Esab Welding & Cutting Products, established 111 years ago and including several brands, has unveiled a range of welding products in recent weeks to enhance the welding experience and provide solutions.

One of its brands, Tweco, launched the ArcMaster 401MST (MIG-Stick-Lift TIG) and ArcMaster 401S (Stick-Lift TIG) power sources, which the company says offer best-of-class performance in on-site and portable welding applications.

These units have a 10- to 400-amp output and provide superior welding performance, especially with cellulose 6010 electrodes and MIG and flux cored wires (401MST). A rugged case protects the units from a 3 ft drop and take up 50 per cent less space than welders with similar outputs; the units measure 16.5” x 8.3” x 17.7”. The ArcMaster 401MST weighs 54 lbs and the ArcMaster 401S weighs 46 lbs., both about 40 per cent less than competitive welders.

Automatic primary voltage selection with no mechanical changeover enables the unit to operate off single- or three-phase power, 208-230/400/460 VAC. Combined with 20 per cent better energy efficiency and strong performance when connected to generator power, the ArcMaster 401MST and 401S are ideally suited for use in the following markets: industrial fabrication, power generation, pipe fabrication, shipboard installation and repair, petrochemical fabrication, maintenance and repair and rental.

In addition to adjustable Stick Arc Force and Hot Start control, both units feature dedicated modes to optimise performance for specific processes, including 6010 electrodes, 7018 electrodes and air carbon-arc gouging with carbons up to 3/16”. The ArcMaster 401MST also features optimised modes for using 100 per cent CO2 or mixed shielding gases, as well as adjustable inductance control to increase arc stability and reduce spatter. A “Job Save & Load” function allows operators to store and recall up to 10 sets of optimised welding parameters. The ArcMaster 401MST works with all common wire feeder platforms.

An Esab demonstration of TIG welding

 ArcMaster welders control the welding process using six micro-controllers that monitor current and voltage at 1.5 million times per second. Further, they use leading-edge Micor – MIcrocontroller COntrolled Resonant – inverter technology, which defines the new standard for lightweight, portable welding equipment designed for extreme use. Micor technology provides numerous benefits to end-users:

• Enables producing more output from a smaller power source;

• Delivers rapid On/Off power control (up to 200 kHz), which provides superior control over arc characteristics;

• Stores voltage and power so that the unit can provide a fast dynamic response to changing arc conditions;

• Allows the use of longer primary power cables (up to 200 yards) while maintaining a consistent, smooth and stable arc; and

• Uses energy more efficiently and provides a nearly perfect power factor, which in turn can lower utility bills and offer the potential for utility rebates.

HIGH-PERFORMANCE WIRES

Another Esab brand, Stoody, has added a new stainless steel joining product, Brilliant 308L T-1 Cryo. The newly released gas shielded flux cored wire has been specifically designed for all position welding in cryogenic applications with either 100 CO2 or Argon/CO2 gas mixtures.

Joining the Stoody family of all position stainless steel wire electrodes, Cryo can be used to join AISI 304 in extreme cold applications such as construction and maintenance of liquid hydrogen and LNG transfer lines and storage vessels. Initially available in a 0.045” (1.2 mm) diameter wire, Cryo exhibits a spray like arc transfer, easy slag removal and can be welded within a wide range of parameters.

Esab announced the introduction of two new wires to its Dual Shield II Series of flux-cored welding consumables. The Dual Shield line offers the broadest variety of mild steel and low-alloy flux-cored wires available in the world. Dual Shield wires offer excellent welding performance in all positions with high deposition rates and efficiencies, dramatically reducing weld time and increasing productivity. Dual Shield wires are also easy to use and produce a weld bead with almost no ripple and very little spatter.

Dual Shield II 4130 SR is an all-position flux-cored wire for welding low-alloy, high-strength steels such as 4130. This welding wire is ideal for offshore oil and gas topsides and platforms requiring high corrosion resistance with stress-relieved high strength and low temperature impact toughness properties. Esab’s new Dual Shield II consumable offers mechanical properties in the as-welded and after PWHT conditions and meets ANSI/NACE MR0175/ISO 15156-1.

Esab’s Tweco ArcMaster 401MST

Dual Shield II 70-Ni1 H4 is designed for use under 75 per cent Ar/25 per cent CO2 gas protection. This flux-cored wire provides excellent low temperature toughness in both as-welded or stress-relieved conditions. Dual Shield II 70-Ni1 H4 produces low diffusible hydrogen levels – lower than 4ml/100g – over a wide range of welding parameters. The smooth arc, fast-freezing slag, low spatter levels and easy slag release make this an ideal wire for the welding of steel plate in all positions. With nickel content below 1 per cent and Brinell hardness less than 200, this welding wire meets the requirements for applications where resistance to stress-corrosion cracking is required. It is best suited for the fabrication of storage vessels that need to be stress relieved to minimise the occurrence of stress corrosion cracking (SCC).

The company has also launched the Coreweld C6 LF, a new low-manganese emission, high-efficiency metal-cored welding wire developed in response to new EPA regulations and guidelines from ACGIH (American Conference of Government Industrial Hygienists) for manganese exposure limits. Coreweld C6 LF has more than 50 per cent lower manganese content and is designed to provide excellent operating qualities while significantly reducing the manganese levels in the welding fumes when compared to standard metal-cored electrodes of the same classification.

Coreweld C6 LF’s low diffusible hydrogen level helps avoid hydrogen-induced cold cracking in the welding of high strength steel.

Combining the Coreweld C6 LF low manganese formula with argon-based shielding gases and GMAW power supplies allows users to aggressively reduce the manganese concentration in welding fume while achieving the proven performance expected from ESAB.

Coreweld C6 LF is well suited for both hand held and robotic or automated applications in the automotive industry, as well as for civil construction, mobile and heavy equipment, shipbuilding, rail car manufacturing, and general fabrication.

Founded in 1913, Esab joined Victor to bring together the leading brands of Esab, Victor, Tweco, Stoody and Arcair for providing the broadest range of welding and cutting solutions from one company – Esab.

Since 1921, Stoody has led the advancement of tailored hardfacing and high-alloy joining solutions. Tweco is the leader in MIG welding guns, consumable parts for both semi-automatic and precision robotic welding applications, and in manual welding products. Arcair, the brand well known for carbon arc gouging, also provides products for a wide-range of industry uses, including exothermic cutting and underwater welding products.