Cant pass up a deal, 300SM with Powerdrive 2

[Jawslandshark]

I had never used one of these welders and my curiosity got the best of me. I found a 300SM with a Powerdrive 2 feeder for a real deal, it has no gun so I am going to have to spend a little more to complete the package. Not that I need another welder or have the time to mess with stuff that does not work but figured if anything it could net me some extra cash down the road for parts. It was very dirty/dusty and looked well used, I changed it over to single phase and to my surprise was burning some rod with ease.

I thought is was broken when I heard the ticking and squealing but from what I have read that is normal. I took the case off both ends and blew all the dust and crap out, I was amazed at the technology packed into a small package for a welder that is very, very old. The few minutes I spent welding it took me a bit to get the settings right for some 6011, but I eventually found the sweet spot. I dont know what I am going to do with it yet, once I get a mig gun I will see if I like it. I guess the Powerdrive 2 uses Tweco backend, I have not even got that far to even make sure.

[aevald]

Hello Jawslandshark, you have a very good machine there and once you get a gun for it you will have a really nice combination. One word of caution though: since this is an inverter welder be careful about removing the cover and messing with the internals until you have an understanding of how to discharge the capacitor bank inside of it. If you are already aware of this please disregard what I have said, if not, get onto google and find the pdf. file for the manual on this machine and read through it carefully to be able to discharge the capacitors if you are going to be poking around inside or doing any re-linking for voltage changes or anything.

You are right about the ticking/clicking and squealing that your machine makes when it is idling or welding, that is a trademark thing with them. Powcon was one of the first inverter manufacturers in the states to my knowledge (Europe may have had some of the inverters over there before we had Powcon here though). If you do a search on the forum here you should be able to find out a lot of information on how they came about, who bought them out and absorbed their technology and also how a company in California got into business servicing these due to the strong following that they have.

I have the 400 SMT and it is an awesome power source. I modified it a bit though and run an older 4-roll Miller feeder on it as it is not plug and play with Miller feeders. Good luck and best regards, Allan

[Jawslandshark]

I went ahead and took the time to clean the machine up, it looks actually pretty good now considering its age. I pulled the gun out of my 252i and it fit in the Power Drive so I ordered a 250 amp Tweco Fusion for it, I actually like the Fusion after using it in my Thermal Arc. Well it turns out there needs to be some work done on the feeder, the remote lead is all decayed inside and looks like the ground wire overheated and all the wires melted together. For now I will set it aside and mess with it another time, the Powcon might get loaded up for a gate job next week to see if it is worthy, I don't know how these things do on a generator but will soon find out, it's going to have some tough competition against the little Maxstar 200.

[aevald]

Looking forward to an update. Best regards, Allan

[skidrowpete]

the powcon is now made by arcon in salisbury md you can get any parts or a brand new unit if so desired their number is 443 523 5574 hope this will be of some use to somebody on here in fact they repaired two units for me

[Jawslandshark]

I did not drag the Powcon out with me this week because I really don't want to burn it up so quick. Even though I know my 10k generator is clean and the TA 252i and the Maxstar 200 have no issues I don't want to push my luck. I did a quick search and could not find any info about running Powcons on generators?

The Power Drive II was still sitting on the bench so I tore it apart, for anyone interested the circuit board inside says Hobart Bros, the drive rolls are the same as my TA's, the guides are all Tweco. Everything inside was built really well, it was easy to replace the wires on the remote and hook up the new Fusion gun. The 80's red powder coat cleaned up good also. I plugged it into the 300SM and everything worked. Very soon I will test this against my other migs to see how it stacks up.

[Jawslandshark]

I must say I am impressed the way this thing mig welds! I ran test beads using the same wire I use in all my migs, Anchor .035 ER70-6 premium, the stuff made in Italy, gas was C25 at 30 CFH. I am shocked it produces almost no spatter. It whines at the arc and kinda lets you know whats going on. Very nice effortless welds that are straight, good tie in, with a nice appearance. I guess they live up to the hype, the only welder I can think of that welds like this is a Esab Migmaster 250. I don't think I want to sell it now....

