Amperage Gremlins 225LX

[Dr_Jim]

Hello -
Having a weird amperage issue with my 225LX in TIG modes - seems most folks have low amperage problems, I'm getting a bit more fire in the wire than I ask for.

If I set up for DCEN, select 'HF high,' 'DC,' '2T,' and turn down (full CCW on knob) the amperage control, the LED display still reads 90-96 amps even with the slope and flow controls set to off (full CCW) - somehow this doesn't look right.

Using the push button on the torch, I'm getting a decent looking arc using a 3/32" lanthinated electrode and a #8 cup on some .060 mild steel plate - the bottom three tracks are just moving the keyhole around with no filler. It does look like the arc is a bit hot, and the heat zone is larger than I'd like, but they're not stupidly wrong:



OTOH, if I just unplug the push button control, and plug in the supplied foot switch, and make NO other changes - all Happy Harry breaks loose - the top two tracks are VERY wrong, the one to the right is feathering the pedal, the left is 1/3 travel.
Looks like the amperage is a wee bit high doesn't it?
Check out the nuked tungsten and trashed cup:



I pulled the footswitch apart and checked its pinout against this URL:
http://www.everlastgenerators.com/fo...-pedal-pinouts
Pins 6-7 are shorted, pins 1-2 are switched closed before the potentiometer changes, pins 4-5 show about 47.2K and go low as the pedal is pressed, pins 4-6 show 2 ohms and go high as the pedal is pressed. I think that this is what I saw, but I could have the resistence tapers reversed, my notes are hard to read.

Both the pinout and functioning seem correct, so I popped the welder's cover off and looked around for something obviously wrong - nothing jumped out at me, no dead IC's, no burned diodes, all the leads to the control socket and the operating pots seem well connected and show low resistence.

Now I'm stumped, and wonder if anyone's seen this before?

Yeah, I'll call Everlast Tech Support tomorrow, I just like to take things as far as I can before yelling for help.

Cheers and Thanks in Advance

Jim
KJ7QT

[MoparCar]

Something sure sounds wrong. Seems like you've covered your bases. Hopefully support has seen this before.

[Paul Moir]

My one did that too when I had the 4053 problem. Basically it switches around inputs from the welder to the pedal (when attached) and hooks up the front panel display differently. The only thing special about my 4053 failure is that a couple protection diodes next to the multiplexer also failed, putting the V+ rail into the foot pedal input. So whenever the foot pedal was depressed, the welder was told to go FULL BORE NOW. But I could see it happening with just the regular old 4053 problem. Wasn't a big deal since I could do 2T.

Contact tech support: they will take care of you.

[performance]

Assuming you have the torch polarity correct, and is in the negative port, it is probably the 4053.

[MoparCar]

Assuming you have the torch polarity correct, and is in the negative port, it is probably the 4053.

Are the present chips correct and fixed on all models of Everlast TIGS?

[performance]

Are the present chips correct and fixed on all models of Everlast TIGS?

The circuits have been redesigned and rearranged and things are stable, but that doesn't mean one WON'T go kerflewy for an unknown reason once in a while.

[everlastsupport]

It was rare on the 225LX. If you run the amp knob all the way up, what is the max AMPs you see on the display. That will flush the 4053 chip.

Pedal read all good. What are you running the straight argon at? Is the tungsten holding up OK?

[Dr_Jim]

It was rare on the 225LX. If you run the amp knob all the way up, what is the max AMPs you see on the display. That will flush the 4053 chip.

Pedal read all good. What are you running the straight argon at? Is the tungsten holding up OK?

Mike -

I sent an email to Ray - should I copy you too?

Straight argon (known good bottle on - welds OK on a blue machine) at about 12-14CFM - and no, the thin tungstens are pretty much grenading.

Funny you mentioned flushing the 4053, had a counter chip on a Ten-Tec radio that would go wonky and only running it from off to full-scale a few times would reset it.

The Max setting amperage reading varies from 227 - 230 Amps in 2T/DC mode. What's interesting is that I'm not seeing the amps at the Min setting drop below 90 indicated - I seem to remember this going down to the mid 20's?

Could someone contact me tomorrow so we can start getting this all resolved? I don't mind patching in another IC - although I'll most likely just socket the bug - but knowing which IC to replace where, and which diodes to check would be useful.

Would really like to get the machine back up before the 25th - we're having another class at my shop & I'm a bit bored with listening to "Worthless, unsupported Chi-Com RPOC, ya shudda bought a QUACK, Quack, quack...."

Cheers

Jim

[Dr_Jim]

OK - Still haven't had an email response from anyone, and decided to call in for a formal RMA.

The Everlast office phones were switched off on Saturday despite the website's claim of "Operating hours Monday through Friday: 9AM to 5PM PST Saturday: 11AM to 4PM (PST)" Sigh!

Patiently, we waited until this AM at 09:05 and called the 877-755-9353 number. The voicemail system was switched to normal hours, and offered a selection of dailing 201(sales), 207(support), 202(shipping), or 1 (directory) - all of the 200 sequence numbers errorred out after pressing the '0' key, the '1' key does take you to the directory, but it also errorred out after the 2nd key press.

Now we're beginning to get a bit frustrated - will someone PLEASE contact us?

Thanks

Jim

Update - my 'smart' Android phone can't send the DTMF tones fast enough for Everlast's phone system, a dumb Motoroloa phone does...

[performance]

Monday morning has a heavy call volume, especially just a few minutes after opening. But I personally haven't had an email. But also it WAS the weekend and any emails aren't required to be answered over it since we do need a couple of work free days. But still, if I can I do try to answer things if I have time on the weekend. Did you call in Pacific time? Saturday hours just one or two persons usually covers the phones for sales, most of them are catch up outgoing calls. Tech support is not open on the weekend. It's barely an hour after things have opened, and emails are replied to as they come. I typically get 20 emails or so over the weekend to answer, and then more on monday, including PM's, so whoever you sent the email to, may not have answered all theirs yet.

Did you leave a message? Your call will be returned by someone, especially if it is in tech support, usually in the order it was received. But if people left heavy messages over the weekend, it may be mid afternoon pacific time.

You also have to go through tech support first to receive a RMA. Ext, 203 or 207 can handle it best.