Green Bastard Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 click guy made a tig welder with an alternator and a pool pump motor, and something to mount a pully to the pump motor. also used a battery charger to start it and a headlight dimmer switch to control it. not sure how the battery charger has enough juice to keep it going unless he has the alt. wired to the motor as well somehow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Brian Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 cliffnotes or something? I'm not reading a wall of text Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gergwheel1647545492 Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 yea this has been around for a while, ford alternators are good cause of the high amperage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 yea this has been around for a while, ford alternators are good cause of the high amperage. yeah, this is old news. I made four or five of them when I lived in dayton and sold them off. They work good on an old mower deck too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Bastard Posted April 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 i had no idea you could do that with an alternator, interesting though, what do you use for a torch, just a standard tig torch? i might be up to try it as i could use a cheapo welder around my house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iwashmycar Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 are there pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patterson Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 RIP BPA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPL_Josh Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 Alts for welding-actually older than the internet. Older than that...arc welding with batteries :gabe: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gergwheel1647545492 Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 Alts for welding-actually older than the internet. Older than that...arc welding with batteries :gabe: and clothes hangers!! that is what true hill billies use when they are out offroading! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 i had no idea you could do that with an alternator, interesting though, what do you use for a torch, just a standard tig torch? i might be up to try it as i could use a cheapo welder around my house. Arc handle is easiest, but you can get fancy and use a tig torch. Got mine from ebay. are there pics? I'll see if I can dig some up, but i'm not sure I even have any. Alts for welding-actually older than the internet. Older than that...arc welding with batteries :gabe: Done that also, just be sure you don't let them get too hot. and clothes hangers!! that is what true hill billies use when they are out offroading! I keep a stack of them in my garage just in case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 Arc Electrode Holder: http://www.harborfreight.com/200-amp-electrode-holder-97892.html Ground Clamp: http://www.harborfreight.com/300-amp-ground-clamp-97897.html Sometimes you can get cheap wire from some salvage yards but with the price of copper and recycling, it may be easier to just buy some. You can also look through salvage yards for old welders and cut the cables from those too. For TIG, it's MUCH easier to get an air cooled torch and cable but it depends on how much you want to put into it and what you want to do with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPL_Josh Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 Water cooled torch or nothing. Fuck welding with air cooled once you've been spoiled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patterson Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 BRB baking pies on my Turn signals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 26, 2012 Report Share Posted April 26, 2012 Water cooled torch or nothing. Fuck welding with air cooled once you've been spoiled. I would agree, but if you are trying to build this then you typically want cheap. Adding a watercooled torch to a "junkyard" welder is like trying to polish a turd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractor Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 I've had a alternator/welder set up on my offroad truck for years. It works great. Its a constant 70amps, but you control the output voltage by adjusted the RPMS. At about 2500rpms I get 110volts and can run large power tools. I've got many hours on mine with no issues. I'm actually planning to build a TIG welder rig to attach to the PTO of my tractor soon. Might also incorporate an air compressor, I'm still in the design/thinking stages. The lower alternator in this photo is the welder, I've since upgraded the upper alternator to a 140amp unit. http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f185/EWhytsell/PC180115.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPL_Josh Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 ^how are you controlling pre/post gas flow? Why not buy welding cable instead of audio.cable? My 1/0 was $3.31/ft and I have over 100+ft Also what do you think is the biggest limiter in the setup. If its the alt there are numerous 200-300 amp units avaliable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractor Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 I'm not running gas, just a simple SMAW (stick welder) process. I used audio cable for easier routing from the alternator through the engine bay to a welding cable quick connect port where I attach a pair of cables. The audio cable also carries current far better than welding cable. The 70amp alternator is plenty as far as size goes. You could run a much larger one such as the 140amp caddy alternator that I use for 12v generation, but that requires much more modification of the alternators circuits to handle the load. They weren't designed to be used as welders and have more complex circuits than the old style 70amp models. The model is actually very easy, you simply remove the regulator and ground out the Vref signal so that it outputs full power all the time. The larger models would require diodes that can handle 100-200amps or more so thats also a major problem, but I know of at least one guy who's done it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Bastard Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 what would be the best ford to pull an alternator off of to make a welder. i would like a 130 amp and i know the mustangs and trucks with mod motors have them. dont know if they came factory though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 ^how are you controlling pre/post gas flow? Why not buy welding cable instead of audio.cable? My 1/0 was $3.31/ft and I have over 100+ft Also what do you think is the biggest limiter in the setup. If its the alt there are numerous 200-300 amp units avaliable Stick welders don't need to control gas flow, but some tig torches have a valve on them if you go that route. I'm not running gas, just a simple SMAW (stick welder) process. I used audio cable for easier routing from the alternator through the engine bay to a welding cable quick connect port where I attach a pair of cables. The audio cable also carries current far better than welding cable. The 70amp alternator is plenty as far as size goes. You could run a much larger one such as the 140amp caddy alternator that I use for 12v generation, but that requires much more modification of the alternators circuits to handle the load. They weren't designed to be used as welders and have more complex circuits than the old style 70amp models. The model is actually very easy, you simply remove the regulator and ground out the Vref signal so that it outputs full power all the time. The larger models would require diodes that can handle 100-200amps or more so thats also a major problem, but I know of at least one guy who's done it. Audio cable is typically easier to find as well, and it's often more flexible. As for high current diodes, check on ebay. You can sometimes grab them there for under $1 each and they can handle in excess of 300 amps. I have a few still here that I keep as spares. what would be the best ford to pull an alternator off of to make a welder. i would like a 130 amp and i know the mustangs and trucks with mod motors have them. dont know if they came factory though. The typical ford 130 amp is one of the most popular for this, but I forget the part number and typical application. If you simply google Ford 3G welder you'll find all the info you need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 here is some vehicle info on the 3G alternator http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/485507-3g-alternator.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPL_Josh Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Audio cable doesn't carry more than welding cable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillbot Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Audio cable doesn't carry more than welding cable. That would be determined more by the gauge of the wire than the type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPL_Josh Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 That would be determined more by the gauge of the wire than the type. Yes I understand this but in post 17 tractor thinks otherwise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractor Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 If I'm wrong sorry, but this is something that has been debated at least since my car audio days back in the mid `90's and I'm sure earlier than that. I used 1200 or 2400 strand 1 or 2 gauge (can't remember, don't feel like looking) high copper cable and it does carry a load better than welding cable. If this isn't correct then I guess all the top tier car audio competitors have been doing it wrong for decades and could have saved a lot of money using welding cable. Don't really want to derail a nice thread and the welding cable vs copper cable horse has been beaten a long time. I guess you could have welding cable made of the same material if thats possible and also same gauge, then it would perform the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPL_Josh Posted April 28, 2012 Report Share Posted April 28, 2012 If I'm wrong sorry, but this is something that has been debated at least since my car audio days back in the mid `90's and I'm sure earlier than that. I used 1200 or 2400 strand 1 or 2 gauge (can't remember, don't feel like looking) high copper cable and it does carry a load better than welding cable. If this isn't correct then I guess all the top tier car audio competitors have been doing it wrong for decades and could have saved a lot of money using welding cable. Don't really want to derail a nice thread and the welding cable vs copper cable horse has been beaten a long time. I guess you could have welding cable made of the same material if thats possible and also same gauge, then it would perform the same. I've been a welder since 06 and doing high end car audio since early 2000s. guess I wouldn't know huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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