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Clarke MIG welder wire feed quit working
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Tom
Aug 27, 2002, 12:45:52 PM8/27/02
to
I have a Clarke Pro-90 MIG welder, and today it stopped feeding wire.
I opened the handle of the nozzle and checked the switch that is
operated by the trigger, and it is OK. The wiring from there to the
body of the welder is also OK. I checked the circuit board and put 12
volts DC on the little relay and it clicks (I don't know if it is part
of the wire feed circuit or not.) As far as I can tell with the aid of
a little volt-ohm meter, the transistors and diodes and capacitors on
the board are OK. That left the motor that is the heart of the wire
feeder, but it has a black and a red wire and I don't know if it is AC
or DC, nor what voltage it takes. I spun the feeder disk (the piece
that actually grips the wire and pushes it) by hand and the motor
spins when I do that, so it is free. Does anyone have an idea what is
the fault? I don't have a booklet or a repair/trouble-shooting
manual. I got the welder used a couple of years ago.
I opened the handle of the nozzle and checked the switch that is
operated by the trigger, and it is OK. The wiring from there to the
body of the welder is also OK. I checked the circuit board and put 12
volts DC on the little relay and it clicks (I don't know if it is part
of the wire feed circuit or not.) As far as I can tell with the aid of
a little volt-ohm meter, the transistors and diodes and capacitors on
the board are OK. That left the motor that is the heart of the wire
feeder, but it has a black and a red wire and I don't know if it is AC
or DC, nor what voltage it takes. I spun the feeder disk (the piece
that actually grips the wire and pushes it) by hand and the motor
spins when I do that, so it is free. Does anyone have an idea what is
the fault? I don't have a booklet or a repair/trouble-shooting
manual. I got the welder used a couple of years ago.
gary millar
Aug 27, 2002, 4:11:23 PM8/27/02
to
I had the same problem with my 100e and what you should check is that the
transformer that changes the 240 volts down to 12 volts or whatever for the
torch is working i.e. is it giving out the required voltage and if it is try
the torch trigger switch itself hope this helps
Tom <tjf...@iol.ie> wrote in message
news:6b876565.02082...@posting.google.com...
transformer that changes the 240 volts down to 12 volts or whatever for the
torch is working i.e. is it giving out the required voltage and if it is try
the torch trigger switch itself hope this helps
Tom <tjf...@iol.ie> wrote in message
news:6b876565.02082...@posting.google.com...
Tom
Aug 27, 2002, 11:26:41 PM8/27/02
to
Thanks for the tip. I've checked the trigger switch inside the torch
handle housing and it is OK. I'll check the transformers tomorrow. I
have been surfing the Internet looking for clues and have learned that
many low-priced MIG welders power the wire feed motor from a winding
on the main transformer. After reading that I got the sick feeling
that maybe my big transformer has bit the dust. I'm also afraid my
wife is going to take a dim view of me getting a replacement welder!
handle housing and it is OK. I'll check the transformers tomorrow. I
have been surfing the Internet looking for clues and have learned that
many low-priced MIG welders power the wire feed motor from a winding
on the main transformer. After reading that I got the sick feeling
that maybe my big transformer has bit the dust. I'm also afraid my
wife is going to take a dim view of me getting a replacement welder!
Duncan Wood
Aug 28, 2002, 3:09:10 AM8/28/02
to
It's far more likely to be the motor. Meausure the resistance of the coils
in the transformer, they should be less than a couple of ohms
Dave Plowman
Aug 28, 2002, 4:35:45 AM8/28/02
to
In article <6b876565.02082...@posting.google.com>,
Tom <tjf...@iol.ie> wrote:
> I have been surfing the Internet looking for clues and have learned
> that many low-priced MIG welders power the wire feed motor from a
> winding on the main transformer. After reading that I got the sick
> feeling that maybe my big transformer has bit the dust.
Tom <tjf...@iol.ie> wrote:
> I have been surfing the Internet looking for clues and have learned
> that many low-priced MIG welders power the wire feed motor from a
> winding on the main transformer. After reading that I got the sick
> feeling that maybe my big transformer has bit the dust.
If it's just the motor winding on the transformer which has gone, there's
no reason why you shouldn't modify the design to use a separate
transformer for this. RS Components or Maplin should have a suitable one.
--
* If your feet smell and your nose runs, you're built upside down.
Dave Plowman dave....@argonet.co.uk London SW 12
RIP Acorn
Tom
Aug 28, 2002, 7:21:47 AM8/28/02
to
The torch switch is OK. I checked the big transformer and it seems OK.
It has a center-tapped secondary winding with heavy wires that must
supply the proper voltage to the diodes which rectify the current for
the welding. (The rectifying diodes in the secondary winding output
check OK, too.) The primary winding has two taps and one goes to a
"Min/Max" and the other to a "1/2" switch on the front panel and those
switches in turn go to the power switch and from there to the main 230
VAC supply from the house socket. All the windings checked good
continuity. There is also a big smoothing choke in the circuit to the
clamp and its continuity also checks OK. That moves the problem back
to the printed circuit board and its components. The little diodes on
the board seem OK. The only thing I don't recognize on the board is
what looks like a small transfomer (no markings) that is about 1 inch
tall by 1 inch wide by 1-1/4 inches long. The circuit board has
printing on it: "177254 E1292.01".
