards. i dont think it was affecting anything, but at least now i can use more than just a #7 cup.
you guys using those gas saver cups? think i wanna try a setup here in the next couple weeks. i got a project to weld up for jims motor where im gonna need lots of stickout to reach down into a tight spot.

Remember the dark blue part is the only part that actualy cut's ****. so make that part large, while minimizing the rest, get the metal nice n red for a sec, and when you hit the OXY lever, keep it at an angle away from you, keep it close to your metal, and move it fast. that'll take a WHOLE lot of grind off your hands too!! lol. ****, look up a vid of that. when you see it, you'll understand.

As for the saver cups, No. i've used them, and i'm not a fan. it makes you cut slower, and i like the whip action cut. it's how i was taught and just my pref. if you get any good outta it lmk for my home setup though.

as for wanting to cut deep, take you a nice small rod, (3/32nd or so) and MAX the heat. it'll act just like a gouge, and save you some bucks. Plus you got that pin point precision, witch is something i've always like'd doing for real accurate cuts. You gotta kinda move the rod in and out like a saw a bit, but it's way more accurate at a distance than a torch will EVER be! Plus it wont fcuk anything else up in the process!


EDIT: get you a #12 or #12R lens BTW. you're going to kill your eyes with that....

This post has been edited by D-Man: May 22, 2011 - 9:04 PM