Did i-Tig 201 have points changed recently?

I opened my i-Tig 201 to check the points.

This is the manual I'm using, I purchased my machine in December of 2017 and it was QA'd in June of 2017.

This is the manual I'm using:

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/s...-TIG%20201.pdf

On the last page it states:

4) Locate the HF board located toward the front of the unit. This board is mounted under the top metal pan
and the points should be visible from the left side (side determined by facing the front of the unit). The
points will have two carbon contacts hanging under the bottom of the metal pan. These will be held in place
by two brass nuts that are used to lock the contacts in place. Check the point gap with either a feeler gauge
by sliding it between the points. Access may be tight, but try several angles to get the feeler gauge in be-
tween the points. The gap should be set to anywhere between .030“ and .045”, with .035” being preferred.

However I have no HF board, AFAICT, my points are located on the motherboard. There is no locking nut that I can see in there, and even if there was it would appear that the motherboard would need to be taken out.

I can see what appears to be a small copper screw, but again, no lock nut, and that copper screw looks near impossible to get to from the outside without taking the entire motherboard out.

Has the motherboard changed on the i-Tig 201?

Am I using the wrong manual?

Alan

Well, the 201 manual was an update of the 200 manual. That was one item that was not mentioned to me when we were updating the manual (the location and basic design had changed in the newer model).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Well, the 201 manual was an update of the 200 manual. That was one item that was not mentioned to me when we were updating the manual (the location and basic design had changed in the newer model).

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What does this mean for me Mark?

Is there a different procedure to set the point gap?

As I said, it looks like there's a very tiny copper screw that could be to adjust it, but there is no locking nut on there, mine looks completely different than the manual.

Is the gap settable on the recent models of i-Tig 201?

Alan

Same basic setup and gap settings at any rate.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Same basic setup and gap settings at any rate.

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If I call support will they have a unit there to look at?

I don't see a way to get to the points, so would like to have them explain it. Is that possible?

I'd try and take a pic, but it doesn't seem possible to upload a pic, I was trying to insert one here, but the site always gives an error with an ! by the upload.

If I call the support number do they have an i-Tig 201 to look at?

Alan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Well, the 201 manual was an update of the 200 manual. That was one item that was not mentioned to me when we were updating the manual (the location and basic design had changed in the newer model).

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Mark,

When I look at the i-Tig 200 manual from the Everlast site. under Manuals, Power i-TIG 200 (Analog) (Jan 2011 to Late 2015), there is no information that I can find in the old manual.

Under Manuals, Power i-TIG 201 Digital (Late 2015 to Present), Page 30, that is for the newer machine, and the picture of the points, mine looks kinda similar, left of the points. But the points are mounted on two slightly taller/thinner pieces with the points on them. It looks like there is a real tiny copper screw, as I mentioned, but it is not easily accessible without removing the motherboard, AFAICT. If so, let me know.

I first was trying to find out, did the i-Tig 201 change ? And if so, are the points adjustable?

I wouldn't mind opening mine, but if I do I would like someone on the phone to explain it. If I open it I will try to get a pic, but support should have one.

Alan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by aland

I'd try and take a pic, but it doesn't seem possible to upload a pic, I was trying to insert one here, but the site always gives an error with an ! by the upload.


Alan

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The error is due to file size. Keep cropping or resizing until it works. There doesn't seem to be any interest in website maintenance here.

Alan,
I just said that the process was basically the same. That means they are adjustable. The i TIG 201 did not change since it was brought out. I thought that this was already addressed in my earlier comments in post 3. The points and design did change from the 200 to the 201. That was the point. Tech support should be able to help you. But why are you trying to adjust the points at this point of ownership?

What does the gap measure? That would be the first thing, before you worry about how to make an adjustment.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by zoama

The error is due to file size. Keep cropping or resizing until it works. There doesn't seem to be any interest in website maintenance here.

