Mostly Fixing my Bargain Portable Welder | Miller Bluestar 2E Part 2
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- Опубліковано 22 сер 2024
- I get the parts to fix most of the issues with my Miller Bluestar 2E portable welder. However, we find some new problems.
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I've been possessed with ADHD tendencies for 7 decades. Some say I'm like 'wound too tight!' While Watching Wes Work --- I am adapting/adopting his very mellow, cool, even-paced approach to life. So I say, "thanks Wes" for being just who you are as a role model for me.
Aren't YOU ALL recognizing how his steady, unhurried, persistent work ethic is how we ALL should be and do? Maybe corny but the Chinese riddles: "how do you eat an elephant," and "how do you take a trip of a thousand miles" are all examples of WES! "One bite at a time and one step at a time!" It's all you can do. Pushing harder only pushes one backward.
Hopefully ya-all are closely becoming Wes-Like so you, too, Work Like Wes Works!
Patience
Persistence
Totally in love with working.
Yup, It’s one of my New Years Resolutions. WLWW 😂
Nicely put Tom, I have to agree, many videos ago I jokingly compared Wes visually to a young Keith Rucker but I also thought they set about jobs in the same manner.... I also watch Warren at "western truck...", a polar opposite in some respects but coincidentally one off his latest videos was titled "Eating the elephant: One bite at a time" cheers
Nice work…. Bummer on the circuit board. You electronics skills are impressive to say the least…..
My ADHD I still gotta playback at 1.5x speed, plus I have my TV on too. 🤷♂️😏🤫🤭
Who said it? Faster is slower. Slower is faster?
Love it when manufacturers jump in and want to help solve difficult cases like this!
Im so impressed by your vast range of capability to repair electronics. Not only do you fully explain what you're doing, you do it for vehicles too. My must watch video every weekend, thanks.
Must Watch Wes Work?
i agree Ron, a joy to watch
He is like technology whisperer,like he can fix everything,maybe he is the chosen one
@@mdariff839 he can probably walk on diesel.
Thanks WES you made this old guy smile.. I was once an avid "recycler" of old mechanical things, so you have kept me quietly entertained at your In-depth "Let's FIND OUT JUST WHY" electrical engineering fault finding and fixing.. Don't take much to keep me quiet but your channel does - Can't wait for part 3 mate.Ian - UK.
"The Post Apocalyptic Inventor" (UA-cam username) has a bunch of episode where he dives in German trash pits and rescues various things if you wanna watch. From vises to audio, welding and other piece of equipment. He explains things well and works even better. For someone like you, it should be a great place to watch stuff on repairs. :)
@@aserta Yep, I watch his channel also.
👍
I will say this about time and money versus the value of a repairable object. In my life I could not always afford the the things I'd like to have, and unless I was actively turning down an opportunity where someone else was going to pay me, I always thought the time I spent fixing something that was out of my range to buy, new or used, was time I was actually paying myself using my talent to get something working again during periods of down time. And in the end I could enjoy a tool or device that I might not otherwise be able to. I admire your ability to get these welders running again, and appreciate how you share that ability in a relatable manner so we might enjoy more things that someone else couldn't fix, or didn't want to. I am now a new subscriber, thanks Wes!
Not only do you get a piece of gear out of it, you get an expanded knowledge base! Win-win!
So glad I stumbled on the first part last night, I've had a blue star 2E sitting in my garage for a few years now that lost spark and I found the video by pure luck after not looking for parts for a year! Needless to say this sorta lit a fire under me to get the old thing goin!
Good luck
Coool it was a nice welder it got burned up in a east county wildfire in Alpine California back in 2008? I Miss it.
@@torchit007 Sorry to hear yours got burned up like that! Mines been in Ohio for as far back as I could trace. This one was on a Friend's trailer used to haul the trail rigs and the motor just shut off lol I might part ways with it when I get done playing with it to update to a bigger machine for my needs!
I started working on a Lincoln ranger 8. The circuit board had burned traces and a bad diode that stopped it from getting spark. Got spark but now there still an issue where it back feeds power and triggers the starter to engage once the machine is running. So there more wrong somewhere. Easy solution is replacing the multi position switch with a momentary like they did with all the later models. Biggest issue is the motor was locked up and stuck. It’s way down on compression and has tons of blow by. Still runs with only 30psi compression and makes power.
Make a video!
If you get a replacement idle board, be sure you check the inputs and outputs before you connect the board in the circuit. There may be a short somewhere external the idle board that is frying it.
