Question re: operation of pulse mode on PowerTig 200DX

[Tantalum711]

I really like the pulse feature of this welder, but it's operation seems to be a bit confusing. Supposedly, if I am understanding the manual correctly, the amperage dial on the front of the welder determines the max pulse amperage, whereas the knob that reads Pulse amps should determine the low amperage of the pulse. What if the Main amperage is set at 5A and the Pulse is set to 50A? Does it just not pulse or does the pulse go inverted? I've never seemed to be able to get a low amperage pulse with the Main amperage knob set to 5A, and I was just curious if this was for the reason I just described about the functioning of the pulser circuit.

Also, the manual seems to indicate or at least made me think that the with the pulser engaged, the foot pedal only acts as an on/off switch to establish the arc with the dialed in settings on the panel controlling the characteristics of the arc, but I'm sure that when I step on the pedal with the pulser on, I get more current. Does anyone know what the real story is? I keep burning up .025 stainless thinking that I've got the amperage set quite low.

[Tantalum711]

Since no one else has chimed in, I'll share some observations I've made in experimenting with the pulser feature on the 200DX. I was incorrect in my first posting regarding the function of the controls to use the pulser. I thought the main current control set the high side of the pulse, but the manual indicates that it sets the low side of the pulse. The Pulse Amps knob sets the max current of the pulse. The pulse feature of this welder seems to work best at slightly higher currents though. I tried setting the Pulse amps to 20-30 with the low side of the pulse around 5A or so with the Pulse Time on Balance at around 50% and no matter what I set the pulse frequency at there didn't appear to be much of a pulse. I haven't played with many inverter TIG with pulse control to know if this is common or not, but for some of the thin stainless I weld, where I'm trying to keep the heat input down, the pulser on the 200DX doesn't seem to offer a lot of help in this regard. Just my thoughts. Your mileage may vary.

[jdt1986]

weldingtipsandtricks.com on the left side of the pabe there videos look for tig settings and inverter setting and just study the videos it helped me out alot also i dont the welder will pulse that low of an amperage becuase the arc would go out not sure . on my 250 ex i didnt use pulse to get puddle on razor blades. you will have to play around with the settings to get used to them

[Tantalum711]

Thanks for the response. I've been to weldingtipsandtricks.com many many times now (I wouldn't have an Everlast now if I hadn't) and have probably viewed most of the videos--the TIG related ones quite a few times and learned an incredible amount from them. What you say about the pulser not functioning at low amperage makes sense. I'm not sure how familar you are with the differences in the controls of the 200DX versus the 250EX, but I suspect that it would take some experimenting to get the same results on the 200DX that you could more easily dial in on the 250EX. There's a pot on the foot pedal of the 200DX to control the max current--the knob next to the LED display doesn't do anything with the foot pedal plugged in and the pulser off (it just teases you). I've found it difficult to dial in the exact current range I want on the pedal. It's supposed to be that 0-10 on the pot corresponds to 0-200A on the welder, but it seems like anything under about 7 (supposedly 140A) even when hammered to the floor can't punch a hole in .06 wall SS tubing, whereas anything over about 8.5 is enough to melt that same tubing like a stick of 1/16" filler rod. It may be a while before I start my razor blade welding side business with this model.

[performance]

We just had a very long discussion about the pulse operation on this welder on the forum, just a few days and several times before.

But to sum it up:
The pulse amp knob is controlling the high stage of the pulse cycle. The knob on the foot pedal, controls the main amp level with pulse on or off, doesn't matter. For use with pulse the foot pedal controls ONLY the low end amps. The pulse amps are set on the panel. That means you are only adjusting one amp value when you press the pedal. The closer you press the pedal to the amp level, the less pulse action is observed. IF your max amp setting is above the pulse amp level, the pulse will effectively shut off. This is for 200DX only. I am not sure which manual you read, but the foot pedal doesn't act as an on/off switch only. Can you tell me where you think it is stating it? I'd like to review it.

http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...Pulse-Question

[Tantalum711]

I appreciate your reply. I just saw the 3 page exchange regarding this issue today and felt like an idiot for posting. Somehow that exchange didn't come up when I did a search the first time. It's hard enough making sure customers have correct information without people like me trying to confuse the issue with poorly researched posts.
My understanding of how the pulser worked was wrong. It was probably just an assumption on my part that the pedal functioned as an on/off switch with the pulser turned on. I doubt now that it was stated or implied by the manual. I was confused by the results I was getting using the foot pedal in conjuction with the pulser and just assumed that all the control for the pulser was fixed on the main panel with no real input from the pedal itself.
Once again, I am continually impressed by how dedicated the support staff is in making sure customers get the most out of the welders they've purchased. It can't be easy having to answer the same questions over and over again to people of various levels of experience. Thanks, Mark.

[Haywire]

Don't beat yourself up too much, repeat threads are just the nature of forums. Otherwise this would just be a list of FAQs. --Ian