Running a welder on a generator for field use?

[Sawyer Rob]

I think have seen little ones at Harbor Freight.

Yup, they have made 300's, maybe still do, and I still see 500's... So, not so obvious at all...

SR

 

[STx]

Smallest thing I see on the Harbor Freight site is 900W. There are a few 300W wind or bicycle generators, but I can't find anything gas powered, if you can, I'd honestly like to see it. For that small of an output, a battery and inverter would seem the more likely choice.

 

[joeu235]

i had a small commercial job repairing some furniture for a large retailer. I had to weld at their loading dock for liability reasons. I tried running my Hobart 211 of a 3500W generator. The welder survived but the weld were terrible. Later I ran the Hobart 211 off a Miller Bobcat and it welded just fine.

 

[FredH]

Years back We tried running a Lincoln 255 of a miller bobcat and off a dedicated 8500 watt generator . Did not ewven have to strike a arc and welder would max out on the digital read outs regardless what you had set the dials at and either generator would start straining . WTH ??? Emailed Lincoln for opinions and ideas . Reply countered what Dealer had told Us when purchasing welder , Thus Dealer was showed Email from Lincoln same time We returned welder .

Although We did not get cash back from difference in price , We did get a bunch of accessories when it was swapped for a Lincoln 216 . Which by the way , We were assured that the 216 would run off a generator . Something about the electronics in the 255 that caused problems when attempting to run off a generator . Now this was some 6 to 10 years ago , so Lincoln may have fixed that issue with the 255 as it is now the 256 model ??

My point is , some electronics do not like generator's regardless the size of generator or device being used .

Fred H.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Smallest thing I see on the Harbor Freight site is 900W. There are a few 300W wind or bicycle generators, but I can't find anything gas powered, if you can, I'd honestly like to see it. For that small of an output, a battery and inverter would seem the more likely choice.

My brother had a Honda 350 watt, just like one of these...

ex350 honda generator - Bing images

SR

 

[bdog]

I bought a power arc 140 to use on a 6500 watt Honda generator for repairs on the road. I have a trailblazer 302 for when I am doing serious mobile welding but the power arc is more for emergency repairs. It is so small and easy to carry along on trips where you already have a generator present.

 

[SPYDERLK]

I think have seen little ones at Harbor Freight.

They are 800W claimed. ... But in reality 300 is about what theyll do at nominal voltage.

 

[ModMech]

We had a Hobart Champion 10k, Miller MM251 and the Hobart would *barely* provide enough juice for that Mig at anything near full power. It would spin the meter on the shop too!

Some welders will work with almost any power source, others are choosey. Inverter types draw less power compared to their output, but tend to underperform on budget generators.

 

[ModMech]

We had a Hobart Champion 10k, Miller MM251 and the Hobart would *barely* provide enough juice for that Mig at anything near full power. It would spin the meter on the shop too!

Some welders will work with almost any power source, others are choosey. Inverter types draw less power compared to their output, but tend to underperform on budget generators.

 

[CNC Dan]

They are 800W claimed. ... But in reality 300 is about what theyll do at nominal voltage.

Must be Sears equivalent horsepower.