Everlast PowerPro 205 tig welder / plasma cutter, Wow this thing is awesome!! Options

[presure2]

hey guys, im about to buy an Everlast Powerpro 205 multi process welding machine (tig-stick-plasma cut), im super excited about it, once it arrives i'll be doing a nice writeup/ review of it.
wondering if anyone else has one here?
Once i get confortable with it, we'll be making some nice parts for the car!
you can check them out here:
www.everlastgenerators.com

[mak5603]

So awesome! I can't wait for review/writeup/ seeing what you do with it.

[cyberblader1130]

I've always stood by Miller's Welding equipment but i'm very interested to see how this one performs. Once you have a chance to break it in, would you be so kind to post up some pics of your welds?

[D-Man]

Ain't this the same one you showed me before? Pulled up the stat sheet. Not bad at all. Get you some 6011rods for the SMAW- they're my fav all purpose. and lemmie know how that GTAW handles- 60% run/rest will drive you up the wall at first. lol- but believe you me- i've ran with an 85% run/rest on GMAW/MIG (while repelling from a building)- so i dont wanna hear it!! hahaha.

I've always stood by Miller's Welding equipment

That's what i've almost always used.

[presure2]

Yea, John, it's the same one I talked to you about.
They made a few changes to it this year, added a couple extra features from the larger machine they sell.

Once I get it here and running, for sure I will be posting pics of the welds I can make with it.
I've never tig welded before, so it should be a fun learning process.
A guy on mr2oc recently bought an everlast welder to build an intake manifold, had never welded anything before in his life, and posted pics of some of his progress, which was impressive given that he had never welded.
He compleated the intake manifold and it looks great, so i hope i can progress as quickly as he did!

once i went to pay for it, i found out they dont take paypal, so i need to wait for the money to transfer into my bank to complete the purchase
from what Alex ( the guy who runs the company here) told me, the unit isnt in stock, he is expecting a shipment by the end of march.
so hopfully by april I'll be up and running!
like bart scott said,
"Cant wait!!"

[Bitter]

Is it scratch start for tig or does it have a starter arc?

If you need some TIG pointers I might be able to help, I've done some with steel and aluminum. A good tip is to use ONLY one grinding wheel for the tungsten rods, you do not want cross contamination. Also, use the right kind of tip on your tungsten. Sharp for steel and a ball for aluminum, if you dip your tip don't even try to finish out the weld, go grind it clean and start back up.

This post has been edited by Bitter: Mar 7, 2011 - 8:58 PM

[presure2]

Is it scratch start for tig or does it have a starter arc?

If you need some TIG pointers I might be able to help, I've done some with steel and aluminum. A good tip is to use ONLY one grinding wheel for the tungsten rods, you do not want cross contamination. Also, use the right kind of tip on your tungsten. Sharp for steel and a ball for aluminum, if you dip your tip don't even try to finish out the weld, go grind it clean and start back up.

its got HF start.

these are all inverter based, so no ball on the tungsten.

you bet ill be hitting you up for some pointers!
i've been doing TONS of research and reading over the past couple months, getting ready for it, also been watching the vids on weldingtipsandtricks.com , the dude, jody, is absolutly awesome.

[Bitter]

Sounds nice, how much does it cost?

Ah, the machine I learned on I needed to ball the tungsten to do aluminum. I've forgotten my terms, I still have my welding books...if you want I could scan/email you some of the pages on TIG welding.

[presure2]

Sounds nice, how much does it cost?

Ah, the machine I learned on I needed to ball the tungsten to do aluminum. I've forgotten my terms, I still have my welding books...if you want I could scan/email you some of the pages on TIG welding.

thanks for the offer bro, i've downloaded a ton of refrence material, and there is a site, ill see if i can dig up the link, they sent me some sweet posters to put up in the garage, with all kinda stuff and the diffrence processes for diffrent materials ect.

the retail price on the unit is 1599$ IIRC, but they have a "make an offer" thingy on the site where you can actually work out a deal with them.
lets just say i feel like i got a very good deal on it, especially considering the features it has. heres a quick rundown of some of them

PowerPro 205 Multi-Process unit (Tig, Stick, Plasma cut)
Over Current Warning Yes

