Great video. Your advice on taking all the brush covers off and checking the brushes and generator housing BEFORE you try to run the engine is spot on. I got a 1966 SA200 Redface out of a farmer’s barn several years ago and I got a 3 gallon bucket of debris out of the generator. The gas was pure varnish so I cleaned the fuel tank and carburetor, I had it running and welding in 24 hours. Your right about parts availability in SA200 machines is amazing. I still like the Art Deco styling on the old Hobarts. Great machines!
A redface barn find! *drool* That’s awesome that you had such a quick turnaround getting that machine running. Thank you for taking the time to reply and thanks for the kind words! I agree with the styling, they do have a very pleasing look to them.
They definitely do! They seem pretty rare too, I’ve only seen a handful of them on the internet and never one in person. They gotta be out there though!
I just had a budy of mine give me one of these he found from a guy that owed him some money. Just started working on it to get her running. It will run with a cap of gas dumped in. Thinking the pump might be bad. It's only been sitting for about thirty years he said, lol . Couldn't believe how good it fired up. Gonna be a nice little project I think. You made my day, thanks for sharing
I’m very happy to hear you enjoyed the video, and they’re worth saving! Especially at free ninety-nine! They’re a nice machine. Parts for the Go-Devil are extremely plentiful, I feel like more so even than the Continental 163 on account of how many zillions of flatties there are - heck they’re even casting new blocks! Yeah I hope you get it running decent & welding! 🍻
@@johnhaynes9133 thanks but ive got the 250 k with the kolher it's about 3 or 4 years old now, but the idles the only issue there is with them other than that there been good in aus
Super rad dude. I have one of these in my parents yard for like 35 years. I decided iam going to clean it up. Maybe just have it for yard art but we will see. I have an older kohler one sitting out back as well.
I’m glad you enjoyed the vid! And that’s awesome man! I hope you get around to cleaning it up a bit. They are fun to play with, and when they’re working right the arc is nice and stable. I’ve never seen a Kohler powered job, is that like a weld’n-power? I’d imagine it’s much more portable than these big honkin’ things haha
Great video- I had to figure this all out the hard way 4 years ago, someone gave me one of these that had motor issues, and in looking for parts I got a deal ($300) on a slightly newer running Hobart with the willys motor. The reed switch and idler control did not work. Someone had replaced the hobart governor with a pierce. I replaced the vacuum idle down mechanism with an SA200/250 board and SA200 idle down solenoid, and added a high/low idle toggle. I still have one kink left to work out in that linkage but it works almost perfectly. I also tried the new replacement carb but had a lot of fuel issues so I bought a new throttle body for the W-O and it runs really nicely. The fuel shutoff is key. I could not run the outlets off the SA200 board, so I just have to manually switch the toggle to high idle for aux power. I'll figure out how to make that work properly eventually- I think the hobart has a larger exciter than the SA200? Make sure you use DC compatible power tools with this! I have a dewalt and metabo grinder that are dc compatible. This was an expensive experiment, but it worked out, so I thought I would share for anyone else who wants to make one of these machines idle down without having to scavenge parts.
I realize I’m late to the party, but thanks for the video! I have an early 1950’s model Hobart and I’m debating on how far I really want to go to get it operational again.
That's funny I put a little Volvo muffler on mine and mounted it exactly the same as yours probably going to put it outside where it's supposed to be down the road but I just needed to quiet it down to give the neighbors a break it was pretty loud with a straight pipe.
Thanks for watching, if you take a look at the instruction manual for the hobart mainliner the factory muffler is a willys unit that dumps out the hole in the corner like mine. This is the factory setup. I've seen a few here and there with stacks - neat but not original That's cool you have a SA-200 they're awfully desirable machines crazy what they still go for especially a nice redface. I bet if you took the two and set them side by side 9/10 people would buy the lincoln first. Keep burnin them rods brother have a good one 👍🏼
To eliminate the problem with fuel, switch to non ethanal Premium fuel, or at least a high quality Premium fuel. Have lots of small engines that sit and no issues.
Thanks for the comment HVAC Bear! Yeah straight gasoline is definitely the ideal setup. It’s difficult to find around here, but given the option I’d definitely run non-ethanol in every vintage and small engine I have! 👍🏼
Stumbled on yer vidyah. Good old portable. Miller bought out Hobart a few yrs ago and parts are hard to get for any older Hobart machinery. I had a 1937 Hobart build yer own with a Wisconsin v4 engine. She was a good unit. I was a welder fabricator for 30 years and used alot of different machines. Always liked the old stuff. Al B, from Ohio.
I was lucky in that Miller/Hobart did have the wiring diagram on file for this machine, which helped tremendously 👍🏼 thanks for the comment and view! I appreciate it
Awesome video. I have one of these welds great and has the Chrysler slant six 225. How do you adjust and clean the main amperage dials? Mine is the G-400.
