Write-up pending...got too tied up in the Big Game

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P1220001.JPG

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P1220003.JPG

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P1220002.JPG

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P2050005.JPG

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P2060006.JPG

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P2060007.JPG

cool, but..
what made you think your ready welder couldnt handle your off-road welding needs?
:confused:

Got tired of hoisting batteries. The Mobi-Arc will serve as the power source for the RWII.

http://www.readywelder.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10

I'm still bringing the RWII. :)

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

What is that, latin, spanish? I don't get some of it?
Anyone protection

do you have anything more to report on this mod?
i would like to hear whatever input you have on this.
:wave:

Hehe, no, I've been too busy with work...I won't disappoint you yet, Eric, just gimme some time! :)

well, it looks like i will be having this same system. i have received one of these mobi arc welders from a friend.
i am interested in more info as you get it.

have you had the opertunity to test voltages, and output from this unit?
from what i understand the voltage is increased with the engine rpm's. i am curious at what rpm's it is achieving 12,24,and 36~ volts. also what is the maximum voltage read.

if this works the way i am hoping it will... this will be one hell of a welding setup.
the ability to control voltage, and use the ready welder without having to disconnect all of the batteries will be nice.

Well, let me tell you a little about mine so far. The wiring had me a bit confused so here it is with the bypass kit installed.

Carefully unplug all the unused wires in your harness, brown, orange, black, white. I did this fairly easily by rotating them in the plug til they fell out. This of course is with my stock Nippon-Denso alternator. Disregard if you are using another setup.

Violet goes to ignition hot 12v. I'll leave it as an exercise to the reader to find one. I used the pre-fuse end of a glovebox circuit that I can't remember now. I'll post later.

OK, there will be two other major bundles of wires that you will be running, one to battery and the other to the alternator.

First to battery, run the supplied #4 black cable from gnd post on welder to negative terminal on battery. #4 red cable from batt post on welder to pos terminal on battery. Also, in this loom run the gray wire from the harness to the positive batt terminal. The diagram shows to just attach it to the welder terminal, but it makes it hard to bypass the welder. All three wires go in the same loom. When running the wire, give yourself enough slack to connect it to the other wire bundle.

The second bundle of wires goes to the alternator. Remove the original charging cable that comes off of the alternator to the battery and shrink wrap/electric tape up the alternator terminal end and ziptie it someplace safe. Yellow #4 cable goes from the output post of the alternator to the alt post on the welder. The blue and green fused wires from the harness attach to the plug of your alternator. I tried the snap splices but they were too bulky. I just did a twist/solder/heat shrink tubing splice. I divided the field wires just before they come up away from the engine block. You might want to divide it elsewhere. Now, the bypass wires are a female socket that accepts the male wiring harness plug and you splice these unfused blue and green wires to the ECU end of the field wires that you divided.

Take the yellow cable, the unfused bypass wires and the fused field wires and put them in one big loom. You want the bypass socket and harness plug to have enough slack to plug into each other easily.

That's it for the wiring.

To bypass the welder, remove all the #4 cables from the back of the welder and bolt the red and yellow together and then electric tape it so it won't arc to ground and then plug the bypass socket on to the harness plug. This restores the original charging system to factory (with a few extra feet of cable).

Tip: If you use the 90 degree terminals on the #4 cable to attach to the welder you will need plenty of slack so you can bolt the terminals together. I used the straight terminals and put them back to back to bypass.

Testing your setup

Ignition off
Check voltage between batt post and gnd post should be around 12v
Check voltage between alt post and gnd post should be between 0.4 and 1v less than above.

Ignition on (not started)
See the charge and ignition LED's light up.
Check for heat in welder and cables, none should be present

Start motor
Voltage between alt post and gnd post should be about 14.5 volts
Voltage between alt post and batt post should be 0.3 volts and decreasing. Increasing means not taking batt not charging.

Insert cables and quickly arc (I used a couple of inches of gas mig wire).
Charge LED goes out and weld LED goes on!
I had about 32-35 volts at a dead idle. I didn't have my hand throttle or wife to increase the RPMs to 1500 RPM.

Cool huh? Well, I put in a 6011 electrode in the stinger and laid a bead. Quick spit of an arc and nada. Looked up. No LED's. Bad ju-ju.

Checked voltages. No charge from alternator. Crap.

Bypassed the welder. Everything works fine now. The welder is going back to San Diego for Scott to look at it. I'm not too discouraged by it.

I had a chance to meet both Doc and Scott at Mobi-Arc when I bought it (I was in San Diego and stopped by on a Sunday to pick it up and tour the facilities). They are real stand-up guys and fun to BS with. Their lab/assembly suite is amazing with some very sophisticated equipment and just about every damn kind of alternator you can imagine.

