The Castolin CastoMIG 500 DS is an industrial MIG/MAG welder of transformer build, run from a 400 V supply and cooled with liquid. It gives 500 A at a 40% duty cycle and 315 A at 100%, and you set the current from 35 A to 500 A at an arc voltage from 15.8 V to 39 V. The set weighs 250 kg.
What this machine is for
This is a power source for long welds on large structures. 315 A at a 100% duty cycle means work without breaks through the whole shift, and the reserve up to 500 A you take for thick fillet welds and for wires of larger diameter. The 250 kg follows from the transformer build, which holds a lot of copper, and it means stationary equipment, set up for good next to the line. The documentation points this model to heavy production, shipbuilding and defence industry, that is to places where the current and the endurance of the source count, not the weight and mobility. The characteristic of the transformer gives a calm arc, which does not react nervously to changes of the free wire stickout on long beads.
The second group of tasks is hardfacing and reclamation. The machine has programs loaded for Castolin EnDOtec wires, that is for cored fillers for hard layers resistant to abrasion. 500 A at a 40% duty cycle lets you lay thick layers fast with fusion into the base material, so rebuilding a worn part goes in one pass instead of several. The lower limit of 35 A gives you the option to go down to thinner parts, when finer work turns up in the same workshop. The buyers are maintenance departments in mines, steelworks and cement plants, where reclaiming a part costs less than buying a new one, and downtime counts in hours.
The third group is synergic work on typical materials. The control has lines for carbon steel, stainless steel and aluminium, so the operator picks the basic variables and the machine matches the wire feed speed to the set voltage in the band from 15.8 V to 39 V. This shortens the changeover between jobs and evens out the results whatever the welder has behind him, which matters in a department working two or three shifts. In construction the model matches the Fronius Variostar 500 source and was fitted by the maker with Castolin software, so spare parts and service go a well worn path.
Features and equipment
- Transformer build: a simple and rugged architecture without sensitive power modules, which takes dust, filings and the hard conditions of a production shop and of a heavy metalworking plant.
- Integrated liquid cooling: the fluid circuit takes heat off the torch in work at 500 A and protects the equipment against thermal overload, so the nozzle, the contact tip and the cable package last longer, and the bay does not stand waiting for the equipment to cool.
- Four roll feeder: four rolls guide the wire without slipping and without deforming the filler in continuous work across the whole band from 35 A to 500 A. An even feed rate is what makes the arc stable, and with cored and aluminium wires it is the condition for the filler not to coil up in the feeder.
- Synergic control: you pick the basic variables and the circuit matches the wire feed speed to the voltage setting from 15.8 V to 39 V, so the changeover goes faster and depends less on the experience of the operator. In continuous work at 315 A the arc holds the setting also when the load on the bay changes, and the operator does not correct parameters in the middle of a bead.
- Programs for carbon steel, stainless steel and aluminium: ready parameter lines instead of hunting for the arc working point by hand, which limits parameter mistakes and shortens the time it takes to train a new operator in the department.
- Special programs for Castolin EnDOtec wires: curves prepared for fillers for hardfacing and for laying hard coatings resistant to abrasion, that is for processes in which the usual synergic lines for steel give neither the right fusion nor the right bead shape.
- MB501 liquid cooled torch, new, 4 m long: a package in a strong standard made for high currents, ready to plug into the line without picking extra equipment.
- Interconnection cable from 5 to 10 m: you move the feeder away from the source and come closer to the part without rolling a machine that weighs 250 kg, which on a large structure saves a lot of walking during the shift.
Technical data
| Brand and model | Castolin CastoMIG 500 DS |
|---|---|
| Type of source | transformer, MIG/MAG |
| Supply voltage | 400 V |
| Welding current at 40% duty cycle | 500 A |
| Welding current at 100% duty cycle | 315 A |
| Current range | from 35 A to 500 A |
| Arc voltage range | from 15.8 V to 39 V |
| Cooling | liquid, integrated circuit |
| Wire feeder | four roll |
| Control | synergic, programs for steel, stainless steel and aluminium |
| Special programs | Castolin EnDOtec wires |
| Welding torch | MB501, 4 m, liquid cooled, new |
| Earth cable | 3 m |
| Interconnection cable | from 5 to 10 m |
| Total weight | 250 kg |
| Design equivalent | Fronius Variostar 500 |
What you get
- Castolin CastoMIG 500 DS power source with a four roll feeder
- new MB501 welding torch 4 m, liquid cooled
- earth cable 3 m
- interconnection cable from 5 to 10 m long
What to watch out for
The 250 kg rules out carrying, for transport you need a pallet truck, and on the vehicle a tail lift or a ramp. The 400 V supply needs a power socket and a circuit matched to the draw at 500 A, because a transformer source pulls more from the mains than an inverter of similar power. You check the cooling circuit before the first weld, the fluid level and clear hoses decide the life of the torch, and a broken flow ends with a damaged package.
The programs for EnDOtec wires are tied to Castolin fillers, with other filler brands you set the parameters yourself, and the synergic lines for steel and aluminium may need a correction for the gas mixture you use. In work at 500 A with a 40% duty cycle watch the breaks, because above that load the thermal cut out trips and the bay stops in the middle of a bead. The MB501 torch is new, but the earth cable and the interconnection cable are used, so look at the insulation, the connectors and the quick couplings of the water circuit. The interconnection cable is from 5 to 10 m, confirm the exact length of this unit on collection, the same with the state of the rolls and the guides in the feeder.
This unit is sold
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