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Looking for a foot control for a Lincoln Idealarc Tig 300-300 from 1959

fciron

Stainless
Joined
Oct 14, 2009
Location
Louisville, KY, USA
Hi all,

My shop came with an Idealarc 300-300 that I have been using for 'stick' welding for years. It's been a great machine for that and I haven't worried about the TIG features since I had zero TIG experience and the water valve was disconnected and looked very corroded and need of attention.

Jump forward ten years and I have started using a Miller Multimate I got from a friend. It's DC only and lift-start for TIG welding, so it's ok for most of my work. (I'm a blacksmith and do decorative iron work: furniture, fireplace screens and tools, railings, grills, etc. Most of it has been MIG welded in the past.) Now that I've got a couple hours practice the various parts hanging on the old Lincoln suddenly make sense. The water/power line is already busted, so I tried running it without water to see if the high frequency unit worked and if it would weld. I have hi-freq and it will weld. It got hot near the handle pretty quick so after a bit of experimentation I shut it down and went back to the new Miller.

The Lincoln has connections for two different controls. There's a starter button, which I have, it has a household type two-prong plug and starts the hi-freq, gas, and water if it was connected. There is another connection for remote current control and it looks like a three prong twist lock.

The manual says it uses an Amptrol remote. That's all, just Amptrol, no model or parts numbers. The manual does not have a parts list and there's no part number for the remote in the schematic. I asked my welding supplier and their records don't go back that far. They called Lincoln and Lincoln suggested I contact Stumpf Welding Supplies. From the code number and serial number Stumpf was able to say my machine was from 1959, but they weren't able to say what foot pedal I need.

Does anyone know the model or part number for the remote for a machine like this?

I'm open to alternatives and can certainly wire up the plugs if I could get something similar and the the pin-outs. I'm attaching a picture of the remote socket if it's of any help.

Thanks,

Lewis20150421_143913.jpg
 
I would retro-fit the Lincoln to use a current foot pedal control. Most tig systems look for two wires for the on and off and three wires for the heat control so you can use almost any foot control you want. Usually the foot pedal contains a micro switch for the on and off and a potentiometer for the heat.

The only tricky part, if you don't have a schematic, is getting the + and - correct on the pot. If you get this backwards the heat will work backwards. To remedy this you will just swap the + and - wires.

This welder is quite old, have you considered buying a different rig with the more modern technology? The new tig rigs have a lot of adjustments for the weld characteristics and can really help welding difficult materials and are moderately priced.

You're going to have to buy the foot pedal and fix the water cooled torch. If your torch is an antique, you will also probably need to upgrade that too.
 
Look at the plug and count the pins (on the welder) I may have the foot control for that machine. Pictures would help. The newer machines have 24 volt control. Older machines used 110 volts. My Amptrols are the older ones.
 
Throwing a modern control on was specifically not recommended because we don't know the voltage and the older equipment used higher amperages through the remote as well. I could pull the cover and look for transformers, but I don't know what questions I am trying to answer yet or where to find a foot pedal if I had the answers.

I'm aware I'll need to replace the torch. Getting the old machine running will let me sell the little Miller, which appears almost unused and actually has fewer features, and give me a platform to decide if I need a more modern unit.

The Lincoln has connections for two different controls. There's a starter button, which I have, it has a household type two-prong plug and starts the hi-freq, gas, and water if it was connected. There is another connection for remote current control and it looks like a three prong twist lock.

I'll look at the schematic again tomorrow and see if I can find the voltage for the remote.
 
rbjscott, I think I have a Lincoln part number for the remote control, S11205. If you have something you think would work, please let me know.

Thanks,

Lewis.
 
I've got a Lincoln K813 Amptrol foot pedal which fit some older 250/250 and 300/300 stick/tig Lincolns. Sold the welder it went with when I got sick. Got better enough to weld again, wish I had that welder back.

Has a 6 pin cable; but (if recollection serves) there was something different about it than more recent controls. Looks like yours, with a twistlock connection, may be even older?

Was just about to Ebay it. If Jeep's doesn't work. PM me if you some more details. You may want to do some checking, my vague recollection is that something changed mid stream on K813 pedals and what works with what. Could be you'll need to check serial numbers -- or maybe just try things to see if it works.

Also have a K2000 Arc-Air gouging unit I never got to use -- and now don't have a welder comfortably capable of powering it.

Best is if there's still the circuit diagram inside for both your welder and the control. Could be you can buy a modern foot pedal for $150 or so and adapt it?
 
Thanks, Jeep534 and PeteM. I thought this thread might have been defunct, so I haven't checked it in a few days.

I've heard that the older machines need a wire-wound pot to handle the full line voltage for the remote control as opposed to a smaller control voltage, so I'm concerned a modern one won't work. (If I could find the voltage and current specs for the remote then I'd have a start.)

There's a schematic in the instruction manual with wire colors, but I haven't yet determined the specs for the parts. Total of 5 wires on my machine, three for the remote and two for the contactor. I haven't tried looking under the covers yet, but it's a good thought, there could certainly be more diagrams in there.

Thanks,

Lewis
 
I realize this is a long shot and this is an old thread but....I have a Lincoln TIG 250/250 that uses a K-813 foot control like the OP was needing. I bought this welder sight unseen and in pieces, disassembled for the most part. An acquaintance and I were sitting here in the shop one afternoon and decided to tackle making it work. We Managed to figure out the wiring, got it wired correctly, and to the point it will pull an arc. It's a MIG 250/250 code 8329. I'm looking a foot control and torch for it to see if the TIG end work and if the HF works now. I want to learn to TIG.I've been looking at Foot Controls other than Lincoln brand because of the cost, but the one I need is not listed for the code I have. So I'd like to find a good used OEM foot control and torch for it. Ideas where to look, or who has one they'll sell and not break the bank? I'll try my local Lincoln dealer later today, but I'm sure IF they can get one it'll be way more than I have in the welder.
 








 
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