Esab Migmaster 250 settings

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I'm new to this forum and have a few questions that I'm hoping someone here can answer for me. i just got an Esab migmaster 250 it was made in 1997 and is in great shape. Prior to getting it I have not used an Esab machine before, but have heard great things about them and so far am thrilled with it. My questions are:1) the setting in the owners manual only go up to 1/4 inch material, on another forum it was sugested to use the setting from the newer migmaster275 for thicker material does anyone have any other ideas or will this work?I'm just trying to get a good starting point till i get use to the machine.2) I've not done much aluminium before but would like to and have heard from some that they had good sucess just running the aluminium through the regular mig gun instead of buying a spool gun. Anyone have and experiance doing this? I've heard that you need to change the liner scince they get contaminated. now I've seen some spool guns on ebay for around 650 and have seen the linde l-tec are around 170 and figure that if i got a 10 foot lead it might work but hate to waste 170 if it isn't going to do the job.thanks for the help in advanceAnthonyLast edited by AnthonyF; 04-24-2010 at 02:08 AM.
Reply:Hi AnthonyF;If I have my machines right, the rating tag on the back is 250amps 60% duty cycle. I think also that machine has 3 voltage range switch with a fine voltage control knob.At that time the Migmaster was the highest priced Mig out there and it hurt sales a bit, so you don't see so many of them.Anyway a 1/4" short arc mig weld with no torch weaving needs 250amps. The Migmaster also will be a very good Mig spray machine.As you are learning you won't get anywhere the amperage needed for the above. Just a guess, but if you are welding 1/4" material use the settings for 1/8" and weave the torch for the correct bead size.In the power range you have, unless you buy a very good torch, you will most likely find pushing .045 aluminum wire a frustrating effort even with a teflon liner.MattEdit, I just looked at a picture of the 275, it's the exact same machine at about the same price 13 years later????? Nice Catch Anthony! Got the Co2 tap too....
Reply:Matt,Thanks for the info, I've downloaded the manuel for the 275 machine and it has some nice charts for the suggested settings for differant thickness material. I'll start there and see how things go.AnthonyTo many hobbies not enough Cash!!1951 Chevy 1 Ton 9' Pickup resto-mod V8 4x4 1987 Pontiac Fiero GT 3800 V6 ConversionESAB MIgmaster 250www.anthonysautoservice.com
Reply:The MigMaster 250 is still out there....Now its just named MigMaster 250 compact.There is nothing wrong with these machines....After you figure it out, you'll throw rocks at all the others.  It is a nice welding machine.  This machine easily sprays.  Circuit welding has its limits so maybe that's why the settings go to 1/4".The MigMaster 250 is a 280 amp welder with 50% duty cycle at 250 amps.On mine, I keep .035 wire in the machine.  Yes, I also use ESAB aristorod 12.50 wire.  Its not cheap, but its low spatter and high content of deoxidizers make it a perfect fab shop wire.  With .035 wire, I keep it either set at low 8  or medium 1.  I use a wire feed rate of about 4 1/4 to 4 1/2.   It'll weld pretty good there.  Don't look for the high pitch whine or hum of some of the other brands.  Look for the nice sizzle, a lower pitch sound.  To Spray,  I use C12 which works just fine.  I set the machine at Med 8  with a wire feed rate of about 6 1/2 or a little less.    It'll weld 1/2" in a single pass if you wanted.As for the Spool gun,  I haven't tried it but they say the profax spoolgun is the best unit for that machine.   http://www.weldmart.com/AEC%20SPOOL%20GUN%20MASTER.htmEsab Migmaster 250Lincoln SA 200Lincoln Ranger 8Smith Oxy Fuel setupEverlast PowerPlasma 80Everlast Power iMIG 160Everlast Power iMIG 205 Everlast Power iMIG 140EEverlast PowerARC 300Everlast PowerARC 140STEverlast PowerTIG 255EXT
Reply:The Esab 275 does not have a co2 hi/low inductance tap like the 250 plus model. It's has a Short-arc steep slope and a flat slope for spray-arc/ dual shield wire. I have used all three models and owned two (Standard/Plus) of them. The new one is a heck of a machine, but still prefer the 250 plus model overall.
Reply:Originally Posted by Brand XThe Esab 275 does not have a co2 hi/low inductance tap like the 250 plus model. It's has a Short-arc steep slope and a flat slope for spray-arc/ dual shield wire. I have used all three models and owned two (Standard/Plus) of them. The new one is a heck of a machine, but still prefer the 250 plus model overall.
