welder question

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 2:30 am
im getting a mig welder for Christmas, a 135 amp mig welder and cart bundle that's on eastwood.com. I know its good enough to weld patch panels and replacement panels but is it good enough to weld a car frame? like brackets on the frame for 4 link suspension kits or airbag brackets or reinforce frames that might have some rust issues. thanks guys

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 9:11 am
What are the specs? Does it tell you max material thickness (which should mean max weld penetration)?



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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 11:41 am
its this one chris

http://www.eastwood.com/mig-welder-110v ... utput.html

again thanks for answering my questions chris, new here but have some questions



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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 12:30 pm
It says it will do 24 gauge to 1/4 '' thick
Car sheet metal is 18 gauge

Keep in mind that this welder has a rather low duty cycle of 20 % at 90 amps! Running any welder up against its duty cycle all the time will burn it up.
I am no expert But I would want a machine with a higher duty cycle myself.

You do know that that's a 110v machine rite? most 110 v out lets are wired to a 15 amp breaker 35 amp max on a big multiple outlet circuits. my point being any time you light something up that needs any current its gonna pop the circuit breaker probably long before it see's that duty cycle any way.

you asked
"is it good enough to weld a car frame? like brackets on the frame for 4 link suspension kits or airbag brackets or reinforce frames?"

Some guys will disagree with me but In My opinion? no
Dennis B.
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 1:50 pm
o ok thank you. the main purpose for the welder is to do car sheet metal fab work. maybe small brackets but that's about it. honestly, 220 scares the crap out of me I see pictures of people fried like beef jerky online when they try to steal copper wire

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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 2:21 pm
110V can kill you just as easily. Most of the world is running domestic 220V there are a lot of good reasons for higher voltage. The copper wire thieves are just showing their IQ level unfortunately.

I have a Hobart Handler 140 which is similarly sized and I think if I took it slow I could do some of what you stated, but as Dennis said it's most likely a 'no' on a lot of what you need to do on frames. Smaller stuff, sheet metal, exhaust work, no problem. And I like that it is 110v just for portability.



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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 5:27 pm
here is a chart on setting up your mig welder, this is a rule of thumb, something to get you dialed in faster , 1 amp for every .001 of thickness , the numbers that correspond with the wire thickness .....035 = 1.6 .030 = 2 .023=3.5 those are a given factor, that you multiply your material thickness by to get your proper wire speed, so if you are using .030 wire, its # is 2 and you are welding on .125 thk material , your wire speed should be roughly 250 in, now your wondering how do I get that number ? to get that 250 in, when all your machine has is a wire speed knob , cut your wire flush at the tip, then pull the trigger for 6 sec, then measure the wire, if you have 30 inches add a zero at the end and you have 300 in, so now you know that you need to slow it down till your at 25in again just add a zero for you final speed .... also get rid of that junk ground that comes with the machine , get one that is solid cooper ,sorta looks like a alligator snout , any welding store or ebay has them....... another trick that helps is to cut your nozzle flush with your tip, other wise you are actually doubling your stick out needed
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PostPosted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 6:47 pm
gallogiro wrote:o ok thank you. the main purpose for the welder is to do car sheet metal fab work. maybe small brackets but that's about it. honestly, 220 scares the crap out of me I see pictures of people fried like beef jerky online when they try to steal copper wire


Shouldn't scare you as long as the breaker is off. I've wired many 220 volt circuits around my house and shop. No different than wiring a 110 circuit. Make sure the breaker is the correct amperage for your equipment, and make sure your wire is the correct gauge for the breaker. Always work with the 220V breaker(s) off.

I was doing a kitchen remodel last spring, and the licensed electrician left a 220V wire for the oven hanging out of the wall HOT!!! I brushed up against it, but only contacted one of the hot wires (110Vs). It bit me, but I was spitting mad at this electrician. Told him about it later. He was so nonchalant about it that I wanted to punch him. :realmad:

110V's can kill you if you're standing barefoot on a wet floor. But on a dry floor wearing rubber soled shoes, it'll only nip you bit.
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