Lincoln Tig Idealarc having power problems

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I have an older Lincoln Idealarc.  The unit was dropped in trucking and it damaged the front castor and bent the back wheel frame as well.I fired it up and it worked but it does not seem to have its 250 amp rated output even on the highest settings.  Does anyone have any ideas about this?  Is it related to being dropped?Appreciate your insights.Jim
Reply:What voltage are you using?  single phase or three phase?  Do you know if you have power on each leg of the breaker or fuses?  I had one that acted like that once, and turned out to be it was only getting power to one leg and essentially running off of 110vI'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:I am using 220 volt single phase.  I believe the power is okay.  I will check but I have been using another welder on it and it works just fine. Is it possible that half of the transformers or rectifiers are knocked out?  I had it up over 200 amps and it acted like it was welding at 90 amps.Jim
Reply:Well if something bad happened during the drop, you'd probably get a loud boom noise as soon as you fired it up. Though best to open up the covers and look for visual damage. I doult very much that you will find any. Kinda sounds like a process problem, are your switches in the right place, and best try it in a stick mode to see if the output is there to track down any other problems.Also if it's a new to you machine, make sure the voltage is set for your power, as these are multi voltage machines.
Reply:I tried the stick and that seems weak.  At over 200 amps if feels like about 90.  There were no pops when I fired it up and when I opened up one side I didn't see anything.  I might try the other side.  It is an older welder but I will takde a  look at the voltage.  It has a drier plug on it and I am under the impression that it is 240 volt.Jim
Reply:Don't take anything for granted when it comes to wiring.  Double check to make sure it's wired correctly.  Those old units are pretty tough.  They just don't die easily.I'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:may be on the wrong wiring lugs internally.
Reply:is it 3 phase ? or single ? if its 3 phase it has to have all 3 legs ( or you burn out a transformer)if its single then there is probly a wire loose
Reply:It is single phase.  I will look for wiring layout or loose wire.  Are these a pretty good machine?  What are its limitations compared to the newer machines?Jim
Reply:I just bought one of these machines and my friend is looking at picking one up too. Very smooth DC arc, works well on AC. Make sure your wires are in the right spot on the voltage selection taps. Your power cord looks way to small to be for full power on 230volt, mine came with a 6X3 cord that is huge and that is the size it says to use. Click Here for the Operating Manual See page 8 for volatge setup-DanLast edited by engnerdan; 06-13-2008 at 10:17 AM.
Reply:The hot legs on a dryer plug are the 2 out side pins. with the ground on the lower center cylindrical looking one. Make sure nothing is connected to the top pin. That is where your probably having trouble on,
Reply:Originally Posted by boatbuoymay be on the wrong wiring lugs internally.
Reply:I checked voltage, wiring, everything I could see.   It looks like it is wired right.  Power source checks out okay.  Opened the back panel and it is set up correctly on the terminals.  240 volts is getting inside the box.  Oddly enough there was a nut missing on one of the terminals that goes to the main hot leads.  I found a nut and installed it but it still didn't help.  I talked to the local Lincoln guys and they said it was either diodes or transformer.  If it is the transformer he said forget it, parts no longer available.  Thanks to Engnerdan for the manual reference.Jim
Reply:Your only other option is find a repair depot, for an inspection, I could go into detail, but if you don't have the experience nor the equipment to check it, It could be hazardous for you.
Reply:if you get in touch with the lincoln district office in pheonix az (480)348-2004 there is a rep there I have delt with and they have a repair shop in the phoenix area that has older machines for parts and might be able to help
Reply:Jim Marshall  I sent you a private message.