As far as the welder goes, the voltage when welding is locked at 40v and current changes with how much gas you give the alternator. I don't have an ammeter that would handle the output from the alternator, but I'll fool around with the ReadyWelder settings and make a quick reference card to stick in the RW case.

I need to get a set of red quick disconnects that the RW uses and insert them in the stick welding cables so that I can attach the stick welding stinger and ground or pull them off and attach the RW.

The super trick setup would be to have the hand throttle and RW quick disconnects attached to the bumper or inside the dash, so that you never have to pop the hood to weld. Just need to keep the RW disconnect clean, because any poor connections builds up heat in the welder.

When I get it back, I'm going to get a cylinder of argon or argon/helium and try my hand at welding aluminum wire with the RW. Should be fun and expensive!

Hope it helps. I'll try to post pics of my bypass setup anyways and the Mobi in action once it comes back.

Remember the welder voltage is pre-set at 40v (which is fine according to RW) and only the current varies by the RPMs you set with the hand throttle.

If you want to have set voltages other than 40v, you can ask Scott and Doc to get you a Mode Select Module for the voltage you desire. This will fix the output at whichever Module you put in the back of the welder.

These are modules are mostly used for jump-starting or boost-charging dead vehicles and batteries.

I suppose you could use them also to regulate the voltage of the welder.

When I get the welder back, I will be testing the RW with fixed 40v and use different current and wire speed. I don't know how much control this will give me, but at least it's more control than with serial batts (fixed voltage/current) and wire-speed alone.

thanks for all of the info.
that is quite a write up.
the 40v at idle is a hell of a lot. i wonder how well the ready welder will work at that voltage.
i see mobi arc offers the 14, and 28 v module kits for this unit, but it appears that those are for jumping other vehicles.

Doc will make you a Mode Select Module for whatever voltage you want...even 20.6!

The voltage is no problem for the RW as the Premier Power Welder goes up to 70-80 and it is "certified" for the RW. I got the RW tech support guys to 'fess up to listing the Mobi as a "certified" DC source.

See my post as the "anonymous coward" here:
http://www.readywelder.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10

The second bundle of wires goes to the alternator. Remove the original charging cable that comes off of the alternator to the battery and shrink wrap/electric tape up the alternator terminal end and ziptie it someplace safe. Yellow #4 cable goes from the output post of the alternator to the alt post on the welder. The blue and green fused wires from the harness attach to the plug of your alternator. I tried the snap splices but they were too bulky. I just did a twist/solder/heat shrink tubing splice. I divided the field wires just before they come up away from the engine block. You might want to divide it elsewhere. Now, the bypass wires are a female socket that accepts the male wiring harness plug and you splice these unfused blue and green wires to the ECU end of the field wires that you divided.

this is where things get confusing.
i am assuming you have the same type nipenso [sp] alternator as i do.
there the main wire that goes from the alternator to the battery which is replaced by the yellow wire. i got that one.

where i get confused is the 2 green, and 2 blue wires that are fused.
it says the blue wires go to the positive "field positive", and the green to the field negative.

now on my alternator there is the plastic thing from the ecm that is screwed to the alternator which has 4 screws. the 2 in the center appear to be the + field. then there is one to the alt body, and one to the block. those are obviously negative.

my question is.. do i remove the wires that are currently attatched to the alternator, and run to the ecm, and tape all connections.. or leave those field and negative wires in their stock configuration, and attatch the blue on top of the positive ones, and the green on top of the negative.

i found nothing in the instructions about this area of the wiring.

i see in your picture you have green and blue wires going to something else... what is this about?

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101P2060006.JPG

for as few wires as this is... it sure is a pain in tha ass to hook up. the instructions leave a lot to be desired.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v69/nailer341/IMG_5450.jpg

this picture shows the part that was origionally on the alternator with the 2 center ones being the field +

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v69/nailer341/IMG_5449.jpg

this picture shows the alternator with their wires to it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v69/nailer341/IMG_5450.jpg

now do you expect that this gadget is sopposed to stay attatched to the alternator, and their wires get attatched as well?

i am now getting a check engine light, and ~11-12V charging, where it should be 14~.

reading the codes with the auto x-ray says that there is an open field positive on the alternator.
this is what leads me to believe that the gadget in the above pic should stay connected.

any insight?

you need to throw that million dollar camera in the garbage where it belongs.

that is my elph... something is wrong with it.
the million dollar one works fine ;)

Pictures are best.

My photo was a wiring flub-up.