[aevald]

Hello Jawslandshark, you will find that by adjusting/experimenting with the arc control dial that you will be able to very easily and specifically adjust the type of arc that your machine will deliver, especially with the C25 gas that you are using. Personally, your ESAB won't compare to this machine, IMHO. Good luck and best regards, Allan

[ManoKai]

@ Jawslandshark - your 300ST sounds awesome. Used a PowCon stick machine a couple years prior during an offshore gig. Built like a tank and the click'n sounds were cool. Recently ran into a 300SS on the market for a good deal. The machine is a CC setup and designed for SMAW, Scratch DC TIG, and CAC-A. Single/Three Phase Input.

Have you ever operated a "300SS"?

[Jawslandshark]

@ Jawslandshark - your 300ST sounds awesome. Used a PowCon stick machine a couple years prior during an offshore gig. Built like a tank and the click'n sounds were cool. Recently ran into a 300SS on the market for a good deal. The machine is a CC setup and designed for SMAW, Scratch DC TIG, and CAC-A. Single/Three Phase Input.

Have you ever operated a "300SS"?

This is the first Powcon I have ever owned or used, even though I have seen them around it was always blue and red in the shops I was at. I got hooked on Thermal Arc after buying a 185TSW and that was my first inverter. I guess I should have picked up one of these Powcons sooner, this was a gamble for me and the only reason I bought it was because of reading about them on this forum. I will look for more of these jewels in the future and maybe score another.

[Brand X]

Hit and miss on Pow-con on the Mig end. Some weld really nice, and others just suck bad.. One of the few machines like that.. I bought a 300s for $80.00 because everybody thought it was 3 phase only.. (Tag said so) It fired right up on single phase. You will know if it will work by the fan speed. Sold it for $800.00 the same day.. It welded real nice on stick... I like them if you buy them right..

[Jawslandshark]

I managed to build a cart this weekend out of some scrap, still have some finishing up to do but usable. Somehow paying jobs seem to go much faster....

[Jawslandshark]

This is what a mig weld looks like with the Powcon. I used it to build the cart, seemed like the right thing to do to prove it out. Now keep in mind I did very little prep work or made perfect welds since it is just a cart and paint makes everything look good! It was old steel and plasma cut most of it rather than with the band saw, but from the picture you can see it does not spatter much and lays a nice bead. This is Anchor premium wire .030 with c25 gas, 1/4 plate, machine was on the low setting, weld power at 90 and in the middle on the inductance control.

[toobuzy4suicide]

awesome machine. I have the same set up. I scored the machine W/the powerdrive2 brand new off some dude on line a while back. the machine was his fathers and never used it so it sat for a while until I scooped it up. its been running like a raped ape since... Good luck with it

[blawless]

You have an awesome machine there. I have used them a lot. They will still be welding when many of the others have been made into blenders and coffee pots. I have several of them and also an Arcon MS300. Sweet. These may seem a bit obscure due to the fact they are used in heavy industry. No glitz or glam much but nothing welds better(except my SA200) IMHO
Congrats

[stevenopolis]

Great score. I run a 300sm with a miller 12vs or ln25 on three phase 480. Also have a 300st for stick and cag. It will run 5/16 carbons as quick as I can burn em for about six hours. Let it cool, and good to go. I've modified the st a bit with 5 temp probes instead of 3 for a little more protection during gouge fests. With basic electronics knowledge, these are easily repairable. The guys at Arcon are great, they've gone as far as phone support on a Sunday, on an ancient product, that alone speaks volumes about what kind of outfit they are. Run mostly .045 and 1/16 7100 ultra and .035 solid on the SM. Nothing can beat em in my opinion.

[Jawslandshark]

Great score. I run a 300sm with a miller 12vs or ln25 on three phase 480. Also have a 300st for stick and cag. It will run 5/16 carbons as quick as I can burn em for about six hours. Let it cool, and good to go. I've modified the st a bit with 5 temp probes instead of 3 for a little more protection during gouge fests. With basic electronics knowledge, these are easily repairable. The guys at Arcon are great, they've gone as far as phone support on a Sunday, on an ancient product, that alone speaks volumes about what kind of outfit they are. Run mostly .045 and 1/16 7100 ultra and .035 solid on the SM. Nothing can beat em in my opinion.

Are the Arcon models made today the same as the old Powcon? Do they have the same welding characteristics?

[soutthpaw]

Are the Arcon models made today the same as the old Powcon? Do they have the same welding characteristics?

Never used one, but the guy that invented the Powcon inverter is the one that started Arcon so I'd guess they are similar.

[stevenopolis]

From what I was told by the arcon guys, they use the same basic theory of operation, scr's, just much more up to date control technology.