Portable Welder

[rvaitor]

Hi,

I bought a combination generator/welder at an auction yesterday - Honda EW171. Honda EW171 Generator - Honda Industrial Generators

After reading several posts I thought this might be a good combination since I don't have power in my barn/shed. Also have quite a few gates and post that could use some touching up.

Anyone have experience with these units. I'm not sure I understand the specs on it.

Just getting started.

 

[bamatoolmaker]

I have been told Honda is the best bang for the buck.Buts thats just heresay.

 

[thingy]

Well, you ain't telling us much here,,now when I bought mine,[a miller 185],I knew it produced 6500 watts,,,,that its max out put was 185 amps and it would burn a 1/8 inch rod all day,[which uses about 125 amps],,duty cycle is a thing you got to think about ,,but what is the max output,,dc wise,,,course it could just be an ac generator,,ac out put on the welding side,,in that case,,you ain't got much of a welder,,but still you can weld with it,,and you will need to know some satististics,,,thingy

 

[wushaw]

It's a 170amp machine 50%duty cycle at 130amps. Atleast that's what the online manual says.

 

[thingy]

The 50 percent means [kinda],that it will weld 5 out of 10 min at 130 amps with out over heating,,which should be plenty,,a 1/8 rod uses 110 to maybe 130 amps max,,a 3/32 rod uses less.
Thing you need to find out is is it a d.c output or just ac out put,most[all as far as I know] run better more smoother on dc,electrode positive,,but some rods will burn pretty good on ac current,,6012,,6013,,,,6011,,,,if its a dc welder it should have - + signs where the welding cables bolt to welder,,,now your auxelery power plug in will be ac,,[generally speaking,some older gen welders just had dc out put on the plugins],,,
It probably puts out 5,000 or 6,000 watts aux power,,,,hondas web page may help you,,there should be a model number somewhere,,,thingy

 

[rvaitor]

The link above has the specs. Yes it is DC capable - - here is the spec DC Output DC50-170A
Welding 26.5V

It does have the +- terminals as well.

Any other input or advice?? I'm headed to the scrap yard to get some stuff to practice on.

 

[thingy]

sounds like you got a pretty good little welder there than,,get some e-6010 rods,,you can get small packs at welding supply places,[maybe 5 lbs],,get a pack of 3/32 and a pack of 1/8 inch,,,most of these box stores just have ac rods,,,,3/32 will be easier to weld with,but you can't go far,,start out at about 90 amp setting and go up from there,,if its real sticky,,hotter it is,,easier it is to maintain arc,,,but harder it is to make a good looking weld,,to cold and its real sticky,,you'll see. You can make some real good gates with this one,,plus,,its small enough you could put it in the back of your truck and take it to the old gate,,,,should be a good generator too,,,just looking in northern tools catalogue,,they got some welding videos in it in the welding section,,,thingy

 

[kenmac]

I love the 6010 rod for all around welding over rust & most anything else .

 

[rvaitor]

I've had folks recommend 7014 rods and 6011s but not the ones you said. What does the 'e' mean? Thanks for the tips.

I want to build some sprayer arms at some point but for now I'm going to practice with different set-ups and watch some videos. I was surprised to find very little info from Honda on what to use.

Thanks again!

 

[thingy]

The e just stands for electrode,,they all are e's,,,[e-7014,e-6011,,etc],,you can use any rod you want,,with dc,,,ac you are limited,,,,,now if you use low hydrogen type rod,[e-7018],,you need to store them in a heated low humidity type oven,or they will absorb mosture and make some nasty welds,,they are called low hydrogen for a reason,,,,reason I said 6010 is its a good allround rod,,don't need to store it in an oven,,[one of those plastic storage cans works good],and it restarts a lot easier than 7018 type,,,its deeper penatrating than 7018 rod too,,,,the first two numbers stand for tensile strength,,so a 6010 is min 60,000 psi tensile a 7018 is 70,000 psi tensile,,,but you could get two diffent kinds and see what works the best for you,,all are good enough to fix minor stuff,,,when you really start getting into it,,you than worry more about what rods to use,,alloy steel needs alloy rods,,stainless needs stainless rods,,,repair of thick stuff requires preheat,,multipass welds,,you gotta prepare groove and clean good between passes,,,etc,,,,thingy