Cold Switch Option

Pictured below is the "cold switch" box which can be added as an option to any Ready Welder II model.

Without the cold switch option, the tip of the RWII welding gun is live at all times when the Ready Welder is connected to a power supply. That means that an arc can strike and current can flow, whether or not the trigger is pulled. In other words, when you have finished welding, if the gun nozzle accidentally contacts any metal part connected to the ground clamp, and accidental arc will be struck. Consequences of this range from annoying to a possible safety hazard, depending on the circumstances.

This situation can be avoided with the addition of the cold switch.

Note that all Ready Welder II models, regardless of the power source they are connected to, use DC power for welding. You cannot connect any of them to an AC only welding machine like the cheap stick welding "buzz boxes".

In summary, the possible connections / power sources are:

• 18-36 volt DC battery power - any RWII model (Model# 10250 requires additional cabling/ground clamp)
• Constant voltage MIG machine - any RWII model
• Constant current AC/DC stick machine - any RWII model EXCEPT the #10000

Common Specification & Kit Contents

All Ready Welder II models share these common specifications:

• Welds steel, stainless, aluminum or any other metal for which standard one- or two-pound wire spools are available
• Connects to batteries
  – 18 volts can weld thin sheet metal.
  – 24 volts will weld 1/2" @ 275 amps.
  – 36 volts will weld up to 3/4" @ 350 amps.
• Welds 22-gauge to 3/4".
• Uses wire sizes from .023 to .040 without changing rollers.
• Uses heavy-duty TWECO quality front-end consumables (tips and nozzles), available anywhere.
• Wire speeds of 50 inches to 900 inches per minute
• Polarity indicator lights built into gun to indicate whether gun is correctly connected for flux-core (FCAW) DC electrode negative (DCEN) (straight polarity) or MIG (GMAW) solid-wire DC electrode positive (DCEP) (reverse polarity) welding.
• Built-in gas valve for MIG (GMAW) solid-wire DC electrode positive (DCEP) (reverse polarity) welding.
  

Each of the three different models also share these common kit contents:

• High-impact wire-feed welding gun.
• One one-pound spool of .035 flux-core wire.
• Extra welding tips.
• Gas hose fitting and gas hose.
• Tough, foam-lined, blow-moulded carrying case.

Ready Welder II Model# 10000-CS Kit

I chose the Model# 10000-CS for two reasons. First, my primary intended use is as a portable welder I can take on the trail, which means most of the time I will be using batteries as the power supply. Second, my existing shop welder is a constant voltage MIG welder, to which I can connect the #10000-CS for use as a spool gun for welding aluminum & stainless, as well as for those occasions when I need to weld thicker mild steel (1/2" and up) than the Miller can handle.

Let's have a detailed look at the #10000-CS:

Loading the RWII With Wire

Connecting the RWII to Batteries.

Ready Welder II Model# 10000 battery Connection Schematic

Welding with the Ready Welder II Model# 10000-CS

Connecting the Ready Welder II Model# 10000 to a MIG Machine Power Supply

Recall from our discussion on the different RWII models that the #10000 can be connected to a constant voltage MIG machine, and that the #10000ADP and #10250 can be connected to a constant voltage MIG machine or a constant current stick machine.  The difference is that the latter two models come with a small ac to dc power converter supply that you plug into a standard 110v outlet. This small converter takes household ac current and converts it to the DC current required to run the circuit board and the wire feed motor in the gun.

If you try to power these gun controls with AC power (by plugging a #10000 into a stick machine, or not hooking up the small converter with either of the other two models) you will destroy the circuit board and wire feed motor in short order.

BUT - there is one additional caveat.  When connecting a Model#10000 to a CV MIG machine, you MUST ensure that the max voltage supplied by the machine is no more than 40v.  In fact, the gun controls are "happiest" at 24-36v, having been designed for this DC voltage. The circuit board in the RWII is the electronic "brain" of the machine and will not tolerate AC current, DC voltage spikes, or high voltage DC current (above 40v).

So, the bottom line is this: Yes, you can connect your #10000 to a CV MIG machine IF you can adjust the machine's output to remain at <40v DC.  However, if you plan on using the RWII a lot as a spool gun, your best bet is to get a model #10000ADP or model# 10250 and use the supplied AC to DC converter.

