Thread: Ancient 130Amp MMArc welder - Silovac brand

G day & Welcome to the mob

Given that you are happy that it is electrically safe ,it should last you out, if you paint it it or not.

Check the terminal tabs are not corroded or the wire in them not loose and its a goer.
If the wire cable into the tabs is loose or corroded you can buy the tabs at a dedicated welders shop for very little out lay.

May be just wire brush them on the outside and the connection lugs.

I seen these types of machine go under in the floods and all they need is a hose out and dry . Try that with an inverter!
It will be 50 times better than any stick welder you can get from Bummings.

I did a quick google and found that Silovac made a wide range of electrical goods ,including floor polishers,vacuum cleaners, milkshake blenders and god knows what else, now including welders.If its copper its the good stuff.The possbile damage it could have suffered would be if it was dead shorted and the insulation has broken down between the transformer shims.It it is welding ok ,it seems unlikely.

I would estimate in was made in the 60.s or 70,s
Portability ? Well you know you first welding project,doncha.

A frame with an long upright handle for leverage (which you can wind your leads around) and maybe a hook for helmet & gloves, a pocket for the electrodes and chipping hammer and brush and some wheels.Get steel cantered ones with a bearing.,The plastic crap ones won't last.

Maybe, end us a piccy when you finish.It will make a change from all these other blokes restoring lathes

Shout yourself an electronic helmet with the $ you saved.

Cheers

Grahame

They just don't make them like they used to

Sand back the paint, slap a coat of kill rust on and clean up the leads and electrical contacts and you will have a arc welder that will work until you die. If you want pop off the cover and check out the insides, any burn marks or obvious heat damage and chances are your better off pulling the transformer apart for the copper. Its rare for big copper based welders to be damaged as by design they have high duty cycles.

Thanks gents for the rapid and definitive replies!!

Im looking forward to tidying up the machine and I like Graeme's suggestion of adding wheels, handle to get it a bit more portable as a first project.

Will post some photos as I tidy it up.

Seeing that one brought back memories.

I had one of these up until 1999 and sold it in a garage auction, it weighed a ton to lift, but worked great. It had been my fathers beforehand, and i remember him getting it second hand about 30 odd years beforehand.
I mounted mine on a two wheel trolley for mobility.

Hi Grahame and all
Have taken your advice and used this resurrected welder to build a trolley ( for my training) and make this lump a bit portable. Its been a great learning project and as its been 25 yrs since I welded (and then it was MIG) - it was a challenge. I have been gradually getting better thanks to "having a go" and this forum (Grahame's) hints which are really very good. Easy to lay a bead on a flat steel harder when you start to get into real joins & fillets & different thickness materials.

The welder seems pretty unstoppable it just seems to quietly hum along no matter what you do. The earth clamp was atrocious so i replaced the entire lug and clamp. Im probably mad wasting time on such an old peice of machinery but it seems to work rather well

My biggest problem is getting decent penetration but I am improving slowly. The shops must love us - buy lots of gear to put metal on, then lots of grinding wheels to get it off again!!

Of course I could have bought a trolley at Bunnings but wheres the learning in that!! It looks like a bit of a dogs breakfast but I was determined to make it out of scrap -mainly old angle from a bed- had to buy the wheel and two rods. Paint is the biggest cost.

I had hells own problems bending rod though - I cant seem to get it hot enough so resorted to welding a bead on it till it was red hot then bending it.

Next step is to paint it all up and add a switch and new mains cord to the welder. Hopefully the next post will be a completed job!

Hi ,
Great stuff.Thanks for the pics.

Obviously now you are hooked, the next job is a welding bench.

Cheers
Grahame

Im probably mad wasting time on such an old peice of machinery

Nah the old stuff is great, usually heavy as hell like yours, but try buying something new thats built that good these days.

Good connections for the terminals, decent rod holder and earth clamp. Theres not much else to go wrong.