Hello,
These machines seem to be roughly on-par price wise and feature-wise. Which is better?
Regards,
Viktor
Hello,
These machines seem to be roughly on-par price wise and feature-wise. Which is better?
Regards,
Viktor
The HTP is made by Stel in Europe so it has a few differences, it is more similar to the Lincoln Invertec 205 , which is made by Selco in Europe.
The one thing the Dynasty does that none of the others do is that it can use any input power from 100 volts to 500 volts single or 3 phase,
50 or 60 hz.For location work, that is a deal breaker, and puts the Dynasty in a league of it's own.
On the flipside the European inverters seem to have a slightly higher duty cycle.
My favorite in the group of small AC/DC inverter TIGs is still the Thermal Arc Prowave 185TSW. You can get it from Indiana Welding Supply off of eBay for $1750 complete with torch, flow guage, ground cable, and foot pedal. That beats Lincoln, Miller, and HTP by about $1000. All you lose is 15 amps on the high end.
The Thermal Arc is made in Japan by Sanrex.
Comparing the data sheets for the Dynasty 200 and the Prowave 185TSW, the Dynasty has a lower current limit of 1 amp versus 5 amps DC & 10 amps AC for the Prowave. Also, the maximum open-circuit voltage of the Dynasty is 80 versus 64 volts for the Prowave.
Do these differences in practice give a noticeable advantage to the Dynasty for work on very thin materials as well as for stick welding?
Thanks,
Andy S.
Yes the lower amperage limit of the Dynasty does make it better for really thin stuff, but 10 amps is still pretty low. I weld pop cans at 7 amps for comparison.
The higher open circuit voltage makes the Dynasty a little better for difficult stick electrodes like 7018 and 6010.
6010 has especially been a problem for most inverters, because it needs a very high open circuit voltage to work well. Miller had gone out of their way to make sure that their machines handle 6010 and 7018 with ease.But $1000 can buy a lot of other useful things.
Ernie. I would like to know more about the lower amperage's possibility. Between 1 amps -10amps, how can I choose metal thickness numbers, which are like .010 .020 .030 .040 .050 in mildsteel, brass and stainless steel. And what is going to happen if I try to weld with sterling silver (metal compositions are silver 92.5% plus 7.5%copper) Also which filler metal should be? (Same as parents metal?)
I still can not decide between two machines, which are Thermal Arc and Dynasty. I questioned about light-weighted machine once before and You recommend Thermal Arc Prowave 185TSW. I personally prefer Dynasty's input voltage flexibility because it works with
100 to 500 voltages. (But this is more expensive)I am silver and gold smith who is making jewelry. I am also interested in making small house hold goods, such as lamps, tables and etc in different kind of metals.
Would you please give me your suggestion? Best regards,
Yoshi
Some further questions that come to mind:
Although the two machines listed above are close in capability and welding thin materials such as pop cans can be done with either machine, would the lower current limit of the Dynasty make it easier or more convenient to weld thin items as compared to the Prowave?
I understand that some of the electronics inside the Dynasty are potted in some sort of plastic. Is the Prowave assembled in the same way?
Are pop cans similar to soda cans? :-)
Thanks again,
Andy S.
Comparing the .pdf data sheets for the Dynasty 200 and the Prowave
185TSW, the Dynasty has a low limit of 1 amp vs 5 amps for the Prowave. Also, the Dynasty has a maximum open-circuit voltage of 80 vs. 64 volts for the Prowave.Do these differences give a noticeable advantage in practice to the Dynasty for very thin materials and stick welding?
Thanks,
Andy S.
Honestly the Dynasty is a better machine, but it is up to you to decide if it is $1000 better. The 10 amp lower limit is only in AC mode. You should be welding silver and gold in DC mode where the Thermal Arc's low end is 5 amps.
5 amps is very low. Honestly it is near impossible to weld by hand below 5 amps. At that point you are into magnifying glasses just to see what you are doing, and sharpening a 0.020" tungsten to a point with a very fine diamond wheel.In my opinion, if you have the money and it won't break you, buy the Dynasty, you will love the machine, but if money is a bit tight, then you really can't lose with the Thermal Arc.
The only place where I really advocate the Dynasty above all others is if you need multiple input voltages, or have to run off of a generator.
Yes, but in DC mode there is only a difference of 4 amps. It is rare that that would be a problem, since you could easily reduce the output by simply adjusting the pulser to a short sharp spike pulse witha very low background amperage,a dna high cycle rate.
The same thing applies to the AC output.
All inverters are made with circuit boards sealed in plastic or silicone rubber. This is to protect the electronics from dust and grit. Also inverters run at an internal frequency of around 2,000 hz, which requires much greater electrical insulation.
Pop cans are soda cans And they are already near impossible to weld compared to even 10 years ago. The can makers keep figuring out how to make them thinner and thinner. It keeps raising the bar on welding them.
Ernie. I would like to know more about the lower amperage's possibility. Between 1 amps -10amps, how can I choose metal thickness numbers, which are like .010 .020 .030 .040 .050 in mildsteel, brass and stainless steel. And what is going to happen if I try to weld with sterling silver (metal compositions are silver 92.5% plus 7.5%copper) Also which filler metal should be? (Same as parents metal?)
I still can not decide between two machines, which are Thermal Arc and Dynasty. I questioned about light-weighted machine once before and You recommend Thermal Arc Prowave 185TSW. I personally prefer Dynasty's input voltage flexibility because it works with
100 to 500 voltages. (But this is more expensive)I am silver and gold smith who is making jewelry. I am also interested in making small house hold goods, such as lamps, tables and etc in different kind of metals.
Would you please give me your suggestion? Best regards,
Yoshi
Steel and aluminum are around 1 amp per 0.001" of thickness. Copper is twice that. Bronze is half of that.
Silver is very close to copper. Gold as well should be close due to conductivity, but conductivy only affects larger pieces. If you are talking about jewelry work, then once the whole piece warms up it will be a moot point, and the melting temp of the metal would determine your final amperage.
As close a match as possible.
Eventually I'll try my hand at welding pop cans. That does sound like a challenge.
Do you know if the Pro Wave has a fan that runs continuously or does it have a thermostatically controlled fan like the Dynasty?
Andy S.
The Pro Wave (at least the 185) fan comes on strong for 30 seconds at powerup, then ramps way down until it is needed. The low speed isn't particularly loud or distracting. When it ramps up it is louder, but it doesn't kick on unless you're welding thicker material at a higher duty cycle. I mostly do stuff under 3/16" and it stays on the low speed.
JLD
Sounds a lot like my Maxstar 200DX.
Ernie, Thank you for your advice. It helped me a lot for making decision!
Yoshi
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