Thank you, I really appreciate it. The main selector has to be [well, should be] taken out from the rear and can be further disassembled - I did it on this welder while the fuel tank assembly was completely out. The selector is basically a series of knife switches, it’s pretty straight forward when you get it broken apart. When I reassembled it, I coated everything with dielectric grease so it would move smoothly and keep the corrosion at bay. The rheostat, fine current adjustment I just used some rubbing alcohol and a brillo pad to clean the sweep, same thing, while the tank is out. If it only welds on 0 or 100 on any position, likely the rheostat is kaputt [I think]
You should be able to drop any small engine in there if parts are no longer available. Willys engines have been used in forklifts for many years under the Transcontinental name and parts were readily available. If worse comes to worse you can always use a 3 phase electric motor to turn your generator.
You may have misunderstood me, so let me clarify. The L-134 parts aren’t the problem, Rich, as they’re plentiful. I did a series on re-ringing the engine in this particular welder with new parts. The problem for this machine are the Hobart proprietary parts which are obsolete and no longer in production. The range switch, the polarity switch, the vacuum idle control solenoid, the belt driven governor, these are all Hobart parts and if a person can’t figure something out to make their machine function, the buyer just bought a yard ornament. I did want to mention that it defeats the purpose of having an engine driven welder that is run by a 3ph. motor that… you’d have to plug in. These machines are meant to be taken to a welding job, they’re mobile welding machines. If a person has 3ph. service, it’d be better to get a 3ph. shop machine Thanks for commenting and watching, I appreciate you
Looks like it would not be to hard to adapt a electric idler like the one's used on SA 200. Got mine for SA200 at Welders Parts Warehouse in Pinehurst TX. Use premium gas or get non ethanol gas.
Looking back, if I ever have an idle control failure, I’ll probably have that original solenoid rewound.. I’m just glad I didn’t have to get into some custom fabrication work. I agree, non-ethanol is ideal, but not available everywhere. I have to drive 20 miles for it here. The W1 and custom fuel pump is working very well. Thanks for the comment and info about lincoln parts 👍🏼
@@Convoycrazy I'm glad you mentioned the fuel I didn't even think about that. In mine I usually run it out of gas anyway because I use a portable fuel tank for a boat with it because I don't want to be buying gas for my neighborhood hooligans. I've got a SA-200 as well I'm considering restoring because of the parts availability, and what they sell for is crazy.
I picked up a 1947 I guess that's what the guy said it was it doesn't have a starter I get the crank starter and I just thought I'd look into it a little bit and see what happens turns over so I figure I wouldn't take too much to get it to start the biggest thing is where to get parts you know if it doesn't
Hobart makes no parts for the old machines so your best bet for the gennie side is going to be an electric motor rebuilding shop, any place that does large motors / generators. You can also make your own parts in regards to the vacuum switch / idle down mechanism. On the engine side, if it has a Willys flathead under the hood, you’re good to go, those parts are readily available from many vintage jeep part suppliers. Rebuild kits are going for around $800 these days but when I rebuilt mine all it needed really was re-ringed.. everything else was in very good shape I would suspect because in a stationary engine you don’t have the clutch pressure pushing against the crank all the time. Good luck, hope it’s all there and works well! Nothing beats an old copper gennie 👍🏼
Alright, I’m a flat fender guy, I just bought a welder just about like what you have and it’s pretty nice looking setup I’ve already got the engine running great but I just can’t pull the engine yet, if it welds might keep it if not it will definitely get pulled . I’ve checked all 8 brushes and cleaned the armature and still no spark at my leads what do you think scrap the welder or keep trying. I don’t know much about these welders.
It’s a tough decision to make! There are a couple things to check out. First I’d lock it out at the vacuum module or take that link off so it will come up on the governor. Take a VOM and check for 110-120 DC at the receptacle. That will tell you if the exciter is polarized and functioning. If no, then you might have to inspect / burnish the exciter armature under there. If that doesn’t work, you may end up pulling the fuel tank and getting behind the control panel and start checking / servicing the wiring back there. Feel free to comment here or contact me directly on FB if you need. Good luck!
Hey, thanks for the comment, unfortunately as far as I know, there are no replacement parts for these machines. So you can either find a machine for parts, make your own parts, or have the parts made at a shop that does generators and large motor repairs, or a welding machine repair shop. I wish parts were like the lincoln SA’s... I suppose someone could adapt those parts over to the Hobart stuff if they really knew their stuff.
