A good friend of mine is selling his 4-year old Miller Syncrowave 180 for a good price. All stuff included, basically as new. My question is, what's the useable max. thickness this rig will handle? It's easy to read stats on a chart, but what's it like in the real world? Or, would I be better suited with a stronger rig instead? I'll be using it to weld steel, and begin learning aluminum and alloys. Thanks for your 2 centavos.
Not familiar with the unit but I'd like to add that most Tig welders definitely have enough current for their intended tasks. Most of the work we intend for these is welding sheetmetal in varied thicknesses. The only time there may be an issue is if you were welding heavy walled aluminum. Aluminum requires more amperage than regular steel as a rule. My two centavos
If what you are doing is automotive, you will have no problem. If you are attempting the re-creation of the Brooklyn Bridge, buy bigger.... Cosmo P.S. get two tanks of Argon (or whatever you plan on using). You WILL run out on Friday, at 4:45 pm, with a job that needs completion by Sunday night...
You should be able to weld 1/4 to 3/8 steel or upt to 1/2 in single passes easily. I use a 180 in our shop and there is no slowing it down.
Rule-of-thumb I've been told regarding welder capabilities is 1 amp per .001" thickness. 3/16" is .188" so...... I also agree that aluminum will require more amperage compaired to steel/stainless steel since it conducts heat so rapidly.
I TIG weld every day for a living and I rarely get over 100 amps on Stainless or Mild Steel. 3/8" Plate is the heaviest I have tried to TIG and I think that was around 150-160amps. The heaviest Aluminum I have worked with was 1/4", and it seems like I was running around 200-220 amps. 180amps would probably do it, but you would have to do some pre-heating. Stainless is the majority of my Welding and the lowest amperage I run would be 30-40 amps on 20g. On 18g to 14g I set the Amperage at 60amps, and use the Pedal to adjust for thickness and travel speed. 12g and 10g, I set the amperage at 85 amps, and use the Pedal. 1/8" wall square Tubing @ 80-85amps, Exhaust Tubing @ 40-50amps, etc. Filler Rod has a little to do with it too. For example, .045 316L filler Rod is what I use for 20g,18g,& 16g then on 14g,12g, & 10g, I normally use 1/16" Filler. People will often try to use filler rod that is much bigger than necessary and this means either turning the heat up, or reducing your travel speed. Both cause more heat to get into the surrounding metal, which increases warpage problems.
The Synchrowave 180 is a good unit. The only downside is it has an air cooled torch. I think you can add a water cooled torch if you buy all the parts, but that's not cheap. The air cooled torch should be fine if you're not welding aluminum or using it continuously for long periods. The Synchrowave 250 with TiGRunner package would be my first choice, but that runs about $3500 new.
we just got a synchrowave 180 about a month ago - I had never tig welded before...It makes my welding look pretty!... it is awsome...i cranked it up to 180 amps and zipped up a 1/2 inch bar to 3/8's inch plate - single pass - no filler - and it looked professional.... the thin stuff takes some more practice...BTW you need a 60 amp breaker in your shop for it...
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