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mig gas

6K views 50 replies 8 participants last post by  DARK SIDE 
#1 ·
Got a welding question..do you have to use a gas when mig welding or is it only needed for thinner metal?? I did some frame welding without it and I it came out good ..or so it looks.
 
#29 ·
Here are the pics. Hope they work. I lost the .035 tip so I went to .023 wire. One of gauge settings,one of old way of welding, one of bottom of metal,one of new way of welding and one of settings on machine. O.K. what do you think. The new way of welding works pretty good. I welded the way you guys said. Just got to learn how to stay in the middle. Welded more on the bottom than on top. Oh well practice pratice practice. :sweat:
 

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#30 ·
Are you using 75/25 gas? The first pic,Look's like you may be a Little hot.Try when your welding to come in and out a little bit(not to much).not up and down.Try turning your wire down a Little too.If you turn it while you are welding,Turn it till you see the wire come out the puddle,Then turn it to where it is just burning in the puddle.You don't want it to burn deep into the puddle.You shouldn't have to wait for it to build up.You should be able to run with it.It would be better if I was there with you.Sorry. :confused:
 
#32 ·
Hey I'm thrilled wih the results. Yes I'm using 75/25. As for seeing the wire when I weld ..no way. I am lucky to see the tip. Maybe my mask is to old or too dark. I can only see the tip and the glow. Maybe not dark enough..maybe I need gasses..hmmm. anyways with some practice I should improve. Did the settings on the machine look right?..gauge settings? Maybe a little hot eh..I'll try different settings untill it looks like your weld...yeah that will happen. Thax for the info..it all helps.. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
#33 ·
DARK SIDE said:
Hey I'm thrilled wih the results. Yes I'm using 75/25. As for seeing the wire when I weld ..no way. I am lucky to see the tip. Maybe my mask is to old or too dark. I can only see the tip and the glow. Maybe not dark enough..maybe I need gasses..hmmm. anyways with some practice I should improve. Did the settings on the machine look right?..gauge settings? Maybe a little hot eh..I'll try different settings untill it looks like your weld...yeah that will happen. Thax for the info..it all helps.. :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
Do what every you have to be able to see your weld,Then you can tell what it will look like when finish.You will be able to see to,what is going on.If you can't see your weld,Then you are welding blind folded. :nono:
 
#38 ·
Well, what would be an indication of too little pressure on a psi gauge, or too little flow on a flow type gauge???

I would first guess some signs of pinhole-ing? but I wonder if there is gray area before that, where the weld looks Ok but maybe a little compromised? Or am I talking certified quality ?
 
#41 ·
I weld at 15 all the time and use .023 unless I am welding thicker than 3/8" metal.10 is just too low. Also wind can blow the gas away.I had a friend who was having trouble welding and as we talked he mentioned that he had his fan on him because it was so hot.Now he makes sure the fan is on him and not where he is welding and no more problems.Just some info I thought might help. :thumbup:
 
#43 ·
darkside, you are about my age. you need to see the puddle and the seam you are welding to do it right. i used to use my reading glasses under the hood without very good results then mikey posted a pick of welding hood magnafying lenses that go inside the hood. they come in numbers just like reading glasses do, they work great. i still wear my reading glasses under the hood but can look right over them into the magnifier and still be able to see close up when i lift the hood. i also bought an auto darkening welding helment with an adjustable knob for adjusting the darkness to replace my old hood. i found by adjusting the lens to be a little lighter i could not only see the puddle better, but i could see the seam i needed to follow. i also get the hood down close to see better. being an old fart i also always find somthing to rest my forearms on and use my left hand to steady my right hand that is holding the gun, this gives me much better control of the weld bead. hope this helps
 
#49 ·
f&j, when using a pressure gauge as opposed a flow meter there just is no one setting that is best for every welder, what is important is the flow and any given pressure gauge setting will vary the flow from one gun to another. About the best way to set the gauge when using a pressure type is to turn down the gas flow while welding on a piece of scrap until you start getting porosity in the weld (you will know it when the gas gets too low :) ) then turn it up just until the weld becomes solid again, then add a couple of PSI. You are right to be concerned about having the setting too high because it can waste a heck of a lot of gas, if you are using 40 CFH and only need 20 you would be wasting half of your ga$! Having the flow set too high will not hurt the weld BTW it just gets expensive and a PITA when you run out too fast.
 
#50 ·
DARK SIDE said:
Sounds like someting I need. Where would someone find this???
like new interiors shows, thats the lens. we have 2 local welding supply houses in town and the both stock them in different powers, so check your local welding supply. you will notice the one new interiors shows has a 2.00 at the top. reading glasses are numbered the same way, i wear 2.50 reading glasses and got a 2.50 lens. just print out that pic, go to your local welding supply, plop the pic down on the counter and say "i need one of these" :D . some helmets will have a bracket for the lens to slide into, some not. mine did not so i just taped the side edges to the helmet with scotch tape, works great. :thumbup:
 
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