The Welding and Fabrication Thread

[TheHubbardBus]

TJones, RamRod, thanks so much.

I am dragging, I start w/ ~1/2" stickout, and I try to maintain consistent distance, though I can't say for sure that I do. The angle I'm also trying to hit about what you mention, but probably have been closer to 30-degrees in practice. I'll keep working on it. I'm sure once I've put in enough time I'll figure it out. The only thing I think I'm doing different now is maybe not moving as fast... on day 1 I was probably nervous and moving quicker than I should. Don't know how/why this would make an impact though. Just conjecture. Could the wind be blowing it away?

And yes, gas is on the menu, but I really wanted to get this process down. For me, and what I see myself doing w/ welding in the future, being out in the elements doing field work / repairs is much more likely. Still, if you think learning quicker w/ gas-shielded would translate back to making my flux core better, I'm all about that.

 

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

you may not realize it but the more angle actually causes more stick out of the wire.
and the brand of flux core makes a huge difference.
i had welded for a living for many years and had never used flux core until a work associate asked me to come weld an exhaust for him.
he had a harbor freight machine which was a first for me as well with harbor freight flux core wire.
that machine kicked but with the ugly bs looking welds and the wire constantly breaking or try to double up in the leed and i went to fix a break at the spool again and it had completely unspooled at least half a roll.
i went to the closest store on a saturday (lowes) and picked up a roll of lincoln flux and there was an immediate difference of night and day.
gas will definitely make a difference in cleanliness and appearence but if its windy and you dont block the wind it can look worse than a bad flux core wire weld.
thats when you learn to take your free hand (yes no second hand support for your stinger arm)
cup your other hand around your welding cup and learn how to weld while blocking the wind.
kind of like cupping your hand to light a cigarette in a windstorm with a match.
it takes practice.
but it can be done.
wish you luck

 

[jjaj823]

FCAW-G Machine Setup?

Hey all!

I've been doing regular MIG for a bit, but was recently introduced to dual shield flux core...

I'm curious if more-or-less any MIG welder can be adapted to using flux core with gas. It seems like the diffuser and contact tip are different, but Google has not produced any other results. It seems that "flux core" means different things to different people...to professionals, it means dual shield, while for amateurs it means gasless.

Any input appreciated!

- Jeremy

 

[flattracker]

My understanding of flux core MIG welding (having done both the type with inert gas and flux core both):
Flux core welding may be done with a MIG welder that is setup for use withe the solid MIG wire. You can use the flux core wire with the inert gas and get deeper penetration or use the fux core without the gas. The flux core welds do look ugly but they do work. Harbor freight sells a cheap line of wire feed welders that only use flux core wire. They also sell a more expensive line that does use inert gas. You cannot weld using the regular solid wire without the gas.


I prefer to use the inert gas setup. You will need to change the polarity of the torch connections but otherwise no other changes if I recall correctly.

 

[jjaj823]

My understanding of flux core MIG welding (having done both the type with inert gas and flux core both):
Flux core welding may be done with a MIG welder that is setup for use withe the solid MIG wire. You can use the flux core wire with the inert gas and get deeper penetration or use the fux core without the gas. The flux core welds do look ugly but they do work. Harbor freight sells a cheap line of wire feed welders that only use flux core wire. They also sell a more expensive line that does use inert gas. You cannot weld using the regular solid wire without the gas.


I prefer to use the inert gas setup. You will need to change the polarity of the torch connections but otherwise no other changes if I recall correctly.

That generally seems to align with my thinking. I know there is special wire (I think Dual Shield is the brand name) but otherwise, info seems to be slim. Strange considering it seems like this process is pretty common in the industrial equipment industry.

I’ve also heard that you can’t do it on a 110v machine, although I can’t think of why that might be.

Thanks for the input!

 

[rossvtaylor]

The biggest advantage of dual shield is that you can run your wire feed rates, and weld travel speeds, faster than "regular" MIG. Because it's got gas shielding as well, it suffers from the same issue all gas-shield MIG has outdoors. I use a cheap, large-sized metal dust pan as a shield when I'm outside.

If I need extra penetration with MIG, I am set up to do spray transfer and I keep a bottle of 90/10 mix on hand for that. But it's rare that I do that. If I'm that worried about penetration, for whatever reason, I'll switch to stick.

Here's a good video explanation from one of the few channels I subscribe to. Jody's WeldingTipsAndTricks channel is fantastic.

 

[jjaj823]

Here's a good video explanation from one of the few channels I subscribe to. Jody's WeldingTipsAndTricks channel is fantastic.

Thanks for the video link!

 

[flattracker]

I have been using a Millermatic 130 for years for my MIG welding and it runs on 120 VAC.