Lightbulb moment!
Yea I was thinking that too. Its bad enough when the old one fried its self but it would be even worse to see the new one do the same. Jim in NZ.
I was thinking along those lines myself. It is extra work to understand what's going on. But sometimes it more work to not take the trouble to figure things out.
Or since someone had previously worked on it make sure all of the connections are going to the correct terminals, not just how the were attached when you found it.
@@ericpaul4575 that would be difficult to do without a schematic.
David with the Miller Parts, you are the man, thanks for helping out Wes!!!
I work on generators for a living so safe to say these videos have been a treat.
Well done lad. Don't sell yourself too short on the soldering and electronic skills. Thanks for bringing us along on the journey.
Thanks for explaining why the fuel pump is crap instead of spiking it off the floor and grumbling about it being trash. It shows your experience, knowledge, and gives you credibility. I've got just enough know how to follow most of the non electronic steps you take and appreciate all the short simple explanations in between. Thanks Matt!
For future reference: a quick and slightly dirty fix for leaking valves on sediment bowls like that one is to loosen the packing nut and remove the valve from the S. B. Take a 2-3” piece of Teflon tape and twist it into a string, then wrap the string around the valve shaft and reinstall. Snug the packing nut just enough to stop the leak and rejoice in having a fuel filtering device that is easily cleaned.
Nice!
Man, it's so affirming to know there's at least one other guy on the planet who does stuff like replacing that red negative ground with a proper black one. I take so much crap for doing this kind of "make it right" kind of thing instead of the generic mechanic deal of putting duct tape on the cables. Great fix, Wes.
I dont know why I needed Wes fixing welders in my life, but here we are. I have an urge to find and fix a welder now.
I get a similar feeling watching Mustie1
There's plenty of them out there that need fixing. The folks that use welders usually aren't the ones you want working on welders.
Gotta love how Miller still carries parts for all there older machines one of my favorite welding companies @Watch Wes Work
Wes, the coolest part of your videos is when things "don't" go as planned. Your self-analysis and product expectations is a giant classroom for so many people. You share universal troubleshooting in a easy to follow format. Well done Sir.
One thing to watch out for with the big filter caps in a line voltage DC rectifier is that in some capacitors the aluminum shell exposed on top of the capacitor is at the same potential as one of the pins of the capacitor. Of course there’s bleeder resistors to drain the caps, but those can fail too.
I was working on a power supply where the caps had energized shells, and the bleeder resistor, one of those chunky 5w rectangular things, had somehow fallen out of the PCB. I didn’t realize either of these things until I poked the shell with a multimeter on a whim. How I didn’t discharge the cap through my body before that point is a complete miracle.
I definitely enjoyed your trouble shooting of the circuit boards. The patched in board is often called a Daughter Board. I often equivalate a diode to a one-way valve so it is no surprise that it released the magic smoke. Something that you can use in the future is to use a insulated wire to use in place of the "scrap" leads from through hole components. There is always a need to protect a signal wire from ground. One last tip that others have used is clear nail polish on the solder joints to use as a conformal coating.
Really enjoying this series, you are doing very well. I loved the tank-to-carb fuel line replacement.
Good advice. It's been years, but the clear nail polish works great! I used to apply conformal coating from a spray can, so that should still be available.
@@vigilantobserver8389 Green can be used to patch solder mask after trace repairs.
I too am very impressed with your thought and explanation process. Wes I wish you had been a teacher 52 years ago in my Engr. Tech School. I would have learned a lot more. Thanks for a great video series.
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Haha, the outro shot of you running stick in the dark was perfect! This gives exactly the feel of how Miller does their new machine photoshoots haha. I was involved in several of their shoots when I was working in a small fab shop near the mothership. Lots of cool secret new toys for demos and lots of donuts on photoshoot days. :) Great video series. Got to love the Power of Blue!
Another great video. If I may recommend, as someone who repaired electronics for a living, when you want to reflow joints like those on the potentiometer, put a little fresh solder on then use a solder sucker or braid and remove the new and old solder. Then redo the joint. 5 stars on using flux! Now I have to look up how that fuel pump works...
Every time the hot glue gun comes out, I think of childhood craft projects and the sweet pain of melted plastic on your fingers! They work great at fixing things now! Great video Wes! 👍😁
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There are many people working on things on UA-cam….Few taking time to do things correctly….It is a joy to see you work
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I love these episodes where he dives into electrical repair. I struggle with negative and positive. I can't tell you what a rectifier is, but Wes makes it very entertaining. Great to see the OEM people reaching out to Wes and building the knowledge base.