Let's have a look at how to tell if your MIG machine is constant voltage, and if it is, how to safely hook up the #10000.

(by the way - if you happen to screw up and connect any RWII model incorrectly and fry the circuit board / wire feed motor, all is not lost. You can order a replacement board / motor combination for a very reasonable fee and replace it yourself without too much difficulty).

Ready Welder II Model# 10000 CV MIG Machine Connection Schematic

Connecting the Ready Welder II Model# 10000-CS to a Gas Supply for MIG (GMAW) Welding

The final thing we'll look at is how to hook up the RWII to a gas supply so that you can use solid wire and conduct MIG welding.

Notable Points & Tips on Using the Ready Welder

The following are some observations & tips drawn from my research on, and use of, the Ready Welder II:

- For optimum wire feeding, be sure to adjust the wire feed tension lever in the gun for different materials and wire sizes. It's particularly important to reduce wire feed tension for soft aluminum wire

- One of the reasons spool guns are used with normal welders for aluminum welding is because they dramatically reduce the distance the soft wire has to feed. This advantage is present in the RWII for all wires - they only have to feed a distance of about 10".

- If you have trouble with wire feeding, try these tips:

• Adjust the wire feed tension spring. Select the firmest setting that still allows the wire to feed freely without causing the motor to bog down or the wire feed rate to be inconsistent. The settings, in order of increasing firmness, are: ALUMINUM -> STEEL -> EXTRA GRIP. These names are just guidelines / labels - you can weld any metal on any setting if the situation calls for it.
• Clean the inside of the gun by blowing it out with compressed air.
• When you lubricate the internal parts of the gun in accordance with the manual, use a toothpick or wire and oil sparingly - excess oil may find its way onto the surface of the rollers and will cause wire feeding problems.
• Check to make sure the T-bolt holding the two halves of the gun together isn't over tightened and binding the wire spool.
• Check to make sure no part of the wire spool is binding or interfering with the inside of the gun case, particularly the labels on the spool.
• As a spool of wire is used, the outside wire is used first. It is harder to pull the wire from the centre of the spool than the outside so you may have to increase wire feed tension and/or reduce the T-bolt tension as you weld and consume wire.

- Driving the gun hard without due care and attention to smooth, even wire feeding may cause the plastic gears to strip.

- The wire-feed control is right on the gun, making it easy and convenient to adjust right at the work. However, the knob turns very freely and is easy to bump or inadvertently adjust if you are not careful. I have read that one enterprising user had some success by removing the knob and coating the outside with liquid electrical tape then reinstalling it after it had dried - making it harder to turn and more secure. I haven't tried this personally and just take care not to bump the knob when I'm welding.

- To remember which polarity is which for MIG or flux-core welding, remember GREEN for GAS.

- If, after a lot of use, the gas valve in the gun sticks open, a tap on the case will usually remedy the issue. This may also indicate that it is time to clean / blow-out the inside of the gun and lubricate the gears, rollers, and gas valve slide. Use oil SPARINGLY - a tiny drop will do!

- Be sure to setup and try out the RWII in the garage / shop before needing it on the trail in the cold... when it's dark... and raining... and you're late for beer call.

- If you have an existing RWII and your needs change, you can send it in to Ready Welder and have the cold switch and/or ADP (AC/DC power converter) option retrofitted.

- Due to the high power of the Ready Welder using pure DC voltage - up to 350 amps or more, make sure you use the appropriate shade of eye-protection as high amp arcs are very bright! Use the following table as a guide:

* As a rule of thumb, start with a shade that is too dark to see the weld. Then go to a lighter shade which gives sufficient view of the weld without going below the minimum.
- Guide adapted from ANSI Z49.1, 1999

- When welding with flux-core wire, you may experience better results by using a tip one size larger than the wire size; for example, using a .035 tip with .030 wire.

