Nobs, nobs, everywhere!

[Nazrac]

First, I will say that I am a hobbyist and not a professional welder. I am brand new to welding and I am learning to do it in my spare time by reading and practicing.

I bought a LS-200P. Unfortunately, the only manual that I have been able to find for it is how to wire it up. I wired it into my 200v drier outlet in my garage. I read a lot on the Miller site to learn how to weld but unfortunately, their machines have completely different settings.

So far I have used the plasma cutter and started practicing some TIG welding. I was really surprised how quickly I was able to cut a brake rotor in half with the plasmas cutter. That was simply amazing. I figured out what half of the knobs, buttons and switches do but there are a few that still puzzle me:


What does the knob on the foot pedal do?
What is the relationship between peak current and basic current?
On the clean area and width knob, which way is more electrode positive and negative? Is 20% more positive or 80%?
What exactly does the pulse duty knob do?
What does the 2T and 4T switch do?
Does the Arc Force knob do anything when TIG welding or is it MMA only?


Any help will be appreciated.

[Gadget]

Nazrac,
I have found that when using TIG on very thin metal turning the arc force down will help prevent blowing through the metal.
I don't have a knob on my foot pedal so I can't help there.
I am not sure about the 2T and 4T but I think 2T starts and stops as you would expect. 4T you start with the first pedal push then to stop the arc you have to release it and push and release again. At least that is what I understand. Don't know why that would be desirable though.
Clean area width the higher the number the longer the positive cycle I believe.
Base current is the actual amperage setting peak current is probably the pulse but not sure there.
I do know however that both base and peak have no effect when using the pedal.
Pulse duty, I think that increases or decreases the pulse frequency.
Like you, I have not found a manual that really addresses these knobs so everything I have said is based on my experience. I could be way off base but I think I am at least close to what they actualy do.
Hope this helps,
Gadget

[David R]

Gadget nailed pulse duty and 2T 4T.

I think the knob on the foot pedal limits the top current, not the knob on the machine, but I am guessing. That feature may not have been included in the machine, so they put it in the foot pedal.

On almost all machines, once you switch to remote on TIG, the amp setting on the machine is the max the foot pedal can go. SO if you set the max to 200 and are welding a coke can, the smallest movement on the pedal is going to blow a hole in the can. If you set the max to 10 amps, its easier to control the heat. It gives you more latitude.

Peak current is welding current on pulse.
Basic current is background current and is the low side of the pulse. 1/2, 1/4 or even 1/10 of the peak current.

Arc force is for stick only. Higher makes more dig and a "crisper" arc. Lower makes a smoother arc.

David :)

[Nazrac]

Thanks for the reply. I was practicing on some 2" 16 guage pipe last night and set the peak setting to 40 amps but I left the basic amperage at the mid point. Now I know why it melted a hole right through in no time flat when I floored the pedal. 200 amps going into metal that thin, yikes! :D

I am going to take a guess that the knob on the pedal is a setting for the peak amperage when the pedal is fully depressed then. That is going to help me out a great deal.

[Nazrac]

Gadget nailed pulse duty and 2T 4T.

I think the knob on the foot pedal limits the top current, not the knob on the machine, but I am guessing. That feature may not have been included in the machine, so they put it in the foot pedal.

On almost all machines, once you switch to remote on TIG, the amp setting on the machine is the max the foot pedal can go. SO if you set the max to 200 and are welding a coke can, the smallest movement on the pedal is going to blow a hole in the can. If you set the max to 10 amps, its easier to control the heat. It gives you more latitude.

Peak current is welding current on pulse.
Basic current is background current and is the low side of the pulse. 1/2, 1/4 or even 1/10 of the peak current.

Arc force is for stick only. Higher makes more dig and a "crisper" arc. Lower makes a smoother arc.

David :)


Thank you for your reply.

If I understand your post correctly, then basic current setting is a percent of the peak current? Example: if I set peak current to 100 amps and I have the basic current at the 1/2 way mark, then as soon as I touch the foot pedal, I have 50 amps? Then if I turn it down to the 1/4 mark, then if I touch the foot pedal, I have 25 amps? If I change peak to 200, then I would have 100 and 50 amps respectly based on the two previous basic current settings?

That could explain a lot of things that I encounters while practicing. I can't wait to fire it up again tomorrow. I think my welding experience will be a lot better. I don't think I will be melting through as much or spending as much time sharpening my tungsten. No wonder it seemed like it was a lot harder than it should be. :)

[David R]

Thank you for your reply.

If I understand your post correctly, then basic current setting is a percent of the peak current? Example: if I set peak current to 100 amps and I have the basic current at the 1/2 way mark, then as soon as I touch the foot pedal, I have 50 amps? Then if I turn it down to the 1/4 mark, then if I touch the foot pedal, I have 25 amps? If I change peak to 200, then I would have 100 and 50 amps respectly based on the two previous basic current settings?

That could explain a lot of things that I encounters while practicing. I can't wait to fire it up again tomorrow. I think my welding experience will be a lot better. I don't think I will be melting through as much or spending as much time sharpening my tungsten. No wonder it seemed like it was a lot harder than it should be. :)


Ummm, no.

The foot pedal is just like the amp knob on the front of your machine with a spring on it that turns it all the way down. You always start at the lowest setting on the welder when you first press the pedal a little.

Where the knob on the machine or in your case foot pedal, its the max current you will get with the pedal floored. It allows you more resolution (control) of the heat.

David

[Nazrac]

Ah. Thanks for the clarification. So when I use my foot pedal, then those two knobs, basic current and peak current, on the machine do not do anything. The max amperage with the pedal fully depressed is controlled by the knob on my foot pedal and the 0-max is controlled by my foot. Correct?

[David R]

YEAH, YOU GOT IT!

Now show us some welds!

David