Experiences with Feeders and Aluminum

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I'm looking for people's experiences using conventional feeders with aluminum wire. My Betamig LF and Profax spoolgun have done me well for years but I've always longed for a regular feeder and gun. All my research in the past has indicated it can be done but often times is marginal with lots of feed problems. Miller only seems to recommend their top end 75DXA for this use and even then they shorten the gun to 10' for .035" wire. My question is can I setup a decent (affordable) 4-drive feeder with the right components and expect reasonable success? I'm thinking of something like a 24A, R-115 or one of the older 50, 60 or 70 Series units.I'm just a hobby welder but I have successfully built several aluminum boats from scratch. I can't justify big dollars for this so I'm going to be limited to whats available on the used market.Any experiences and opinions are welcome.
Reply:Why not use a Miller XR, or MK Cobramatic push-pull feeder and torch to feed your aluminum?   Push-pull is leaps and bounds better for reliably feeding aluminum than a conventional push-only mig feeder.   You can find used Cobramatics and XR's on Ebay for alot less than the new ones cost.   With push-pull, you can feed your aluminum through a torch lead up to 50' long too (amazing!).  Our company used Cobramatics to weld aluminum all day every day for 20+ years and they worked great.  When the boss decided to upgrade to Millermatic 350P's, I got the old Cobramatics and use them to mig aluminum at home now.  They're great, and more comfortable to weld with than a spool gun too.Last edited by DesertRider33; 11-18-2006 at 09:30 PM.
Reply:I just got a Euro Feeder put on a 320 SAF its a 4 roller and its great cost about $1000 Aust. fitted and its got auto wire feed with a + or - over ride, burn back and soft start controlsUsing 1.2mm wire is a lot more forgiving if you can use it though its a bit big for anything under 1.6mm wall.Prior to getting the two big SAF's (a 320 and a 360) I made do with a 210i with a single roller feed for 5 years , OK but now feels like a toy though it did the job and never skipped a beat.Just remember to install a Teflon liner and keep your roller tension to the minimum needed .Burn back being your biggest drama.A good friend has a push/pull gun ...he loves it but I found it very cumbersome I much prefer my Binzels
Reply:Thanks guys, good info. Its becoming clear that the push-pull rigs are still king in this application but its encouraging to hear some positive results on a push only setup. My main motivation is to get the drive motor and wire spool out of my hand completely. My spoolgun will always have its place but I would like to try some alternatives.As far as rig features go, I'm assuming you want all the goodies, pre-post flow timers, adjustable softstart, burnback, tach feedback speed control, etc. for the best results. I'm especially curious about pulse controls as a means to help with the thinner stuff. My experience also is that wire less than 3/64" (1.2mm) does start to get tougher to feed but the thinnest material I can reliably do with this size on my current gear is 3/16". I would really like to get down to .035" (0.9mm) wire and try pulse  to get into the thinner stock.Opinions on the best torch for this? Bernard's seem the most available but I'm pretty colorblind as far as brands go.Maybe I'm asking for too much but its fun to dream!
Reply:Asking the question has motivated me to do some more research and it appears that to get to the next level its a pretty big step. The Lincoln s2F gear is really where I would like to go ( $$ouch$$!). The Power Mig 350MP and Python push-pull gun seems to be really oriented towards aluminum.Since I'm also in the market for a new stick and tig unit (my old ac/dc rig with a HF unit got caught up in a garage sale) the multi process capability of the 350MP would cover my other bases.Miller seems to offer a similiar product in the XMT 350 line but Lincoln appears to offer a bit more aluminum focus. Any comments between the two or experiences with the Python push-pull gun?Thanks!
Reply:A work colleague has had good results froma smaller push un set up. He cut bak a gun cable fairly short -about 2 metres- 6 feet to you.Teflon liner,Hung the feeder on a boom to keep the cable straight and used the correct contact tip for  aluminum -its 4 to 5 thou bigger than the wire size. ali grows and jams in the contact tip when it heats up. The set up works ok for bench top stuffGrahame