Quick question on running a 12vs with an xmt

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I am adding a 12vs wire feeder to my xmt304 next week. Mig welding is new to me so I'm not sure how it transfers into duty cycle and amperage. I'll be running 0.035 solid & 0.045 gas shield flux core wire. What is the max thickness I can expect out of each wire using the xmt304 while keeping a good duty cycle vs the max thickness the machine will handle. This is my home hobby machine (220v 1phase) and the thickest material I'll be doing is 3/8" but would like to know just in case.Thanks for the help,ChrisTOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Hello ChrisT, the short answer is: an XMT 304 powered with 220V 1ph power will deliver 225A @ 29 V and a 60% duty cycle. Likely the two diameters of wire that you have described using won't require that sort of voltage or amperage to run optimally. You will be hard pressed to exceed the duty cycle of the machine unless you are running a mechanized system with little or no breaks occurring during a very long run of welding. One additional consideration would be the power that is being fed to the machine, just be sure that your outlet is rated and provided with sufficient voltage/amperage. The available amperage is much more likely to be an issue than the voltage, yet both will matter. Good luck and best regards, AllanEDIT: I am sorry I didn't pay closer attention to all of the questions in your post, you can expect to have the capacity to weld just about any material thickness with your machine provided that you are making multi-pass welds on the thicker materials that you are welding. Arguably, certain thickness limitations might be experience with the .035 solid wire depending on the shielding gas being used. For the thicker materials being welded in this case it is beneficial to have a shielding gas that will allow for spray transfer, so at least 80% or more of Argon along with the balance of another shielding gas. Flux-cored gas-shielded wires will generally achieve spray transfer with either Carbon Dioxide or a mixed gas if the wire lists that as a requirement.Last edited by aevald; 08-11-2013 at 08:17 PM.aevald
Reply:You'll not have any duty cycle issues at all. We probably have 100 or more xmt 304's and 350's at work and they get used day in day out without every a hiccup duty cycle wise.  I will tell you though you'll be fine on the dual shield flux core but wont have so much luck with the hard wire. If you want to run hard wire a 12rc would be better suited.
Reply:Originally Posted by Showdog75.  I will tell you though you'll be fine on the dual shield flux core but wont have so much luck with the hard wire. If you want to run hard wire a 12rc would be better suited.
Reply:I appreciate the responses. This machine has amazed me since I pluged it in. The performance on stick is wonderful so I can only imagine how it will be with the12vs. Just finished watching one of Lanse's videos with Peter and running the Lincoln outtershield wire. It appears the slag peels off easy and still leaves a mig looking bead. I weld outside so the dual shield may be the way to go.aevald, it is being fed from a 60 amp breaker with nothing else on it.Thanks again, ChrisTOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Hello again Chris, I forgot to mention in my earlier post: you are one lucky son-of-a gun to have a set-up like that as a hobbyist. Many professional welders likely don't have a primo set-up like that at their "home" shops. Have fun with your machines and best regards, Allanaevald
Reply:Originally Posted by DSWHuh?  That would only apply if he has one of the few CC only XMT's and had to run the 12 VS in CC mode.I've run my Super S32-P, the precursor to the 12 VS, off the tech schools XMT 304 CC/CV's using .035 solid wire and 92-8 with no issues what so ever. I set the XMT to VS mode and the feeder to CV mode and it runs just as well as the standard S22 and 70 series feeders the school uses. The big advantage is I can drag out the "stick " leads and run the  VS feeder away from the fixed feeders on the racks if I want to mig something elsewhere in the shop vs using stick..I will admit that running solid in CC mode was a PITA out of position, and on thin material. It laid down really pretty beads cranked up into spray flat however on 3/8" plate.
