bigkev75
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This is the one I ordered sorry my bad
- Thread starter bigkev75
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bigkev75
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Okay dokay Eddie I’ve got that......thanks for an excellent guide my I ask how you know all these things?
johnrev
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Eddie is a trained electronic engineer- and it shows eh!
The parcel will go via Hermes on Friday so should be with you early next week. It'll be a toss up which you get first, the transformer or the board! But hey! think of the fun you'll have. If you're anything like a lot of us on here you'll soon be up to your eyes in welders and needing a bigger garage/shed to keep them all. Ask Eddie how many he has :-)
BTW the SIP wire feed drive is pretty crappy generally. Much better on the Autoplus than the Migmate/Topmig etc as these use a horrible little meccano motor and flimsy plastic gearbox. Yours does have a good sized motor and tough drive and feed roller unit so you're starting from a much better place. I don't know if the electronic control system works better because of the better hardware but on the cheaper SIPs the fact that the drive is powered from the welding transformer output means the feed speed goes up and down depending on the arc of the welding at any given moment. It almost stops when the arc is drawing lots of current and the feed supply sags and then increases again as the arc dies away. The result is a very unstable feed speed and hard to control weld.
If yours does suffer in this way then the seperate power supply and PWM speed control really does improve the machine. Once you're up and running again you'll know if the Autoplus would benefit from more fettling. There's plenty of advice and help available on here if you do decide to go that route because quite a few of us have done the mod.
Take care
John
The parcel will go via Hermes on Friday so should be with you early next week. It'll be a toss up which you get first, the transformer or the board! But hey! think of the fun you'll have. If you're anything like a lot of us on here you'll soon be up to your eyes in welders and needing a bigger garage/shed to keep them all. Ask Eddie how many he has :-)
BTW the SIP wire feed drive is pretty crappy generally. Much better on the Autoplus than the Migmate/Topmig etc as these use a horrible little meccano motor and flimsy plastic gearbox. Yours does have a good sized motor and tough drive and feed roller unit so you're starting from a much better place. I don't know if the electronic control system works better because of the better hardware but on the cheaper SIPs the fact that the drive is powered from the welding transformer output means the feed speed goes up and down depending on the arc of the welding at any given moment. It almost stops when the arc is drawing lots of current and the feed supply sags and then increases again as the arc dies away. The result is a very unstable feed speed and hard to control weld.
If yours does suffer in this way then the seperate power supply and PWM speed control really does improve the machine. Once you're up and running again you'll know if the Autoplus would benefit from more fettling. There's plenty of advice and help available on here if you do decide to go that route because quite a few of us have done the mod.
Take care
John
bigkev75
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Hey John,
Thank you so much if you have the tracking number that would be great . Yep he definitely definitely is like an electric engineer God....Eddie did mention this mod to me which I would like to do as well has fit an euro torch and din connector so I can use the one from my MMA machine as money is bit tight at the moment I did read some where that a laptop power source was used I have an old dell mini wounded if I could use that if I take it apart ? If the push button switches are a problem can they be sorted as I’ve read there a problem too. What did you do/use to turbocharge your machine? Wish you guys where closer I’d buy you a beer for sure
Thank you so much if you have the tracking number that would be great . Yep he definitely definitely is like an electric engineer God....Eddie did mention this mod to me which I would like to do as well has fit an euro torch and din connector so I can use the one from my MMA machine as money is bit tight at the moment I did read some where that a laptop power source was used I have an old dell mini wounded if I could use that if I take it apart ? If the push button switches are a problem can they be sorted as I’ve read there a problem too. What did you do/use to turbocharge your machine? Wish you guys where closer I’d buy you a beer for sure
johnrev
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If you are wanting to do the seperate supply mod I can let you have a laptop supply and a PWM controller. I've colected a few of each and can spare one. I'll sort them out and let you know. Just the cost of postage will be fine. Again Eddie is the man to talk you through it if he's available. You will need a relay though and I haven't got any spares of those. You'll probably also need a diode or two, capacitor and maybe a MOV. Eddie will know what and where best to find them.
Hermes haven't given me a tracking number yet. I imagine when it's picked up tomorrow they'll let me know.
John
Hermes haven't given me a tracking number yet. I imagine when it's picked up tomorrow they'll let me know.
John
bigkev75
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Hi John
johnrev
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OK I've got a laptop supply which is 20volts and 3.5amps. I've tried it on a SIIP wirefeed unit and it's plenty fast enough. The PWM unit is max of 60volts at 20amps. Haven't weighed them yet but should be under 1kg which is about £3.60 postage.
A MOV is a widget that opens up and shorts any large voltage spikes but I'm sure Eddie would say it's not necessary in this situation (I'm just paranoid and a dumbo to boot). The capacitor soaks up voltage spikes and the diode shorts out any spikes which the motor (or any kind of inductive load) shoots out back towards the PWM supply. All this just helps protect the electronics. Any coil of wire such as a transformer or relay coil or motor winding tends to do funny things with lectrickery and can produce high voltage spikes which can zap electronic components.
