ac dc TIGwelder

Hi all, getting ready for my first TIG...

anyone has used the Jasic 180/200 AC,Dc tig welder....% year warranty ???

I need it for st/steel, thick and thin tubes, ally.....plus special frame brazing in (steel)......

foot control seems logical but then it all gets a bit much.....

price is around the £880 mark....I'd be happier with a bit less say 500....it's not an everyday user......

any reviews ....have looked on the net but I think it's a pretty new model......

ideas please, even if u have something for sale u no longer want.....

all idea's welcome......ta Clogs

Hi there,

I do a lot of TIG welding and maybe can help a little..

I weld mostly Stainless and Aluminium, no basic steels, but do a lot of Moly based tubing for motorcycle frames ( off-road stuff)

Features I consider essential are

foot control of amperage:

especially on thin materials, more especially on aluminium - you need to be able to inject hi amps to heat the base material up and reduce as you weld. If your welder is capable of pulse control, you can use that to make nice scalloped welds, if not, active pedalling on the foot control - Dab the pedal, heat the material, pull torch back on the weld, apply filler, back-off on the pedal, move forward along the weld and repeat...you get into the groove after a while and it flows..

A GOOD fast response welding helmet,

( not the old dark glass flop around jobs) The darken response time must be reliably rapid, and you must be able to set the opacity since the weld 'brightness' varies a lot at the different amperages used for different thickness materials.

High-Frequency/Voltage arc start:

Not 'essential' but makes life much more pleasant. Scratch start works fine, but use a piece of pure copper sheet next to the weld to start the arc on, and then walk the arc to the weld. Not nice if you are not proficient, since you WILL many times touch the weld with the torch tip, and then it's clean/regrind the tip, and then scratch start, etc..Some welds are at angles where the copper start strip is awkward, and so you start the arc on the base material, contaminating the tip and subsequent welds..

Some of the cheaper systems without foot control but with HF start supply a torch with a finger activated HF start mode. This works, but your hand suffers badly! the finger is always poised over that button and the rest of the digits take big strain handling and manipulating the torch - Don't go there!

Automatic on/off shield gas control:

Some cheaper systems provide a torch with a finger controlled valve on the torch to active gas flow - Don't go there - it just detracts from the dexterity needed to control the torch.

Torch Size:

A small torch with bent head is nice,neat, zippy, gets in places, but weld for 20minutes on 10 minutes off at 200 amps and you will be wrapping the torch in wet rags to cool it...

I have three torches, two that are 'T' shaped, one large using 2.4 and 3.5mm Tungstens, one medium in which I use 1.2mm up to 2.2mm tungstens, and a small pencil shaped torch for 1mm up to 1.6mm tungstens - the later torch normally used on material that require up to 30amps max ( 0.3 to 1mm S/Steel, for example)

Tungstens:

2% Thoriated for S'Steel and Moly ( sure all the OHS folk will jump in here and swamp us with safety issues..you must grind it wet only, you must grind it outside, you must grind it while in a full HazMat suit, blah, blah..)

Ceriated or Lanthanated (grey band or Gold Band resp.) for Aluminium ( and AC of course).

Other Issues:

You say 'thick and thin tubes' - what do you mean? To butt weld two Aluminium plates of 10mm each you need a solid 200amps..or you have to pre-heat the entire assembly first, and hope you get good penetration at 150amps..I normally set my machine to 100amps for 2mm Ali, 150amps for 6mm, and 240amp for 10 to 12mm, and then use the foot control to get what I want.

I am assuming from you opening statement that you have not Tig welded yet - if I am wrong, forgive me and ignore most of this post...Tig welding is as much an art as a process, requires good eysight to judge arc length, which must be kept as short as possible, more so the thinner the materials, a really steady pair of hands so you don't stuff the tip into the weld, or the rod into the tip, etc.

And then , practice,Practice,PRActice, PRACTICE......

To get the foot synchronized with the torch movement, and the feed rod synced with the torch motion, and the head flip to get the helmet down when ready..

What else??

Joe

Hi Again Clogs,

Sorry, I should have first researched your proposed welder before my post -

I cannot work out which one you are refering to - I find two versions of the same number - called a TIG 200P AC/DC, but the one shows a front panel full of knobs, the other seems to have a digital front panel. Or is it neither of these two?

Just trying to see what features they have, but regardless, either appear quite capable, so don't skimp on the accessories that will make you life much easier. A good helmet, and for sure a foot pedal current control.

The rest is taken care of - it is HF start, auto gas control, etc..Seems a good machine although my only issue would be the high amp regions - most of the eastern made machines, when they say 185 amps @ 60% duty, and call the machine a 200amp machine, mean 200amps @ 5% duty...

But I don't think you will be spending much time at the high-amps.

Joe

Have a look a R-tech. I too am a qualified Tig welder and can vouch for there welders. The after sales service is second to none. I've used Lincoln electric ac/dc welders and can say the r-tech are just as good 👍👍

duty cycle

Hi all,

I think it's the one with the knobs....the other is around £200 more from memory......

have used the old Lincoln torpedo stick welders of old....

it'd be nice to get the best but at my age 1400-1500 squids is just a bit to much.....yeah, yeah, quality aint cheap but I can't use in me underground bunker.....an for her to sell it on after service it'll be worth nowt....hahaha.....

understand duty cycle ...... just have to wear wet gloves.....hahaha....

there's no rush for a fast finish.....Clogs ....

Hi again,

just checking prices, the basic Jasic Analog 200a, is £870 and the same but Digital is another 400 is it worth it ?

seems u just get memory for set welding tasks........Clogs

Hi clogs,

For that amount extra, def. not worth it! On that front digital panel, you cannot see at a glance what the actual ramp up/dn and dwell times are at a glance - have to press buttons and read displays. The analogue knobs show right away where you are set.

The analogue unit looks good.

Joe

I ended up going with a basic 160 amp DC inverter to learn tig on. £170 machine mart jobbie.

I should have spent a little more and got one with 2t/4t and a pedal option.

Scratch start is fine if you are using thicker tungsten 2mm+. My welds look good with the setup. The start of a weld and the closing are a bit frantic when you snap out.

If you are not planning on welding alu then don't bother with AC at all. You don't even need pulse DC for steel. My basic machine is actually very good and once you have the hang of snapping in and out it's not a chore to use, I just wish I had a little more control.

Something like this would have been better for me.

http://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/tig-welder-240v-dc-160amp/

The 4T function lets you start and stop on demand without snapping out. The WP17 torch is a nice size. And you have the option to add a pedal.

Get a nice WP17 consumable kit, some gloves, mask, filler wire, and the biggest bottle of argon you can.


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Expert-Accessory-Kit-for-WP17-26-18W-Tig-Welding-Torch-Tungstens-/152219486079

For my gas I went with a local rent free supplier. I'll post a link so you can see the prices he offers. I would imagine you will have to look for a local supplier to you, these prices seemed very good. So it'll at least act as a benchmark for the price you should be paying.

http://www.fossegas.co.uk/page_2266901.html

Edited By Blake Nesbitt on 23/05/2017 10:04:53