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Considering the image size is 550x181 I'm not sure that is the case. I have tried to scale an image down thinking the same thing, but no go. I am fairly literate when it comes to online sites, but the Everlast site here seems to present problems to me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Alan,
I just said that the process was basically the same. That means they are adjustable.

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Then I'm questioning your memory, or that you don't have an i-Tig 201 in front of you.

Do they have an i-Tig 201 in support so I can talk intelligently with them about how to set the points?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

The i TIG 201 did not change since it was brought out. I thought that this was already addressed in my earlier comments in post 3. The points and design did change from the 200 to the 201. That was the point. Tech support should be able to help you. But why are you trying to adjust the points at this point of ownership?

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I guess you're not reading what I'm typing. I'm telling you the points are different, period. I hope you understand that last statement.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Rambozo

What does the gap measure? That would be the first thing, before you worry about how to make an adjustment.

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Good question, I can't get any standard thickness gauge inside to measure, it is impossible to get a standard one down there. The only way I can see to measure and set the points is to disassemble the machine and take the motherboard out. My machine is different than Mark has worked with, and it is not the same as depicted in the manual.

Maybe the phone will be easier if Everlast has a physical machine in front of them, rather than telling me what my machine does or looks like.

Alan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by aland

Considering the image size is 550x181 I'm not sure that is the case. I have tried to scale an image down thinking the same thing, but no go. I am fairly literate when it comes to online sites, but the Everlast site here seems to present problems to me.



Then I'm questioning your memory, or that you don't have an i-Tig 201 in front of you.

Do they have an i-Tig 201 in support so I can talk intelligently with them about how to set the points?



I guess you're not reading what I'm typing. I'm telling you the points are different, period. I hope you understand that last statement.



Good question, I can't get any standard thickness gauge inside to measure, it is impossible to get a standard one down there. The only way I can see to measure and set the points is to disassemble the machine and take the motherboard out. My machine is different than Mark has worked with, and it is not the same as depicted in the manual.

Maybe the phone will be easier if Everlast has a physical machine in front of them, rather than telling me what my machine does or looks like.

Alan

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Alan,
Not sure what else I can say here. I don't think you are reading what I am writing either! lol.:O I allowed that the points changed from the 200 itig to the 201 itig when I also told you that the manual was revised using the 200 manual, and that the point change was not highlighted to us when the manual was written so the 200 information was kept instead of the 201. That does not mean the 201 points have changed at all since the introduction of the 201 but it was incorrect information in the manual due to the advanced writing of the manual before the product was in hand. Still, though all points in our units are adjustable. If you have a screw, then you have adjustable points. Points by their nature have to be adjustable in some form or fashion if you have them.

I asked you for what reason you were wanting to adjust them, and you did not answer.

It's immaterial whether tech support has one in front of them. We have over 40 units in our lineup. They can't keep that many units open or directly in front of them. They do train in the factory and work on units and hold schematics. They will know what to do if I don't.

Also, not sure whether you are using the "go advanced" feature, but that works for me, if I resize without issues.
And no one's site is fool proof. Welding web has been down for days. And that is their livelihood completely.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Alan,
Not sure what else I can say here. I don't think you are reading what I am writing either! lol.:O I allowed that the points changed from the 200 itig to the 201 itig when I also told you that the manual was revised using the 200 manual, and that the point change was not highlighted to us when the manual was written so the 200 information was kept instead of the 201.

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Mark,

Certainly not wanting to debate with you, but you didn't explain it exactly like that. I took your comments that the old manual had this information.

The new manual, for whatever reason, is not correct. The old manual doesn't have anything in it about points. I am not sure how to take that, but from what you are saying the information in the 201 manual is incorrect. Maybe that was the missing info from the 200 manual, that I don't know.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

That does not mean the 201 points have changed at all since the introduction of the 201 but it was incorrect information in the manual due to the advanced writing of the manual before the product was in hand. Still, though all points in our units are adjustable. If you have a screw, then you have adjustable points. Points by their nature have to be adjustable in some form or fashion if you have them.