Hell ill throw one ya you got a g310 its ac and dc 2 for one but man its a breed all its own on the generator side of things thanks for the video and the comments i will be saving this and maybe download but get this mine doesnt have and exciter
Hey thanks for watching - I'd heard of those AC/DC Hobarts? Probably built a little later? 70's? 80's? Yeah so I contacted Hobart [Miller] directly, they asked for the spec # off the data plate and gave me what they had, super helpful. I've never seen a machine like yours in real life - bet it's pretty useful, is that like a 10kW power generator too? It's possible they rectify the AC to make DC - I don't think you'd need an exciter then since alternators are self exciting
Hi I have Hobart similar my is running to my question is I have the lead or wire for welding but don’t weld I have question if you have any idea how setup to weld or I have to push any switch thanks
Hi, if you have two cables, one attached to POS and one attached to NEG, the POS normally has the electrode holder, or “stinger”. When you face the control panel, you will see the polarity switch on the far left side. You will normally weld DCEP or electrode POS, this is “reverse” polarity on the switch. For a 1/8” 7018 I would try position 2 on the large wheel, and about 80-90% on the fine current adjustment which is upper left on the control panel. I would start with these settings to test the welding function, it will get you started. Never change any settings on the machine while it is welding. With the machine running, if you strike an arc with the stinger, there will be a small spark where you are welding and the engine should rev up by itself. If this does not happen, you have some diagnostic work to do. These machines, and engine driven welders in general, can not weld for quite a few reasons. I would start a no-welding situation diagnosis on a Hobart by going back to the vacuum idle control on the engine and forcing it up to weld speed with your hand, and then flipping the lever down to hold it at welding speed. It’ll be revving pretty high at this point. The large welding generator should be making the whining sound you can hear in the video. Then go back to your welding stinger and try to weld. If it welds, your issue is the vacuum control. These units are a bit touchy, and can be problematic. If it still does not weld at this point, try turning the fine current control on the left side of the control panel, all the way up to 100%. This bypasses the rheostat. If it welds when the fine current is at 100, but not any other position, your problem is the fine current rheostat. They can be cleaned, but the fuel tank will need to come out. If it doesn’t weld no matter where you put the fine current control, I would continue the diagnostic process and take a multimeter while the engine is at welding speed, and set the meter to measure DC VOLTS. At welding speed, you should have around 110-120VDC in the accessory plugs on the right side of the control panel, where you plug a grinder in. If you do not have 110-120VDC, the exciter is malfunctioning and the exciter armature may need cleaned, or some wiring is bad. The exciter is in in the center of the large welding generator and there is a sheet metal band covering it with two bolts, or should be if your hobart is complete. Never stick anything metal, like a screwdriver, into the exciter to clean it for any reason whatsoever. Hobart recommends a wooden stick with a piece of canvas attached to it to burnish the armature, as you may see in one of my hobart videos, I can’t remember if it’s this one or not. Once you clean the exciter OR if you already HAVE 110-120VDC already at your accessory plug and it still wont weld, you may need to burnish the main welding armature. This is under the cover on the end of the machine with the control panel. It has four double sets of large brushes. These should be inspected and the armature burnished. Again, never stick anything metal ever into an armature of any kind ever! If you go through this diagnostic work and the machine still won’t weld, you have a major wiring or buss bar issue, or an issue with the range selector. You can try different positions on the range selector (1-5) to narrow it down further to this item or not. If none of this diagnostic procedure has any effect whatsoever, and the welding cables are in good shape and everything’s connected correctly, you have a problem that is far beyond my knowledge. There ARE places around that repair welding machines if it just refuses to weld. These machines are worth keeping - the copper generator, these are made of aluminum now which many say doesn’t weld as nicely as cooper, specifically, they really dont make machines like this anymore. Good luck, hope this helps
Thanks I check like you said I have another problem the fine adjustment is stuck I try to clean but don’t work I see just little bit spark when I weld just little I have another question you think can I convert to 220 volts because I have old Lincoln I want to use with this generator thanks
I personally would pull the gas tank to get at the back of the fine current knob, and burnish the exciter & main generator. I do not know anything about converting to 220V
I am 55 yrs old one of the first welding machines I learned to weld with, after rebuilding the inline six Chrysler engine, was a 1950s or early 60s military machine my dad got government surplus, so what most of you think as strange them machines are just a walk in the park, to me they are very easy to work on and it is all DC generator it make DC, as for today's machines they are all AC gens with copasitors and rectifier bridges it is not the same as a straight up DC machine
Thanks for the comment - and I agree .. NOTHING welds like an old copper-wound DC generator firing on all the cylinders! If I recall, they used the chrysler 6 cyl in the big boys .. that must have been quite the machine!
There are no replacements, AFAIK. You have a few options, one is to disassemble and rebuild that governor. There are no rebuild kits so you’ll have to weld/machine/source seals and parts yourself and modify them to work. Second is to find another hobart for parts or find a parts machine or find a hobart governor on ebay. Third option is to find another belt-driven governor from a different type of machine whether it be a power generator or stationary pump or something and adapt it over. Fourth option would probably be to modify like a Lincoln - style high/low circuit to work on the Hobart. I’m sorry there isn’t a direct drop-in replacement at this time that I know of.
I pulled it off like 20 min ago and took it apart. I should be able to fix it. 3 out of 4 needle bearings failed for the 2 weights on the inside, the grinding I heard was the outside part of the weights grinding into the case of it. also the pulley bearing is missing some balls. The bearings are marked Torrington b-45 for the weights.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this video, but I have to admit that I grasped only a fraction of the technical information you provided. Where did you learn all that stuff?
Pat I always greatly appreciate your kind words. I hope you and your family are doing well! I’m glad you enjoyed the video; at times I do wish I were a better producer but.. barring a general outline I never have any sort of script and maybe that’s what makes me feel like my videos are unpolished. To answer your question though, I’ve been a life-long tinkerer and technical questions & problems burn in my soul like a coal fire. I’ve always enjoyed learning exactly how machine subsystems work. I have no post secondary education except for attending trade [welding] school. So I guess it’s just some of my passion coming out!
@@Convoycrazy Frankly I like your unscripted delivery. It’s engaging, friendly and informative. And as far as being a tinkerer is concerned, I might remind you that the Wright brothers and Henry Ford were tinkerers. My wife and I are doing fine. Hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Next time you’re in Fallon stop by and see us.
