I just bought a Thermal arc 185 tig welder from Indiana Oxygen. It came with a bigger torch than I am used to using and I do not like it. Does anyone have any recommendation for a smaller torch. The smaller torch that I use at school is water cooled does this have something to do with the size of the torch as well?

 

Water cooled torches are generally smaller. I have a wp9 sized aircooled torch for my thermal arc which is tiny. I have a 90 deg head and the straight head which can be very useful. Its only rated at 125 amps Dc and I think 90 Ac and gets hot quite quickly.

 

If you could would you buy another torch? I dont want something that is going to get hot super fast? Does anyone know if Weldcraft torches are compatible with My thermal arc?

 

i just converted my miller 180sd to water cooled torch.i had worked at many jobs that had water cooled torches and love the size.then i would weld at home with my air cooled torch and it just sucks.i hate that its so long to the tip of the tungsten from the handle.so what i did was buy a weld craft wp20 water cooled torch and all the gas lenses.then i made my own cooler that sits on top of my welding cart.the cooler only cost me maybe 40 dollars.if your welder has a gas thru dins to the machine you will need the weld craft adapter that has the gas and water taps coming off the side of it.

 

Thanks for the info kmt63 . Can you post a pic of the cooler you made for $40.00 and any info on how I could make one? I know that the Weldcraft makes adapters for different miller models but I can not find a company that makes different adapters/ torch's for Thermal Arc 185 tigs. Anyone with a Thermal Arc 185 let me know what I need to convert to a water cooled torch.



Thanks Bryan

 

You can make a cooler very easy. Look on eBay for a carbonator pump (off of a soda machine), and a 110V motor to power it(they use a special shaft setup). Then build a tank to hold the coolant. Go to your local welding store for the adapters youll need. Mine is a tank mounted on top of my Sync 180, and it holds almost 4 gallons. I can weld for 8 hours a day and never get the torch hot. Works great!
BTW, the carbonator pump and motor is the exact same thing thats in the high end TIG torch coolers...so dont feel like your putting a POS cooler together.

Kyle

 

my cooler would be the pos model but i love it because you can not hear it when its running.i welded at a shop that had a high end model and that damn thing was soo load and anoying that i could not stand it.so what i did was buy a harbor frieght 255 gph submersable pump and a 4 gallon plastic tote and plum in the water lines.i have been using this cooler for a month and i weld every day 8 hour shifts and it is working perfect.the water never got warm and the torch is always cool.im welding around a 100 amps.as for pics i have no idea how to post them here.maybe i will try and figure it out.as for the adapter what kind of dinse is on a thermal arc?i thought they used the same one as a miller.

 

are you just using pure water in the cooler?

i started out with that pink stuff from industrial welding and am now using regular antifreeze 50/50. runs a bit cooler ive noticed, but i dont weld daily.

 

i went to my local welding supply store and bought everything i needed to make my torch smaller. small gas lenses, short back cap, shorter cup etc, spent less than 50 bucks total and now its the same size as a water cooled torch

 

im using a small amount of honda coolant and some pine sol to stop the bacteria from growing in the system.so far so good.as for smaller parts for my air cooled torch there where not any that would fit.this was a diamond back miller torch.

kevin

 

I like your idea on the cooler. I looked on ebay and found some carbonator pumps for $100.00 and what looks to be a motor already on them I think. Is there a quick parts list you can give me for a cooler setup not trying to sound stupid. I just dont want to buy the wrong stuff. Can you post up some pics of your setup?

Thanks BryaN

 

bryan if you google home made tig torch cooler you will find alot of info on building one.i think one of the web site was the welding web.your right about the pump it will be driven by an electric motor mounted on one side of the pump.that is the right pump to use i just dont like listening to those things churn away all day so thats why i went the way i did on mine.