Welders

[Plymouthy Adams]

I had holes in the top of my socks growing up  also.....this was the only way I could get my feet into them...on the flux..yes it shields the weld from air as it burns it dissipates oxygen and it also does a bit of absorbing oxides during the process of welding if there are impurities on the surface..cleaner the metal the better the rod will fl,ow...areas where you get balls of molten steel is usually indication of base metal still too cold..commom problem in low heat mig welding...if you experience this..a slight preheat of the starting area at minimum would likely help you get better welds..

[Scruffy49]

Want to learn the old way? Come on over to west TN, coal forge and pure borax as flux... no rods, no wires, just heat and hammers... anything I can't handle with the forge and anvils, or a 110 flux core, I just tack up and send out to the local welding shop.

 

Grew up with a neighbor that was big into restoring horse drawn equipment. I've been forge welding for 31 years.

[48Dodger]

The best way to learn welding is to compete with your friends. Nothing like out welding your friends in a friendly competition...and if you lose...you learned something new. My current competition is my son (pun intended).....we are neck and neck....in his mind. haha

 

 

48D  

[martybose]

The owner of the shop that I hung out at for a few decades used to regularly challenge his sons, who were learning TIG welding from him, to weld a full bead around a soda can without warping it.  It took them several years before they could beat him.

 

Marty

[knuckleharley]

"I used my tax refund several years ago to buy a 140 Amp 110 volt (so I can plug it in anywhere) AC-DC HTP welder (1-800-USA-WELD) "

 

I looked at their ad and specs, sounds like quite a good machine. I noticed, though, that it draws 30 amps, which is double what most 110 volt outlets can provide.  While it's true it'll do it all on 110 volts, if you turn up the amps at all, probably over about 80 or 90, you're going to have to wire a special plug. 

That's all true,but I don't worry about that because I have my welder for welding sheet metal,and just tacking anthing much over 1/8th of a inch together and taking it to a pro for finish welding. Mostly because anything bigger than that for me will be a safety issue because it will be chassis work.

 

The first couple of years I had my welder I operated it off a drop cord plugged into a 15 Amp circuit in the master bath. No outside outlets,and no power in my shop. Anytime I wanted to weld or use my 3 hp Sears air compressor  I had to unplug the radio and the fan to keep the circuit breaker from tripping.

 

I also learned a VERY important lesson about trying to weld off a 15 amp circuit using a 100 foot drop cord. Namely,DON'T! Burned up the brain in my welder,and HTP gave me a replacement one under warranty despite me admitting it was my fault for running it off a long drop cord.

 

Now I'm living large with two 22k BTU air-conditioners out there,a couple of 30 am 240 circuits for my plasma cutter,lights all over the place,a car lift,and getting ready to install a 275k btu propane furnace on the roof of the 10x20 "office" I built inside it. Air conditioning is essential if your shop is a tin quonset hut and you live in the south. Hell,it was kicking in and out while I was working out there this afternoon.

 

Wiring up a couple of 30 amp cricuits wouldn't be a big deal now,but I honestly don't see me needing them. If I am lucky enough to get back to work this winter I'm pretty sure the 20 Amp circuits will produce all the amps I need.

[austinsailor]

I figured you knew as much, but others reading it might not realize it was a problem and run out and buy one, then be surprised they had a problem. Not everyone understands the amps end of thing.

 

For example, we have a big sailboat. We used to have it on Lake Travis in Texas. Spent  some time down the lake, my wife commuting to her office job from the boat. She got ready to do her hair the first day and was quite surprised to find the 150 watt inverter wouldn't run her hair dryer. "Well, it's 110 volts, why not??" I'm still not sure she understands it, but she didn't complain when I sprung for a 1500 watt inverter. All I had to do was say it would run her hair dryer!

 

And I do understand the air part. Even though we're in the mid west I have central air in the shop and it's usually set to about 65. Year round.

[knuckleharley]

 

And I do understand the air part. Even though we're in the mid west I have central air in the shop and it's usually set to about 65. Year round.

If you can't be nice to yourself,who can you be nice to?

[jsturner]

Harbor Freight's cheapest welder (http://www.harborfreight.com/welding/mig-flux-welders/90-amp-flux-wire-welder-68887-8494.html) is not actually a MIG welder; nor do they state that it is. It's a wire-feed arc welder. It uses only flux-core wire, which tends to splatter a lot. Also, the trigger on the gun doesn't energize the wire, it only feeds it. The wire is hot whenever the welder is on, so if you touch anything with it, it will weld. With only two current settings it's difficult to get the settings right for a given piece of welding. I've also heard that this welder outputs AC current, which apparently contributes to splattering and poor penetration, compared to the DC output of a higher quality welder.

 

How do I know? I bought this welder about two years ago and ended up returning it. It didn't have the power of a stick welder or the finesse of a real MIG welder, so it wasn't good for much. I ended up blinding myself a lot with the always-hot wire. The mask that's included is useless except for observing, since you hold it with the hand you should be using to steady your welding hand.

 

I ended up getting this $320 welder from Eastwood: http://www.eastwood.com/mig-welder-110vac-135a-output.html

I've been very happy with it; the quality seems on par with the Lincolns I learned on, and I hear Lincoln parts will fit it. The welds it produces are just as good as I can make with a Lincoln. I've done thin sheetmetal work with it as well as fabricating a trailer hitch from 1/8" angle iron; even welded part of a cast iron bench vise. Completely satisfactory, highly recommended. Comes with a gas regulator and a roll of wire.

 

I have nothing against HF; I just think they're a lot better at making simple stuff that's hard to screw up. I use one of their welder carts, auto-dimming mask, and welding gloves and they're plenty good enough for me.

 

[pflaming]

I had a friend who is a very good welder, fix a part on my truck. When he finished, he said to go home and paint the weld otherwise ". . . water may get to it, then the rust will eventually penetrate the weld and crack it.  

 

This was not a huge weld, but rather a delicate one so I would image the size of the bead would determine the impact rust could have.  Is that a fair conclusion?

[martybose]

Not really.  I work in a shipyard, and we weld everything from really thin stuff to one inch plate.  The problem is that if the weld is done correctly the weld itself is pure virgin metal with no contaminants or covering, and is therefore likely to rust right now.  We usually try to get a coat of paint on a weld as soon as practical.

[RobertKB]

Buy a welder that you can hook Argon/CO2 up to. Much, much cleaner weld. I have a small Lincoln 110V that works great although it has limited settings like Min and Max and high and low for each, so really just four settings and the wire speed. I bought a small welding cart which holds the welder and has attachements to hold the welding bottle in place as well.  It is so worth your while in getting a welder that uses gas even though it is more expensive initially. I am very limited in my abilties with welding having taken a college course for beginners (30 hours total) in both MIG and TIG. I did some TIG but chose to spend the majority of my tme on MIG as that is what I have. The instructor could not stress enough the benefits of Argon/CO2. I have pretty much welded in the new floor on the driver's side of my '51 Dodge business coupe with very little mess. Flux core is MESSY.

 

You usually get what you pay for and you won't get much for $110.00.

[martybose]

Anyone looking for ways to save some bucks while MIG welding should look into changing their gas.  Most people run a Argon/CO2 75%/25% mix, but most of the industrial welders (like my shipyard) have switched to CO2 100%.  It took a little while for everyone to get used to it, as it requires a slightly different setup, but the cost savings are significant.

 

Marty