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  1. #1
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    Default Just picked up an old faithful welder, Transtig 180

    I just picked up a Transtig 180 that had been sitting on Gumtree for over a month i have no clue why it was never snapped up for $80 but it's mine now , Were there any problems with this model? i done some research yesterday and took note that this machine is 35 years old and it has Miller internals, I see its something that won't get stolen from the shed, Has AC and HF which i liked about it and it also has 4 power modes 240v being one also came with a ESAB industrial looking tig torch added bonus

    The old girl weighs around 120-140kg the seller was a kiwi and said "lift bro" which made me laugh
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  2. #2
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    If I remember correctly, that is a solid unit, shouldn't have too many problems with it.
    Kryn
    To grow old is mandatory, growing up is optional.

  3. #3
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    Thanks Kryn, I opened up the machine to change the power cable and i found a burnt resistor on the bottom of the welder i tried looking for where it may have gone but could not locate any spots
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  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by gazza2009au View Post
    Thanks Kryn, I opened up the machine to change the power cable and i found a burnt resistor on the bottom of the welder i tried looking for where it may have gone but could not locate any spots
    I think it's a capacitor.

    I have a scan of the operators manual with a schematic if you need it.

    John

  5. #5
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    Thanks John, i thought it was a resistor bevause of its size, there has been a aftermarket capacitor installed so i think it may have been its replacement

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by gazza2009au View Post
    I just picked up a Transtig 180 that had been sitting on Gumtree for over a month i have no clue why it was never snapped up for $80 but it's mine now , Were there any problems with this model?
    Only that if you don't have 3 phase, you're probably going to want to run a dedicated circuit for it to save you a lot of trips to your switchboard... It states a rated current of 26A, but I wouldn't be surprised if it wants a bigger circuit breaker (and wiring to suit) than that. I'd guess at 32A, could even want larger.

    I've got a 250A Kemppi machine that like yours can be run off 415 or 240v, the data plate specs a 50A breaker and a max input current of 67A. Had a dedicated circuit put in for it, but for some reason a 40A breaker was installed instead of the 50A requested (cable was sized for the 50A, just wrong breaker). The bloody thing would trip the 40A breaker 7 out of 10 times just turning the power switch at the front of the machine on - can only figure the inrush current required to saturate the transformer was greater than 40A. Once the thing was actually on, would weld up to about 180A just fine before it tripped the breaker. Once the 50A breaker was installed, never had an issue, even up at 250A...

    That's the reason I'm questioning the rated current figures on your machine - it's rated to put out 3/4 of the output of mine, but with half the input current? Yet the max current figures match up pretty well, in that the max current draw on your machine is actually a little higher than 3/4 of mine... They'd be similar age machines, I can't see there being that significant a difference in the efficiency of their transformers...

  7. #7
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    Hey J&H i had a dedicated line installed for welding but it was only for 15amps, can u explain why a new 200amp digital AC tig only required 15a yet this old girl requires a lot more amps? I have not tried to fire it up yet still looking at the power cable, not sure if i want to reuse the 3 ohase cable and install a plug or change the whole cable all though i cannot find any decent thick canles at bunnings

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by gazza2009au View Post
    Hey J&H i had a dedicated line installed for welding but it was only for 15amps, can u explain why a new 200amp digital AC tig only required 15a yet this old girl requires a lot more amps? I have not tried to fire it up yet still looking at the power cable, not sure if i want to reuse the 3 ohase cable and install a plug or change the whole cable all though i cannot find any decent thick canles at bunnings
    That's the marvel of inverter technology. Much lighter, and far more efficient in their power usage than the big old transformer machines. The inverter is full of high powered electronic components, with only tiny transformers to change the voltage as required by the electronics, but the big old machines are full of copper or aluminium wire, as they are just a giant transformer, with your welding leads hooked almost directly to the output. In a really basic analogy, it's like the difference between an LED light globe for your house, vs an incandescent - both do the same job, but the LED uses much less power to do it by being an electronic device, while the incandescent is basically just a coil of wire.

