can a spool gun be run from a suitcase in cc mode

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I've gotten lots of mixed information. Some people have said you can run a spool gun in cc mode and others said you cannot. Does anyone have input on this. It would be run, dc and in cc mode from a suitcase feeder. The power source is a engine driven welder with only dc+ and dc-
Reply:There are some spoolguns that can be run from a CC power source, but just like a VS type wire feeder, they will not work well in short arc. You need to get them up into spray mode to work right.I think Profax makes a CC spoolgun as does Ready welder. I also believe some of the original Spoolmatics could be run from CC units like the 330AB/P's using the right controller.The real question is if this is going to do what you want, not if it is going to work. Spray mode is generally a hot process and is a PITA to run out of position. The fact CC spoolguns exist, tells you this can work. The fact that they aren't readily available and main stream, tells you this is a specialized process and has quite a few limitations and problems. If it was as simple as plugging one of these into any CC machine and running what ever wire you wanted to do "mig", you'd see Miller and Lincoln selling them regularly. You are getting mixed answers because some are simply telling you it's possible, and others are telling you that the process isn't going to work in a practical sense.The truth is wire runs best in CV, not CC. I'm going to bet that you probably will not be happy with the results you get trying to run wire from a CC power source unless you needs fall in a very specific category. I'm guessing from your previous posts, that you want to do alum mig. I'm also betting when you get it all set up, you won't be happy with the results after spending all the money to set yourself up.Honestly looking at a lot of your tube projects, I doubt even running a spoolgun on a regular CV power source will give you the results you are looking for. Alum mig is a fast process. You need to hustle that gun along when you weld alum. Trying to weld small dia tube with a bulky gun and  swinging the gun around fast enough while trying to maintain the correct angle of the gun relative to the work surface is very difficult. It's even worse if the material is thin. I tried that and found the results generally unacceptable, especially aesthetically. Going to AC tig was the answer. Now on longer flat stretches of 1/8" alum plate, mig works really well. Welding up seams and patches on alum dump bodies, the spoolgun was the choice to use. Note that here bead looks don't really matter many times. If they do, you would either want to do tig, or you would need a pulse capable mig to get a nicer looking stack of "dimes"..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I know how to aluminum mig, I just don't have a cv power source, I have a Hobart hefty cc/cv suitcase for my mobile welder though. I use tig in the shop, but my mobile machine is a dc only machine. I've looked at post like this for a few years now. Some people swear that with a feeder set to cc mode you can attach a spool gun to it and run aluminum. This would be for working in the field. In the last shop I worked I only perfered mig for tacking things to together, or if I had jobs that needed to move fast. I always prefer tig for weld appearance.
Reply:I know someone here did a post on adapting a suitcase to run a spoolgun in the past, but I honestly right now can't remember if it was a VS feeder or not. I'm betting the suitcase was used off CV though. I'll keep digging since I'm pretty sure I saved the link on one of the computers as an option for running my 3035 spoolgun from my Super S32P off a Bobcat if I had to.It would probably be a bit more complicated to try and adapt a spoolgun to run in VS mode in CC, since you need to get the wire drive motor to constantly adjust speeds in CC mode. To do so you'd have to get the spoolgun to connect the gun control to the wire drive controller in the suitcase. Miller for example has a confusing array of different spoolguns that all operate differently to connect to various machines.You'd probably be best off simply getting one of the Profax or Ready Welder guns, or finding an old Spoolmatic 1 or 2 and the controller used. You might check with Steve and see if he has or knows where you might get an old Spoolmatic, and if anyone here would know how to convert a feeder to a spoolgun, it would probably be him or Duane B..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Yea the ready welder would probley be my best bet, I checked their website a few times theyve got a few spool guns that they claim will run hooked up to any cc stick source, and still make smooth aluminum welds. Broco has a portable spool gun that does the same thing as well. I've always wondered how its possible that two companies like this have made a machine like this but companies like miller,Lincoln, and Hobart never invented a machine to do this.mabey it has a built in voltage regulator that doesn't allow the voltage to get higher than whatever its set to.
Reply:I bought a brand new ready welder 2. It didn't work in the garage with my CV power source and it didn't work with batteries like it should. I sold it and ate the loss. It was the top of the line with all the goodies.Lincoln Power Mig 210MP MIGLincoln Power Mig 350MP - MIG and Push-PullLincoln TIG 300-300Lincoln Hobby-Weld 110v  Thanks JLAMESCK TIG TORCH, gas diffuser, pyrex cupThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 101My brain
Reply:Hmm... That's no good, I seen a few of them for around 1800, must cheeper used mabey around 600. Did you try it on cc? I wish I knew someone so I could try one out