- While not designed to replace normal shop welders, especially in a commercial shop or production setting, the RWII would make an excellent first welder for anyone. It's far more powerful than a 110v welder, is cheaper than a 230v welder, and you don't have to wire the shop or garage for 230v service if you don't have it. There's no reason you couldn't build an entire buggy with just a Ready Welder II - you just have to work around the battery life and practice good battery management.

- You must always completely disconnect the batteries that power the RWII from the vehicle(s) before welding - especially if you are welding on the host vehicle, otherwise damage to the electrical components of the vehicle can occur.

- Hugh quality, deep-cycle or hybrid batteries in good condition are best for welding with the RWII. However, on the trail or in the back woods, any pair of 12v automotive batteries will do for most emergency repair jobs.

- I used an entire 1lb spool of .035 flux-core wire on two batteries, making approximately 8 feet of weld bead on mostly 1/4" steel, and still had enough battery power in a single battery to start the Chevy 350 V8. This took the batteries from a fully charged state of 12.7 volts to an almost completely discharged 11.91 volts. Being high-quality Odyssey batteries they re-charged to 100% easily using a specially designed computer-controlled charger designed for AGM batteries.

- When testing batteries, use the following tables, depending on if you are testing the voltage with a load on the batteries, or with no load (open circuit):

- While there is no direct control of amperage on the RWII, the following will all have an effect on the amperage / amount of heat being delivered to the weld, and can be adjusted as required:

• Wire size
• Stickout (the distance the wire protrudes from the tip before contacting the work)
• Wire feed speed
• Length of power cables
• Voltage (number of batteries connected in series)
• Use of the built-in "stitch mode" (full clockwise on the wire feed speed control) for thinner materials

By using the appropriate combination of the above factors you can satisfactorily weld anything from 22ga sheet-metal to 3.4" thick steel plate.

- Since the RWII uses pure 12 volt DC current when connected to batteries, its duty cycle is almost unlimited; unlike other MIG welders that have inverters to convert AC to DC current. The RW-II is rated at 100% Duty Cycle for MIG welding (GMAW), and 70% Duty Cycle when welding with flux-core wire (FCAW). This is because, at normal flow rates, the shielding gas used in MIG welding provides enough cooling power to drop the temperature of the tip. It is recommended that if you are going to be frequently using the RWII for long periods of time that you do so on the basis of a 90% duty cycle , to avoid overheating the front end consumables or gun components. Of course, that 90% translates into nine minutes of continuous welding with only one minute of cool down before the next nine minutes of continuous welding. Unless you are working on very long sections and have someone else available to do all the cleaning and fit-up for you as you go, that would be almost impossible to achieve - you'd probably have to pause for more than one minute in ten anyway.

Here's a chart of a 230v MIG welder's duty cycle with the RWII duty cycle superimposed in red for comparison:

- Many factors will determine the length of acceptable-quality welding time when using battery power. The primary factors are the the type and size of batteries used and the type of welding being performed. The thicker the metal being welded, the greater the amperage draw will need to be to obtain satisfactory results, and the more quickly the batteries will be drained. The size and amp-hour ratings of the batteries used will determine the total amount of power available and thus the welding time available. Ready Welder recommend using deep cycle AGM (Absorbed Glass Matt) batteries, or at least group 31 marine deep-cycle batteries as a power source for the Ready Welder II.

A fully charged pair of large, high-quality batteries will normally yield a minimum duration of about 45 minutes of actual trigger-pulled welding time when welding 1/2" steel or 3/4" Aluminum @ approximately 175 amps. Lighter duty welding operations on thinner metal can offer a duration of four hours or more.

- The secret to the Ready Welder's enormous power and awesome penetration is the use of pure DC power. Shop welders must first convert AC power to DC power before welding can take place. This consumes electrical power, reduces duty-cycle time, and produces heat. As such, a normal shop MIG welder's power supply is rated at a particular amperage capability. Batteries do not have any such limitations, as long as there is path large enough for the current to flow, it will do so. For example, the RWII can only penetrate 3/4" if the batteries and cables can deliver 400amps - which three quality 36v batteries can do. Very few shop welders have power supplies that can provide 400amps. For example, the diagram below illustrates the specs and limitations of a typical 230v shop MIG welder (and a good one at that); and has the Ready Welder II specs added in red for comparison: