Just adding, we will cover proper terms as well, generator is not correct when discussing AC output but is common and I use it though shouldnt, so proper terms will be covered as well. I will bring a real generator to show the difference. We will also silly scope the output for fun and clarity, and watch how loads effect it. Again contact through PM for this please if you bought one of these

forgot..load regulation, how its achieved with this unit, and why its needed..I should make a list, likely other things I am forgetting, lots of little things even with a simple unit like these.

Seems you have found many areas worth discussion on Generators. I am still wondering how to wire it into the house that is temporary but functional. I figured I could rig a plug into such as a dryer connection to use as a 220 volt inline feed, then kill the main breaker so power won't go out onto the grid. This would then allow me to utilize the breaker box to feed power to the rest of the house and limit it's flow by using the breakers. If worried about leakage due to the small draw items, that could be controlled mostly by flipping breakers if need be. Is this a sound idea, and if not why and what would be better?

First, your right, wiring it up and back feeding a plug can work, often done with two male cord ends, and refered to as a suicide cord. I have done it (did something simillar recently in a pinch)...Do I recommend it...NO...just to many things that can go wrong and if I remember right a proper transfer panel can be bought at home despot cheap....when would you do this?...well if the power goes out and your mother inlaws heart lung machine quits working and she will die without it, then go ahead, but I would first look for a extension cord instead ...all other times its just not worth it....too many human error possibilities that can hurt you or your equipment. works if you do everything right, every time you do it 🙄 , but I dont like the down side if a misstake is made, and do it enough times you will make a misstake. I havent even touched on the legal problems you will face if one of your misstakes involves not dissconnecting the line first, ever see a breaker that mechanically looks to be switching on and off ok but internally one pole is stuck closed for some reason... I have (once)...and trust me you wont stop swearing if you encounter this. (rare I know)

Buy the proper transfer panel, install it or have it done and with a proper receptacle going to it you wont have to handle a suicide cord. Check home despot I bet they have a complete kit.

And I am not implying you will make a misstake, but other things can conspire against you if you dont know how to check them out....such as.....your gennie is now going to be the line..Is it Edisons 3 wire? how do you know? the receptacle, say drier that you are going to plug it into, do you know if it was wired right, maybe the previous home owner put it in and being a 240 volt drier perhaps he saved money by just running 2 wire and a ground with no neutral...his drier may have run just fine but now your using that receptacle to feed in edison 3 wire but you only have 2 wires going to that receptacle...things are going to go bad for you if thats the case.
even if the homeowner ran the right wiring to the stove or drier receptacle you want to back feed did he really tighten down that neutral wire? cause even if he didnt his 240 appliances could have ran fine..not trying to piss in your corn flakes...
Trust nothing..check twice, cross check, verify everything!! then see if you can talk someone else into doing it 😉 .

And my talking about a unsecured neutral is from experience in my home about 10 years back when I back fed my garage panel with a temporary connection as I was going to give a gennie a run for a few days suppling the house and triped on my temporary connections loosening, or pulling off the neutral I cant remember which for sure, but it cost me 16 blown compact floresent bulbs and I was lucky that was all.

I live in the bush...Home Depots are my visit like once a year but I will look them up online. I know the drill about the suicide plug as I used such in the past too. What bothers me most is that many household items don't enjoy the DC power converted back to AC and i think there must be a minor difference. Many of the tourist camps here lose routers, computers and even microwaves more often it seems as all their power is generated daily. Using my portable welder has even killed a variety of hand grinders over the years that seemed to die an earlier death, maybe due to power surges or such. Thus when powering the house thru the breakerbox, I foresee forgetting about what is on this or that breaker and toasting something expensive before I take note.

We usually suffer various blackouts 3-4 times a year and extension cords are already damaged by being closed in doors too often and the basic tripping hazard too. BTW, I sold the Bobcat and trailer so I'm down to the Honda 4000 watt and gotta fix and convert the Onan someday or maybe I'll go buy that Champion you suggest if I hit the city tomorrow. It's -35 presently so it's just a maybe still. 😆 (no Home Depot there though).