Hand-drawn art is a close second

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101mobi2.JPG
Original Wiring schematic



http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101mobi3.JPG
Welder Installed schematic




http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101mobi4.JPG
Welder Bypassed schematic

Check that your wiring looks as above. If you are still not providing charge, check your field fuses as they may have blown and your alternator is spinning without a field current.

The wiring instructions are quite a bit confusing and I had to call Mobi-Arc to get it all straightened out. Hope this helps you.

http://www.myjeeprocks.com/photopost/data/500/101mobi3.JPG

this is how i have mine wired. except i do not yet have the bypass wired to the ecu. i'll call them this morning to confirm what to do with the part that is normally on the alternator.

thanks for all of your help and input on this thing.

this is much easier than their instructions make it out to be.
both greens go to the same field connection, and both blues go to the other field connection.
i dont know why they would have doubles of each.... it just opens the door for confusion.
the gray goes right to the mobi arc red, and violet to ignition switched power.
that is it.

they did suggest a ground wire from the negative terminal of the battery to the alternator though.
well, i am off to the welding supply store for some cable.
i'll let you know what the final result is.

well, i got it in there and working.
it is doing everything it is sopposed to.
i do however have a check engine light, and cant seem to get it turned off. :rolleyes:
there are no codes though.
i hooked it up as stock, and the light goes out.... weird.

glad ya got her workin'. :D what about that plug in question and your battery isolater???

Apparently, the Mobi-Arc puts out a set voltage around 14.5 volts. The ECU adjusts the charge voltage. It will see the "wrong" voltage and trip the light. I think Scott and Doc can change out a resistor that will change the voltage to something the ECU "likes".

glad ya got her workin'. :D what about that plug in question and your battery isolater???
that thing just gets set aside.
i am not using the isolator at the moment, and have it wired to one battery.
i just wanted to try to get the thing working.. then i'll redo all of that wiring mess.

ok!
well, this thing is in there, and i finally got the check engine light to go out.
i was getting an "open field" error from the alternator, which was causing the check engine light tto come on, and not allow the alternator to charge.

according to the engineers at mobi-arc, i am one of a very few people with this particular problem.
the computer is tricked to eliminate this error by putting a lightbulb between the field wire connections on the original harness, which was otherwise abandoned.
strange..
not a big deal except if the bulb dies, it will not charge the battery. so i obviously have a spare bulb. the trick is finding out how long the bulb will last. i got one that is sopposed to last 10,000 hours, but it doesnt say how many times you can turn it on and off.

i have made a couple of welds using the ready welder conected to the poles. it seems to have welded nice, but i havent really tested it yet.

i have also tested it using sticks. it worked oook this way, but that is primarily because i have no idea how to stick weld, and kept burning the sticks. :rolleyes:

i will do more testing with it, and post up some pictures when i get some more time.

the unit is very well regulated to 40 volts and doesnt seem to fluctuate much at all. i will test this more as well with the hand throttle and see how i can manipulate the weld.

pics and info to come.

Great to hear that yours is working! I got mine back and found out it was a bad ignition hot 12v connection. It checked out on the tester just fine. I am surprised you have to turn your field wires into a drop light for it to work! Can't you just measure the resistance of the bulb and put in a similar resistor in the circuit?

I am fiddling around with installing a hand throttle on my Jeep. I am also trying to figure out a way to get the wires to run to a quick disconnect on the front of the Jeep. Ideally, I'd like everything to terminate on the front bumper so I can weld without popping the hood.

well, the light was their reccomendation. acording to them i am one of 3 people that have had this problem. not sure i believe that, but .... oh well.

i used a 1 watt indicatir bulb like you would use to show that a switch is on or off.
at least it is a pretty green one :yay:

Well, got things setup to do a little welding practice. I figured I'd do a bit of "real-life" welding without using really nicely prepared steel. I rustled up a little something which had been bothering me as a test mule, my .22 rimfire dueling post. That POS is made of two separate pieces of angle iron held together in a lap joint with a bolt going through it, wobble city.

The thing was powder coated or perhaps just painted with some kind of latex finish. I didn't bother to use a wire brush or angle grinder/wirebrush to clean up the joint. I just pinned it to the ground with a brick and fired up the Jeep. I hadn't installed a hand throttle yet as I was too lazy. The Wife was busy inside reading something important so I couldn't bug her to put on welding goggles and keep the engine RPM's at 2000. Instead, I just pressed the throttle down to an appropriate level of engine whining and applied a surgical clamp to the throttle wire where it came out of the firewall.

6011 rod at ~1800-2000 RPM got fairly good penetration and rod deposit, but it was a pretty crummy weld (first stick welding and lots of burning paint in the weld too). The vapors from the burning powdercoat/paint were quite nauseating as were the exhaust fumes from the Jeep (don't weld too near the back passenger side of the Jeep). Held together pretty well.

