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Bought a big Hobart engine welder today

Mike C.

Diamond
Joined
Nov 25, 2004
Location
Birmingham, AL
Didn't really want it or need it, but the price was too good to pass up. Figure it's 30yrs old or so. Ford 6cyl gas burner, on a trailer. Highest setting on the range dial is 290amps. No idea on the model, but the engine runs like a top, AC generator works, and it welds. Try to get some pics up tomorrow.
 
Yes Jeff, it is on what certainly appears to be the factory made trailer for it, as it bolts to the welder frame using pre-drilled holes instead of being tacked in place. Suspension is indeed a transverse leaf spring. Last thing I owned with a transverse leaf suspension was my Opel GT.

Oh yeah, it's a GR-303. Should have a pdf manual in a day or so.
 
Hi Mike. If you want a pdf manual you can try to contact [email protected] I get owner's manual of mine from there. I invite you to watch mine http://www.youtube.com/metalworker85 I found this on September 2003 also came with a trailer, but just keept the welder because my shop is so small place. Now it's working so very good daily for me. Hope you enjoy the video and good luck with your owner's manual. On the e-mail you have to send model and specs Alejandro. Also you can see pics on http://www.flickr.com/photos/cacahuatito and on http://www.photobucket.com/cacahuatito
 
I have a big old Lincoln welder, it has a 6 cyl. International Harvester engine. It has the smoothest steadyest arc of any welder I have ever used. the engine makes so much torque that the engine rpm does not change at all whether you are welding or not, even on the highest amp setting. I have used Miller and Lincoln welders that have the little 2 cyl engines on them and the difference is pretty amazing. If you ever get a chance try one of the old 6 cyl welders, you will be looking to send your little twin down the road and getting a real welder. I was not looking for one ether when I got mine but it only cost me 300.00 and came with 200 ft of cables. I don't know what size they are but the copper wire is about 1/2 dia and the insulation makes it over 3/4 dia. It is on a nice home built trailer and uses 3/4 ton truck 8 bolt wheels and hubs. this thing starts instantly, runs great, and uses no oil. worth 300 I'd say. O yeah, I got about 300 lbs of welding rod in sealed 50 lb metal tins with it also...
 
Perry, this welder is going on 40yrs old and still runs like a top, doesn't use oil, doesn't smoke, welds smoothly (as mentioned above) and puts out 35KW of 110. Like I tell the guys who question my 91yr old lathe... get back with me in 40yrs and tell me how yours is doing.

The Ford 6cyl is limited to only 1850rpm, so it's only putting out 55-65 hp (not sure if I have a 170cu in or a 200). How long will a Ford automobile or truck engine last if run at a constant 1850rpm, no stop and go driving, no hotrodding by a 17yr old, etc... This is a true 100% duty cycle 300 amp welder. You can arc gouge wide open all day long and never have a problem. It can actually put out over 400 amps, but is rated at 300. This machine is also QUIET. You can easily carry on a conversation standing beside it with it running wide open. The B&S powered Miller at work is irritating, all the way across the shop.

moonlight, I previously had Lincoln, but it was too far gone for me to save. I traded it to a friend who graded out my shop for concrete. It was a big SA400 with a 2-53 GM diesel! Engine was ruined. Had been underwater rusted the cylinders up so solid the pistons could not be moved with a sledgehammer after removing the head. Water in the supercharger had frozen and broken a lobe off one blower shaft. He managed to scavenge some junkyard parts, found some pistons and liners, and rebuilt the thing. Runs like a sewing machine now... a VERY LOUD sewing machine, lol. It'll burn a rod as big as your leg, handy as he uses it to rebuild locomotives.
 
A welder with a gas engine like the Ford 6 or the flathead Continentals as used on a lot of SA series Lincolns will run forever and they'll burn less gas than one powered by an air cooled engine. We had 3 Ford powered Hobarts and 4 diesel Hobarts when we were doing a lot of pipe work. Also had one SA-200 Lincoln. Had a couple Miller air cooled jobs we'd set on a roof with a crane once in a while to avoid having to use 400 ft of leads, but other than that we seldom used them.

Of the gas engined welders, the Lincoln was the most trouble free. But for something that'll run all day every day and never need any attention, the diesels were the ticket. Most every one of the gas engine jobs uses the same belt driven governor, and those governors give more trouble over the long run than the rest of the entire machine. Mostly because they wear over time and take regular fiddling with to keep the engine speed from hunting.

However, a couple of the Hobarts we had were GR-303's, and they won't produce anything near 35kW of auxiliary power. Maybe 3.5kW to run a grinder or a pipe machine, but definitely not 300+ amps of 110 AC.
 
Equivalent to a PipeLiner...

And when someone wants to compare it to a 20hp air-cooled, well, just walk away.

It seems odd that the ratings appear the same, but if you really want to know what the difference REALLY is, don't ask- just fire one up, put in a big rod, and strike your arc. Spend some time using it, get it set right, and really dig into a workpiece HARD... load it down, and when your rod is gone, change it quick, and bury the next rod. Do this continuously for half your workshift, and then pull it away, drag in the air-cooled twin, and do exactly the same thing.

After a half-hour, you'll fully realize and understand the difference.

These big boys were MADE to run 100% duty. The windings will stay cool, arc voltage is steady, and they'll eat welding rods 'till you can't hold'em any longer.

I've got several air-cooled singles and twins, and used many more engine-driven welders. When you get a machine that's compact, light, and powerful, you'll find things like aluminum windings, higher engine speeds, rattling tinwork, high fuel consumption, and oil burning tendancies prevail. Working 'em hard will cause windings to heat, brushes and commutators to burn and track, and welding performance gets weak. Heavier machines tolerate heavy loading better. Furthermore, they're generating a good chunk of usable AC power (again, continuous) to power worksite lighting, grinders, ventilation equipment, even air compressors... I can't ask that much of a Ranger 8, especially if I'm driving half-a-box of 1/8" 7018 through it with no 'rest' in between.

The crazy thing, is that these beasties are so CHEAP nowdays- that E-find was under $700. At that price, a guy could pour a little pad on the back side of the building, bring in an NG or propane line, hang a pair of good busbars across the shop ceiling, and use hook-sticks on short leads for universal shop welding supply... and in the wintertime, port the engine's waste heat into the shop for co-gen economy...
 








 
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