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Ok, I have a tiny, and I mean TINY copper screw. AFAICT, there is no way to get anything in from the outside of the case to access it. That leaves me to believe that I would need to disassemble the machine to get to the points, and it's not clear if that will adjust them, it is a very tiny screw. There is no locking nut, and the screw is nowhere near the size it shows in the manual.

Given these points are different, how do you suggest getting access to the tiny copper screw to adjust it, even though there is no locking nut?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

I asked you for what reason you were wanting to adjust them, and you did not answer.

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The points are serviceable and I would like to understand how to adjust them so that I can service my unit in the future. I would like to measure them first, since I keep seeing reports of similar units requiring the points to be set from the factory. Mostly on either the 200 or other models, not the 201.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

It's immaterial whether tech support has one in front of them. We have over 40 units in our lineup. They can't keep that many units open or directly in front of them. They do train in the factory and work on units and hold schematics. They will know what to do if I don't.

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If what you told me made sense in looking at the points, I think what you say in understandable. Given what you have typed in this thread, it was not even clear what points I should have, what should be in the manual, or even the procedure to do so...obviously what I have in my manual is incorrect.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Also, not sure whether you are using the "go advanced" feature, but that works for me, if I resize without issues.
And no one's site is fool proof. Welding web has been down for days. And that is their livelihood completely.

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Your website will not accept an image from me. I have tried taking a screenshot of the manual page on my monitor, no worky...scaled down to 1024x768, no worky. Scaled down to 640x480, no worky. Finaly I tried to take a screen capture of just the point gaps in the manual, the size is 550x181. If too large of an image is the problem, can you tell me what size I need to scale down to upload a pic/image?

I'm not trying to be difficult, I think I know how to use online forums like this one, and what you have been telling me doesn't make sense until you admit finally that the manual is wrong, and I have to believe this is so for the older Power i-Tig 200 and the Power i-Tig 201.

I honestly don't know how you could explain it to me if you don't have one in front of you. So far you haven't been able to.

If I call the toll free support number, will they have a Power i-Tig 201 which they can physically look at so what they explain will make sense to me? There is no way to access it from the outside as far as I can tell, and why I said it looks like I would need to remove the entire motherboard or pieces of the case to get access.

If you could explain to me how to access it, I would appreciate it. I want to be able to understand, access and be able to set that points as would be needed to service the unit. Just saying the manual is wrong and they can be set doesn't help very much. :(

Alan

I tried to call support, but nobody is there. I left a message for them to call back, as it says they are there until 5:00pm Eastern Time, which is 3.5 hours from now.

EDIT: I will get the cover off to have it ready for when they do call.

Alan

Eastern is 3 hours earlier, not later. I live and work off eastern too. 5 pm has come and gone 3.5hours ago.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by aland

Ok, I have a tiny, and I mean TINY copper screw. AFAICT, there is no way to get anything in from the outside of the case to access it. That leaves me to believe that I would need to disassemble the machine to get to the points, and it's not clear if that will adjust them, it is a very tiny screw. There is no locking nut, and the screw is nowhere near the size it shows in the manual.

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I think one issue is the way this is being presented. Many machines only have the point adjustment information in the service manual, not the user manual. This is not common user task. It is simply a fixed spark gap, there are no moving parts to wear, just spark erosion that takes ages to change the gap. They typically do not need adjustment for hundreds if not thousands of hours. The one exception is if the machine is dropped or has had rough handling. This is why some new machines have needed to be touched up after their extensive shipping. Yes the machine will have to come apart to make this adjustment. That is typical for most welders. The actual adjustment system is different from model to model, but is pretty basic, and self explanatory once you see it. Some units you simply bend the tabs holding the contact points (250 EX), some are screw type. These points are only used for starting so they do not have the large point system that older machines had because those were often set to run continuously.
A piece of .030" or .035" MIG wire makes a great gauge to get into tight places to check the gap.

Yeah, that's what I thought...the support number says they are gone for the day, so I guess they really don't work until 5:00pm Eastern Time.

