160en lacking power

[Steve50]

A while ago I bought a second hand Clarke 160 EN. I was looking for something that I could use for welding vehicle bodywork that I could just drag down my long driveway rather than dragging my enormous Murex tradesmig which is so big you could ride it!
I fitted a new torch and the wirefeed is really good and smooth. The thing is, its just not delivering the power. Even when I slow the wirefeed down and select the third setting it doesn't even burn the wire back to the torch and the weld just sits on the top of the metal whatever setting I use.
Are there any parts that may have died inside? Maybe I could buy some parts to bring it back to life?

 

[bourbon]

Are you running it on an extension lead?. The cable on it might not be beefy enough

 

[Steve50]

Well its obviously on its own lead plus a 4mtr extension lead so probably about 8mtrs od wire.

 

[Hutcho]

Make sure you have it on gas and not gasless also - also check the lead from the back off the pos and minus block
Check rectifier diodes
Earth clamp where it’s crimped - if it’s black cut it back - if it’s still black then replace the whole cable .

 

[bourbon]

Well its obviously on its own lead plus a 4mtr extension lead so probably about 8mtrs od wire.

what SIZE is the wire of the extension?

 

[angellonewolf]

just plug it in to a socket and test then first as said above

do a quick cheak the clamp tightness screws etc


you say you changed bits was it working before that time ?

 

[Steve50]

I'll need to get on it on Thursday as I have a job on at the moment but the extension lead is good for 16 amps but does have a 13 amp plug on it. I'll put a 16 amp plug on and have another go as I have the correct sockets on the wall.
I can see that I have to swap the leads over for gas/gasless and it is in the correct state. There isn't anything else I can see regarding gasless to gas.
I'm willing to remove the covers but I'm not sure what to do regarding checking the diodes. I know diodes allow current to flow in one direction only though and I do use a good meter quite often on vehicles. When I get the covers off I'll take some photos and post them on here. Maybe someone can let me know what I need to do to make the tests.
I hadn't checked it for working proir to fitting a new torch and earth lead so I don't know if it was working properley.

 

[angellonewolf]

have you got the old stuff still ?

 

[Steve50]

It may be still in the workshop but the previous guy tried to change the wire feed liner and made a propper hash of it. Most of the screws and nuts that hold the wirefeed motor to the chassis was in the bottom of the case and he had cut the outer casing of the wirefeed in a few places so not a lot of good really. He had used the curtain stuff for the wire and it just was not working at all.

 

[droopsnoot]

I had something similar on a 90EN that I bought second-hand, and fixed it by cleaning some contacts inside the machine. I have no knowledge of the electronics of the unit, but with the side off I could see various contacts that were easy to access and clean (spade terminals, for example) and that made a lot of difference. I do have similar with a welder I picked up off the side of the road, I've always had to have all the settings turned up far higher than I'd expect for welding 1.0 or 1.2mm steel, but something happened to it (feed, I think) so I've swapped back to the 90 for now.

 

[Shedendman]

How much power do you need if your only doing bodywork?

 

[gaz1]

it can be dirty switches with many cheaper welders

with the clarks have you made sure you have switched to the higher mode on them with the a/b switch

a note here my clarke 150 will run on a 50ft heavy duty extension thicker wire not the cheaper thinner wire extension thats is commonly sold

 

[Wildefalcon]

What wire speed are you using?

 

[droopsnoot]

How much power do you need if your only doing bodywork?

That's true, to me it just seems wrong to have it turned up almost to the maximum to weld thin stuff.

 

[bourbon]

I've checked the specs with Tech, It's a hard wired unit anyway requiring a minimum of 15amp supply on it's standard lead. I'm surprised you were not popping fuses on a 13 amp plug!

 

[Cobbler]

I've checked the specs with Tech, It's a hard wired unit anyway requiring a minimum of 15amp supply on it's standard lead. I'm surprised you were not popping fuses on a 13 amp plug!

I know the spec requires a 16anp supply, but most use a 13amp plug successfully, I’ve a 160tm, also supposed to be hard wired, but I’ve run it for years off a 13amp plug without a problem.

 

[minimutly]

In my experience rectifier diodes boogad, every time. You have to disassemble to test properly though, need to be organized - numbers and pics of everything.

 

[eddie49]

its just not delivering the power. it doesn't even burn the wire back to the torch and the weld just sits on the top of the metal whatever setting I use

The first step would be to measure the DC output voltage between the tip of the MIG torch and the workpiece clamp, at each of the output selector switch positions. It should vary between about 15v and 30v.
If the voltage is correct when checked with a meter ( which takes negligible current ), then the problem may be that a bad connection somewhere is causing a high resistance joint, which will then drop the output voltage across it when high welding current is drawn.
Check all the connections in the low-voltage high-current welding path, looking for loose, corroded, or burnt joints. This includes the transformer secondary winding, the rectifier, the inductor, the torch and wirefeed assembly, the work return cable and it's clamp. Even if bolted connections look OK, they may be corroded or crumbling inside, so open them to check. As Hutcho said, examine all spliced or crimped joints.