I bought a g261 and can't figure out what year it was actually built. This is the serial number 12cw-31326 specs 24916 i tried doing research on it and can't find much. Any pointers?
That’s good that you have all the numbers. Best I can advise is to contact Hobart Customer Service with an information request. I actually received the wiring diagram for the machine from them, otherwise who knows if I would have been able to find it. They were very helpful and will gladly share what information they have. Hope that helps!
I got a Miller BIG 20 with the Ford Continental flat head four cylinder. Not familiar with it all. When it starts i get fuel coming out the exhaust and carburetor drips with gasoline. The gasoline fumes are too much. Someone told me you can convert it to run on propane. Any idea?
I’m not familiar with what exactly goes into a propane conversion but I’m sure it could be done depending on how involved you would want to get into it - it sure would be cool tho! I used to run a propane forklift for walmart and the thing was extremely dependable. It always started, it always ran, and it only stopped running when the tank ran dry. In regards to your carburetor, it sounds like a float problem! I’d make sure the float isn’t full of fuel and sunk in the bowl, leaving the float wide open (I had a cracked float in the W-1 I put on this machine)- and also the needle & seat to make sure they’re not damaged. I haven’t been around the continental L heads but if someone put an electrical fuel pump on it, that might be a possible over-pressure situation too. I’d definitely start with the float & needle though!
It's not a Ford engine. Continental was there own company. Had nothing to do with Ford. They stopped the industrial engines but still make aircraft engines under the teledyne name.
Welp the carb sounds like it needs some float work, probably has a hole in it and wont close the needle or the needle is shot and leaking by.. the polarity switch is the .. more important issue for the lack of better words. It’s hard to see the connections back there with the fuel tank in the way.. it’s POSSIBLE you’re just dealing with a crap wire or bad connections there… Worst case, you also may be able to get away with putting something like this on there from a Lincoln: weldingsupply.com/cgi-bin/einstein.pl?PNUM::1:UNDEF:X:S7670 Do you think the seller knows their stuff? Sometimes when the machine plays dead, it’s just the exciter needs burnished or some PM work like that that needs addressed. $600 isn’t bad for a complete machine, and if you come from the angle that “who knows if it will even weld” you may be able to get it cheaper. Good luck!
🤔 Hard to say without a video or walk around.. there should be a breather that comes up from the filler tube too… I’d say more likely from the oil bath if someone over-filled it? I’d pull all of that stuff off of there to get it running if it were me! 👍🏼 good luck! Post some vids!
I’ve seen some Hobarts done with a chain, particularly the older machines or ones with larger powerplants. The L134 / Carter WO combo, this is done in the carburetor linkage. It worked properly before I changed carburetors. Since this is not a Carter WO and instead a 1936 Carter W1, I had to make some concessions with the linkage. That’s a great idea though, I could use a sash chain on the vacuum side and bypass the solid links. Thanks for the comment 👍🏼
You can reach the support team at Hobartwelders.com/support . They provided me with the documentation they had on the GPB-261 here in this vid and a google search gave me the other service manual I have. They’ll request the spec# on the machine; I believe that’s how they organize their manuals
Hey Lloyd! Thanks for asking - The manual I have calls for a straight 30W in the governor, you’ll find a 1/8” NPT drain plug on the bottom, and it gets filled until the oil comes out of the plug on the back of the unit, facing the carburetor
One of our local stations is ethanol free. I buy all of my small engine gas there. Up in Missouri where I work you can get 91 octane or so that is ethanol free.
That’s definitely the ideal setup! As a footnote, since I posted this video they’ve opened a Rutter’s in the area with ethanol-free gasoline. So that’s probably ideally what I’ll use moving forward.
Thanks for your information, working on one. My grandfather ran one in his welding career. Have that machine too.
Great video. Your advice on taking all the brush covers off and checking the brushes and generator housing BEFORE you try to run the engine is spot on. I got a 1966 SA200 Redface out of a farmer’s barn several years ago and I got a 3 gallon bucket of debris out of the generator. The gas was pure varnish so I cleaned the fuel tank and carburetor, I had it running and welding in 24 hours. Your right about parts availability in SA200 machines is amazing. I still like the Art Deco styling on the old Hobarts. Great machines!
A redface barn find! *drool* That’s awesome that you had such a quick turnaround getting that machine running. Thank you for taking the time to reply and thanks for the kind words! I agree with the styling, they do have a very pleasing look to them.
I have always wanted a Hobart styled like yours with the 6 cyl Chrysler flat head. They sound so sweet under load.
They definitely do! They seem pretty rare too, I’ve only seen a handful of them on the internet and never one in person. They gotta be out there though!