I called the main number extension 207.

I took a bunch of pics and as I opened my unit a piece of spooge dropped out, it was hanging on a spooge strand...so I looked around and see I got what I paid for, an inexpensive inverter made in China. Most spots they spooged some silicon or sealer, or other stuff, are just spooged and let drip onto other components. That seems to be common throughout the machine. Not what I would call great craftsmanship, but not horrible for a cheap inverter.

This is the pic of my points. I would sure like to know how you adjust it cause in looking close I'm not sure there is actually a copper screw there...there is no easy access to that from anywhere outside the case, I think it would be impossible. I might be able to grind down a feeler gauge to be narrow enough to fit in and measure the gap. Is that needed to measure? Otherwise there is no way to fit a standard feeler gauge in that small area.

Here's a pic I could get, not great. I'm hosting this on my own server since I'm not smart enough to upload to this forum. :rolleyes:

http://traditionaltoolworks.com/imag...201-points.jpg

Any help would be appreciated Mark, since Support is not in the office today. :P

Alan

That looks just like some of the other models where you just bend the tab to adjust, if needed.

Alan,
Just bend the points. But again, what is your issue that you think you need to adjust them?

I don't think you are thinking straight. 5pm eastern is 2 pm Pacific. They start work at 6 am pacific...which is 9 am eastern.

Use MIG wire for a feeler gauge as Rambozo said.
.30 to .035 is typical setting.

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Originally Posted by performance

Alan,
Just bend the points. But again, what is your issue that you think you need to adjust them?

I don't think you are thinking straight. 5pm eastern is 2 pm Pacific. They start work at 6 am pacific...which is 9 am eastern.

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My bad on the 3 hour time, yep, I have time dyslexia today...LOL

That was my original question and what the entire thread implies with the subject. Sure, I can bend them, and I suspected that as the tabs are not even parallel to begin with.

As to why I *think* I might need to adjust them.

I keep reading on this AND other forums where people can't get their welders working correctly, but after sitting on the phone with Support for a couple hours to learn how to adjust them, it fixed their problem. I've seen this happen on Welding Tricks & Tips with an i-Tig 200, the predecessor to my i-Tig 201. But it is not isolated to the i-Tig 200, this is a common issue on many of the Everlast units as seen on this and other online forums.

So that's why I would like to understand how the gap gets set, because I suspect one day my welder will be like many of the other Everlast welders that you sell, it will need to have them adjusted. Is this far fetched ? Even this forum shows a number of people that you help fix the point gap to get their machine working properly. You act as if I am doing something I am not supposed to do...and maybe it doesn't need adjusting, but I wanted to measure it to see. Sorry if that bothers you, but why put that info in the manual if it's not important? Of course putting the right info in the manual would be helpful also...:rolleyes:

Alan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Use MIG wire for a feeler gauge as Rambozo said.
.30 to .035 is typical setting.

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That's not a bad suggestion, I missed that in my first read...unfortunately, I don't have any. Maybe my LWS could give me a few pieces. I have spring steel I can just cut a narrow piece of, that will work, I just don't have a lot of sizes...I know I have .025" and .035", the later would work. I would prefer to have a solid piece rather than multiple feelers and .035" is probably not a bad place to start. I'm curious where mine is set currently also, surprising? It shouldn't be, it's the same reason I had to open my Nova pedal and check the potentiometer, it just had to be done. :)

Yes, I now understand how to open the pedal, that it does have the tocos (Tokyo Cosmos Electric) potentiometer in it. No pedal was killed during the inspection.

And no welder was killed by removing extra spooge hanging between and all over components that was shipped to me.

Let me ask you about these solders. These two are the only what appear to be bad solders on my unit that I have seen so far. They don't look very good to me.