Voltage 220-240 V 1 ph

Max Start Input Amps 33.6A @ 220V

Max Running Amps 27A @ 220V

TIG (GTAW) Rated Amps @ Duty Cycle 60%@200A

Arc Force Control(DIG) Yes
Up Slope Timer 0-5 S
Down Slope Timer 0-10 s

Plasma (PAC) Rated Amps @ 60% Duty Cycle 50 A

Pulse Frequency Control .5-25Hz
Pulse Time On(Width) 10
Pulse Amp Ratio 5-200 A

High Frequency Start Yes
4t/2t Remote Yes=
AC Frequency Control 10-90%
AC Balance Control 20-250 Hz
AC Square Wave(Aluminium) Yes
Post Flow Timer(seconds) 0-25 s

Stick (SMAW) Rated Amps @ Duty Cycle 5-160 A
Retail price 1599$

From what Alex told me over the phone yesterday, in the newest units they have also added some of the features of the larger powerpro 256 into this unit, once i get all the details of what they added I'll update it here.


They are starting to also sell these thru your local Airgas dealers as well.

[presure2]

ok so i got more info on the updates to the machine, and i must say, im impressed.
heres a pic of the updated front panel, and a list of updates:



pluse freq. (more range) and amp setting (% VS amps)
up and down slope time now 0-10 vs 0-5
added pre flow 0-10
added start and end amps (5-200)
added more numerical refrence points
CNC outlet on rear panel
added cut/psi led

i absolutly cannot wait to get this thing in guys!!!!

[D-Man]

i've been doing TONS of research and reading over the past couple months, getting ready for it, also been watching the vids on weldingtipsandtricks.com

i've downloaded a ton of refrence material

I gotta point out, this is all so True. We spent many Saturday mornings chatting up and comparing welds- techniques- crossing ideas, Trading off pics and all kinds of other stuff. (i'm a welder) and Manny really does have some solid skills.

And OT for a second- because it's something i really believe- Is that you can do ANYTHING if you put your mind right. He's DEFF put in the research, time, and trial to be able to do this with the utmost efficiency. I've seen Manny's practice trys & I've seen he's best. and I've had full blown welders work for me that couldn't lay half as much quality as manny's "getting the hang of it" welds. hahahahah.

I personally expect to see nothing less than the Exceptionally high quality i Expect from JDM Guy. Or soon to be JDM Guy Welding Inc.


...... And i also expect that you got the Buy one Get one Free deal- Cause i could use a personal rig at the house!

[presure2]

Haha 6gc group buy???
Lmao!
Funny thing is I bet Alex would give us a GREAT deal if we were to get 5 or 10 at once!! lol

[Ted95]

atta F'n boy manny!!!! soo let me kno when your ready to do my IC piping

so i kno when to swap it in lol

This post has been edited by Ted95: Mar 8, 2011 - 5:24 PM

[D-Man]

Fcuk yeah!!

Plan it for a year in advaced so some broke mo fo's could get the moneys up.

[Bitter]

Uh....coil overs for my Celica or that welder/cutter....

[njccmd2002]

what metals can u weld with this one?

meaning aluminum too?

[D-Man]

meaning aluminum too?

TIG = Aluminum. yes.

[epocsirhc]

That's a hell of a deal for something like that. I'd love to purchase something like that, but being a full time college student with a joke of a job screws things up. Before I started tig welding I also did a ton of reading, but I found it didn't help much after I established the arc! I love Tig welding, there's something about it that I can't describe...

[presure2]

Yea, Berto this machine will weld about any metal.
Aluminum was one of the main reasons for me wanting to learn tig.

Just got off the phone with a salesperson @ everlast to complete my order.
I don't wanna say exactly what I paid, but needless to say it was a good bit less than the 1599$ retail.
The woman I spoke with told me the wait for the next shipment is ~2.5 weeks , which is less than I was originally planning for, which is cool, but you know how overseas freight shipping can be, so I'm not expecting miracles...lol

[presure2]

so, as expected, there is a delay in shipping, caused by the tsunami in japan and what not.
I recived an email today to let me know they are expecting the units to arrive at the port in the US april 10th.
I was expecting there to be some delays anyway, so no big deal, just gotta keep myself buzy with other projects till then.