BW Parts in Phoenix Arizona has everything you need for that SA-200 and they're reasonably priced ask for Chris
I just had a budy of mine give me one of these he found from a guy that owed him some money. Just started working on it to get her running. It will run with a cap of gas dumped in. Thinking the pump might be bad. It's only been sitting for about thirty years he said, lol . Couldn't believe how good it fired up. Gonna be a nice little project I think. You made my day, thanks for sharing
I’m very happy to hear you enjoyed the video, and they’re worth saving! Especially at free ninety-nine! They’re a nice machine. Parts for the Go-Devil are extremely plentiful, I feel like more so even than the Continental 163 on account of how many zillions of flatties there are - heck they’re even casting new blocks! Yeah I hope you get it running decent & welding! 🍻
ive been looking for information like this on a bobcat 250 with a Kohler for 9months good information 👍
Thanks Nathan, I appreciate that - woulda thought there’d be plenty out there for the Millers .. hope you find what you’re looking for! 👨🏼🏭
@Nathanjumpers Keane I have manuals for the miller I 250nt, I can send them per email to you if you'd like
@@johnhaynes9133 thanks but ive got the 250 k with the kolher it's about 3 or 4 years old now, but the idles the only issue there is with them other than that there been good in aus
Super rad dude. I have one of these in my parents yard for like 35 years. I decided iam going to clean it up. Maybe just have it for yard art but we will see. I have an older kohler one sitting out back as well.
I’m glad you enjoyed the vid! And that’s awesome man! I hope you get around to cleaning it up a bit. They are fun to play with, and when they’re working right the arc is nice and stable. I’ve never seen a Kohler powered job, is that like a weld’n-power? I’d imagine it’s much more portable than these big honkin’ things haha
Great video- I had to figure this all out the hard way 4 years ago, someone gave me one of these that had motor issues, and in looking for parts I got a deal ($300) on a slightly newer running Hobart with the willys motor. The reed switch and idler control did not work. Someone had replaced the hobart governor with a pierce. I replaced the vacuum idle down mechanism with an SA200/250 board and SA200 idle down solenoid, and added a high/low idle toggle. I still have one kink left to work out in that linkage but it works almost perfectly. I also tried the new replacement carb but had a lot of fuel issues so I bought a new throttle body for the W-O and it runs really nicely. The fuel shutoff is key. I could not run the outlets off the SA200 board, so I just have to manually switch the toggle to high idle for aux power. I'll figure out how to make that work properly eventually- I think the hobart has a larger exciter than the SA200? Make sure you use DC compatible power tools with this! I have a dewalt and metabo grinder that are dc compatible. This was an expensive experiment, but it worked out, so I thought I would share for anyone else who wants to make one of these machines idle down without having to scavenge parts.
Hey Dave, I really appreciate you taking the time to write that out. Very valuable information! Thanks for watching ✌🏼
@@Convoycrazy No problem-keep up the great work. Forgot to mention that I replaced the hobart reed switch with an SA200 one as well.
I realize I’m late to the party, but thanks for the video! I have an early 1950’s model Hobart and I’m debating on how far I really want to go to get it operational again.
That's funny I put a little Volvo muffler on mine and mounted it exactly the same as yours probably going to put it outside where it's supposed to be down the road but I just needed to quiet it down to give the neighbors a break it was pretty loud with a straight pipe.
Thanks for watching, if you take a look at the instruction manual for the hobart mainliner the factory muffler is a willys unit that dumps out the hole in the corner like mine. This is the factory setup. I've seen a few here and there with stacks - neat but not original
That's cool you have a SA-200 they're awfully desirable machines crazy what they still go for especially a nice redface. I bet if you took the two and set them side by side 9/10 people would buy the lincoln first.
Keep burnin them rods brother have a good one 👍🏼
To eliminate the problem with fuel, switch to non ethanal Premium fuel, or at least a high quality Premium fuel. Have lots of small engines that sit and no issues.
Thanks for the comment HVAC Bear! Yeah straight gasoline is definitely the ideal setup. It’s difficult to find around here, but given the option I’d definitely run non-ethanol in every vintage and small engine I have! 👍🏼
Stumbled on yer vidyah. Good old portable. Miller bought out Hobart a few yrs ago and parts are hard to get for any older Hobart machinery. I had a 1937 Hobart build yer own with a Wisconsin v4 engine. She was a good unit. I was a welder fabricator for 30 years and used alot of different machines. Always liked the old stuff. Al B, from Ohio.
I was lucky in that Miller/Hobart did have the wiring diagram on file for this machine, which helped tremendously 👍🏼 thanks for the comment and view! I appreciate it
Awesome video. I have one of these welds great and has the Chrysler slant six 225. How do you adjust and clean the main amperage dials? Mine is the G-400.
Thank you, I really appreciate it. The main selector has to be [well, should be] taken out from the rear and can be further disassembled - I did it on this welder while the fuel tank assembly was completely out. The selector is basically a series of knife switches, it’s pretty straight forward when you get it broken apart. When I reassembled it, I coated everything with dielectric grease so it would move smoothly and keep the corrosion at bay. The rheostat, fine current adjustment I just used some rubbing alcohol and a brillo pad to clean the sweep, same thing, while the tank is out. If it only welds on 0 or 100 on any position, likely the rheostat is kaputt [I think]
You should be able to drop any small engine in there if parts are no longer available. Willys engines have been used in forklifts for many years under the Transcontinental name and parts were readily available. If worse comes to worse you can always use a 3 phase electric motor to turn your generator.
You may have misunderstood me, so let me clarify. The L-134 parts aren’t the problem, Rich, as they’re plentiful. I did a series on re-ringing the engine in this particular welder with new parts. The problem for this machine are the Hobart proprietary parts which are obsolete and no longer in production. The range switch, the polarity switch, the vacuum idle control solenoid, the belt driven governor, these are all Hobart parts and if a person can’t figure something out to make their machine function, the buyer just bought a yard ornament.