Would you recommend leaving them as-is? They don't look very good, but probably fused to the metal. I'm no solder expert.

http://traditionaltoolworks.com/imag...old-solder.jpg

Alan

Point gap adjustment is a common item on all point type welders, not unique to Everlast and is considered a maintenance item, just like blowing out the welder after removing the cover about ever 4 months or so, but not needed as often though, only when arc starting is difficult. Arc starting is not a big deal usually and that particular unit sells alot to gun smiths who use the low amp start capability of the unit to weld on guns. It is popular in those circles. If it had issues, you'd know it. It hasn't been a problem in years really. Sure you will find issues, but a relatively small number compared to the number we sell. A couple of hours? No, about 5 minutes. If you don't have problems, don't fix something that isn't broke. Those points are straight forward. Slight misalignment is not a big issue, as long as some of the two faces are lined up with each other for the spark to jump. As was mentioned, some companies do, and some don't and we don't put it in all our manuals.

Geez Alan, you'll find that in any welder, in about any brand if you look in the right spots. That's just over solder they intentionally use to handle a little bit extra power on a board. Leave the glue stuff alone. If you start removing the glue they use, which is harmless and non conductive, you could pull up your traces or wires, and that kind of monkeying around is not covered under warranty.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Geez Alan, you'll find that in any welder, in about any brand if you look in the right spots. That's just over solder they intentionally use to handle a little bit extra power on a board. Leave the glue stuff alone. If you start removing the glue they use, which is harmless and non conductive, you could pull up your traces or wires, and that kind of monkeying around is not covered under warranty.

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Most of the over solder looks fine, but those to me look like possible cold solders. That is the only reason I took a pic of those.

As for the spooge that I removed, let me show you...basically this bothered me. I don't know why, but the components were not designed to be held to each other. I took a knife and cut it off along the edge, and funny you mention about traces as I was especially careful not to touch anything around circuit boards. I even left it on the wires and plastic as I didn't want to disturb the connector. :P I should take a picture so you can see.

I also scraped some of the redish color sealer and protector that was all over the heat sink, it was covering some of the fin ends, to me that is probably not good, but until it burns or starts to smell I probably wouldn't have noticed it. ;)

You could certainly void my warranty, and for what? For asking how to set the point gap? Showing you what my welder looks like inside? Questioning a bad solder joint?

And for what? A cheaply made Chinese welder? I think I got what I paid for, I'm not upset, but it is what it is.

Here's the funny thing...the first time I opened it up I didn't notice very much of it. The second time I noticed one area where sealer was smooshed under a clean plastic, it just didn't represent quality workmanship...and again not faulting you, I got what I paid for.

Fast forward, I honestly had my timezones and time screwed up, but I went out and removed the screws to open it up, and called with it open. That's when I got the message that they were closed...my bad on that...:rolleyes: While doing this, that a crapplette of spooge feel out but it was on a strand, so it wasn't clear if the fan stretched it or if heat did, but it was as if it was stretched and hanging on the strange. I got it off.

http://traditionaltoolworks.com/imag...ted-spooge.jpg

Ah, I think I see how to get pics on your forum. Above when I let it retrieve the image, it seems to have done that...

Let me try here...(bingo, this looks like it will work)

Mark, this is what I dropped out of my welder...when I turned it over to look at the points. Honestly, this could cause problem, it dripped down and the fan got it and pulled it, it was attached when it fell out, but I cut it. This is after I cut it.

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...6&d=1518685051

Then I just started to notice more of similar type assembly:

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...7&d=1518685051

What is this? Should I check radioactivity? (j/k, I call it WTF spooge)

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...8&d=1518685051

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...9&d=1518685051

Alan

Some of the stuff was not bad, as an example, this clean and doesn't look bad.

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...0&d=1518686064

I think this is the transformer possibly, is that right? It has pretty flimsy sheet forming the case. That is probably one of the parts that produces heat, it doesn't seem entirely robust...but the unit works. This is just what I observed, please don't get defensive about the industry quality, I'm just showing you what my welder looks like.

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...1&d=1518686064

This looks ok to me.

