Welding issues with new trunk thin metal

More of an art than a science - discuss metalworking and welding here.

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PostPosted: Mon Jan 23, 2017 10:15 am
norunz wrote:this is a good chart on how to get your mig welder set close to what you need, it gets you close, it narrows it down and you might have to make a few adjustments...... the column on the left is your metal thickness.... then across is your wire diameter , note that each wire diameter has a Factor number with it,....example , .030 is 2, say your metal thickness is .125, so multiply your metal thickness times that given number which for .030 is 2 so your wire speed should be 250, now to get that number cut your wire flush with the tip, pull the trigger and count to six, measure the amount of wire that came out and add a zero, so if I pulled the trigger and got 30 which equals 300 I know I need to slow my wire speed ..again this helps get you close, most mig machines are cc-cv, which is constant current -constant voltage , as you turn the wire speed up the voltage adjusts with it...... if you have a separate voltage dial you can adjust accordingly, more voltage will flatten your bead...


This chart gives wire speed calculations but nothing on the heat settings the correspond. Unless the ""factor" number is the heat setting?
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 23, 2017 10:54 am
I mentioned that, constant current - constant voltage, most mig welders today the voltage follows the wire speed , turn up the wire speed, voltage automatically follows, on one mig welder that I have a Hobart, which is 25 yrs old , the voltage is separate, which I like !... so you would need a practice piece of metal to dial it in , which you should do anyways.......like I said those numbers are just to HELP you get your welder in the ball park

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PostPosted: Mon Jan 23, 2017 10:41 pm
My welder has separate controls so I was wondering if the "factor" number might have been a reference.

There is a quick reference chart on the inside of my welder's cover that I find usually gets me in the ball park.

I did order some of the .030" wire you mentioned though.
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 24, 2017 2:17 am
that could very well be the case with the factor number, which is a number that some weld engineer, or metallurgist came up with, I just know that its multiplied by the metal thickness, its nice to have that separate voltage control, you dial in how much or how less of heat you want, .....Basically one good thing this chart is for is say you are somewhere with a welder that the controls are screwed up or you can`t read the markings or the knobs are missing , a tape measure will get you dialed in.........another nice feature I wish they would install is inductance control, which will let you control the initial arc, letting you have a soft start, but I haven`t seen one in a long time

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PostPosted: Tue Jan 24, 2017 10:04 am
Here's my MIG welder:
Image


I have had it long time and I don't think they make them anymore. 60% duty cycle and will weld 1/4" steel easily and handle a full size tank of Argon/CO2 gas.
The only thing I have had to replace on it was the cooling fan that went out a couple of years ago.

Its more machine than I am welder. :rolleyes:
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 24, 2017 4:10 pm
that is a fantastic mig welder , can handle way more than what the hobbyist welder can throw at it, even finding a used one is worth looking into.........I know I `ve said this in other posts, but make sure you have a good ground clamp , throw away the ones that are metal and just have a small piece of copper at the tip, get one that is solid copper , sorta shaped like an alligators snout, e-bay and any welding store has them... ....also trim back the nozzle so its even with the tip, other wise you are doubling the amount of stick out
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