I like that you save the cut-off component leads! I am in electronics repair and have always done this. They are not just good for repairing pcb tracks, they are also useful as test points when added perpendicular to the board which even if only added temporarily makes testing much easier and duards against accidental shorts from test probes.
The board went from rectifier to rectom frier, Wes you amaze me you just keep on trucking without missing a beat. That was the very reason I swapped from dewalt, the batteries did not hold up.
It's the challenge and you won! That's great.
Wes the old Miller welder is worth the repairs. I have one on my Excavator Service Truck. I use the power outlet frequently. The welder just works always. NonEthanol always.
Great video. Can't wait for Part III to see the old girl get going and the plasma cutter slicing through metal. Also, shout out to Miller for their willingness to help out. Nice to see a manufacturer stepping up to help out. Not the norm in today's world.
Try to get that service on a made in China machine.
As far as the fuel shut off valve and filter you read my mind Wes.
Shout out to the guys who’s sending you the part for the welder. Looking forward to seeing the next video on the Miller welder and testing the other welder too.
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You've mastered the proper welding posture... hunched over and kneeling on the concrete. Might try outside lying on the frozen ground under a low piece of equipment for added character building.
I’ve watched the two-part on these welders three times now and I’ve learned a lot, which is great fun for me seeing as I’ve been an engineer for fifty years. Thanks Wes you’ve taught an old dog a few new tricks!
That feeling when something get fixed. No matter if it's my own junk or on video by someone else. That's awesome. Thanks man, keep up going.
agree
Good series Wes. I'm learning a lot. I appreciate these videos on how to make the old abandoned equipment get back to work because junk is all I can afford!
Nice to see these saved from the landfill
When Wes chuckles, everyone does too.
That’s going to be a nice unit. Thanks for part 2 and looking forward to parts 3 through 10.
I about shot my beverage out of my nose at the "through 10". Top Tier comment!
It will be EVEN NICER if Wes takes an hour to clean the unit and spray paint the tank and the air filter cover etc.
@@oldcynic6964 …for now let’s focus on and praise the great work he has done so far.
Yeah, anytime a board has traces blown off like that, gotta check pretty much all the components. It's a pain!
Still, good to hear you'll hopefully be getting a 'gently-used' replacement!
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If anyone is able to fix it and has the knowledge to get it done I believe that it is going to be you. Got the electrical knowledge and utensils to get it fixed and running.
Portable welders are worth more than you pay. It’s that one time you need it, it pays for itself. Did a frame repair in the woods 15 years ago. Got the Jeep home. So yea…….
Regarding brittle materials feels like Metal and plastics quality since the covid/supply crisis everything has been low quality.
Regarding dewalt batteries specifically I’ve never had issues with them unless they have been run on a sawzall for extended periods. Usually get vibrated to death lol
Nice moody welding shot at the end there.
Is there anything out there that you can't fix. You amaze every time I watch your one of your videos. Wess you the man. Great video.
As I've told the wife. It always pays off to "Watch Wes Work videos. Way to go Welder parts guy. Will keep them in mind if needed.
You are very smart. You have a lot of knowledge about so many things. Electrical, hydraulics, etc. That makes for a great mechanic. Keep up the good work.
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Great video Wes! That is awesome that David from Miller in Georgia can help! Hopefully he has or at least can find parts for it
One thing I have adopted as a philosophy during my retirement years, if I can spend my time diagnosing (and learning to diagnose), and then fix it?? It doesn't matter what it costs. Then I can post it on my little youtube channel and maybe help somebody else, or get scorched by somebody else, oftentimes both. The education and the fun is worth it. Plus, it keeps me from spending my time hanging out in bars and chasing loose wimmens.
Informative video Wes. Thank you. I had this same plasma machine and was very dissatisfied with it and eventually sold it.
Loving this series Wes, appreciate the throw-back to your older videos where you diagnose more than just cars.
Keep it up Wes! Don’t let that old iron die.
Plasma Cutter should give you good service and just keep an eye on the wear parts replacing them as you go. Miller Welder once all fixed up again should also give good service seeing as it has been Watch Wes Worked. Thanks for the video.
Enjoying this series, I used fix guitar amplifiers, very similar stuff including the jumping leads with the end of a resistor. Makes me want to rewire something now.
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Hot glue, check! Zip ties, check! Pop rivets, check! All you're missing is the duct tape!
