MIG settings?

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I'm going to go ahead and show how green I am...........I have a new to me Powcon 400SM with a PD60 wire feeder, after speaking with Eddie at Arc Products he said that the feeder is the same as a Miller S22A. Also, I have it hooked up to a 220V 50amp circuit in my garage so the dials are going to output about 1/3 less than they actually read I'm told. Right now I have .045 wire that came with the machine and using 25/75 shielding gas that also came with it. I have attempted a few welds but really haven't wrapped my mind around why it does what it does at different settings. When I tried out the machine before buying it the previous owner had all the settings done for what we were welding and it cam out pretty good, no splatter and pretty clean around the weld. Now I've turned the knobs and need to figure out how to dial it back in and most importantly WHY certain settings work. The little experience with welding that I do have is with stick welding where there is only one dial to set and it's pretty easy to get it dialed in. With this welder it has a high/low amp range setting and then you adjust within that range with a percentage knob from 1-100% of it's range. I get that, but what I don't get is that with MIG I hear people talking about voltage settings and wire speed. How do I set the voltage if I don't have "voltage knob"? Is there some complicated formula that I need to know in order to determine the correct settings between amps, volts, wire size, wire speed and thickness of material being welded that someone can share? Any help would be greatly appreciated and feel free to get as long winded as need be, Thanks.
Reply:Just going by the Manual that you posted up in your other thread:You control the Voltage by using the "Weld Power Control Dial" when the Weld Level(volts/amps) Select switch in in the Panel positionWith the switch in the Remote position then you'll control Volts at the FeederEd Conleyhttp://www.screamingbroccoli.com/MM252MM211 (Sold)Passport Plus & Spool gunLincoln SP135 Plus- (Gone to a good home)Klutch 120v Plasma cutterSO 2020 benderBeer in the fridge
Reply:You can use this Miller Calculator to get you in the ball park and then adjust your machine as neededhttp://www.millerwelds.com/resources...calculator.phpEd Conleyhttp://www.screamingbroccoli.com/MM252MM211 (Sold)Passport Plus & Spool gunLincoln SP135 Plus- (Gone to a good home)Klutch 120v Plasma cutterSO 2020 benderBeer in the fridge
Reply:Thanks Brocc, I just re-read operation section of the manual and it says that it goes from a minimum of 20amps @ 20volts to a maximum of 400amps @ 36volts output. A minimum of 20 volts is kinda high isn't it? According to the miller calculator 20 volts seems kinda high since it doesn't come into play until 1/4" plate. What am I missing here?Powcon 400SM2-PD60 wire feedersMiller XR controlAlumapro push/pull gunSpeedglas 9100xBFH
Reply:You are using .045 wire. If you want to weld thinner material, use .030 wire, then you can use less volts and amps. You MUST size the electrode to the material that you are welding. Buy a roll of .023, .030. and .035, then experiment using each wire on various metals, such as 14 ga., 18 ga., 1/8" etc.
Reply:It'll go from 15-16v to 36v when switched to mig. I can't remember if the panel meter showed set volts or not (If it has the meter option).Matt
Reply:Originally Posted by A/C GuyYou are using .045 wire. If you want to weld thinner material, use .030 wire, then you can use less volts and amps. You MUST size the electrode to the material that you are welding. Buy a roll of .023, .030. and .035, then experiment using each wire on various metals, such as 14 ga., 18 ga., 1/8" etc.
Reply:Originally Posted by Matt_MaguireIt'll go from 15-16v to 36v when switched to mig. I can't remember if the panel meter showed set volts or not (If it has the meter option).Matt