mig welder

[John E/Pa]

I,m thinking I want to buy a mig welder.but,not sure what size or ,does it make a difference, I need to make some repairs by patching some holes on my 2N ford hood,I do have a stick welder but am thinking a mig welder would be best for this ,project, any suggestions would be appreciated,thanks.

 

[tn8n]

i bought a small one at harbor freight several years ago, my only suggestion would be to get one bigger than what you think you need. the little ones just don't have the amperage to do a good job, especially on thicker material, and the duty cycle is pretty low. on the thin metal of the hood you should be ok with a smaller one, but if you ever want to use it for other things you'll want more power. the one i have uses the flux-cored wire, i've never used a gas-shielded one so i can't comment on that part. from what i've heard it makes a cleaner weld, though. the flux core does leave a lot of slag and junk.

 

[Den N Ms]

John,A gas-shielded one is the only way to go.I have had four Lincoln,Snap ON,Miller,and Ltec good quality gas-shielded migs for Aluminum and Steel since about 1982.And have used several flux cored migs and they are a JOKE.

 

[Mr. T. Minnesota]

John,
I have a Hobart 125 wire feed welder. The main reason I purchased it is because it runs on a 20 amp, 110 volt circuit. I use flux core .035 wire and it does a good job for light duty welding. It does splatter a bit, but I do not weld enough to warrant the the extra tanks to get a cleaner weld. If you can, buy American. Hobart I believe is made by Miller. When doing heavier welding I use a Lincoln 225 AC welder. Both welders come in handy for different job requirements. Hope this helps.
Mr. T. Minnesota

 

[notjustair]

I agree - go a size bigger than you think you need. I have flux core wire in mine right now, but it does either. They are super handy to just flip on and go. I still use the big old Lincoln for the heavy stuff, but that MIG does such a nice job for finishing. For a long time the mig was the only welder I had, but the ones capable of doing the big stuff are just too pricey for me. The big stuff is usually a broken implement, so purdy don't matter on those.

 

[Bob Harvey]

I never 'cottoned' to MIG. Welded TIG as far as and with CART. No opinion. Probly doesn't help.

 

[John E/Pa]

I thank everyone for your input , after reading all the replys I believe I want to stay with the straight flux welder, ( if thats what it is called ) I dont plan on doing a lot of welding with it. but understand I should go with one with a little more amperage,if I understand correctly,thanks again to all,John

 

[504]

Go to your local welding supply store and look at an inverter welder. Light weight,110 or 220V with only an adaptor that comes with the welder, and we have one that will weld stick,mig or tig all in one machine. I have one welding shop that bought one just for a back-up welder, and now the 250 Miller is the back-up.

 

[Ron-MO]

I bought a small Lincoln 125 wire feed which can either use gas, or flux cored wire. Up to now all I have ever used is the flux core, and as long as metal is clean, and not out in the wind it does fine, although gas would likely do a bit cleaner job. For most of what I do, looks are not a concern, and it is easily cleaned up with a wire wheel or grinder. I finally went ahead and bought an older 225 Lincoln stick welder to use on the heavier stuff, but that little wire feed is hard to beat, and I have welded everything from sheet metal to rusty pipe for fencing with it. The pipe gave it a workout and I had to really turn up the heat and feed, and keep burning it to get it to stick, and it was not pretty, but worked. I have sure got my money's worth out of that little wire feed Lincoln.

 

[souNdguy]

is it a small stick? i have a 30/70a small CH welder I use 1/16 and 5/64 rods on for sheet metal. takes a fast and steady hand.. but does work.

good luck

 

[Dave8N in Pa]

Try 6013 rods for sheet metal. The smallest diameter you can get locally(1 lb.) Try it on scrap metal and you may supprized what you can do with your buzz box.

 

[MIDennis]

Stay away from the cheap ones. Miller and the better ones use metal drive gears for the wire feed. The cheaper ones use a type of plastic. The cheaper ones use stamped steel wire feed rollers and the better ones use machined wire feed rollers. The first one I purchased was cheap and the rollers were out of round and the gears wobbled after a while. You will use three times as much wire with the hollow flux core wire than the solid wire with gas at three times the price of the solid core. The flux core will handle dirty or rusted metal better than the solid wire with gas. The thinner the wire, the thinner material you can weld. I have stitch welded the paper thin tubing they use in those pop up shelters with my Miller. I hope this info will help you decide which way to go. Tig is really, really nice.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Mig is the best way to go for patching sheet metal,just remember material needs to be free of rust and paint.

 

[teddy52food]

Too much slag with 6013. 6011 is better. I use 1/8 rod all the time. Those small rods burn away too fast & a long arc gets too hot. Back in my younger days when I did a lot of welding I used to weld 18 gauge mild steel with a 5/32 , 6011 rod ,engine driven miller DC welder. Hold a very close arc.

 

[Ken(Ark)]

Yep , bigger is better , you can always turn the heat down .

Flux core ( .035) is about $60 for a #10 roll around here , Solid is about $25 . If you let it get surface rust then plan on wasting a bunch of wire cuz it will drive you crazy spitting and sputtering . Make sure you do not kink the lead as that will affect the performance too .

So for just a few little projects the small rods may be more cost effective .

Stick or flux , you do not have to weld the crack in one pass on an old hood . A series of tacks will keep from melting a big hole and also reduce the chance of warping .

Pawn shops will easily take 25% off and closer to 40% of the price marked if you work it , but used welders may have worn out drive rollers that don't show up during a quick test .

 

[russb wa]

I just got interested in stick welding again. Had been partial to the MIG. I got a tutorial on stick and am doing decent on 1/8 or larger.

Could you talk about your technique for the 1/16 rod. Do you bevel the edges etc. I imagine a zig zag would be questionable, too much heat in one place.

I have an old Lincoln 235 and a newer harbor inverter that will do DC. and has finer heat selection.

 

[souNdguy]

i have a hobart 235xlac but don't use that for small stuff. for the small stuff i use that lil campbel hausfeld ac welder... has a 30a and 70a auto setting. uses 1/16 and 5/64 rods. i usually but the metal up and then make lil arcs back and forth.. generally use 30a and 1/16 on sheet metal. then grind the seam..

 

[John E/Pa]

Ok back again, first off, I am in no way a welder, I can stick two pieces together (butt) here is where I am still a little confused , I have a craftsman 235, and usually use a 6013 1/8", so is it possible that I can use a smaller rod and turn the heat down on my craftsman and weld on my ford hood??,thanks John

 

[KKRRSS]

(quoted from post at 05:12:23 10/03/12) Ok back again, first off, I am in no way a welder, I can stick two pieces together (butt) here is where I am still a little confused , I have a craftsman 235, and usually use a 6013 1/8", so is it possible that I can use a smaller rod and turn the heat down on my craftsman and weld on my ford hood??,thanks John

Yes you could. But, I'll say this. Both the artist and I can buy paint, canvas, brushes; and then proceed to put paint on the canvas. The artist's will resemble something recognizable. Mine will look like dog vomit.

Welding thin sheet metal with an A/C stick welder requires a skilled artist. It's not for the beginner.

A gas MIG is the easiest way to go.

Second would be a flux-core MIG, but the thicker wire busts through sheet metal very easily.

Third would be a D/C stick welder.

Fourth would be an A/C stick welder.

KRS

 

[John E/Pa]

Thanks again everyone I am slowly getting educated about mig welders,thanks again,appreciate all the great advise and suggestions, John