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I guess it's a good thing to make a video about a Miller and one of the guys there watched it and now you have a better source for parts 👍 You go Wess. Stay warm......
Well done Wes! I hate the digical stuff but between you and AvE I'm getting a better understanding of how this wizardry works. Thanks for the video. I can't wait for part 3.
Electricity is easy as P=IE That's Ohm's Law BTW. A bit of electric humor. Understanding what that means is a big part of it though. Keeps you from blowing stuff up.
About that piggyback prototyping board: the label just below it says Rev 0, so it's the first revision main board used for that type of plasma cutter. I'd bet that the Rev 1 boards have the piggyback functionality worked into the existing layout. You sometimes see it with other hardware too where random wires are glued across a PCB to 'solve' design issues that they found a bit late.
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Wes I love your work and sense of humor! Never let the “experts” get to you. I do zero mechanical work but enjoy you and Scott at Vehcor. Must be something in the Illinois water.
Two of the most entertaining channels on YT. You'd probably also like Bus Grease Monkey's channel. He's in Tennessee, but still pretty entertaining...and very good at what he does, just like Wes and Scott from Vehcor and Eric O. at South Main Auto.
Dear Tom Hollowell
I also watch Vehcor. Please kindly allow me to highly recommend channel Coldwarmotors. Especially in the last video there are parts where they nearly laugh their heads off. By the way: Waylon Wire is often really funny too.
Best regards, luck and health in particular.
Just troll those "experts" like Scott does on purpose!
I don't know why, but nothing triggers armchair generic mechanics like starting an old engine without changing oil first. Like running it an extra 5 minutes on the same oil it probably ran the last 100 hours on is going to kill it.
Wes, thank you for an interesting video.
Wes, You put out the best content on UA-cam bar none! I watch and loss interest on many channels but year in and year out your humble no nonsense videos keep me interested and proud to be a viewer.
Nice. Good thing about Miller is that is has both factory and third party support.
Publishing schematics and free PDF manuals for everything they have ever made, John Deere should pay attention.
Well Done Wes! I LOVE puttering with projects like this. It's not about money, its about getting some joy out of life from fixing or making something. I just got done making a router planer sled out of all recycled parts. Cost me what ever I spent on 21 screws. Everything else was recycled parts. Works great.
Great video series and the announcement of a part 3! Trust me you haven’t spent too much money on these gems, the viewership alone will make up the costs. Phenomenal humor as always.
7:00 I'm so glad that I am not the only one to use toothpicks to mix glue..
We'll be back, by the thousands, for Part 3. This kind of stuff makes my day! Thank you.
Yaaaa! I'm glad to see you didn't give up on that Miller. It will be well worth it when it's done.
Great job with the videos lately. Great editing. I was once a “watch Wes later”kinda guy but now I find myself eager for your next upload. Your content is unique and your work ethic and mannerism are fresh and welcomed in this new world we live in.
Ditto, what Ron Smith said...very impressive...a channel of one to serve the many. I think I learned somthing today !!
Wes, you're the best on youtube as for aptitude and knowledge. I enjoy watching you diagnose and maneuver through a project. Wish we were neighbors, I'd give you some work. LOL
Well done donkey internet!
Those speeds make me proud to be an American
😭
That’ll do donkey…that’ll do.
Give it an extra carrot before you start the upload. 🥕 😂
@@TheFreightBeast underrated comment lmao
When is he getting Starlink??
Hey Wes, add a sheet metal guard in front of the controls. You can reach under/around it to tweak buttons, but lessens the chance of the knobs getting bumped and damaged.
Great to hear that the parts guys watch your videos along with us.
Cool outro Wes - I like the welding to fade background setup.
Doesn't matter if the repair cost exceeded the net cost of the item - you can't put a price on the smile you get from using it knowing you fixed it.
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This is my favourite channel ❤
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What a great way to celebrate a Birthday on a Sunday! Nothing better than a fresh Watch Wes Work! Thanks Wes, it's almost like you knew it was my birthday! Cheers everyone!
What seemed simple was only for a minute, great to have a channel that is known and to get help from the folks at Miller true blue baby!! Awesome video again showing your wide range of talents.
Bit of a head scratcher this one, way beyond what i could do. Great work Wes!
Thanks for the interesting video Wes. To answer your question, I haven't had any issues with DeWalt battery cases but the UK has a much milder climate than your state. The mod board on the plasma cutter's PCB used to be relatively common back in the days when circuit board redesign was an expensive proposition. When you found an in service design bug you'd come up with a mini circuit to fix what ailed the mother board.