I did want to mention that it defeats the purpose of having an engine driven welder that is run by a 3ph. motor that… you’d have to plug in. These machines are meant to be taken to a welding job, they’re mobile welding machines. If a person has 3ph. service, it’d be better to get a 3ph. shop machine
Thanks for commenting and watching, I appreciate you
Looks like it would not be to hard to adapt a electric idler like the one's used on SA 200.
Got mine for SA200 at Welders Parts Warehouse in Pinehurst TX.
Use premium gas or get non ethanol gas.
Looking back, if I ever have an idle control failure, I’ll probably have that original solenoid rewound.. I’m just glad I didn’t have to get into some custom fabrication work.
I agree, non-ethanol is ideal, but not available everywhere. I have to drive 20 miles for it here. The W1 and custom fuel pump is working very well. Thanks for the comment and info about lincoln parts 👍🏼
@@Convoycrazy live close to Corpus Christi TX and ethanol free fuel is available because of all the fishermen that use it in there boats.
@@Convoycrazy I'm glad you mentioned the fuel I didn't even think about that. In mine I usually run it out of gas anyway because I use a portable fuel tank for a boat with it because I don't want to be buying gas for my neighborhood hooligans. I've got a SA-200 as well I'm considering restoring because of the parts availability, and what they sell for is crazy.
I picked up a 1947 I guess that's what the guy said it was it doesn't have a starter I get the crank starter and I just thought I'd look into it a little bit and see what happens turns over so I figure I wouldn't take too much to get it to start the biggest thing is where to get parts you know if it doesn't
Hobart makes no parts for the old machines so your best bet for the gennie side is going to be an electric motor rebuilding shop, any place that does large motors / generators. You can also make your own parts in regards to the vacuum switch / idle down mechanism.
On the engine side, if it has a Willys flathead under the hood, you’re good to go, those parts are readily available from many vintage jeep part suppliers. Rebuild kits are going for around $800 these days but when I rebuilt mine all it needed really was re-ringed.. everything else was in very good shape I would suspect because in a stationary engine you don’t have the clutch pressure pushing against the crank all the time. Good luck, hope it’s all there and works well! Nothing beats an old copper gennie 👍🏼
Alright, I’m a flat fender guy, I just bought a welder just about like what you have and it’s pretty nice looking setup I’ve already got the engine running great but I just can’t pull the engine yet, if it welds might keep it if not it will definitely get pulled . I’ve checked all 8 brushes and cleaned the armature and still no spark at my leads what do you think scrap the welder or keep trying. I don’t know much about these welders.
It’s a tough decision to make! There are a couple things to check out. First I’d lock it out at the vacuum module or take that link off so it will come up on the governor. Take a VOM and check for 110-120 DC at the receptacle. That will tell you if the exciter is polarized and functioning. If no, then you might have to inspect / burnish the exciter armature under there. If that doesn’t work, you may end up pulling the fuel tank and getting behind the control panel and start checking / servicing the wiring back there. Feel free to comment here or contact me directly on FB if you need. Good luck!
My Dad has the same welder and I need to move it.
Where do you get any kind of parts for the welder ?? TY,,,,, I have one like it but its a mainliner 500 amp same engine 1968,,,, TY,,,
Hey, thanks for the comment, unfortunately as far as I know, there are no replacement parts for these machines. So you can either find a machine for parts, make your own parts, or have the parts made at a shop that does generators and large motor repairs, or a welding machine repair shop. I wish parts were like the lincoln SA’s... I suppose someone could adapt those parts over to the Hobart stuff if they really knew their stuff.
Hell ill throw one ya you got a g310 its ac and dc 2 for one but man its a breed all its own on the generator side of things thanks for the video and the comments i will be saving this and maybe download but get this mine doesnt have and exciter
Hey thanks for watching - I'd heard of those AC/DC Hobarts? Probably built a little later? 70's? 80's? Yeah so I contacted Hobart [Miller] directly, they asked for the spec # off the data plate and gave me what they had, super helpful. I've never seen a machine like yours in real life - bet it's pretty useful, is that like a 10kW power generator too? It's possible they rectify the AC to make DC - I don't think you'd need an exciter then since alternators are self exciting
Awesome video dude 👍
Thanks man, I appreciate that! 👊🏼
Hi I have Hobart similar my is running to my question is I have the lead or wire for welding but don’t weld I have question if you have any idea how setup to weld or I have to push any switch thanks
Hi, if you have two cables, one attached to POS and one attached to NEG, the POS normally has the electrode holder, or “stinger”. When you face the control panel, you will see the polarity switch on the far left side. You will normally weld DCEP or electrode POS, this is “reverse” polarity on the switch. For a 1/8” 7018 I would try position 2 on the large wheel, and about 80-90% on the fine current adjustment which is upper left on the control panel. I would start with these settings to test the welding function, it will get you started. Never change any settings on the machine while it is welding.
With the machine running, if you strike an arc with the stinger, there will be a small spark where you are welding and the engine should rev up by itself. If this does not happen, you have some diagnostic work to do. These machines, and engine driven welders in general, can not weld for quite a few reasons.
