Mig wire

[Deadpool]

I have been adding a windsheild roll bar and frame ties.
I picked up a lincoln welder, flux core type from home depot.
I have played, tested, ect. Does leave a decent bead an has heat to burn thru .120 wall dom but the splatter is bad. Tried the lincoln .035 that came with it,
also hobart .035. My old Farmall doesnt care if bird welds but roll bars kinda stick out.
Any advice out there??

 

[JAE]

I have been adding a windsheild roll bar and frame ties.
I picked up a lincoln welder, flux core type from home depot.
I have played, tested, ect. Does leave a decent bead an has heat to burn thru .120 wall dom but the splatter is bad. Tried the lincoln .035 that came with it,
also hobart .035. My old Farmall doesnt care if bird welds but roll bars kinda stick out.
Any advice out there??

If the machine has the option to run gas and solid wire do it, it will weld cleaner. Also make sure whay you're welding is clean(no paint, rust, dirt, etc)

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk

 

[Deadpool]

Yea i should have gone with the gas welder, but the one i borrowed to weld up my drag on the tractor had its own hurdles outside.
I guess i have to be a good sander!! Ha ha

 

[Deadpool]

I guess my origional question should have been is one type of flux core mig wire in a .035 dia. better than the others??
My first harbor freight 99 dollar welder was a turd. But i found that hobart brand wire was alot cleaner.
I just dont want a variety of wire spools layin around.

 

[mriplaybass]

On those 120v wire welders you won't get as good of penetration with solid wire and gas. Just the nature of the beast. Nothing wrong with .035 flux core wire. I built utility trailers for years using it, and never had a weld fail with my Lincoln SP100. If the spatter bothers you, just get an aerosol can of anti spatter and spray around the area you are welding after you have the metal clean. This will reduce the spatter by better than 95%. Also, give your MIG nozzle a little shot of anti spatter before you start welding.

 

[Deadpool]

That will be on my list for tomorrow on the way home from work.
The 120v lincoln was recommended by another gentelman. He is a welder by trade but moved to michigans north woods for an extended fishing trip!!
I have been getting thru doin some blending-n-sand.
Thanks guys

 

[Knighttime85]

Flux core is going to have more splatter than gas shielded solid wire that's just the nature of the beast. I've heard you can cover the weld area with acetylene soot and the splatter won't stick as bad, but I have no experience with that because I either use gas shielded or arc welder.

 

[Deadpool]

Whoa that sounds a lil more expensive than splatter sheild.
I will start workin on welding later tonight.
We have been workin on my kids 02 mustang. Blower cams, fuel pump upgrade and injectors.
Now its put the Procharger belt on and wait till he can get in for a dyno tune.
Man do i wish i could come up with one of those machines. 500 bucks down to hold a slot and 500 on the day of the tune as long as all the parts are up to par.
If not 180 bucks an hour to do repairs on the dyno. Or take it home and start the process over.
I just love my old carbs and the magic a vacume gauge and tach can do.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

Before welding on any vehicle-Disco the battery........
I have had very good luck with .035 flux-core and no gas shielding.
Roll bars etc.-Slow the feed down, bump up the amps and work the torch in a backwards 'C' motion.
Sheet metal-Turn down the amps and extend the wire from the tip a bit more.
To get a good weld on sheet metal. The metal has to be clean and shinny.
Connect the welder's GND as close to the weld point as you can.
LG

 

[Hedgehog]

I know you are sick of hearing it, but go with gas shielding if it is at all possible. I had a 120v Lincoln and did a ton of welding with it using flux core wire. HF wire gets the job done but it's messy. Hobart and Lincoln wire works well, my favorite wire is widely available, unfortunately I can not remember it's name. ACE has it along with several other places. Eventually I moved up to a 220v Lincoln using nothing but gas shielding, while the 120 machine did some fine work, but I ran into duty cycle problems while welding the big stuff like bumpers. The 220 machine is simply a better welder, the welds are smoother, the flow of electricity is more consistent and easier to control. Oddly enough I've gotten to the point where I use more power than ever before with deeper penetration and fewer holes blown in the metal (sheet metal). When you fins the wire you like, invest in the spool adaptor for the bigger spools. It's nice to work without worrying about running out of wire.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

I ran a separate dedicated 20amp circuit for my Lincoln.
My Lincoln Weld-Pak 100 is over 20+ years old and has been some of the best money I ever spent.
Runs great with Lincoln .035 flux core. I was told that the wire is made by Harris Welco.
LG

 

[Deadpool]

I have tried several types of wire. The hobart seems to give good results concidering the downfalls i have. Most of the welding i do is repair work of the farm related nature.
I work in a machine shop and they use miller. The miller rep told me hobart .035 is probly the best for my money?? I guess its like shooting a rifle, once i find the right one dont change.
Thanks for all the advice.

 

[mriplaybass]

If you want your 120V welder to get better penetration on thicker metal, use around 15CFH Co2 with the flux cored wire. The Co2 will also reduce the amount of spatter a bit. Not much help with thinner metals, but just a way of "pushing" your welder to do a bit more.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

Do you prefer the pure CO2 over the Argon/CO2 mix?
LG

 

[mriplaybass]

75/25 Argon/Co2 mix with solid wire, pure Co2 with flux cored wire, only if I am welding heavier metal and need better penetration. I have a 240V MIG that I use for the heavier metal, but before I had it, I used the Co2 with the 120V welder to push it into doing heavier metal.