Reply:Thanks to all for the input.Lugweld, the only thing that I don't understand is you said that circuit welding has its limit and that maybe why their chart stops at 1/4 inch, shouldn't 250 amps be enough to weld 1/2" pretty easily? I have used my neighbors older Miller 200 (I think thats the model he has) to weld some pretty thick material. I'veused his machine a lot and from what I'veseen using the ESAB it has a lot more power then the miller seems to, and that maybe just my imagination or lack of experiance which is why i was looking for some starting points on the settings. The old miller is pretty easy to use just set the heat to where you want like say 4 and then the wire speed to 40 and its ready to go every time. I'm sure that i will get to where i understand the Esab controls and be able to do the same thing in time, i do appreciate the setting tips you gave me and will try them as i get to know the machine. So far i am thrilled with the machine and know that i will like it even more as i get to use it more.I only paid 800 for the thing and like i said its in awesome shape so i feel that i stole the machine for that price.thanks again for the helpAnthonyTo many hobbies not enough Cash!!1951 Chevy 1 Ton 9' Pickup resto-mod V8 4x4 1987 Pontiac Fiero GT 3800 V6 ConversionESAB MIgmaster 250www.anthonysautoservice.com
Reply:Originally Posted by Matt_MaguireIs the drooping tap tuned for a specific gas, or is it somewhere between the older machines Co2 and Argon mix taps? Most machines used the lo inductance tap for Argon mix short arc and spray...Matt
Reply:Ok guys a little update,I printed off the settings for the migmaster 275 and tried some of the settings and they seem to be way off for my machine, they seem to be way to hot. So I called ESAB and asked if they had any other info that may be of help, unfortunatlly the guys in the department that may have the answer for me had left for the day so they are suppose to call me tommorow. I'm hoping that they have some answers for me i'll post about what i learn from them. I guess if they can't help then it'll just be a trial and error show till i get the machine down.AnthonyTo many hobbies not enough Cash!!1951 Chevy 1 Ton 9' Pickup resto-mod V8 4x4 1987 Pontiac Fiero GT 3800 V6 ConversionESAB MIgmaster 250www.anthonysautoservice.com
Reply:The inside cover has the wire settings and volts settings printed inside.  These are excellent starting points with this machine.  You won't wander far from their recommedations.Esab Migmaster 250Lincoln SA 200Lincoln Ranger 8Smith Oxy Fuel setupEverlast PowerPlasma 80Everlast Power iMIG 160Everlast Power iMIG 205 Everlast Power iMIG 140EEverlast PowerARC 300Everlast PowerARC 140STEverlast PowerTIG 255EXT
Reply:My machine for some reason dosn't have them printed there, I do have the owners manuel but it only goes to 1/4" and dosn't have any settings for aluminium.AnthonyTo many hobbies not enough Cash!!1951 Chevy 1 Ton 9' Pickup resto-mod V8 4x4 1987 Pontiac Fiero GT 3800 V6 ConversionESAB MIgmaster 250www.anthonysautoservice.com
Reply:http://www.esabna.com/literature/Arc...r-250_Plus.pdfAluminum in this Manual.
Reply:Anthony,Checked the cover and the manual and they match up.  So....Don't worry about the what is printed.  You have to be able to set a machine by sound and sight any way.  At most it will only take a test weld or two to find you best setting given the information. The machine will weld about anything.  My guess is that they limit it to 1/4inch because that is the maximum thickness that is usually considered to be a quality weld in a single pass with MIG.  The MM250 is definitely a good and capable machine.  Don't worry about charts and settings, they handicap you if that is all you have to rely on.Esab Migmaster 250Lincoln SA 200Lincoln Ranger 8Smith Oxy Fuel setupEverlast PowerPlasma 80Everlast Power iMIG 160Everlast Power iMIG 205 Everlast Power iMIG 140EEverlast PowerARC 300Everlast PowerARC 140STEverlast PowerTIG 255EXT
Reply:LOL;The 275 probably has recommendations for production welding with 1/4".The neighbors shop recently bought a T/A 251 and he came over and said it was all screwed up.I checked the settings and measured two 5 second pulls of wire, it was 550 - 575 IPM with .035.So I set the torch down and welded with a slight drag angle and shortened the arc length a bit and she smoothed out. I figure the torch travel was 20 - 25 IPM. The machine showed the volts a bit high for C25 but still in the short circuit range and 225amps.He said we can't weld like that, I said set it to 1/8" and weld like you normally do then.Matt
Reply:Thanks guys for the info, I did speak to a very helpful tech at esab to day and he said what lugweld said that they want you to weld 1/2" in two passes on from each side. and i don't weld that kind of material very often, in fact only ever did it once and then i had a 110volt machine so i did several passes and it held so i know that i can do it easier with this machine and have better results. Lugweld, i usually do weld by sound like you said I have found this machine to take me a little of tweaking to get just right so that is one reaon that i wanted some base setting till I understand the machine a little more. Also I'm just trying to figure out how to weld aluminium so I'm not sure what to look or listen for yet but I'll get there.Thanks AnthonyTo many hobbies not enough Cash!!1951 Chevy 1 Ton 9' Pickup resto-mod V8 4x4 1987 Pontiac Fiero GT 3800 V6 ConversionESAB MIgmaster 250www.anthonysautoservice.com
Reply:Brand XThanks for the link I downloaded that manuel and the number for steel match my manuel exactly so I'm sure that the numbers for the aluminum will also be the same. This will get me started at the least so thanks again.AnthonyTo many hobbies not enough Cash!!1951 Chevy 1 Ton 9' Pickup resto-mod V8 4x4 1987 Pontiac Fiero GT 3800 V6 ConversionESAB MIgmaster 250www.anthonysautoservice.com