Reply:There's some confusion regarding the XMT output on single phase.  When you look at the miller charts, it appears that the machine is limited to 225A on single phase 240 input.  I believe there is an error in the chart interpretation.  I know, for a fact, that I can dial my XMT 304 all the way up to 399 amps and 35 volts on single phase.  I've welded with it at 33V and at 250A on single phase.   Maybe someone can clear this up.  If it only put out 225A on single phase, I think Miller woulda locked out the digital meters at 225 with their auto link technology. And BTW Chris, on CV mode with your XMT set to VS Feeder, your suitcase will work like a regular mig machine in all types of processes.  You will NEVER be able to do pulsed mig with a VS feeder.  You need the 14 pin connection to link to a pendant.  The reason Im Selling my 12VS is because my S22P12 has the 14 pin connector.  It can take the addition of an Optima Pulser and i can remotely adjust voltage on my XMT without walking back to the machine.  The pulsed mig mode on the XMT304 does nothing without the pendant addition.The pendant has an "Adaptive Mode".  It's got preprogrammed settings for certain wires and gasses.  As you turn up your WFS in pulsed spray mode, the pendant automatically adjusts the voltage and pulse frequency.  So you can weld thinner material with .045 in spray mode without burn through.  Move over to a thicker piece, just turn up the WFS for a hotter weld.  Pretty cool stuff.Last edited by Drf255; 08-12-2013 at 06:01 AM.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:Originally Posted by aevaldHello again Chris, I forgot to mention in my earlier post: you are one lucky son-of-a gun to have a set-up like that as a hobbyist. Many professional welders likely don't have a primo set-up like that at their "home" shops. Have fun with your machines and best regards, Allan
Reply:I think so.  Maybe someone else will chime in.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:Originally Posted by Chris T.Thanks, all I have heard since I brought it home that It's overkill (although there is no such thing)Can I hook up the spoolgun controller (wc-24) to the optima and have pulsed mig on aluminum?
Reply:Originally Posted by Drf255There's some confusion regarding the XMT output on single phase.  When you look at the miller charts, it appears that the machine is limited to 225A on single phase 240 input.  I believe there is an error in the chart interpretation.  ff.
Reply:Thanks for clearing that up Ed.  It's commonly misinterpreted.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:Originally Posted by Drf255Thanks for clearing that up Ed.  It's commonly misinterpreted.
Reply:That's right.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:I hooked the 12vs up to the XMT tonight and have one question. I have the XMT set to v-sense feeder and the 12vs set to cv and dcep for solid wire. When powered up the displays both show 50 something volts. When I turn the knob on the XMT the voltage will adjust to say 19 and go back to showing 50? I have not welded with it yet so will the value change to the 19v when welding and hold for a few seconds after?TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Thanks Steve, I used the suitcase on a stainless job this morning and it works great. I just have to play with the settings because it seemed like the wire was burning back and then returning to the puddle. I'm guessing it is a WFS issue and not a liner issue. They gave me a 400a gun and hopefully it had the .035-.045 liner and not the 1/16.TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:I was using it on some steel yesterday and could pull the wire out of the tip about 1/2". Looked at the end of the liner where the wire goes in and I believe it is a 1/16" because the wire has a lot of room. I'm getting a new .035-.045 liner today and that should solve my problem. The only other thing I noticed is that the volt display on the 12vs is reading more than the display on the XMT. It is not much, only about 1-1.5 volts. Is this because the feeder is more accurate or could it be the placing of the vs clip? I was only using 40' total of weld lead so don't think that would be the problem.TOO MANY TOOLS & NO MORE SPACE
Reply:Originally Posted by 7A749Sounds like a liner that's a little big. They're cheap, I would replace it & the tip too.As far as the feeder reading differently, remember that the unit is picking up the voltage of the arc right there & it will sometimes differ from preset values at the machine. Readout boards can be re calibrated but without a load bank to test the power source it's a shot in the dark at best. Any adjustments you made wouldn't be based on a set value as they are when using a bank to load a machine down.Even when I'm testing out a Maxtron & load banking it, the readouts are sometimes a volt or so off from what the bank indicated. I've called Miller on it & was pretty well told sometimes they just can't be completely recalibrated, no matter how much you play with them. If you put a new readout board in that machine the problem goes away tho Since the unit doesn't have remote voltage control, it really doesn't matter anyways. It's no biggie & everything prolly works fine.IMHO of course