ESAB Rebel is a game-changer for welding services company

Bob Evans has 40 years' experience in welding and he also carries out inspections, and provides welding training. Having made good use of his Rebel EMP 215ic with a variety of different welding processes and filler metals, he was eager to try it with the new 1.0mm FILARC PZ6113.

The first application was attaching wear blades to a digger bucket Bob Evans was fabricating for use on Argoed Edwin Farm. Operating the Rebel in normal MIG/MAG mode with 80 per cent Ar / 20 per cent CO2 shielding gas, the 20mm Hardox wear blades were welded using the spray transfer process (no inductance) with the Rebel set at 25V and 180A. High-quality welds were easily achieved, with very little spatter. On the same digger bucket, Bob Evans also positional welded 5-10mm carbon steel plate at 22V and 120-130A. Without the FILARC PZ6113 Bob Evans would have used dip transfer welding with solid wire for this thickness of plate, but that brings with it the risk of a lack of fusion. The FILARC PZ6113 was therefore a much better option overall.

Impressed with the performance of the Rebel and FCAW wire when attaching the Hardox wear strips, Bob Evans wanted to experiment with welding in the 5G position. Taking some 4-inch Sch. 80 pipe, he applied a root run using the Rebel in Tig mode, then filled and capped the joint in a single pass using the FILARC PZ6113 with the Rebel in normal Mig/Mag mode. He comments: "I was completely surprised with the high quality of the finish and how quickly I completed the joint."

Speaking about the Rebel and FILAR PZ6113 combination, he adds: "It is much faster than solid wire and far quicker than MMA welding. The number of stop/starts is also significantly reduced."

Much of Bob Evans' work is for Argoed Edwin Farm, but the variety of tasks undertaken means that portability of the welding equipment is essential and it is often necessary to weld outside. Bob Evans states: "For my business the combination of the Rebel EMP 215ic and the FILARC PZ6113 FCAW wire is a game changer. For thicker materials I have previously been limited to MMA welding, but now I can use the 1.0mm wire with the Rebel to achieve high-quality welds much more quickly. Thanks to the new wire, I no longer need to use solid wire on plate thicknesses of 5mm and above. Furthermore, the Rebel is capable of running the 1.0mm FCAW wire for long periods of time without cutting out, which helps me to maintain high productivity levels."

ESAB's Rebel EMP 215ic is a 120/230V, CC/CV, MIG/TIG/MMA welding system that offers true multi-process performance, location flexibility, lightweight portability and a groundbreaking operator interface. A special sMIG (smart MIG) function enables users to begin MIG welding - with a very stable arc and little or no spatter - just by setting the material thickness and wire diameter; unlike competitive units, there is no need to enter information about the shielding gas. The Rebel is also the most powerful single-phase welding machine on the market. When operating from 230V the unit provides a MIG output of 20-220A, a stick welding output of 30-160A and a TIG output of 5-240A.

FILARC PZ6113 is a multi-purpose, all-positional rutile cored welding wire that can be used for joints requiring good toughness at -40degC. Exceptionally easy to use in all positions, and capable of welding at high speed for high-productivity applications, this premium flux-cored wire can be shielded with Ar/CO2 or CO2 to produce a smooth, stable arc that results in low levels of spatter and smooth tie-ins.

For more information, visit www.esab.com.