I would start a no-welding situation diagnosis on a Hobart by going back to the vacuum idle control on the engine and forcing it up to weld speed with your hand, and then flipping the lever down to hold it at welding speed. It’ll be revving pretty high at this point. The large welding generator should be making the whining sound you can hear in the video. Then go back to your welding stinger and try to weld. If it welds, your issue is the vacuum control. These units are a bit touchy, and can be problematic.
If it still does not weld at this point, try turning the fine current control on the left side of the control panel, all the way up to 100%. This bypasses the rheostat. If it welds when the fine current is at 100, but not any other position, your problem is the fine current rheostat. They can be cleaned, but the fuel tank will need to come out.
If it doesn’t weld no matter where you put the fine current control, I would continue the diagnostic process and take a multimeter while the engine is at welding speed, and set the meter to measure DC VOLTS. At welding speed, you should have around 110-120VDC in the accessory plugs on the right side of the control panel, where you plug a grinder in. If you do not have 110-120VDC, the exciter is malfunctioning and the exciter armature may need cleaned, or some wiring is bad. The exciter is in in the center of the large welding generator and there is a sheet metal band covering it with two bolts, or should be if your hobart is complete. Never stick anything metal, like a screwdriver, into the exciter to clean it for any reason whatsoever. Hobart recommends a wooden stick with a piece of canvas attached to it to burnish the armature, as you may see in one of my hobart videos, I can’t remember if it’s this one or not.
Once you clean the exciter OR if you already HAVE 110-120VDC already at your accessory plug and it still wont weld, you may need to burnish the main welding armature. This is under the cover on the end of the machine with the control panel. It has four double sets of large brushes. These should be inspected and the armature burnished. Again, never stick anything metal ever into an armature of any kind ever!
If you go through this diagnostic work and the machine still won’t weld, you have a major wiring or buss bar issue, or an issue with the range selector. You can try different positions on the range selector (1-5) to narrow it down further to this item or not.
If none of this diagnostic procedure has any effect whatsoever, and the welding cables are in good shape and everything’s connected correctly, you have a problem that is far beyond my knowledge. There ARE places around that repair welding machines if it just refuses to weld. These machines are worth keeping - the copper generator, these are made of aluminum now which many say doesn’t weld as nicely as cooper, specifically, they really dont make machines like this anymore. Good luck, hope this helps
Thanks I check like you said I have another problem the fine adjustment is stuck I try to clean but don’t work I see just little bit spark when I weld just little I have another question you think can I convert to 220 volts because I have old Lincoln I want to use with this generator thanks
I personally would pull the gas tank to get at the back of the fine current knob, and burnish the exciter & main generator. I do not know anything about converting to 220V
@@otoniel780 it only puts out 110DC not AC at the outlets
I have a Hobart T-295
Hi Henry, thanks for stopping by. Is that a military generator? I don't think I've ever seen that model # but it sounds awfully familiar
How much does the old Hobart weigh ?
I remember it being somewhere around 1190-1300, somewhere in that range. Has a lot of copper in it, ha ha..
a lot.
I am 55 yrs old one of the first welding machines I learned to weld with, after rebuilding the inline six Chrysler engine, was a 1950s or early 60s military machine my dad got government surplus, so what most of you think as strange them machines are just a walk in the park, to me they are very easy to work on and it is all DC generator it make DC, as for today's machines they are all AC gens with copasitors and rectifier bridges it is not the same as a straight up DC machine
Thanks for the comment - and I agree .. NOTHING welds like an old copper-wound DC generator firing on all the cylinders! If I recall, they used the chrysler 6 cyl in the big boys .. that must have been quite the machine!
Yes it would burn 7024 1/4 inch rod the engine hardly worked to burn that size rod
Do you know where I can get a governor replacement? Mines making loud noises and the oil has metal shavings in also leaks from the pulley.
There are no replacements, AFAIK. You have a few options, one is to disassemble and rebuild that governor. There are no rebuild kits so you’ll have to weld/machine/source seals and parts yourself and modify them to work. Second is to find another hobart for parts or find a parts machine or find a hobart governor on ebay. Third option is to find another belt-driven governor from a different type of machine whether it be a power generator or stationary pump or something and adapt it over. Fourth option would probably be to modify like a Lincoln - style high/low circuit to work on the Hobart. I’m sorry there isn’t a direct drop-in replacement at this time that I know of.
Do you know the serial numbers or model numbers for it is mines not read able , i m pretty sure I found one but it's $385
I’ll check and post the number tomorrow, I do know it’s a Hobart brand part
Tag says “Hobart Brothers, Model # 5CW-2415C”
I pulled it off like 20 min ago and took it apart. I should be able to fix it. 3 out of 4 needle bearings failed for the 2 weights on the inside, the grinding I heard was the outside part of the weights grinding into the case of it. also the pulley bearing is missing some balls. The bearings are marked Torrington b-45 for the weights.
Any idea the weight on that welder?
It's in the owners manual I believe it's around 1,100
@@Convoycrazy thanks, I appreciate it.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching this video, but I have to admit that I grasped only a fraction of the technical information you provided. Where did you learn all that stuff?