[presure2]

hey guys!
my welder arrived this past monday in perfect condition, and i've gotten a total of about 2.5-3hrs to play with it some since.

here are some pics right out of the box.











got it all connected, and hooked up the plasma cutter first.
this thing is TOOOOO COOL!!! i had some 3/8" steel plate hanging around, this thing sliced thru it like a hot knife thru butter!!
i forgot to get pics, but ill get some prolly later today.
next i tried the stick welder with some 6010 rods that i got from work...i've never stick welded, and now i know why. i SUCK at it.
i didnt take any pics, cause there isnt much to see, other than a big brown mess (yes, like a big pile of sh*t..lol but what matters, is that the function works, if i wanna take the time to learn it (which i will, down the road)
now, on to the main reason for me getting this unit, the tig welding function.
took me about 1.5 hrs to get going and actually get the feel for how it works, (i've never tigged before monday) but by the time i finished up last night, i made what i consider some decent looking beads!
i guess all the time i spent reading and researching paid off, im able to pretty quickly see and fix the mistakes im making, which is 100% the result of watching the vids on weldingtipsandtricks.com and reading there and a couple other sites.

now on to the pics!!

i am practicing on a peice of scrap aluminum dimond plate that cam (ted95) gave me, looks to be ~3/16"
3/32" thoriated tungsten
3/32" 4043 filler rod
ended up settling in ~ 125-130 or so amp range, playing with the footpedal some as the peice heats up.

friday nights practice:



too cold



the bead in the middle of this pic was my best of the night IMO

[presure2]

yesterday i got another hr or so of practice



pretty obvious where i started getting the hang of it..lol the black marks are spots where i dipped the filler into the tungsten (bad) lol
once i started getting the feel for it, things started to get much smoother:



and started getting the idea of finishing properly so i dont leave craters:



pretty happy with that last bead, dispite the hot start..lol
hopfully ill be able to get in some more practice today!

[Ted95]

lookin good manny! practice practice practice lol

[Bitter]

Thoriated tungsten? Lanthanted last longer and are not radioactive.

[epocsirhc]

That's a good start.

Here's some of my aluminum welds.



I enjoy Aluminum more than mild and stainless steel. However stainless is cool because of the colors!

[presure2]

Thoriated tungsten? Lanthanted last longer and are not radioactive.

I know, it's all the lws had in stock at the time.
I plan on trying diffrent stuff over time, I only bought 2x 3 packs one1/16and one 3/32.

[presure2]

That's a good start.

Here's some of my aluminum welds.



I enjoy Aluminum more than mild and stainless steel. However stainless is cool because of the colors!

Good stuff!
What are you welding with?

I tried a little steel, I've read that steel is supossed to be easier for a beginner, but I guess since I spent so much time concentrateing on aluminum, it seems easier.
Haven't got a chance to do anything since last weekend.
Prolly won't get any practice this weekend either, hopefully I'll get some time during the week next week.
I did get a "real" welding helmet from the snap on guy today, it's SO nice compared to the 40$ harbor freight deal I've had for years.
Hard to beat those cheapo helmets for getting started, but it was time to step up, lol.
Pics tommorow.

[epocsirhc]

I believe I was using the Dynasty 350 that night. Usually I'm on a synchrowave at school though.

Isn't Tig welding awesome?

[presure2]

I believe I was using the Dynasty 350 that night. Usually I'm on a synchrowave at school though.

Isn't Tig welding awesome?

HELL YES!!!

hoping to get a bit more time in this afternoon, and get some pics of the new helmet finally.

I got it thru the Snap On guy @ work, it was expensive, but WOW is it nice compared to the HF one, tons more confortable (i could never get the HF helmet to adjust properly, the adjuster thing just never worked 100% correctly), the lens is SO big compared to the hf one, and way clearer ( the "clear" shade on the snap on one is a 3.5, the HF is like a 7 or somthing.)
and fully adjustable.
big money, but worth it, and because its thru the snap on guy, it costs me as little as 20$ a week till its paid.

heres a link for now:

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item.asp?P6...amp;dir=catalog

[Bitter]

The interest on that Snapon $20 a week is ludicrous! like 25%!! Pay it off sooner, or it costs more than it should.

[presure2]

The interest on that Snapon $20 a week is ludicrous! like 25%!! Pay it off sooner, or it costs more than it should.

0 interest, bro, its not financed thru snap-on.
snap on financing is only for the bigger stuff..this is just pay the snap on dude directly 20-30$ a week, or whatever i wanna give him..and when its paid, its paid, no financing or anything involved.

[Bitter]

Ah, good.

[presure2]

And finally, a few pics of the helmet.









