Who is it???

[Hillbillysmith]

I seem to remember someone on here say that they made a TIG welder from a microwave oven. I would like this person to reply back or PM me because I would like to know how they did it and want to know if they would please tell me where they got the plans from or if they would send me the plans. I would LOVE to build one. Looking forward to the reply(s) please and thank you.


-Hillbilly

[Glenn]

The search engine used for the word microwave provided 11 results. This may be a faster way toward an answer.

[hammerkid]

Hey if you find them let me know HBS. I would like the plans to

[welder19]

Also try searching on google, there is lots of info out there on home made welders, mostly arc but there is also tig and spot welders of a lot of different designs, there is a lot of info on making a arc welder out of an altinator.

welder19

[Bentiron1946]

Do you think that in the long run that it would be cheaper then HF's buzz box considering the possibilty of frying one's self?

[Awalker]

Unless you are looking for a relatively complex project that may get pricier than buying a welder ten just buy one. You can TIG weld off of any DC arc welder for steel and SS. You can even do so with aluminum but it is a bit trickier. A basic DC buzz box will run you between free and $100, figure another $100 for the torch. another $100 for the bottle of straight argon, $50 for a regulator and you are in business. With the microwave welder you still need to buy the torch, gas, and regulator, so in my opinion it is cheaper to buy than build. If you need high freq keep an eye on e-bay for a dayton, or miller unit as they pop up regularly.

[evfreek]

Hi Hillbillysmith. It's me. Search for "homemade microwave welder" and select the thread titled "copper bracelet".

As Awalker said, it is better to buy the arc welder used than to try to modify the microwave oven. In another post, I went over the difficulties of the modification. As for cost, this can be pretty cheap. And, the chance of getting zapped is small. The main hazard is loss of isolation on the secondary side. This is especially likely if you follow the plans available from the Internet which suggest that you use THHN house wire to wind the secondary. And, you will not get zapped, since the voltage is low, but you will smell that funny smell.

I would not recommend it unless you have a lot of time on your hands. I gave a presentation to a Make group and was invited to set up a booth at the Maker Faire, but I was busy that weekend. There is a pic in the post I referenced above.

Recently, I got an idea to make a new kind of homemade welder. Do you know what polarity to run SAW (submerged arc welding).

[Hillbillysmith]

Thank you for replying evfreek. Would you we willing to send me the plans? Or did you know what to do? If you have plans and will send them to me, please PM me and I will give you my E-mail. BTW, I don't know what polarity SAW is ran on but I will reference this tomorrow and will let you know. If I remember correctly, it's straight polarity (DC-). But like I said, I will reference this and confirm tomorrow.


Thank you,
-Hillbilly

[evfreek]

It took a while, but here is the presentation that I gave at the Makers org meeting.

Oops, the file size is just a little too large, it won't go in

[Golden_eagle]

I've seen Stick welder made out of a TV and AC/DC rectifier...