Pat I always greatly appreciate your kind words. I hope you and your family are doing well! I’m glad you enjoyed the video; at times I do wish I were a better producer but.. barring a general outline I never have any sort of script and maybe that’s what makes me feel like my videos are unpolished. To answer your question though, I’ve been a life-long tinkerer and technical questions & problems burn in my soul like a coal fire. I’ve always enjoyed learning exactly how machine subsystems work. I have no post secondary education except for attending trade [welding] school. So I guess it’s just some of my passion coming out!
@@Convoycrazy Frankly I like your unscripted delivery. It’s engaging, friendly and informative. And as far as being a tinkerer is concerned, I might remind you that the Wright brothers and Henry Ford were tinkerers. My wife and I are doing fine. Hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Next time you’re in Fallon stop by and see us.
I’d love nothing more! Merry Christmas 🎄
I bought a g261 and can't figure out what year it was actually built. This is the serial number 12cw-31326 specs 24916 i tried doing research on it and can't find much. Any pointers?
That’s good that you have all the numbers. Best I can advise is to contact Hobart Customer Service with an information request. I actually received the wiring diagram for the machine from them, otherwise who knows if I would have been able to find it. They were very helpful and will gladly share what information they have. Hope that helps!
I got a Miller BIG 20 with the Ford Continental flat head four cylinder. Not familiar with it all. When it starts i get fuel coming out the exhaust and carburetor drips with gasoline. The gasoline fumes are too much. Someone told me you can convert it to run on propane. Any idea?
I’m not familiar with what exactly goes into a propane conversion but I’m sure it could be done depending on how involved you would want to get into it - it sure would be cool tho! I used to run a propane forklift for walmart and the thing was extremely dependable. It always started, it always ran, and it only stopped running when the tank ran dry.
In regards to your carburetor, it sounds like a float problem! I’d make sure the float isn’t full of fuel and sunk in the bowl, leaving the float wide open (I had a cracked float in the W-1 I put on this machine)- and also the needle & seat to make sure they’re not damaged. I haven’t been around the continental L heads but if someone put an electrical fuel pump on it, that might be a possible over-pressure situation too. I’d definitely start with the float & needle though!
Sounds like the float is stuck in the carb.
It's not a Ford engine. Continental was there own company. Had nothing to do with Ford. They stopped the industrial engines but still make aircraft engines under the teledyne name.
I see one posted for $600, he says it runs needs carb rebuild ,puking fuel and needs switch for generator to weld . You think it's worth it?
Welp the carb sounds like it needs some float work, probably has a hole in it and wont close the needle or the needle is shot and leaking by.. the polarity switch is the .. more important issue for the lack of better words. It’s hard to see the connections back there with the fuel tank in the way.. it’s POSSIBLE you’re just dealing with a crap wire or bad connections there…
Worst case, you also may be able to get away with putting something like this on there from a Lincoln:
weldingsupply.com/cgi-bin/einstein.pl?PNUM::1:UNDEF:X:S7670
Do you think the seller knows their stuff? Sometimes when the machine plays dead, it’s just the exciter needs burnished or some PM work like that that needs addressed.
$600 isn’t bad for a complete machine, and if you come from the angle that “who knows if it will even weld” you may be able to get it cheaper. Good luck!
@@Convoycrazy thanks for the help, I picked it up for 500
@@Convoycrazy do you know why there is oil mixing with the fuel that is dumping out into the carb? From the air cleaner oil bath?
🤔 Hard to say without a video or walk around.. there should be a breather that comes up from the filler tube too… I’d say more likely from the oil bath if someone over-filled it? I’d pull all of that stuff off of there to get it running if it were me! 👍🏼 good luck! Post some vids!
You got the wrong linkage on the machine! Governor to carburetor has like one inch measuring play. Carburetor to vacuum idiol is chain.
I’ve seen some Hobarts done with a chain, particularly the older machines or ones with larger powerplants. The L134 / Carter WO combo, this is done in the carburetor linkage. It worked properly before I changed carburetors. Since this is not a Carter WO and instead a 1936 Carter W1, I had to make some concessions with the linkage. That’s a great idea though, I could use a sash chain on the vacuum side and bypass the solid links. Thanks for the comment 👍🏼
Where did you order the manual? Millerweldsales?
You can reach the support team at Hobartwelders.com/support . They provided me with the documentation they had on the GPB-261 here in this vid and a google search gave me the other service manual I have. They’ll request the spec# on the machine; I believe that’s how they organize their manuals
What kind of oil do you use for the governor
Hey Lloyd! Thanks for asking - The manual I have calls for a straight 30W in the governor, you’ll find a 1/8” NPT drain plug on the bottom, and it gets filled until the oil comes out of the plug on the back of the unit, facing the carburetor
Nice
Thanks for watching Steven! 👍🏼
Poderosa
One of our local stations is ethanol free. I buy all of my small engine gas there. Up in Missouri where I work you can get 91 octane or so that is ethanol free.
That’s definitely the ideal setup! As a footnote, since I posted this video they’ve opened a Rutter’s in the area with ethanol-free gasoline. So that’s probably ideally what I’ll use moving forward.
That thing is quiet
can you please message me I have an old hobart I would like to show you and maybe you can help me out
You can find me on FB, send me a message there 👍🏼