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miller maxstar wont weld, any miller experts out there

sam_stlouis

Cast Iron
Joined
Aug 1, 2010
Location
missouri, USA
miller maxstar 200dx, ser # lk280189l

unit turns on, keypad seems to work fine, hit the foot pedal and the argon turns on. But it never welds. The volt readout shows ---,then when I hit the pedal it goes to 80, turn the pedal up and down, it never changes from 80, and never welds.

I bought this machine used, never used it, but it sat on a shelf for a while so I did not use it and can no longer contact original owner, my fault.

The torch it came with had the wrong connector on it, im wondering if it has the wrong foot pedal. foot pedal is rfcs-14hd, which should be compatible, but in the owners manual it talks about pins, this foot pedal has a pin in a,b,c,d,e
looking in owners manuals something like a syncrowave shows a,b,d,c,e,k-chassis ground
the owners manual for the 200dx shows a,b,c,d,e,f,h,g,k-chassis ground
Every pic I find online only shows 5 pins, I cant find any pics of a foot pedal with anything different. So maybe I have the wrong foot pedal, maybe I dont know how to set it up, I did a step by step with the owners manual and think it is right. electric is single phase 247vols, machines cord is wired for single phase.
any ideas before I drop it off at a service center,
thanks sam
 
Does it stick weld? Did you check with an ohmmeter to see if the pins are doing what they're supposed to when the pedal is pressed? My Dynasty 200DX only uses the 5 pins you mentioned. When the pedal is pressed, A to B should connect. If you put an ohmmeter across C-D it should start low and climb in resistance as the pedal is depressed. Across D-E it should start high and drop as the pedal is depressed.
 
Dumb question but.. Since it shows volts on the readout, it probably is putting the volts out. Have you checked the continuity between the work clamp and the machine and the torch to the machine?
 
What eKretz said —> first thing to check is that it will stick weld. That will test the power supply and basic functions. Then when you are on TIG mode with the foot pedal, check to see if you are in lift arc vs HF start. What you describe will happen when using a foot pedal on lift arc (but trying to use it like HF start). Personally, I would weld a bit in lift arc without the foot pedal and then convert to pedal with HF start. That will help diagnose if the issue is the welder or the pedal/pedal connection.

Just my 2 cents worth of thoughts.
 
Go to the Miller Electric web page and search parts and manuals, lower left side of page will have a search box by serial number or lower right by model and series. It will walk you through the entire operation system for that particular machine.
The 80 you are seeing on the digital read out is O.C.V. open circuit voltage and 80 is correct for the Maxstar.
This voltage is monitored close to the output , so generally if it show's O.C.V then it's most likely correct at the output twist's.
Miller 14 pin Amprinol are compatible with the Maxstar. I could type what all the pins do but there all described in the operators manual on line . And yes check the work cable out from the twist lock all the way back to the work clamp. You could see continuity and even voltage but still have a problem with current carrying capacity. check ALL CONNECTIONS. Many times I have seen OCV at the work clamp to electrode output and seen it drop to zero under load.
 








 
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