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...2&d=1518686064

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/f...3&d=1518686064

In general it's ok, some of it is sloppy on the sealer and silicon, and I guess I got what I paid for. I wonder what the inside of one of your high end units looks like, would it be better? Or would I pay more for the same type of product?

Would there be incentive for me to upgrade? Cause if I paid $1500-$2500 for a welder and opened it up and saw the same type of assembly, I wouldn't be happy, but that's me...and we're all different.

Alan

The glue they use is found in all kinds of electronics. While it may be a bit over generous, it is not a problem. Again, you did not read what I said. I specifically said that if you pull up the traces while removing something like that, it is not covered under warranty. I didn't say anything about regular maintenance. In fact I said that point gap adjustment was part of routine maintenance. Honestly, I think you like to try to find something wrong and pick about stuff, a basic contrarian in life. Fine that's who you are, but don't expect to slide on things you do that can harm your machine. What you find inside is not that much different from other brands. Being "cheap" chinese welder, you have no idea. Other companies manufacture there as well, including Miller and Lincoln. Just because they stick it to the customers on price doesn't mean it's made much different. Your slur about "cheap" and "chinese" has nothing to do with reality. The silicone was over applied, but again, not an issue at all. It holds things in place. You can nick a wire or pull off insulation and or conformal coatings off the board if you remove this stuff. If you do this to your unit, and something happens as a result, you'd really expect someone to honor a warranty because of your improper actions?

WoW!! aland, you obviously don't know your way around electronics, taking the cover off of something like this is a new experience I assume...

First, "cold" solder joints don't look like that at all (are you getting this info from another forum after posting these pics there?). A cold solder joint is "frosty" looking, has no shine to it. Your pic has "blobbed" solder commonly used to add both strength & added current capacity (it's a good thing). Another good thing is the extra effort used to add copious silicone to bond & secure connections. You're posting pics positive attributes, sorry if looks sloppy, but it's really no place to be anal ;)

I guess you also don't ever work on any engines (that's OK) because in any Auto parts store you'll find, what's called "feeler gauges" for plug & point gap/valve lash that are a selection of thin steel strips marked in thousands of an inch (like .030). Perfect for your needs.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

You can nick a wire or pull off insulation and or conformal coatings off the board if you remove this stuff. If you do this to your unit, and something happens as a result, you'd really expect someone to honor a warranty because of your improper actions?

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No, not at all. I would take full responsibility and my welder works.

But I do wonder what exactly Everlast does in regard to engineering of these machines. It seems you have a Chinese manufacture do the engineering, assembly, QA, and that leaves Everlast as nothing more than a distributer.

From your comments I have to believe that most of your machines are similar.

Don't worry, I won't ask you to repair something I have damaged by opening it up. It's my welder I can do whatever I want with it. I havne't asked you for any warranty work at all. My HF arc starts and works fine, but I wanted to understand what needs to be adjusted given how many posts I see where setting the point gap fixes the machines and allows it to operate as intended.

But you can bet on one thing...if I have a problem with my unit during the Warranty that is Everlast's problem, or whoever manufactured it in China, I will expect you to stand behind your product.

Blaster,

I have several sets of feelers, you didn't read my posts very well either. They will not fit in there without being ground down, there is absolutely no way to fit a feeler gauge in there. Rambozo had the answer once again, use mig wire...but unfortunately I don't have any. That is a good way to measure it, but I can make my own out of spring steel and measure the same. My hf arc starts and operates satisfactory, so I don't actually need to touch it.

Alan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by performance

Your slur about "cheap" and "chinese" has nothing to do with reality.

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No, actually I am going comment on this. It has everything to do with reality.

America has grown to accept lower quality, in many cases to make people rich at the consumer's expense. I know you're probably thinking, "but Everlast makes it cheaper for them", but let me explain. Everlast is very similar to Grizzly, you offer machines that have more functionality for less price. And just like Grizzly, you have your product manufactured in China.

