Converting arc welder to induction heater?

T

THEMAKKER13

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Mar 4, 2011
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Is it possible to do this? I was looking at induction forges tonight and they're pretty sweet. I already have an arc welder, so would it be possible to convert it?
 
I've seen it done for public forging demos where open flame was not allowed. Really fast heating.
It might also be handy for selectively heating sections for interrupted twist patterns in PW projects.
Not sure how it would be for welding, but seems like you could do it.
 
An induction heater is efficient in mass production where all the parts are the same.
 
I am not going to say that there isn't a way to use part of a welder to start with, but from what I understand about induction heaters is that it is a lot more complicated than just making some coils and hooking them up the welder leads.

It involves high frequency AC in double digit kW power. Everything must be precisely tuned to create the collapsing fields to resonate with the metal being heated, and cause the induced magnetic currents ( Interruption currents, IIRC) to form in the bar which will make it hot.
 
Stacy pretty much summed it up. A welder is lots of current at low voltage (doesn't take much once the electricity has an ionized path) some times a TIG welder has a high frequency low current "starter arc" to create an initial ionization pathway (mine does) but then it is all amperage, I studied induction melting when I was at Special Metals because I wanted to make an induction melter for casting based on a miniature version of the 40,000 pound furnace we used for superalloy, it is all about frequency and inductive coupling creating eddy currents in the metal

-Page
 
Oh, just for clarity,
When I say "I've seen it done for demos ..." I'm talking about induction heating for the purposes of forging demonstration.
I have no idea what their setup was. My guess is it was not a converted welder. :)
 
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