Fired up my XMT for the first time

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My garage is still not wired in yet so I brought the machine to work this past weekend to try it out. This thing is amazing, I ran some 5/32 7018's and it did not even break a sweat on 200 amps. I tried some "red" 6010's and it must be my technique or bad rods because they didn't look so good. The one thing I'm not sure on is the arc control knob. I welded with it on 10% and 100% and didn't really notice a difference. What does this knob do?TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:It's DIG.  Controls the amount of amperage the machine will automatically increase the arc to if you short the rod out to the workpiece.  The increased amperage will melt the area where you start to stick so you won't.  If you're good at holding proper arc length, you will not notice any effect by turning the knob.It controls inductance in CV mode.  I'm having a tough time understanding inductance.  Basically how WET the puddle will be.  I generally just leave both set to five.If you love the machine for stick, just wait till you add a feeder to it.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:One thing with DIG, if you are trying to control the total heat by adjusting the arc length, DIG will fight you.  Hold a short arc and DIG ups the current.  Hold a longer arc and it does the opposite.  This means the heat you put into the metal is more or less constant over a wider range of .... lets call it 'welding styles'.On the good side of things, you can run slightly lower amps and not worry about it sticking.  I believe (not sure) that Miller actually recommends very little DIG for the standard 60xx sticks.  For so me reason I think '2'.  Look at the owner's manual and on the charts near the back there will be a footnote on recommended settings.The Maxstar doesn't have CV mode so I'm not sure what it would do for that.Con Fuse!Miller Dynasty 350Millermatic 350P-Spoolmatic 30AMiller Multimatic 200Hypertherm PowerMax 1000G3Miller Maxstar 200DX
Reply:First-light with my XMT304 CC/CV today.  Beast!  Ran a few 1/8" 7018s on 1/2in plate.  Beads of Glass with no noise.  So smooth.  Set arc control @ 4.  It rocks not hearing a water cooler hum'n when stick'n a la ripping the Dynasty 200DX.  From this point forward, the "200" will be relegated to TIGn and the "304" with be the SMAW & MIG weapon of choice.  A big kahuna mahalo to "Drf255" and "7A749" for making this setup possible.  When the "52" wire feeder from 7A749 arrives, there's gun'a be some fire & brimstone in da shop.  Ha!The journey continues....."Discovery is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought" - Albert Szent-Gyorgyi
Reply:Originally Posted by Drf255It's DIG.  Controls the amount of amperage the machine will automatically increase the arc to if you short the rod out to the workpiece.  The increased amperage will melt the area where you start to stick so you won't.  If you're good at holding proper arc length, you will not notice any effect by turning the knob.It controls inductance in CV mode.  I'm having a tough time understanding inductance.  Basically how WET the puddle will be.  I generally just leave both set to five.If you love the machine for stick, just wait till you add a feeder to it.
Reply:They recommend setting it on the low side (1 or 2) for lo-hi rods and higher (6 or 8) for 6010. Those are just rough guidelines; what's best depends on your technique and personal preference.JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps
Reply:Originally Posted by Silicon-basedThey recommend setting it on the low side (1 or 2) for lo-hi rods and higher (6 or 8) for 6010. Those are just rough guidelines; what's best depends on your technique and personal preference.John
Reply:IMHO, you'd have to study really hard to notice any effect while doing a basic stick weld.  Bare bones transformer or high tech invertor....both will weld on the flat and horizontal.  Onto verts and a little arc adjustment will dial in the techy machine to your liking.    More important, overhead...step up all fresh and both can do the job.  After 2 hours though, your arms are getting heavy, not quite so steady any more, maybe your stretching or on a swinging staging that you can't lock in.  A cheap machine can be frustrating as you try to hold steady arc length.  Turning up the arc force on the high tech machine gives you that little bit extra amperage when you need it.  The weld itself may be a little rougher but certainly acceptable.  There is magic in the more expensive machines.  When you're all crunched up somewhere, rod bent a couple directions and holding stinger with your finger tips you want everything going for you.Don't really have an opinion on 6010 roots but for lo-hi will usually set  low arc force numbers for flat, mid for horizontal, 7 or 8 for overhead.  For stainless stick, a little higher with 8 or 9 for overhead.Last edited by OldSparks; 08-26-2013 at 12:33 AM.
Reply:@ 7A749 - Arclight!  Finally integrated the Bernard Q (300A) MIG gun to the S52E wire feeder today.  Laid down some fillets of 0.030" on 1/8" mild steel with C25 shielding. This 304/52/Q combo is boss!  Feeds like a pro and the gun is ergonomically/functionally exacting.The journey continues...."Discovery is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought" - Albert Szent-Gyorgyi