Nick clarke
New Member
- Messages
- 8
- Location
- Glasgow
Okay, so I've got a cebora/snap-mig 130, and in the last thread*
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/contactor-replacement.77008/
I brought it back from the dead by replacing the Contactor with a £15 replacement from TCL Ltd.
So now I had power and could weld but like a problem many people mention, It coughed a sputtered and put down very lumpy weld beads. Adjusting wire speed and power settings made marginal improvements.
Suspecting a wire feed issue, either with the liner, the wire motor or both I set about finding a cure. I planned to replace the existing plastic liner with a steel one and someone here mentioned using a net curtain wire if you were really stuck. A trip down the DIY store and i picked a 3 metre one for £2.00. Cut to length, it dropped straight in and it actually worked okay.
That's not the full story though because even with the new 'liner the wire was still dragging it's feet and was not perfect.
Next up the wire tensioner unit. A few screws and it's very easy to remove and open up. You will need the correct pliers to remove a circlip and this will allow you to free the lower drive wheel from the tensioner assembly. There is a gearbox in there but don't worry, it's just a couple of plastic reduction gears and can really only go back in one way. Take pictures if you're not sure.
Once dismantled and with what little grease was in there removed, the rollers were treated to some emery cloth and popped into my ultrasonic cleaner. The main drive roller bearing was very dry but in perfect condition. Again, straight into the ultrasonic cleaner and then re-greased. Everything buttoned back up nicely.
The curtain wire trick does actually work but to be honest I thought it best to buy a proper replacement. EBay have them for around £5.00. The Euro one is fine, you just cut it down to size from the right end. I needed it today and was not prepared to wait for mail order to save a few quid so I popped down to Machine Mart and picked up a 2.70 metre plastic coated steel one designed for the their own hobby range. The brass connector at one end screwed perfectly into the brass trigger block, and the other unsheathed end was cut to size and clamped to the tensioner.
All this effort resulted in a perfect wire feed and nice consistent welds. Total cost £8.00!!.
Result!
*MOD edit - added link to the thread you mentioned.
http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/contactor-replacement.77008/
I brought it back from the dead by replacing the Contactor with a £15 replacement from TCL Ltd.
So now I had power and could weld but like a problem many people mention, It coughed a sputtered and put down very lumpy weld beads. Adjusting wire speed and power settings made marginal improvements.
Suspecting a wire feed issue, either with the liner, the wire motor or both I set about finding a cure. I planned to replace the existing plastic liner with a steel one and someone here mentioned using a net curtain wire if you were really stuck. A trip down the DIY store and i picked a 3 metre one for £2.00. Cut to length, it dropped straight in and it actually worked okay.
That's not the full story though because even with the new 'liner the wire was still dragging it's feet and was not perfect.
Next up the wire tensioner unit. A few screws and it's very easy to remove and open up. You will need the correct pliers to remove a circlip and this will allow you to free the lower drive wheel from the tensioner assembly. There is a gearbox in there but don't worry, it's just a couple of plastic reduction gears and can really only go back in one way. Take pictures if you're not sure.
Once dismantled and with what little grease was in there removed, the rollers were treated to some emery cloth and popped into my ultrasonic cleaner. The main drive roller bearing was very dry but in perfect condition. Again, straight into the ultrasonic cleaner and then re-greased. Everything buttoned back up nicely.
The curtain wire trick does actually work but to be honest I thought it best to buy a proper replacement. EBay have them for around £5.00. The Euro one is fine, you just cut it down to size from the right end. I needed it today and was not prepared to wait for mail order to save a few quid so I popped down to Machine Mart and picked up a 2.70 metre plastic coated steel one designed for the their own hobby range. The brass connector at one end screwed perfectly into the brass trigger block, and the other unsheathed end was cut to size and clamped to the tensioner.
All this effort resulted in a perfect wire feed and nice consistent welds. Total cost £8.00!!.
Result!
*MOD edit - added link to the thread you mentioned.