Lessons learned:
1) I am a crappy stick welder (even worse than my MIG welding).
2) Don't inhale too much if you are going to weld through powdercoat.
3) Throttle control is needed to get a good weld and I recognize I am too lazy and shiftless to install a brake cable hand throttle.
4) Find a solution that is easier to install even if it is a bit more expensive.

http://kwanms.com

I read about this on Stu's site a while ago (http://www.stu-offroad.com/recovery/twc/twc-1.htm) and I was thinking about it quite a bit while I was wrestling with my Kelly clamp and gas pedal. I got a chance to meet Seek Kwan when I picked it up and it seems to be a very interesting little device. His TJ is pretty trick and his custom Sanden OBA is very slick as it lets you keep the stock airbox in place.

I'll post a pic once the throttle winch control is installed.

well, i have become completely disappointed with this thing. it is being removed from my jeep, and sent back to be repaired [hopefully they dont try to charge me] and sold on ebay to the highest bidder.

on the calico trip, after some relatively heavy winching the mobi arc fried from the current draw the winch was putting on the system.
per my conversation with the mobi arc engineers, they are guessing it is multiple "fets" that have taken a dump. fet- mosfet

i will repost once i get the word back from mobi arc on the damage.
i am, however no longer interested in this piece of equipment. it has been more trouble than it is worth the whole way through. :no:

Sorry to hear the troubles with the Mobi Arc. I haven't read through all of the posts on this so if it doesn't relate sorry, but I wanted to let people know about the GoWeld. It is a portable MIG welder than hooks up to 2 batteries and welds up to 1/2 inch off of the 2 batteries. Need to do bigger stock, use 3 batteries. It is only like 500-600 bucks if I remember correctly. Since it requires 2 batteries it would be recommended that you upgrade to a dual battery setup which is preferred if you have a winch anyway.

I got to run a weld with it at a trade show on 1/4 plate. It could not believe how it just puddled the 1/4 plate and the power it had. It didn't stuggle at all and ran an awesome bead. It looks a little bulky and is shaped like a bulky gun. It is surprisingly easy to control, I thought... www.goweld.com check it out

Anyone else used or seen this?

Greeting from el cajon ca.

I just registered with this site and it is awesome. I also have a 03 rubi with a mobi-arc welder. I was wondering if you have found any work-arounds for the error codes that come on when the mobi is doing its thing. I like the unit but I could live without the generator field control error(P 622) and the charging system error(P 1682). After I burn a rod or two my check gages light is lit and I have the two error codes. Crap.
Any ideas from a fellow 03 rubi owner would be gratefully appriciated.
Thanks
Ken

Greeting from el cajon ca.

I just registered with this site and it is awesome. I also have a 03 rubi with a mobi-arc welder. I was wondering if you have found any work-arounds for the error codes that come on when the mobi is doing its thing. I like the unit but I could live without the generator field control error(P 622) and the charging system error(P 1682). After I burn a rod or two my check gages light is lit and I have the two error codes. Crap.
Any ideas from a fellow 03 rubi owner would be gratefully appriciated.
Thanks
Ken

hi ken.
the best solution to a mobi-arc problem is to get rid of it while you still can.
i had one of these for a bit. it is a real pile of shit.
mine tried to burn the jeep down after doing a hard winch pull. with the mobi arc acting as the computer for loads, it does a bad job of it.

as far as your error code... i think you need to put a small light between the "field" contacts that used to connect to the alternator. this will resolve your (p1682)

since the jeeps computer is no longer doing all of the jobs it had before hooking up the mobi-arc, it gets confused when it is unable to perform them. the light bulb tricks your jeeps computer into thinking it is actually doing the job.

i had an error code issue, and this was the fix.

my best piece of advice, in all honesty, is to get rid of the damn thing.
get yourself a ready welder. www.readywelder.com
it is a much more portable unit, and is a lot easier to use on the trail.

good luck with all of this.
__________________

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v69/nailer341/IMG_5450.jpg

connect the small bulb between the 2 lower prongs. these are the "field".
use a small led from radio shack. it must be a very small draw in order to work.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v69/nailer341/IMG_5450.jpg

connect the small bulb between the 2 lower prongs. these are the "field".
use a small led from radio shack. it must be a very small draw in order to work.

Thanks eric
I will try this. Do you still have a mob-arc and is it working out for you?
Thanks
ken

Thanks eric
I will try this. Do you still have a mob-arc and is it working out for you?
Thanks
ken

NO, i sold it on ebay about 3 weeks after i got it.