1.
How long of welding duration
time will I get out of a pair of
batteries before I will need to
recharge them?
Answer: Many factors will
determine the length of
acceptable quality welding
duration time, with the primary
factors being the the type and
size of batteries used and the
type of welding being performed.
The thicker the metal being
welded the greater the amperage
draw will need to be to obtain
satisfactory results,which will
drain the batteries faster. The
size and amp hour ratings of the
batteries used will determine
the total amount of power
available and thus the welding
time available, We typically
recommend group 31 marine deep
cycle batteries as a power
source for the Ready Welder II.
A fully charged pair of these
batteries will normally yield a
minimum duration of about 45
minutes when welding 1/2"
steel or 3/4 aluminum @ 175
amps, while lighter duty welding
operations on thinner metal can
offer a duration time of 4 hours
or more. Please see the
operating guidelines page for
more battery discussion.
2. What type of
batteries and charger should I
buy, and what type of
maintenance do I need to perform
on the batteries?
Answer: We highly
recommend the purchase of good
quality ,12 volt deep-cycle
marine/RV batteries ranging from
group 24 to group31, which is
our preference. Get the kind
with vertical posts capped with
wing-nuts for easy power
connections to the RW-II.
Regular auto batteries and other
batteries not designed for deep
cycle discharging and recharging
will have a shorter life span if
drawn too low too many times.
For occasional welding this
shouldn't be a problem. For home
use a 10 amp overnight charging
will work well. Maintenence of
batteries should be according to
manufactures instructions.
3. Does the trigger
control power to the tip and
does the wire feed speed control
knob adjust the amperage level
fed to the electrode?
Answer: No in both cases.
The trigger controls wire feed
(on-off) and gas flow but does
not control power feeding to the
tip. The tip is live whenever
the RW-II is connected to power
source. The red plastic
connectors in the RW-II power
cable are designed to be easily
disconnected to de-power the
welder between uses without
having to disconnect the cables
at the power source. The wire
feed control knob only
indirectly affects the amperage
transmitted based upon the
physical volume of wire being
fed to the bead, and this effect
is usually moderate. Use of
thinner wire, say .023"
will reduce amperage to some
extent.
4. I've got two 12 volt
batteries under the hood of my
vehicle. Can I hook up the
Ready-Welder II to these
batteries with the motor running
and batteries cable still
connected?
Answer: No. The batteries
are normally wired in parallel
for these applications (assuming
your vehicle operates ion 12
volt) and the RWI-II normally
uses 24 volt for welding and
requires these batteries to be
wired in series. Be sure to read
the operating instructions page
for some exception to the 24
volt rule! Leaving the batteries
connected to the vehicles
electrical system while the RW-II
may cause severe damage to the
vehicles electrical system.
Don't do it! Quick disconnects
are readily available from Wal-Mart
and other stores that make this
easier.
5. Can I connect the RW-II
to my Miller/Lincoln etc MIG or
ARC welder to use as a
"spool gun"
attachment?
Answer: Quite possibly.
The RW-II was designed for pure
DC and does not tolerate AC,
voltage spikes or input levels
which exceed 48 volts. The
circuit board brain of the RW-II
is very sensitive to waveform
distortions as well. Welding
machines with "constant
voltage" and/or
"constant current" DC
outputs which can be adjusted to
levels between 24 and 36 volts
DC, may work just fine, but keep
in mind that the RW-II was
designed for batteries and any
other power source may cause
problems.
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