Century/Lincoln Connection: Does It Matter?

[Iplayfarmer]

I'm casually looking for a DC welder. A welding shop in the next town sells Century and Lincoln welders. He can sell me a 150 amp DC stick Century for $300. The guy on the phone said that the Century welders are somehow affiliated with Lincoln. I understood that Lincoln and Century are jointly owned, but that Century welders are from a different factory.

Here are my two questions...

What is the affiliation between Century and Lincoln?

If they are affiliated, what difference does it make? In other words, does some kind of affiliation with Lincoln make Century welders any better than other welders on the market?

 

[bobodu]

Yes they are one in the same....like Miller and Hofart.
One I would own and the other I would not.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

Yes they are one in the same....like Miller and Hofart.
One I would own and the other I would not.

So, what's the difference?

 

[bobodu]

Quality....lower prices get you less quality.
I only own Lincolns. Boss let me borrow a Century MIG he had sitting on the shelf...I took it back because it just sat on MY shelf.

 

[Hooked_on_HP]

I have a Century 140 mig that is probably 6 yrs old. It was probably built beforethe lincoln affiliation. It is ok for small welding jobs. Small as in short welds. The longer you weld with it the worse it welds.It acts like it gets hot. I am going to replace it with an HTP 200 mig welder.
Bill

 

[bobodu]

"In 2003, Lincoln bought the Century brand, and many Century welders are made in USA. "
Many?

 

[towmotor]

If, as you say, you are casually looking, then will you also be casually welding?

If so, maybe the Century unit isn't a bad idea.

On second thought:

I checked around the 'net to see this DC welder that's only 300 bucks!
The only one I could find was a shoulder toted house current unit.
I'll bet this thing has an aggravatingly low duty cycle-probably no more than 20%.
Usually those shoulder carried units are very expensive and they still have a relatively low duty cycle, but they're good in a pinch, when you're off in the hinterlands where 240V power isn't available.

I'd casually go to Home Depot and see if they have something more suitable. Or, you could look at craigslist for a used one.

 

[luscsmith]

Shop for a good used one, auctions or craigslist. I bought a Miller 300 amp AC/DC high freq, leads torch and foot pedal for $500.00 after a couple of years of watching and waiting.

Scott

 

[Iplayfarmer]

If, as you say, you are casually looking, then will you also be casually welding?...

You're absolutely right. When I do get some time to weld, though; I don't want to have to wait on a duty cycle. The nice thing about my situation is that I have everything I need. I'm just thinking about wants now. If I don't find what I want, I'll just keep using my big AC stick or my little MIG.

Shop for a good used one, auctions or craigslist. I bought a Miller 300 amp AC/DC high freq, leads torch and foot pedal for $500.00 after a couple of years of watching and waiting.

Scott

After hearing the reviews in this thread, I'm likely back to shopping for used on CL or the want ads. I saw the ad for the Century welders and wondered if they really were that good of a deal or not. Sounds like maybe not.

 

[towmotor]

I don't want to beat a dead horse, IPF, but I wouldn't down the entire Century brand, just that particular unit.

I have a little Century MiG that I bought in the early 90's; it works pretty well, it uses easily available rollers, tips and cups, and I imagine that the entire conduit/gun assembly is interchangeable with one found on the more expensive brands.
I'd certainly call the local welding supplier for other parts or repairs if the need should arise.
But!; I've used it primarily for stitching body panels on cars, replacing floors and the like.
I did use it to repair a chassis one time and there the little welder's Achilles heel was made apparent.
Duty cycle is everything when you're trying to do work on heavier gauge metal and you're trying to get it done as quickly as possible-and that is where you get what you pay for, IMO.

 

[Transit]

I have a Century 140 mig that is probably 6 yrs old. It was probably built beforethe lincoln affiliation. It is ok for small welding jobs. Small as in short welds. The longer you weld with it the worse it welds.It acts like it gets hot. I am going to replace it with an HTP 200 mig welder.
Bill

I have a century 170 mig, works grate, I did some modes and its 2 x grate, over heating and current output. I bought it back in the 90's, now its not a pro unit but at $400 its ok. Easily welds 5/16 in. a signal pass, have welded 1/2 in. with some prep work.

 

[tater digger]

If you are looking for a good stick welder, try and find a used ac/dc lincoln 225 from the 70's or 80's or a miller thunderbolt. All the new lincolns and cheap welders out there have transformers wound with aluminum wire and aluminum becomes a very poor conductor when it gets hot. These welders are okay for running a few inches at a time with 6011 or 6013 rods but will have difficulty starting and maintaining an arc with 7018. If you need a good mig welder, these are usually inverter based constant voltage machines (basically a computer inside there making your welding amps and volts) you will get what you pay for in performance and in the longevity of the components inside. I would recommend looking for a used high quality model/ brand on e-bay or classifieds. There are so many of us welders out there without jobs right now, that someone is bound to be letting go of a good machine for cheap.