I am not really sure what you mean, I think your saying that off grid around your area you have seen failures of equipment run off inverters? inverters hooked to batt banks? assuming thats what your saying then no its not that somethings dont run off inverters and fail often....everything should be running fine...without any problem...if there is a problem or failure the system needs to be trouble shot by someone who knows what they are doing. a good inverter, properly sized and feed from a stiff batt supply should run trouble free period...I could go into all the things that can cause problems, and make it "appear" as you describe but really its not so everything should be running fine if the right componenents are selected....If you have repeat failures and its a system installed by a company dont have them back, get fresh eyes in there to find the problem. People often have trouble finding there own mistakes or errors in judgement, or challenging industry convention...and there is a lot out there to challenge...there is lots of bs in the solar industry that should be challenged.

Your failures of grinders run off your Miller bobcat were not likely caused by surges, rather voltage drops for one reason or another...low rpms for example maybe high idle was a little low and when you lay into the grinder your voltage saged maybe it was 100-105 volts not 120, low voltage will burn them out...I know that sounds counter intuative but with inductive loads it can happen. Its been 20 years since I have been in a bobcat, but I thought they had 3 slip rings (correct me if I am wrong..oldtimers) if so you could have had poor brush contact on the one slip ring regulating rotor current for your aux winding and that could cause a drop in output of the 120 volt cct under heavy load, but because your weld current regulation is supplied by a different slip ring you would not have noticed any problem while welding.... I know the Bobcat has a perfect sign wave output so if you were having problems with repeat failures someone should have found the problem. Those were great machines...just loud, and could go through the fuel if your welding hard.
also there were friction fit connections on a current limiting resistor in the rotor cct on those units and due to vibration those friction fit connectors could become high resistance points and reduce rotor current. So many thing can cause problems.....

Regarding microwaves though...they are just a ugly load..ugly..on inverters, on generators even. always have lots of head room if you want to run one of these.

-35 you say...hey why dont you go wake up some of those bug out type instructors,ontario seems to have a lot of them, you know the ones who will teach you how to survive in the woods for a "fee" the ones who teach in the summer 😮 ....see if they will go into the woods with you and show you how its done 😆

The main gennys at tourist camps are usually 10KW or bigger. They often have secondary backups that are equivalent too. Cabins have the cheap power bars and such for a small laptop, but otherwise they run light bulbs and a fridge and microwave. They have a propane stove and if your lucky, an indoor crapper.

I usually fix their satellite dishes and wireless networks. Pretty easy to note that which fails more constantly due to the continuous life of generated power. The fridges seem not to care. The only time these generators go quiet is after 10pm. None of the ones I service have solar systems for anything but one on the main lodge and another for recharging his trolling batteries. They otherwise have no battery systems but trolling batteries are 12 volt deep cycle batteries anyways and this is why the solar panels at all.

The Bobcat on the other hand had cooked electric drills and grinders from GE and Black and Decker, but never Makita or even Crappy Tire, even from when the welder was new. Performing arc-air is likely hard on it and I did it alot during it's life, but otherwise it was a sturdy workhorse for all the years I put it to use.

Ok I missunderstood...you ment just generator power....yah there can be things....one 10kw generator may not be the same as another 10 kw generator...lots of reasons why even though the exact same ratings. Ct has the model up from the one I recomend a 4000/3000 watt gennie with a 2.5 times bigger engine, and that thing cant run loads that 1500/1200 watt gennie can, infact I can stall that big engine right out with my chopsaw 🙄

Dont understand why you had problems with some models of tools, would have to have seen it at the time, and carbon arcing with a 250 amp machine I would say no to but the bobcat had no cct boards, no high freq solid state switching of the output so you could get away with it... am running a Lincoln Ranger 8 and blew my field current regulator board doing the same...I hate Lincoln so I wouldnt buy a new board from them and instead took a baldor dc motor drive and rewired it to control the field current.. here is some trivia...think there is competion in welding equipment...no chance...lincoln and miller owned by the same company! get mad at your blue miller and tell the salesman you will buy Lincoln (red) they will just be laughing at you...we are not just all working for the same company, we now get to spend our script at the same company store...aint life grand...capitalism at its finest...and the same parent company owning lincoln and miller owns many of the brands coming from China, so if you get really mad and try to buy a brand from another country...the money goes back to the same pockets anyway..I know why I am cranky today I took the wrong pill...let me take the blue one...thats better...blood pressure is falling now....ahhhh...anyway....