Multiprocess, professional and inevitable in the workshop. We are talking about the Esab Rebel EMP 205iC welding machine. AC / DC , a machine capable of MIG, TIG both in direct current and in alternating current for aluminum welding and MMA electrode.
We have personally analyzed this beautiful instrument; let's discover together the welding machine and the whole range of Esab products .
Esab Lebel welding machine: the advantages
Among the many welding machines, why should you use this one? Here are its strengths:
- it is very strong , with a weight of twenty kilos
- super portable , thanks to two handles, one in front and one behind, it also allows two people to carry it
- equipped with an external metal body and various external protection elements in the points where it is most likely to suffer impacts.
Smart MIG functionality
Rebel welding machines, as well as many other Label welding machines, have an exceptional functionality: the Smart MIG .
What does it mean? It means the machine can understand how the welder is welding . In practice, it is equipped with an internal software that is able to adapt the voltage, the welding current and the welding voltage according to how the welder's hand moves.
In case of displacement of the welding angle or due to the distance of the welding wire, these variations are compensated by a change of tension by the welding machine.
A huge advantage, therefore: if the welding arc starts to become irregular, the Smart MIG adapts the voltage and the welding arc remains absolutely constant and perfect .
Esab Lebel welding machine: the structure
Before going into the analysis of the functioning of this extraordinary tool, it is necessary to know all its parts. Let's see how it is structured:
- on the back there are the two connections for the gas , one for the TIG torch and another for the MIG torch, then argon and argon / CO2 mixture
- the compartment, where to place the coil of wire , with the roller for the metal wire. Here, when the welder is switched on, an LED also lights up which helps you to arrange the coil of wire even when you are in somewhat dark spaces.
- the 230 V power cable . The welding machine, in fact, works with 230 Volt with domestic current. It can go up to 235 A at MIG, 205 at TIG, and 180 A at electrode. To avoid reaching 3 kW, it is not recommended to use it at full capacity with domestic current, better to stay at 120 A.
What accessories are supplied with the welding machine?
- Electrode holder , the classic revolving one.
- Ground cable .
- 50 connectors , nice big.
- MIG torch .
- Set of wire guide points , with a thickness gauge and a wire guide roller.
- TIG torch with buttons, controls and also the connector for the controls, with a series of spare parts suitable for the torch. In this case there are gold electrodes that can work well on both ferrous and non-ferrous alloys.
- Electrodes with diameters of 1.6; 2,4 and 3,2 with all the corresponding spare parts.
- Gas hose with quick coupling, to be connected directly to the hose connectors.
How to set up the welding machine?
The welding machine is equipped with an instruction manual and a key, always with digital instructions. It also presents the QR code , on the machine and on the box, which scanned shows the instructions.
Our advice is to always read the instructions given by the manufacturer; in the meantime, however, let's look at the main elements together.
Using the welding machine interface
The graphical interface is very easy to use. It is not touch , to avoid using it with dirty fingers, there is, instead, a knob to access the desired section.
By accessing the interface, we find a further guide to operation and maintenance; really useful, because without having to look for the instruction booklet, you always have the information at hand when using the welding machine.
For the first few uses, pay attention to the icon with the settings roll; by selecting it you can decide the basic settings such as language, unit of measurement or other information about the welding machine software.
Selection of parameters for welding
It's time to think about your weld and set up the welder. Follow these steps:
- select the type of wire (0,6; 0,8; 1)
- choose the material (iron, aluminum or stainless steel)
- consider if you need additional settings , for example if you want to change the inductance, then an arc a little more extended, wider or narrower. You can choose whether to work with two or four strokes with the wire torch; you can set the pre and post gas; the up and down ramp; the post burn, or if you decide to let the extra wire come out when you stop welding or if you want it blocked, cut immediately on the wire guide tip; and so on.
The most important part in our opinion is knowing that you have a way to directly change the current - and therefore the wire speed - based on the thickness of the material you need to weld.
MIG / MAG settings for welding machine (manual)
Before we mentioned the great opportunity to work with the Smart MIG, now let's try to figure out what to do without.