Dear Mr. Wes.
👍👌👏 Very well done again (video and work). It's great to hear, that we can even expect a 3rd part now. I absolutely love when old, sturdy stuff gets fixed and is put back in use. Hope the old Miller will receive a little bit exterior cleaning.
Thanks a lot for making teaching explaining recording editing uploading and sharing.
Best regards, luck and especially health to all of you (including Max of course).
At the first spark of the test weld I had a stinger in my neck and thought I was getting electrocuted. It sure made me jump. Really nice work and fun to watch. Thanks for the video.
I'm glad you took the time to explain things as you went along. It makes it a lot easier to follow what you're doing.
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I'm looking forward to seeing you work on the powercon welder. I worked maintenance for a company that used several of these welding aluminum. They had a port on the back that a frequency box could attach to for aluminum welding. The machines worked great and held up well to the gorillas that used them...the frequency boxes...not so much. Great job and thanks for taking the time to share.
Love the video, sort of the last chance saloon for older equipment. Well done and looking forward to part 3.
Glad you were able to get the parts you needed Wes. Nothing more frustrating than diagnosing the problem, but can't fix it because you can't get parts!
I haven't welded since HS metal shop and to be honest the 5 seconds of instruction and the 10 minutes of actual welding time haven't survived the 42 years since HS. But I did just pick up a small stick welder that runs on 110 at the dump and a welding helmet no rods yet but I think there might be some in my dad's shop from the 60s... Or maybe I'll just use nuts and bolts
Very interesting. That old Miller looks like a real work horse. Great to see it working again. Just a note regarding something I found out the hard way. If you use a paper gas filter on a gravity fed fuel system, without a fuel pump, it won't work. At least on the applications I tried. Those can only use a sediment bowl or the small screen type filters . This is not a criticism of what Wes did. He does have a fuel pump. Great job, as always, getting that to work.
Yeah but he put a fuel pump on this machine.
I use small paper gas filters on my gravity fed mowers and I’ve never had a problem.
@@johnfisher7143 the paper filter thing is a known issue. When you're gravity feed you're supposed to just use a screen. But it is great that it is working for you.
@@1pcfred My comment was not a critique of what he did. I was just reminded of the problem caused by using a paper filter when I shouldn't have.
@@johnfisher7143 Maybe it was just my snowblower that didn't like the paper filter but it would not flow enough fuel to make the engine run. It is possible that the drop from the tank down to the carburetor was too little and that is why it didn't work.
I get parts from them all the time, their prices are actually good and fast order processing is appreciated
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Rather than trying to replace the trace directly run a wire from a pad to the next pad. Stronger connection and you won't risk breaking more of the trace off plus it's then insulated for more of the distance.
I used to be a huge DeWalt fan but they screwed me when they decided to move to 20v from 18v and I started using Ridgid tools with the lifetime warranty. It's the best move I've made!
Wes what is your opinion about oiling pre filters? It seems like that is not done anymore. Good idea about replacing the runs.
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I’m 1. Oh no I looked ad the weld flash on the internet . I’m blind. Lol
And you’ve already learned how to use a braille keyboard, good work!
Mechanical ,Electrical, and electronic , Wes does it all and through to boot ,way to get it done Wes
I'm on the edge of my seat for part 3 even though I don't know the first thing about any of this.
when you said Appleton WI OMG the memories came flooding in again I was born in neenah WI lived in menasha and was homeless in Appleton I left the valley April 4th 2011 came to DC September 27th 2011
Not sure what it is but there's something so satisfying about the shakeing sound of toothpicks. Good job.
Appleton my old home town I worked at Miller for a short time then went to Pierce manufacturing to use Miller welders on there fire apparatus equipment. Thanks Wes you’ve got a great machine for life.😊
Great closing shot! I really enjoy these industrial tool repair videos
Well WEs it helps to have a you tube channel after all. Your my no1 channel on you tube, keep it up. Alberta Canada
How am I doing with Dewalt? I had multiple tools from them till I started having battery problems and checked on battery replacement costs. I threw all of them in the scrap! No more!
Sorry mean done.
makes ya feel good when folks see your vids and decide to help you out.
Well Wes, for a guy who claims to know enough to just get by. You keep me fascinated watching you chase those little silver spots and tiny little wires on the circuit boards.👍👍
Like all your content…keep them coming.