I've done three SIP wirefeeds. The latest uses two relays and does away with the SIP controller altogether but the simplest way uses the SIP unit to activate a relay which then switches power from PWM to motor. The SIP board is tucked out of the way inside the welder case and the new PWM control takes its place with it's potentiometer on the front panel controlling wire speed. I used two pieces of 18mm plywood screwed onto the inside of the case to mount the power supply, old controller and new PWM board but any means of mounting is fine as long as nothing is shorting out to the case.
I made new wirefeed units for my Topmig and Migmate because the original plastic rubbish is just awful and not fit for purpose as far as I'm concerned but the Autoplus has a good drive so you won't have that problem.
In all honesty I would suggest you try your machine as it is to begin with. It could be that the large motor has more momentum than the toy motors in the cheap SIPs and won't have problems with the fluctuating drive supply to the same extent. I did an Autoplus 150 a while back and never even tried it before modding which may have been a mistake on my part.
Whatever- your first job is to get it up and running and for that you need Eddie as he actually knows what he's talking about unlike me!
John
A MOV is a widget that opens up and shorts any large voltage spikes but I'm sure Eddie would say it's not necessary in this situation (I'm just paranoid and a dumbo to boot). The capacitor soaks up voltage spikes and the diode shorts out any spikes which the motor (or any kind of inductive load) shoots out back towards the PWM supply. All this just helps protect the electronics. Any coil of wire such as a transformer or relay coil or motor winding tends to do funny things with lectrickery and can produce high voltage spikes which can zap electronic components.
I've done three SIP wirefeeds. The latest uses two relays and does away with the SIP controller altogether but the simplest way uses the SIP unit to activate a relay which then switches power from PWM to motor. The SIP board is tucked out of the way inside the welder case and the new PWM control takes its place with it's potentiometer on the front panel controlling wire speed. I used two pieces of 18mm plywood screwed onto the inside of the case to mount the power supply, old controller and new PWM board but any means of mounting is fine as long as nothing is shorting out to the case.
I made new wirefeed units for my Topmig and Migmate because the original plastic rubbish is just awful and not fit for purpose as far as I'm concerned but the Autoplus has a good drive so you won't have that problem.
In all honesty I would suggest you try your machine as it is to begin with. It could be that the large motor has more momentum than the toy motors in the cheap SIPs and won't have problems with the fluctuating drive supply to the same extent. I did an Autoplus 150 a while back and never even tried it before modding which may have been a mistake on my part.
Whatever- your first job is to get it up and running and for that you need Eddie as he actually knows what he's talking about unlike me!
John
bigkev75
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Ok thanks John how would you like me to send you the money for shipping? Pay-pal? I love reading about all these things....but also lack knowledge on components I’m a plumber buy trade but have a back injury now from an accident which sucks !
im in the middle of working on my Suzuki sv1000 was in the middle of mig welding my aluminium rad and the welder went.....Sod’s law!
im in the middle of working on my Suzuki sv1000 was in the middle of mig welding my aluminium rad and the welder went.....Sod’s law!
johnrev
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Mig welding Ally eh! Never tried that but read lots about it. Sounds a bit scary using a standard Mig welder especially on something as delicate as a bike rad. A photo or two when it's done would be good and I know the guys on here would be interested to see how you got on too. Everyone likes photos and more so when it's something interesting like that.
If you want the bits then Paypal is fine. I'll get them off to you and PM you when done and give you my email address.
John
If you want the bits then Paypal is fine. I'll get them off to you and PM you when done and give you my email address.
John
bigkev75
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Hay Eddie,
well the transformer arrived today so I got to work following your excellent instructions Here are some pictures ( be gentle lol). So after fitting the pcb back in the welder just temporary check to see if it worked and bingo! it works massive thank you to yourself and John. So on to the other mods! John has been kind enough to send me not only the pcb but a laptop power supply and a PMW is there anything else I need apart from the extra relay? Hope your staying safe speak soon mate
bigkev75
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Holla John,
I just pm you in regards to the pwm and power supply,I have replaced the transformer and bingo ‘it’s alive’ woop woop !
johnrev
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Well done you and well done Eddie. Really satisfying isn't it? Now there's no hurry to get the other upgrades done till you can spare the machine for a while to work on it.
I've packed up the PS and board and will get them picked up ASAP. Haven't checked price yet but under 1kg so should be £3.70 I reckon.
I imagine Eddie will check in on this post before long and he can give you a list of what else you need and what to do with it all.
I'll catch you soon.
John
PS Don't forget to put pics up of the ally welding. I'll be really interested to see it.
I've packed up the PS and board and will get them picked up ASAP. Haven't checked price yet but under 1kg so should be £3.70 I reckon.
I imagine Eddie will check in on this post before long and he can give you a list of what else you need and what to do with it all.
I'll catch you soon.
John
PS Don't forget to put pics up of the ally welding. I'll be really interested to see it.
That is a great job of fitting the new transformer, very neat! I am really pleased that the welder works now, it always feels good to keep going, and not give up, and fix something. I was lucky to get that effect nearly every day, for the 44 years that I was a computer engineer. Well, sometimes it took more than a day... in one case, three months.