Eventually China will continue to get better, but the shoddy workmanship is still seen, as I have shown with these pics. This is what I paid my $$$s for and I'm pretty happy with it. We watched an evolution happen with Japan, and it is now happening with China. I don't doubt their products are getting better, I can see that...but they still do not take pride in their work in all cases.

Some of the comments you've made to me in private as well as publicly on this forum do make me wonder about your service and support.

Then you threaten to void my warranty if I destroy a tracer...go ahead, if it will make you feel good about it, void my warranty. You haven't seen my machine and quite honestly that's not a very good way to provide customer support as I have done nothing to change the machine.

And sure I get it about the manual being out of date, that is pretty much exactly what I was asking from the very first message in this thread. We all make mistakes and luckily the manuals are pretty good.

I think the phone might be a better avenue for support in the future.

Alan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by aland

No, actually I am going comment on this. It has everything to do with reality.

America has grown to accept lower quality, in many cases to make people rich at the consumer's expense. I know you're probably thinking, "but Everlast makes it cheaper for them", but let me explain. Everlast is very similar to Grizzly, you offer machines that have more functionality for less price. And just like Grizzly, you have your product manufactured in China.

Eventually China will continue to get better, but the shoddy workmanship is still seen, as I have shown with these pics. This is what I paid my $$$s for and I'm pretty happy with it. We watched an evolution happen with Japan, and it is now happening with China. I don't doubt their products are getting better, I can see that...but they still do not take pride in their work in all cases.

Some of the comments you've made to me in private as well as publicly on this forum do make me wonder about your service and support.

Then you threaten to void my warranty if I destroy a tracer...go ahead, if it will make you feel good about it, void my warranty. You haven't seen my machine and quite honestly that's not a very good way to provide customer support as I have done nothing to change the machine.

And sure I get it about the manual being out of date, that is pretty much exactly what I was asking from the very first message in this thread. We all make mistakes and luckily the manuals are pretty good.

I think the phone might be a better avenue for support in the future.

Alan

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I hate to responed, but I have to because you are misrepresenting nearly everything.
Alan, your comments are beginning to sound paranoid. You are making claims I haven't said. Others here see it too I believe. You ignore other things that are said for convenience of your argument. Someone, another customer, tells you that should know about it and has a background in it, that you are blowing smoke where there's no fire and you discount it or completely ignore it, not sure which. Is it about ego with you? Has someone bruised it? Has no one challenged you to think critically about what someone says before and you are ill about it? Because you completely ignore what I say and pull something completely out of context and even lie about what was said. You even have screwed up and made a comment about the tech support closing early. And I even tell you that you were wrong, but go on about it anyway...and finally admit you were thinking wrong about it. If you can think wrong and be so biased about something like that and can't see you are wrong, it ought to cause you to think (and gives legitimate cause to others to think this about you) that you are not thinking clearly here in thought or actions. It sounds as if you have a critical thinking issue here. I don't mean to demean you, but enough is enough. You completely misread everything. You know everything and no one can tell you anything you don't already know something about and know more about. Call tech support, or whatever if you have an issue. But take time to listen and think about what is being said, and what isn't being said. Don't be a hard head about things. Rant off. Sorry if this offends you, but it seems you know everything...so I guess you'll discount this too.

aland,
I'm a regular customer and I do not work for Everlast. Everything in your machine looks fine and I would even say above average, especially the soldering. That's not silicone it's acrylic hot glue and it's commonly used as an adhesive and to prevent coil whine. I think the machines are great for their price point. No need to butt heads over non issues. Use the machine and have fun, I'd bet you'll never have a problem out of it. The owner of this company has gone well out of his way to help me with anything I've asked of him over the years. Far better customer service than I've had from any other company.

Yeah, Alan,

Are you a Manchurian Candidate, or the proverbial Saint Bernard, who licks your face while he's pissing down your leg?

Ha, ha, ha...

