2016 250EX AC stick welding

[TheGary]

Will this machine even do AC stick? When I set it on stick the polarity control does not work. When stick welding It seems to be in DC and I can change polarity by switching ports but nothing tells me that. I am just going by how the weld is. I have no real need for AC stick welding but I have never seen an AC,Dc machine that would not weld in AC stick mode. I also had a different sensation when welding like the current was going up and down. When I looked in the book it says something about making sure pulse amp control is rolled all the way down. I have not tried it again after checking the pulse amps but I thought you had to turn the pulse feature on for it to work.

[TheGary]

Ok I have read the on line manual and there is nothing about pulse mode mentioned in stick welding setup instructions. I do not know if that is what is happening . I am just guessing.

[TheGary]

I know for a fact that the pulse control is in the off position. The weld arc seems to fluctuate almost like someone was turning the amp control while I am welding .The weld looks fine but it just should not be doing this. The pulse amp control was at 50% but I would think this should not matter if the pulse is turned off.

FYI ; The edit feature does not work. All I get is a color wheel that never stops.

[performance]

The unit does not weld AC in stick. Never has. Never advertised as such as far as I know. If it is pulsating, it could be your setting of your arc force control.

[TheGary]

The unit does not weld AC in stick. Never has. Never advertised as such as far as I know. If it is pulsating, it could be your setting of your arc force control.

I see that it does not weld AC stick in the literature now that I am looking for it. I just never saw an AC/DC welder that wouldn't before so it never even entered my head that it wouldn't. I have no real reason to need it , I was just surprised. I went out and welded another job with the 250EX on stick and it welded fine. I did not change any settings other than adjust the amps. I have no idea what was going on with the arc before.

[performance]

Inverters are different somewhat in the fact they convert to DC before reconverting to AC. Ours does not go back through the AC converter.