Here's the view thru it. Clear shade is 3.5



I'll tell ya, never realized how much of a diffrence the quality of a helmet matters.
Everything is so clear and crisp thru this helmet, making the whole learning process easier.
I love it!!!

[epocsirhc]

Yes, a good helmet does make a huge difference!

[Bitter]

Just don't forget about the hot tungsten and lean forward across your work to grab something...I have a dimple on my stomach from that.

[presure2]

haha yea, i've already burned and shocked myself a bunch of times!
good stuff.
got a little practice today on some steel, no filler wire.
getting pretty good control of the torch, just need more time, and a bigger argon tank, this one is about done, pressure is under 500..lol
also figured out that i had assembled the torch with the cup in backwards. i dont think it was affecting anything, but at least now i can use more than just a #7 cup.
you guys using those gas saver cups? think i wanna try a setup here in the next couple weeks. i got a project to weld up for jims motor where im gonna need lots of stickout to reach down into a tight spot.

[Bitter]

yea, I've used the tight cups before. I actually like them more than the fat wide ones because you can see what you're doing better...but you do need to turn down the flow otherwise air will get pulled in due to the nozzle shape. lil venturi action.

[presure2]

yea, I've used the tight cups before. I actually like them more than the fat wide ones because you can see what you're doing better...but you do need to turn down the flow otherwise air will get pulled in due to the nozzle shape. lil venturi action.

Cool, I'll keep that in mind!

[D-Man]

awesome. i want one now!! and daaaaaaamn those welding skills are coming about!! You want a job? ;p

[D-Man]

haha yea, i've already burned and shocked myself a bunch of times!
good stuff.
got a little practice today on some steel, no filler wire.
getting pretty good control of the torch, just need more time, and a bigger argon tank, this one is about done, pressure is under 500..lol
also figured out that i had assembled the torch with the cup in backwards. i dont think it was affecting anything, but at least now i can use more than just a #7 cup.
you guys using those gas saver cups? think i wanna try a setup here in the next couple weeks. i got a project to weld up for jims motor where im gonna need lots of stickout to reach down into a tight spot.

Remember the dark blue part is the only part that actualy cut's ****. so make that part large, while minimizing the rest, get the metal nice n red for a sec, and when you hit the OXY lever, keep it at an angle away from you, keep it close to your metal, and move it fast. that'll take a WHOLE lot of grind off your hands too!! lol. ****, look up a vid of that. when you see it, you'll understand.

As for the saver cups, No. i've used them, and i'm not a fan. it makes you cut slower, and i like the whip action cut. it's how i was taught and just my pref. if you get any good outta it lmk for my home setup though.

as for wanting to cut deep, take you a nice small rod, (3/32nd or so) and MAX the heat. it'll act just like a gouge, and save you some bucks. Plus you got that pin point precision, witch is something i've always like'd doing for real accurate cuts. You gotta kinda move the rod in and out like a saw a bit, but it's way more accurate at a distance than a torch will EVER be! Plus it wont fcuk anything else up in the process!


EDIT: get you a #12 or #12R lens BTW. you're going to kill your eyes with that....

This post has been edited by D-Man: May 22, 2011 - 9:04 PM

[presure2]

I'm confused.... Are you talking about oxy welding with a torch? Or cutting with one?
That's one thing I dont have is a set is an oxy/act setup.
That's why I got the multifunction machine with the plasma cutter.
The 3.5 shade is the clear shade, the "dark" shade is adjustable from 9-14 Iirc.
I have it set ~10-11 right now since I've been doing only tig stuff ~50-150amps or so, when I try to stick I will turn it up more to 12-13 or so.
Any of you guys welded up any aluminum intercooler piping?
If so, have some general settings that you don't mind sharing?
I'm hoping to get enough practice in to be able to do cams (ted95s') intercooler piping for him here in a couple weeks.
I will be doing his exhaust piping for him, iirc he bought stainless for that, along with an electric cutout like Dustin (batman722) has.

[Bitter]

If I gave you some dimensions, could you make me a bracket in Aluminum? I don't know exactly what I need yet but I could make you a template in paperboard and mail you it :rofl:

[presure2]

If I gave you some dimensions, could you make me a bracket in Aluminum? I don't know exactly what I need yet but I could make you a template in paperboard and mail you it :rofl:

Sure.