 

[Hooked_on_HP]

I have a century 170 mig, works grate, I did some modes and its 2 x grate, over heating and current output. I bought it back in the 90's, now its not a pro unit but at $400 its ok. Easily welds 5/16 in. a signal pass, have welded 1/2 in. with some prep work.

What did you do to improve it? Yours is probably 220v and mine is 110v.
Bill

 

[Transit]

Bill, right, the 170 is 220 volts; both are built on the same platform.

You say that the power supply gets hot and the welding power drops off. I am surprised that the overheat sensor did not trip. Maybe what is getting hot is not in contact with the overheat sensor. Someone mentioned that some transformers are wound with aluminum wire, that could be a problem in it self.
I take it that the fan is in good working order and that the air vents are all wide open, and air is not leaking from gaps in the cover?

When welding long seams the ground cable became uncomfortably hot. The fix was to replace the # 6 cable with a # 4 gauge welding cable.
Then I noted that the arc and bead improved, the energy lost in heating the cable is now going into the arc. Poking around under the covers I found other hot spots. The three wires coming from the transformer were connecting to the rectifier assembly by a loop around a bolt.
Now the current carrying capacity is related to the cross sectional area of the conductor, the ticker the wire the less it will heat for a given current. The wires from the transformer are adequate and are not the problem. Remember it is the area that the current flows through that matters. The surface area that the current flows through that is in contact with the wire, stud and nut is very small and represents a high resistance/ voltage drop/ energy loss.
I removed the wire loop from the stud, closed the loop back on it self, slipped a heavy copper terminal eyelet over the doubled wire and lightly crimped it in place, than I filled the void in the ferrule with solder. When assembled the transfer area the current passes through wire to solder to eyelet to stud is now larger= less loss.

Now this part is very, very tricky. I removed the rectifier assembly from the standoffs. You will notice that there are 4 spiders holding the button diodes in place on both sides of the heat sink plate. I very carefully marked the diodes with White-Out so that the orientation, which side of the button is in contact with the heat sink and which side is in the legs of the spider. It is imperative that the diodes be replaced in the same orientation, the side of the button that was in contact with the heat sink plate must be the same. If any of the diodes are reversed that would be a short circuit.
With the diodes removed from the heat sink, I polished the plate and the side of the button that contacts the heat sink plate.
Reassembling the diodes in the correct orientation I put a small drop of Heat Sink Thermal Grease on the side of the button that is in contact with the heat sink plate. The reason for the thermal grease is to improve the transfer of heat from the diode to the heat sink. The heat sink is hotter and the diodes run cooler. Reassembled everything being sure that all connections are tight and in the correct place.

The next mod may not fit your needs or may not be possible.
I added a second capacitor of the same values in parallel with the first, that increased the output current 50%. It also added to the heat stress.

Make notes and take photos to identify how you removed things and not trust your memory. If you have a meter, make note of the diode polarity, some meters have a special stop to test diodes. Make note before you disassemble the spider.

 

[bobodu]

Now if you really want dependability,100 percent duty cycle and portability for a really low price...build a DC unit!! I have less than 70 bucks in this one. 130 amp junkyard alt from a Continental.

 

[Transit]

Yes, roiling your own has been done. Some very successfully and some not so. Is that a stick or mig?

 

[Iplayfarmer]

Now if you really want dependability,100 percent duty cycle and portability for a really low price...build a DC unit!! I have less than 70 bucks in this one. 130 amp junkyard alt from a Continental.

I've been intrigued by your home brew DC welder ever since I first saw the build thread on it. It's on the list of maybe someday.

 

[Transit]

It takes more than a big engine and 130 amps to make a welder. Typically the arc voltage for stick is 50-80 volts, how is that being done?

 

[bobodu]

It takes more than a big engine and 130 amps to make a welder. Typically the arc voltage for stick is 50-80 volts, how is that being done?

Umm....no it doesn't.
The actual voltage will vary widely depending on such things as material being welded,arc length,clean ground etc.
In the 130 amp range,it welds just as good as my big Lincoln 3-AS.

 

[bobodu]

Thought about that statement all day and thought I'd better add that I am NOT running the alt. in a stock configuration. That alt. DOES NOT use an internal regulator although it does have an internal diode pack. I am running full power from the battery to the rotor and added a second brush straight to the case,thus eliminating the internal rotor ground. I don't have a meter I would want to attach to the thing and make pretty smoke,so I really need to remember to ask the neighbor to bring one home from work. But I can guarantee you that it will burn 1/8" rod all day.
I vary my output with the throttle.