Bernard Mig Liner and esab manual questions ....

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I have a very old ( probably early 90's ... I got it in 96 or 97 ) Airco welder.  It is a Dip Pak 300 MTS.  I know it was built by Esab.I have been moving and building for 7 years (from SC to VT) and finally pulled the welder out of storage.Unfortunately, I have lost all the paper work!So .... a bunch of questions ( I tried Esab .... also put questions in their forum .... and Bernard .... unit too old ).1) ... Bernard said the gun has no number, just 300 Amp, 15 ft with Euro connector.  The cable has a number of 2-4315AE .... Bernard said this is an assembly #.  I have an old liner #43115 on the box.  What is the trim length for the liner (I probably only put one in since I have owned the unit)????  I am sure I left it too long but I am afraid of cutting it too short.2) .... Any idea how to find a parts breakout for this ... shield cup, tips, ......????3) .... Esab actually found a partial parts list of for the welder but of all things it does not show the wire feed assembly!  My only hint is a drive roller package (taped it to the inside of the welder) that says ... Esab part number 21156 replaces 23612785.  Any idea where I can find a parts breakout for the drive????  I will need new rollers, guides tubes and such.Thanks ....... Mike
Reply:Pictures of the components and gun world really help.   You can easily convert most guns to whatever kind of gun consumables you like.  I prefer the Bernard Centerfire consumables.   The adapters for most guns are $10-20.  Then just buy the diffuser, tips and nozzles you want.    The liner gets fed to where it butts up against the diffuser.   Unscrew the diffuser and feed the full liner through then measure and cut.  You want the liner to be under a little pressure from the diffuser so they stay in contact with each other.    Bernard catalog lists all the adaptor cross references.  It's possible you won't even need one. (Depends on the diameter and thread on the end of the gun neck.)  Just the D-1 (large) or DS-1 (small) diffuser, rubber seal bushing, a nozzle and tips.  Sent from mobile.  Not responsible for TyposTiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Here is pictures of the machine and gun.  As I said, I think it was built in the early 90's.  One day I keep saying I will buy a AC/DC machine with high frequency so I can do aluminum but I have been lucky till now.  I run own a small one man machine shop and had a friend who owned a much larger shop.  If I needed to weld aluminum, he let me use his shop.  Now that I have moved from SC to VT, I will need to find a TIG welder of my own.I tried aluminum wire with a plastic liner but just got a "nest" (the welder is suppose to do aluminum even though it is DC).  I would like to try a spool gun but don't have that kind of money just to give it a "try".  I keep looking at the $100 guns but figure they just be junk.  I did buy a TIG gun (just to use on DC for steel work) but without high frequency, I find it very hard to use (probably just me since I learned on a high frequency machine).Bit of a story ... the company I worked for bought it new a year before I started there.  Six months in, it died.  Under warranty they put a new main board in it.  Six months later it was dead again.  Tech said it was out of warranty.  He could put a new board in it for $1500 but could not guarantee that would fix it (I was told they paid $3000 for the machine ... seems high but who knows).   So they decided to not fix it and just buy a new "simpler" unit that cost $1500.  So the unit sat for a year.  They were going to scrap it but I asked if I could have it for parts.  I took it home and it sat in my shed for a year.  Before pulling all the parts off, I decided to plug it in .... nothing.  I pulled off the covers and found all the connectors to be off the main board.  I put them on and it turned on.  When I pulled the trigger the display read 0 amps out .... hmmmm.  So I figured the computer must be working since it set up fine and was reading the output.  I looked around and found a large power resistor was cracked in half.  I jumped it back together just to try .... IT WORKED!  So I bought a new resistor, regulator, ground lead, rollers, leased a tank of mixed gas and such.  Touch wood I have never had to touch it again.  Sure beats my old buzz box.Thanks so much ...... Mike
Reply:The wire drive looks to be same assembly that ESAB used on my Migmaster 250. The  21156 ESAB part number is the number designated to the .035/.045 lower V-grooved drive roll for my Migmaster 250.ESAB Migmaster 250 Hobart Ironman 230Multimatic 215TWECO Fabricator 181i & 211iHH125EZ - nice little fluxcore only unitMaxstar 150 STH - very nice
Reply:The gun connection looks like the standard euro connector in use today. Bernard did make some guns for ESAB and only ESAB might have the books on them.I sent pictures of an older gun to Bernard and nobody working there had every seen one. Checked with my ESAB contact and he told me about the gun.But it was so old there were no parts. Try taking the gun into a welding supply store that sells ESAB equipment and see if they can match up gun parts.Other wise you will need a new gun. All the majors make a gun that will replace it. Just have to order it with a Euro / ESAB end.
Reply:Thanks .... I found an esab dealer and was able to find a manual (someone on this forum from Canada had one).  The connector is cracked ( from the last person who dragged the welder around by the gun ... duhhhhhhh ).  I works but I am sure it will let go one day.  I will take it down and see what they can do for parts.  I think I found a cross reference for the liner.Thanks ..... Mike
Reply:The EURO gun back end is about $60. The machine side can be had on eBay for about $15Tiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Awesome!  I thought this would be an impossible part to get!The machine side seems fine but the gun side has a large chip taken out of it.  It works but it does not sit square with the machine, kind of hands downward.I am guessing I can get this part at a local welding shop or do I order it off the web?Thanks ..... MikePS .... When I called Bernard, they said "back then" there was no part number for my gun ... just 300 amp, 15 ft, Euro end.