You know, how just recently, on another forum, you're deriding your new Everlast machine and their staff (of course, they can defend themselves quite well, without my help), and even engaging in negative gossip about me (apparently since I'm not an Everlast or China-basher). Not that I'm bothered. I'm just a little surprised, as, if I recall correctly, I did take some of my time to gladly share some of my opinions with you not long ago. I mean, I guess I'm important enough to you, and those others, that you take your time to gossip about me. But the incongruence of your reciprocation is odd, to me.

Otherwise, have you even used your new Everlast welder to do some of those projects you mention, yet?

How about start burning some rod, and post those photos, rather than whining about some spilled glue on a switch inside the unit.

Attachment 13725
http://forum.weldingtipsandtricks.co...p?f=19&t=12956

I'd have to say Amen to that!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by christian

Are you a Manchurian Candidate, or the proverbial Saint Bernard, who licks your face while he's pissing down your leg?

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This thread showed me exactly the type of support I would expect from my inexpensive inverter. That's not a slur, that's a fact. My machine is the cheapest tig machine that Everlast sells, how can it be anything but? The fact I had to take a picture of the points to get anything useful from Mark pretty much says it all.

I'm not sure why you all got so p.o.'d at me for showing you what my machine looks like and more so for trying to understand how to adjust the points. WTF do you care why I want to set the point gap? The manual says it can be done, period. The quality of the machine is show in the quality of the assembly, nothing more nothing less...

I see plenty of Everlast failures, it's not as if any machine doesn't or can't have problems. But I stand by my statement that you're a lot like Grizzly. You offer more functionality at a lower price that most all of your competition. This is not bad, just that you will not hit a home run with every machine. Same like Grizzly, they have a number of lemons...Everlast is likely to as well, you have dozens of machines..., but I'm sure some will be a home run. The previous 210EXT shows that. Maybe you'll hit a home run with the latest version, but doesn't seem good with those previous version 210s...:rolleyes:

I'm happy with my machine for what I paid for it. And if you don't like me saying I would be upset if I paid $2000 for a machine and it looks the same as mine, so be it. My money is green, just like your machines, but I can buy any machine with my green money that I like...it's up to me. Whether you like how I say it to you, or you don't, it really doesn't matter to me. One day I will have some money I'll spend on a nice machine, we'll see if it's an Everlast...at this point I would laugh at you...

If it makes you feel better, go ahead and void my warranty, I could give 2 f#@$s about it...

'nuff said, you won't have to read any more from me here on these forums.

Amen is f#@$ing right...

You already said that you were leaving once previously. No one has banned you or threatened to void your warranty on the basis of showing pictures. Monkeying with your board by doing something unecessary that actually caused damage to it, would. Any manufacturer will do that. Laugh a way, laugh with us, or laugh at us. People have been doing that for years. And most all laugh all the way to the bank when they buy our product over someone else nit picking over reasons why they wouldn't buy our product. You really have no clue as to what goes on with our product or what goes into our product. You simply armchair your criticisms in a vacuum personal knowledge ...of nothing of experience to compare to...no context of what is standard practice. You ignore statements by experienced customers and users to counter your claims. You twist words that I said into something that wasn't said. Speaks volumes to everyone. You never even contacted technical support for direct help. Again, volumes.

Hey, Alan,

Thanks for sending back to me those two 1/8" wedge collets I gifted to you, when you were still waiting for your extra torch stuff to arrive. I had forgotten that you were the one I sent them to.

I guess that means that you're upset about my above post.

Of course, I happily gifted them a second time to another fellow Everlast forum member. So, thanks for that new opportunity to share them again here.

Good luck with your TIG learning process, which you seem to be getting supportive help with, over at the tipandtricks forum.

Does your machine work? It seems like it does.
If So! Leave the machine alone and learn how to use it properly.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

I've had my 250EX since 2011 and have only had two minor issues that were easily fixable within 5 minutes. Guess what? It still does its job very well.

Seems most everyone has fallen to the keyboard baiter Mark you need't fall for this crap
.2013 250EX, happy customer,service/advice dept excellent.