    The power cable for use when connected to 3 phase may well be undersized for single phase use (have a look at the rated current for 415V vs 240V to see why).

    //metalworkforums.com/f160/t402...-welder/page-3

    If you have a look in here, post #39 has links to the manuals for your machine. Scrolling past the first few pages of safety warnings, you'll see a table specifying fuses for use on 240v supply - says 30A wire fuse, or 50A HRC fuse. Wire fuses (assuming they mean what I think they do in this case) are no longer legal to be installed in Australia. The equivalent circuit breaker to the wire fuse would have the same rating as the HRC fuse according to table I1 in AS3000. I had to look it up, as knowing HRC fuses are for the most part interchangeable with CBs (with the major exception being HRC fuses must not be rated to more than 90% of the protected cables current carrying capacity), the difference in specification didn't make sense to me. Wire fuses don't get discussed too much anymore, apart from 'ist verboten'.

    However, I do note that on the next page there is a guy running his Transtig off a 32A RCD, and it seems that he's not having problems with it - although he doesn't specify whether he uses it at full noise or not. Either way, I'd have to say unfortunately you're going to require an entire new circuit from the board, and it would be a good time to get a sparky out to have a look at the machine - he can do a temporary hookup in some way, and stick a clamp meter on it to measure the current draw, then spec exactly what you need in the circuit.

    You DID ask why no-one had snapped up that welder before you.... this is why! : They're a pain in the ass to get set up, but once going.... I have to say I love my thirsty old Kemppi - welds smooth as butter, and strangely enough the arc (particularly on startup) feels analogue, while the arc on the inverters I've used somehow feels digital to me - on or off. Sadly I may have to replace the old girl soon with a new inverter due to a possible relocation to an off-grid property - it's that, or replace the existing generator with at least a 25Kva unit

  9. #9
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    Ahh yeah i am with u mate seems this old girl needs just over 6200watts of power, If i was to get the new line installed do u think i could get the power outlet right next to my electrical box than make or even buy a 32amp extension lead to run around to the back yard and out to the shed? just thinking the 15amp line cost me $300-$400 so a 32amp line would probably cost a lot more

    at this point it might be cheaper to snag a used generator what's your thought's? if a 32amp line is going to cost $500+ i could possibly pick up an old generator for that or upgrade the welder but having a costly welder in the shed in my area is a high ticketed item to lift that is why i sold the last welder

  10. #10
    BobL is offline Member: Blue and white apron brigade
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    We had a old Transarc with current similar SP&3P specs to your Transtig at the mens shed but no one could strike an arc when it was on a 20A SP breaker without triggering the breaker. We have 3P but the consensus was not to bother rewiring it for 3P as we already had two portable inverter Stick/TIG machines. We tried selling it, started at $100 and eventually it got down to $25 without any luck. Then we tried giving it away and it took about 3 months to dispose of it. I'm pretty sure the bloke that picked it up was a scrap metal collector.

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by gazza2009au View Post
    Ahh yeah i am with u mate seems this old girl needs just over 6200watts of power, If i was to get the new line installed do u think i could get the power outlet right next to my electrical box than make or even buy a 32amp extension lead to run around to the back yard and out to the shed? just thinking the 15amp line cost me $300-$400 so a 32amp line would probably cost a lot more

    at this point it might be cheaper to snag a used generator what's your thought's? if a 32amp line is going to cost $500+ i could possibly pick up an old generator for that or upgrade the welder but having a costly welder in the shed in my area is a high ticketed item to lift that is why i sold the last welder
    Honestly I reckon the cheapest way would be having a dedicated line run all the way to the shed, then the welder hard wired at the shed with an isolator switch. 32A single phase plugs do exist, but I'd imagine they're not cheap - and you're talking 4 of them if you make up a lead, plus the cable used for the lead would probably need to be a more expensive type than for fixed wiring. If your 15A circuit cost you $300-400, then I'd say $500 for a hardwired circuit is a good guess. It would be worth talking to your sparky from last time though, if you're really, really lucky you might just be able to get away with using the existing cable from the 15A run and just changing the breaker to 32A and wiring the welder onto the end - it depends on what he ran last time, how far it is, and the installation conditions (and is pretty unlikely on the whole)...