Always start by selecting the specific settings for your work . Keep in mind that in this case, the settings you have chosen will remain valid, without adapting during welding.
Even if you are experienced, this approach may take a long time to find the right values for the parameters.
The starting point are the knobs: the one at the top is used to determine the speed of the wire , the one at the bottom to determine the voltage (Volt).
NO GAS cored wire settings
We find a special part for the management of the cored wire . The correct polarity must be used. The torch wire must be connected on the negative polarity with the output cable, while the ground cable must be connected on the positive pole - the machine also remembers this.
The parameters can already be set in memory by the Esab itself, or I use the knobs to define speed and voltage.
MMA stick welding settings
Let's move on to the electrode . Disconnect the cable you used for the wire and connect the electrode holder to the plus and the ground cable to the minus, then review these elements:
- determines the type of electrode used, for example cellulosic electrodes or all the others, such as rutile or basic
- Hot start, allows you to define the current in excess of the selected base current , to be able to have an excellent ignition
- Arc force, so how much do you want the welding arc to be supported , in case the welder's hand is not very steady, or the electrode is very difficult to weld
- select the welding current , the Volts will be established accordingly.
Note that there is also a parameter guide, which indicates the current range depending on the electrode diameter you are using.
TIG DC (direct current) settings for welding machine
The direct current TIG is used to weld iron and stainless steel, therefore ferrous alloys. Then you can select the type of trigger if high frequency or Lift, and possibly recall the previously stored programs.
Here are the steps to follow to set up the welding machine:
- start by changing the polarity and putting the TIG torch on minus
- select the impulse TIG if the type of work you are going to do requires it, for example if you need to weld with thin thicknesses
- choose the programs you want to use , such as the pre and post gas time; the up or down ramp; two-stroke and four-stroke on the flashlight button and so on.
An interesting aspect is to decide whether to use the high frequency method , or the Lift arc . There are two different ways of triggering:
- the first is the one known with a small button in the torch and is triggered remotely without the tungsten electrode touching the piece to be welded.
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the second requires touching our material to be welded with the tungsten electrode and then raising the torch in order to start the welding arc . This can lead to small inclusions of tungsten in the weld material. However, in certain circumstances and environments, such as hospitals where the other frequency cannot be used, it is an excellent solution. Then you can also think of using the flashlight or the pedal.
TIG AC (alternating current) setting of the welding machine
As you already know, alternating current allows you to weld light alloys such as aluminum, magnesium and copper.
The welding machine immediately reminds you to put the torch on the negative pole, before proceeding with the other commands to establish the welding parameters:
- pre and post gas flow , are the gas exit times before and after welding. Very convenient because the inert atmosphere is created before starting to weld and is maintained even after finishing the job
- ascent and descent ramp , depends on the material that needs to heat more slowly or faster
- offset , is a fundamental part in any AC welding machine and is the balance , that is the regulation of the half wave in positive or negative. In practice it is the regulation between penetration and pickling, the cleaning of the aluminum oxide which is superficial. It happens alternately, first one and then the other. In this way the flow of electrons arrives from one side and then from the other in an alternating manner, having the two functions once of penetration and once of cleaning. By keeping this value at zero, you maintain the balance of the current in the two phases.
- frequency (measured in Hertz), you can set a value from 25 to 400 Hz; the lower the Hertz, the wider the welding arc, the more the Hertz increase, the more the effect will be that of a laser, very narrow. 100 can be a good parameter to start with
- two-stroke, four-stroke .
Start of TIG AC welding with the Esab Rebel welding machine
At this point all the parameters are set, the welding machine is ready . Go back to the settings screen and fix:
- the welding current (e.g. 50 A)
- balancing (e.g. 60%, i.e. 60% penetration and 40% pickling) .
You are now ready to weld.
To find out more about this welder, keep following us. We will host Esab demonstrators, with which we will test and experiment the Esab Rebel in operation , to let you discover how you can weld with this magnificent tool.