The power supply from a Dell computer is probably an ATX? If so, it does have a strong +12v, but the -12v ( which you could combine to get the needed 24v ) is most likely only rated at 1 Amp, which would not be enough.
Those front-panel pushbutton switches are a weak point on the SIP. I suppose they could be replaced with two good-quality rotary switches - a 1-pole 2-way for "1/2", and a 1-pole 3-way for "Min/Med/Max" ( or a 6-way multi-segment switch with some very fancy wiring ).
The MOV ( metal-oxide varistor ) is also known as a VDR - voltage-dependent resistor. It is used to protect against high-voltage spikes., such as can be generated by an inductive load - like a motor. As the voltage rises, the resistance drops, shorting-out the spike before it can damage sensitive electronics - such as the PWM motor speed controller. Diodes and a capacitor can be added for the same purpose, but I do tend to trust that these fiendishly clever Chinese PWM controllers can look after themselves.
The laptop power supply is best left powered-up whenever the welder is on, and the 20-ish volt output of that goes straight to the PWM controller. Then the two motor wires are detached from the original PCB ( retained inside the welder cabinet ) and connected to the new relay, as described in post #23.
Talking of relays, in the very clear picture of your relay on the PCB, photo number 3 of post #71, it looks to me that the rather burnt contact surface of the fixed outer contact leaf is facing the rivet head of the contact on the flexible moving inner leaf, rather than the large domed gold-plated contact surface. In other words, that relay was assembled with the moving inner leaf back-to-front, which would explain why the contacts burnt so easily.
The power supply from a Dell computer is probably an ATX? If so, it does have a strong +12v, but the -12v ( which you could combine to get the needed 24v ) is most likely only rated at 1 Amp, which would not be enough.
Those front-panel pushbutton switches are a weak point on the SIP. I suppose they could be replaced with two good-quality rotary switches - a 1-pole 2-way for "1/2", and a 1-pole 3-way for "Min/Med/Max" ( or a 6-way multi-segment switch with some very fancy wiring ).
The MOV ( metal-oxide varistor ) is also known as a VDR - voltage-dependent resistor. It is used to protect against high-voltage spikes., such as can be generated by an inductive load - like a motor. As the voltage rises, the resistance drops, shorting-out the spike before it can damage sensitive electronics - such as the PWM motor speed controller. Diodes and a capacitor can be added for the same purpose, but I do tend to trust that these fiendishly clever Chinese PWM controllers can look after themselves.
The laptop power supply is best left powered-up whenever the welder is on, and the 20-ish volt output of that goes straight to the PWM controller. Then the two motor wires are detached from the original PCB ( retained inside the welder cabinet ) and connected to the new relay, as described in post #23.
Talking of relays, in the very clear picture of your relay on the PCB, photo number 3 of post #71, it looks to me that the rather burnt contact surface of the fixed outer contact leaf is facing the rivet head of the contact on the flexible moving inner leaf, rather than the large domed gold-plated contact surface. In other words, that relay was assembled with the moving inner leaf back-to-front, which would explain why the contacts burnt so easily.
bigkev75
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Thank you Eddie, But i could not have done this with out your knowledge and help I seem to be mechanically minded which I have to thank my grandad for that he put spanners ect in my hand when I was young helping him fix his cars. I went on to work on cars but then trained as a plumbing engineer. wish I could work out computers those things are complicated. John has kindly sending me a power supply and pwm is there anything else that I would need apart from the relay which we spoke about?
in regards to that relay in the picture I have ordered the one you mentioned in #24 so will replace it.. with the switches you mentioned how would I go about doing them ? Just want to future proof it really I have had this welder for 17yrs I got it when I was 18 when I was grass track racing mk2 escort (those were the days seems life was so much simpler then) can you recommend the parts and maybe a wiring diagram
in regards to that relay in the picture I have ordered the one you mentioned in #24 so will replace it.. with the switches you mentioned how would I go about doing them ? Just want to future proof it really I have had this welder for 17yrs I got it when I was 18 when I was grass track racing mk2 escort (those were the days seems life was so much simpler then) can you recommend the parts and maybe a wiring diagram
bigkev75
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Would the switches need to be for 240v or DC voltage?
bigkev75
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Would these switches work Eddie?
johnrev
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Eddie will come back and clarify but just to note- the switches are switching the 240v to the transformer tappings. I can't see any link in your last post so maybe you can sort it out so Eddie can see what you're asking.
The Migmate I've just done and is now up on Ebay had the push button switches totally siezed and useless so I used a rocker switch for the 1/2 section and a three position rotary for the low/med/high section. Neater would be a six position rotary wired to select all voltages but my old brain ain't clever enough to work out the wiring!
If your push buttons are working ok I'd just give them a squirt with switch cleaner every year and leave them as they are. They leave a big slot in the front panel when removed.
John
The Migmate I've just done and is now up on Ebay had the push button switches totally siezed and useless so I used a rocker switch for the 1/2 section and a three position rotary for the low/med/high section. Neater would be a six position rotary wired to select all voltages but my old brain ain't clever enough to work out the wiring!
If your push buttons are working ok I'd just give them a squirt with switch cleaner every year and leave them as they are. They leave a big slot in the front panel when removed.
John
