spot welder that does not blow fuses ?

[phil123456]

Hello,

I want to build my 18650 pack, so I wanted to purchase a cheap spot welder on amazon ,but some people say these blow fuses (on youtube too) :

https://www.amazon.co.uk/FlowerW-Portable-Battery-Display-Precision/dp/B07X2XJMHS/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Sunkko&qid=1585914448&sr=8-2

I have gone through this link but the links point to products that are not available anymore :

https://www.endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=68005

any advices on where to buy recent tested spot welders ?

thanks for the help

 

[spinningmagnets]

You haven't mentioned your location, but in the US...most outlets are rated for 15A at 110V AC = 1650W

Although, even in the US you can usually get an outlet-kit that pairs two of the breaker panel legs to provide 220V AC (I've actually done this to install an electric clothes dryer).

If you don't want to buy a kWeld, Malectrics, Boss, etc welder, then the best Sunkko welder is the 220V AC unit. If I was given a 110V Sunkko welder for free, I would immediately sell it for whatever I could get.

 

[speedmd]

I went through this with my inexpensive welder. I got it to build a few packs for folks needing some custom work and repairing a few tool packs I had. It paid for itself right away and then some. It's just the inrush at start up that trips the breaker. Units don't come with a soft start setup or enough filter caps to properly start on a 110 line. Switching the home owner 15a breaker that I had in the socket to a 20a time delay breaker worked (in Square D, they are listed as HM (high magnetic) type), but it is borderline on a 20a circuit with standard breaker. Upping the breaker was Not a issue with the 12 gauge wire that runs to the outlet. Clamp meter also showing very low current when welding but they do not properly read spikes. I did not see anything that would truly threaten 15a -14awg wiring. Fortunately I have a sub panel nearby if things go south and I can add a 220 circuit. Rare, I need it and it welds fine so far.

 

[phil123456]

I live in Europe (hence amazon.co.uk) , we have 220v and my main switch is 30amps but the other switches are like 16A and such

I just dont want to spend 100euros on something I could not use

 

[speedmd]

In Europe they have time delay breakers. No issue. Breakers (at least the ones I have dealt with) use magnetic, thermal or both separating methods. Some of the cheaper ones (for home use) use magnetic circuits that are just slightly above the rated current and quick to trip. The industrial grade ones use the magnetic side that is multiple times higher than the rated current and rely on the thermal separators for true shorts - overloads. Allows for most industrial motors to start without a false trip. Your breaker ratings are rated alphabetically to my knowledge.

Found this vid from the UK. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=521&v=Cq55tbLtnlg&feature=emb_logo

 

[jonyjoe303]

get a malectrics, they ship from germany. Cost about about 75 euros for the unit itself the probe cables are extra. You can run it off a 12 volt battery or even 3s lipo pack. I have the old version 2, the new malectrics version 3 has many improvements but cost the same.

I also had hesitation about buying a plugin spotwelder because of circuit breakers. Spot welding requires alot of amps, you need very good house wiring to do it. If your unsure if your house current can handle it, go with 12 volt spot welder. At first I wasn't sure if the 12 volt welder would be powerful enough, but was very impress in its performance, and have build many battery packs with it.

The maletrics is very good, will give good strong welds. As long as you use pure copper welding probe cables, you have more power then you need. They have videos on youtube showing it in action. I use a small 27ah agm battery to power it, more then enough power to do hundreds of welds. It works everytime, no worry about circuit breakers. Also it is very small easy to store when not in use. The 27ah agm battery wasn't a waste of money, I also use it to jumpstart my car when it has dead battery.

Instead of the auto weld feature or the foot pedal, I use a momentary switch on the probe. That to me is the best way and surest way to trigger it when everything is lined up perfectly. If things aren't lined up you get sparks everywhere.

 

[phil123456]

are these the one requiring a car battery ?

 

[speedmd]

you need very good house wiring to do it

Not true. All you need is a penny in the s00cket! :lol:

 

[jonyjoe303]

Yes it requires a 12 volt car battery, I use a 27ah agm battery. The new version 3.0 can also use a 3s lipo battery pack, and also on their forum it shows how to use one of those small lithium jump pack as a power source. The 12 volt spotwelders are a good alternative to the plug in models, I already had an extra 12 volt battery with me so it wasn't an extra cost for me.

Myself I tried to use a 3s li-ion pack I built using high drain sony cells, and also a 4s lifepo4 pack using the high drain A123 cells to power my version 2 spotwelder but I got weak welds. I now only use my fullriver 27ah agm, that is a very powerful battery. I use the xt90 connectors to connect the welder to the battery, the xt90 easily handles the amps. The version 2 only has 1 LED to measure power level, anywhere from 40-50 I get good welds on 0.15 nickel strip, the power level can go all the way up to 99.

I use 6 gauge pure copper welding wire as probe cables, the thicker the cables the lower power setting you can use to get good welds. If the power setting is too high, the cables will get too hot, after 10 welds you won't be able to hold them. On their website the cable they sell are 8 gauge, which is ok but I think 6 gauge would get you better results. I use 8 gauge copper clad probe cables before(not bought from them) and the cables would get too hot and they would jump around everytime I did a weld. For probe tips, I been using copper nails, they work good for me, you can buy a bag of copper nails cheap.

This is a picture of the version 3 model, it fits in the palm of your hand, they sell a case for it. I build my own case for mine. It has a better display that shows much more information.

 

[phil123456]

I like the idea but with all the stores beeing closed I'd have to order...a car battery, I can already imagine the shipping costs

I'll go for the sunko model