It has a center-tapped secondary winding with heavy wires that must
supply the proper voltage to the diodes which rectify the current for
the welding. (The rectifying diodes in the secondary winding output
check OK, too.) The primary winding has two taps and one goes to a
"Min/Max" and the other to a "1/2" switch on the front panel and those
switches in turn go to the power switch and from there to the main 230
VAC supply from the house socket. All the windings checked good
continuity. There is also a big smoothing choke in the circuit to the
clamp and its continuity also checks OK. That moves the problem back
to the printed circuit board and its components. The little diodes on
the board seem OK. The only thing I don't recognize on the board is
what looks like a small transfomer (no markings) that is about 1 inch
tall by 1 inch wide by 1-1/4 inches long. The circuit board has
printing on it: "177254 E1292.01".
I would sure be glad to have any more suggestions!
Guy King
Aug 28, 2002, 8:42:06 AM8/28/02
to
tjf...@iol.ie (Tom) sniffed the heady air of the shed and in
<6b876565.02082...@posting.google.com>said....
.
> That left the motor that is the heart of the wire
> feeder, but it has a black and a red wire and I don't know if it is AC
> or DC, nor what voltage it takes.
<6b876565.02082...@posting.google.com>said....
.
> That left the motor that is the heart of the wire
> feeder, but it has a black and a red wire and I don't know if it is AC
> or DC, nor what voltage it takes.
I'm fairly sure it's a small DC motor...I suggest you stick your meter
across it when it should be operating and see if it's getting any
voltage.
I vaguely remember that you can replace the brushes on some of them.
--
Skipweasel...
Teeth will be provided.
R L Driver
Aug 28, 2002, 10:52:59 AM8/28/02
to
The motor is a 12 volt dc motor, before scrapping it show the motor to a guy
in a model shop, I think its a R/C car motor
in a model shop, I think its a R/C car motor
Tom
Aug 29, 2002, 7:41:56 PM8/29/02
to
I appreciate the feedback. Today I took a long hard look at the
printed circuit board, and it seems that the house supply AC is not
getting to the relay coil. I traced back from the coil and found it
led to the secondary of a small transformer and the primary of the
transformer was across the hot and neutral leads from the 230 VAC
house supply. I desoldered the transformer from the board and found
the primary winding was open. This evening I used a razor blade and
opened the cover in hopes of learning something about the
manufacturer. All I can see inside is some markings on the top cover:
"10-105X15 0", "EI30" and a logo that looks like a capital "E"
without the middle horizontal line, a small script letter "g" and a
thick capital letter "Z" lined up to resemble "EgZ". I surfed the net
and think the EI30 is a class of transformer, maybe miniature
encapsulated voltage types.
printed circuit board, and it seems that the house supply AC is not
getting to the relay coil. I traced back from the coil and found it
led to the secondary of a small transformer and the primary of the
transformer was across the hot and neutral leads from the 230 VAC
house supply. I desoldered the transformer from the board and found
the primary winding was open. This evening I used a razor blade and
opened the cover in hopes of learning something about the
manufacturer. All I can see inside is some markings on the top cover:
"10-105X15 0", "EI30" and a logo that looks like a capital "E"
without the middle horizontal line, a small script letter "g" and a
thick capital letter "Z" lined up to resemble "EgZ". I surfed the net
and think the EI30 is a class of transformer, maybe miniature
encapsulated voltage types.
The idea of going to a Maplin or equivalent catalog and just getting a
230 to 12 volt transformer seems my best bet. Clarke responded that
the wire feed motor is a 12 VDC type, as was posted by one of the
people who responded to my first post. Clarke also say they only
supply the whole circuit board, not components and the board would be
40.48 pounds Sterling plus 22 pounds Sterling to send the board to me
in Ireland! That would be more than I paid for the whole welder two
years ago.
bigwayn...@gmail.com
Aug 17, 2014, 12:25:23 PM8/17/14
to
I have similar problem feed motor runs when you press trigger but as soon as you arc up feed motor stops and there is a deep humming noise. I have changed the liner,tip and using new feed wire so no corrosion any ideas??
Grimly Curmudgeon
Aug 17, 2014, 5:33:12 PM8/17/14
to
On Sun, 17 Aug 2014 09:25:23 -0700 (PDT), bigwayn...@gmail.com
wrote:
>I have similar problem feed motor runs when you press trigger but as soon as you arc up feed motor stops and there is a deep humming noise. I have changed the liner,tip and using new feed wire so no corrosion any ideas??
Nip over to http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/ and have a gander -
you're bound to find the answer in the search.
wrote:
>I have similar problem feed motor runs when you press trigger but as soon as you arc up feed motor stops and there is a deep humming noise. I have changed the liner,tip and using new feed wire so no corrosion any ideas??
you're bound to find the answer in the search.
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