I bought this Tig welder several years ago and have never messed with it other than making a roll around dolly for it with my mig welder. Now I think I'm gonna sell it and get a new tig so I need to get this one going to double check how well it works before I sell it. I have no idea how to set this one up, it's an old unit I got from my buddy that isn't around any more. Any help is appreciated. I just need to get it set up to weld a couple pieces of stock together to test it. Hopefully someone has this same unit or similar. thanks!
You can go to Miller web site and type in the model number and it will pull up the owners manuel in PDf form that you can down load or print out. Then when you sell the machine you can hand the new owner a owner's manuel as well. I did this for my miller econotig 150 machine.
The handle with the knob sets your basic ampherage and the dial above it fine tunes it. The dial on the top right is for you high frequency start. You should have a stud for ground and then your tig lead and your wa wa peddle will plug in. You should also have a line that runs from your tig lead to the gas bottle. I would love to have that unit it looks like the one I learned to tig with.
Hell I am so broke I can't afford to pay attention. is that one single phase ot 3 phase electric? Oh while I am thinking about it you should probably check of it is water cooled before you try it out as well.
Single phase, and yes it has the water cooler with it!! It just takes up too much space, and I'd rather have a new one that's portable around the shop.
As stated by Pork****** above the settings are self explanatory and easy to read. The water cooler must be in good shape or you will burn up the torch cable after a few minutes of welding. If the unit has been sitting for a long time be sure to oil the motor and shaft prior to turning the unit on or you will not be able to turn the fan. Watch for coolant leaks in the pump seal. I presume the unit is a water cooled one.
That is the sweetheart of welders, referred to as the Miller 'Gold Star'. You will have to pay a whole lot of money to replace it. Do you have the torch? Three hoses? Two solenoids near the bottom of the door under the setup panel? One solenoid for argon the other for water - got to have water connected befor welding or you'll burn the torch up. Right now the machine is setup for welding steel, easily weld 1/8 and less. To go aluminum you switch the top handle to AC and flip that toggle under the 'on-off' switch to 'constant' and thst is your high freq. Right now the high freq is for 'start' only and the center position is 'off'. To weld thicker steel rotate that middle knob - think of it as 'percentage' of the range you set with the lower handle - right now on dc it is 250ampish. The percentage controls how much is avaiable at the pedal - the higher on the knob the more avaialable at the pedal. When ma**ed you can weld 1/4 plate - depends on where you are on the plate. That machine can weld razorblades together. I have struck an arc so low that it didn't set off a match adjacent to the weld. For sheetmetal, bodypanels etc, rotate the middle knob to about 30% and leave everything else the same. get yourself a bottle of pure argon. Have fun.
Those old machines are great ,it's gona cost you $4 K + to get one of those inverter machines that can do what this one does. If you have enough power in the shop to run it KEEP it,you won't be sorry.
These guys are right. I have a slightly newer (1976) model and it is a great old machine. FWIW I don't have a cooler for mine and have never had much trouble. I don't production weld by any means though. Let us know how she works!
The rule of thumb is a good tig will last 50 years...Oughta keep it, and just get a small unit for portability, bought a nice Hobart for $400, and a small Miller for $650, both are in the 1600 range new. The one you have is sellable for what, maybe $4to $600, but would cost thousands to replace.
Check your electrical supply box - I had one of these and could only get a 60A breaker set up for it - It would kick the breaker sometimes on start. If I could have had it on a 100A breaker, I'm sure it would have been fine. It is a really capable machine.
I had 3K saved up ready to plop down on a new tig welder. I asked B*** what he used when i read his welder was close to 30 years old. B*** uses a older airco welder ... which is the same as the dialarc but in an orange cover.. i think miller bought out airco.. and slapped a blue cover on it and called it miller.. good enough for him good enough for me!!!! I came across a 1978 miller dialarc water cooled tig welder... bought it and run it in my garage at home on a dedicated 60A breaker. has never popped. I love it and saved $2400 !! This thing runs like a champ!!!
X2 on welding razor blades together, these machines are far superior to the new machines, got my red wings on one of these, then a Dialarc 250 then the Synchrowave, I wish I had that old unit still.
Miller 300 A/Bp. That little baby weighs in around 850 lbs. I have one but never used it, other than testing to make sure it was working. Mine does not have the optional foot control, but it can be added by just plugging one in.
I have the same machine & no it's not for sale & is never going to be as long as I can still weld. Why would anybody sell that great welder ?
I have had my Gold Star for over fifty years. AC-DC, TIG and Arc. And a ton of features to fine tune output. As reported above, you can weld razor blades or battleships. Thankfully nothing is "solid state". All readily available relays, contacts and coils, etc.,. Easy to diagnose and repair if and when anything goes to sleep. And parts are available through industrial suppliers. GREAT MACHINE!!
I have the same machine.. For sale in the cl***ifieds. Only reason I am selling it is space! I have a newer miller in my shop that takes up 1/3 the space. Dave Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app
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