    If you have a problem with things going walkabout, I'm not too sure a generator is a great idea either - besides which, generators need to be oversized with welding machines, and quite severely so with the transformer machines to cope with the spike as the arc starts - otherwise you run a risk of blowing the genny, in some cases the welder, or even both. Remember I said I'd need a 25kva to run mine? Plate on the back specs 15kva draw at max output, the generator from conventional wisdom would need to be around 20kva to deal with arc starting. Problem is, even with the machine wired back as 415V, it specs a 35A breaker (vs 50A on 240V) - and most of the 20kva generators, if they bother to mention it at all, are only rated to deliver about 25A per phase - thus the need to go up to a 25kva. On top of that, I'm not too sure how much the generator is going to like having near max output pulled across two phases, with the 3rd phase unloaded - I need to ask a generator mob about that one at some stage.

    Bottom line, you really need to know what it's actually going to draw, but I suspect you'd need at least an 11kva (gut feel suggests more like 15) generator if you ran it on 415V - not likely to be very cheap, and will be big, and thirsty for fuel..... Actually, on second thoughts, it won't go walkabout unless they bring a forklift

    Honestly though, as you've alluded to already, these old transformer machines just aren't worth buying unless you already have the wiring in place to run them (like in a factory), or you're a sparky and can install the wiring required yourself - just doesn't make sense given the cost of inverter machines. At the time I got mine a number of years ago, the scenario was a bit different, the chinese inverters were fairly new on the scene still, and there were lots of reports of them dying. Secondhand inverters from the big brands were unobtanium at the time, except at truly exorbitant prices...

    Is the inverter any less likely to go walkabout if you keep it inside under the bed when you're not using it?

  12. #12
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    J&H Thanks for the reply, i will look into the line i have and might get someone out for a quote the guy who done my first line was Jim's Electrician from the Jim's Mowing mob i recall asking 2 people for quotes one electrician said he didn't have insurance and would install it at my own risk so i need to see who's about to get it done that's even if i can have such a high amp loading here, my 15a breaker is only rated to 3600w that is a little over half the welders capacity

    i will see where i go with this i will try fire up the welder and see how many amps it can handle than i will see about the quotes and if its not working for me it may end up on ebay but it will be a shame looks like a nice old welder

  13. #13
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    First thing I would do Gazza is to see if it even runs. If it doesn't work and the fault is much more than a loose wire, then don't spend a cent on it. Parts will be difficult to impossible to obtain (other than generic type parts).
    They are a very basic machine and I don't believe they even have an output contactor or gas solenoid when run on 240V (gas solenoid kit was available on 415 only). There certainly is no switch on the torch pictured and to control gas flow, you use the valve on the torch.
    The manual says you need a 30A wire fuse, so that will probably cross over to a 32A D curve breaker. They love electricity and lots of it. On the plus side, the torch is a 26V style, so consumables will be a simple affair.
    You've got it now and I hope it works out for you, but the seller probably got the better end of the deal.

  14. #14
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    When i was picking up the machine the seller had it turned on and asked if i would like to try it ican't weld haha so i just said its ok, i asked if the machine worked on DC and the seller said yes he also showed me a weld of SS he had just done while i was on my way to pick it up the machine was still running when i got there

    i have had one quote for $400 to install a dedicated line next to my power box, getting my shed powered will cost an absolute fortune i think as my shed is a good 25-30 meters from the power box and there is a big gap between the shed and house

    i have been looking for 32amp single phase extension cords but they cost a fortune so looking to build one, am i able to use the white cabling that goes thru house roof and walls? this is easier to obtain than round 4mm 32amp cable

  15. #15
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    Definitely no on using white building flex. Different insulation, thicker strands of copper which will fracture as it is repeatedly rolled and unrolled. You will still need a suitable outlet to plug the lead into anyway, so probably cheaper to get a hard wired service and be done with it.
    Probably not what you want to hear I realise.

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