[Bitter]

Awesome, I'm trying to figure out how to mount this trans cooler....I think I'm going to need 1/2 of a square, but I'm not sure yet till I have the bumper off again to eyeball and measure some things and make the template. Guessing that this would use about 2-3 feet of 1/8th AL stock (maybe 90deg for rigidity) with about 2-3 welds on it could you rough guess a cost? I know, probably impossible. I figure this would probably take about an hour from start to finish with a piss break.

[presure2]

Awesome, I'm trying to figure out how to mount this trans cooler....I think I'm going to need 1/2 of a square, but I'm not sure yet till I have the bumper off again to eyeball and measure some things and make the template. Guessing that this would use about 2-3 feet of 1/8th AL stock (maybe 90deg for rigidity) with about 2-3 welds on it could you rough guess a cost? I know, probably impossible. I figure this would probably take about an hour from start to finish with a piss break.

meh, dont worry about cost, as long as its nothing crazy, ill throw it together for ya.

[Bitter]

Sweet!

[presure2]

got more practice in today, another hr or so, starting to get a little more consistant and co-ordinated with both hands, i think once i get some extra cash to either build a welding table, or at least get one of those portable "nomad" welding table like jody uses, it will really help, right now im welding on a wood topped bench thats way to high for me, with a peice of 3/8" steel laying on top that i use as a ground point/heat sink
so settings are as follows:
3/16" aluminum diamond plate (welding on the backside)
3/32" 2% thoriated tungsten, ground to a dull point
3/23" 4043 filler rod
160amps max footpedal controlled
a/c frequency @ ~125
a/c balance @ ~ 40%
a few pics:
the first is the overall pratice, the last couple are my best bead so far.
got a little hot there right at the beginning, started working the pedal back a little late.
still need some work filling that crater there at the end, i gotta work on putting in that little bit of extra filler as i work the pedal more.
getting there!!

[bccentaur3]

What are u cleaning the metal with prior to welding?

[presure2]

Using a stainless brush and a wipe with acetone after

[Bitter]

one brush per metal type! using the same brush on steel, ss, al will contaminate.

[presure2]

Yup. It's a stainless brush, that I use only on aluminum.

[Bitter]

Use a SS brush on everything

[presure2]

Use a SS brush on everything

yup, diffrent stainless brush for each material.

[presure2]

been practicing here and there, when i have time, last night i decided that i was sick of just running beads, so i hacked up a few peices of 6061-T6 aluminum (1/8") and fabbed up this thing....not really sure what it is...calling it a tool holder..i can stick it under the hood and throw my wrenches and crap in there while i work..lol unless someone can come up with a better use...jenn said it kinda looks like an arm rest...guess it kinda does..lol

~99 amps
3/32 4043 filler
3/32 yellow tungsten
a/c freq. ~ 100
a/c bal. ~ 40
on to the pics!







think im just about ready to actually start building stuff now! haha

[Culpable04]

definitely, that looks perfect Manny, amazing learning curve.

[spy00005]

Nice man. welding its its own art form and when you get it down you be able to custom fabricate almost anything and it'll last. i know who i'm gonna ask for custom fabricated stuff

[presure2]

thanks guys, definetly have some plans to bring some stuff to the 6gc crew, just need some time and money to get started getting the materials.

[epocsirhc]

Looks good. Your stops/starts are pretty good too(my worst area for some reason)

[presure2]

yea, i learned from watching jody on www.weldingtipsandtricks.com to kinda feed a little bit extra filler at the end, right as you start to ramp down and back off. its definetly getting better the more i practice.

[epocsirhc]

I miss Tig welding, but it wasn't offered this semester. I need to get my hands on one!

[stephen_lee]

fuel tank for a small motor haha

amazing beads bro

[presure2]

fuel tank for a small motor haha

amazing beads bro

haha i've had a few good ones...2 people mentioned it looked like a meatloaf pan..lol i responded that if i had made it out of stainless, you bet your a$$ i'd use it as one..lol
thanks dude!

[njccmd2002]

you can use it as a portapotty for garage, when you run out of time!!

[daniel22]

Nice work presure2, looks great.

[Celiracer18]

Resurrecting this thread from the dead to ask,

Manny how's the Everlast holding up? I've been looking to get a TIG machine and remembered you had this one.
I'm looking to get AC/DC TIG with pulse and HF and most of what I find (that i like) from Miller or Lincoln is up to $1600+