Welder recommendation

Mecha said:
You may have better results using a 110v mig welder if you use .023 wire. The thin electrode will make the machine act as if it has higher amperage to play with, and you will be able to dwell at the toes more easily and put more heat into the weld.

Also, you can try switching your polarity to DCEN (electrode negative), and positive ground. This will put way more heat into the work, which is where 110v mig welders fail. It will burn the electrode more slowly (slower wire feed rate), I run mine like this and it gets great results, a little slower but good hot penetration.

Or you can get a Miller and it will just work perfectly with no hassle. :D IGBT is the way to go!
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Mecha, thanks for that info man. I bought my welder with no previous welding experience, so I searched online about it, read a little bit of info and watched some YT vids and then basically went to "plug and play" :D I figured it was easy enough for what I was doing (which was tacking damascus of san mai billets together)... But yea, the first thing I did when I got it was throw away the wire it came with and went to Lowes and got some good "Lincoln .035" flux core wire cause I'm pretty sure I read somewhere to get the larger diameter.

So is it fairly easy to switch the polarity around etc. like you mentioned? I really don't know that much about welders (obviously) so I'm not quite sure how to go about doin that with mine. Also, do you use a 90 amp HF welder as well? I ask because I'm not sure if you were only suggesting that zaph could make that "mod" since he has the 110 amp version, or if you actually read my question as well.. :confused: lol

Do you think the changes you mentioned (using the 90 amp HF welder) would allow me to weld a 1/2" thick piece of rebar (with a tapered end) onto the end of a length of, say 1/4" bar stock, thus enabling me to easily forge blades like that without the need of a few pairs of nice tongs?

Anybody have any suggestions for my question in post #13?

Also.. Zaph, please let me know if my questions are out of place and distracting here and you'd rather me make a different thread, or if you don't mind me asking them in here :foot: ;)

~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
 
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Hey Coldsteelburns, I would go to a dedicated welding store and ask(Airgas)
they will be able to point you in the right direction. A oxy-acy rig maybe
an option but there will be a learning curve.
 
Choosing a good power source will get you pointed in the right direction but the right shielding gas mix will make make or break your welds, doesn't matter what power source you use. You have to look at your applications and ask yourself do I need to use short circuit or spray transfer..... if not your just wasting time and welding supplies.
There's a lot of good resources out there that will help you understand the GMAW process and choose the right power source, filler material and shielding gas for your application.
 
Well, ok, not the best weld. A bit heavy on top and light on the bottom. Penetration is good. It bent when I took it to the press trying to snap it off. Maybe a bit cold, which is why I am looking for a bigger welder. I have 220V, and use stargon.

Using clean metal really does help. I should mention that I now use steel with virtually no mill scale compared to what I was using before. Hot rolled compared to structural is so much easier to prep.

View attachment 490835
 
^ Now etch that cut with FC, the bead often goes darker than the parent metal and you can see what kind of penetration you got.
 
things to consider: your budget, your electrical service, material thickness, duty cycle and required output. don't forget your shield gas composition. if you've got a torch, you could preheat your joint to get some deeper penetration.

i don't have much experience with little welders. and I don't know what 6 is on your wire feeder. if i were in your shoes, I'd feed wire at "6" for 10 seconds, measure it and multiply by 6 to get you inch/min, then check the resources at the american welding society's website. they'll have recommendations for your material type and thickness.

hope that helps.
 
He doesn't have 220 volt power. Check out The Ready Weld unit,runs off deep cycle batteries and has power.
 
Coldsteelburns,

I use welders with the unfortunate brand name of Fema, which are cheap Italian-made machines, but they work splendidly. I'm not sure if the HF welder has reversible electrode and ground lugs, but if it doesn't then that's a good enough reason to avoid them since you should use switched polarity for flux-cored wire! :) The lugs should be in with the wire and feeder mechanism.

If you are using a 110v machine with solid wire and shielding gas, then the reverse-polarity mod with .023 should work well. 70% or more of the heat is put into the positive side of the arc. 110v mig is about as cold as it gets, so reversing the polarity to positive ground puts most of the heat into the work and you can melt an actual puddle to fill with electrode wire almost like a tiny spray arc lol. Just keep the nozzle close to the metal you're welding.

A good weld deeply penetrates and completely fuses the metal pieces to effectively make a one-piece weldment, rather than sticking two pieces together as if with molten metal glue. To make your billet fuse to your rebar, leave about a 1/16" gap between the two, completely weld into the gap, then weld a second pass all around again, with the intent to melt into the two pumping in as much heat as the HF welder can muster!
 
Mecha said:
Coldsteelburns,
110v mig is about as cold as it gets, so reversing the polarity to positive ground puts most of the heat into the work and you can melt an actual puddle to fill with electrode wire almost like a tiny spray arc lol. Just keep the nozzle close to the metal you're welding.
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reverse polarity (rod pos), the continuously fed, consumable electrode melts as it's forced into the base material. as far as i recall, aluminum welding uses AC to break up the surface oxides, but plain carbon steel is usually welded reverse polarity.

as far as stick out goes, short circuit and globular transfer gmaw, when you shorten your tip to work distance, you increase your amps, for a given voltage. it's not so much the nozzle to work. you just need enough coverage.

spray arc and pulse gmaw needs a certain distance between the nozzle and the work for the gas to stabilize the arc. in my experience (mostly carbon steels) 5/8" is typical.
 
I'm firmly in the "brand name welder" camp. The big issue for me is servicability. I don't want to be without my welder for 10 days --- in a best-case scenario --- while China Inc. ships me a part. Especially when I can basically build my trusty Lincoln 175 Square Wave from parts available from my local dealer.
 
zaph1 said:
Well, ok, not the best weld. A bit heavy on top and light on the bottom. Penetration is good. It bent when I took it to the press trying to snap it off. Maybe a bit cold, which is why I am looking for a bigger welder. I have 220V, and use stargon.

Using clean metal really does help. I should mention that I now use steel with virtually no mill scale compared to what I was using before. Hot rolled compared to structural is so much easier to prep.

View attachment 490835
Click to expand...

Lu1967 said:
He doesn't have 220 volt power. Check out The Ready Weld unit,runs off deep cycle batteries and has power.
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Apparently he does



When it comes to polarity, flux core wire is one way, using solid wire with gas is the other, look it up as to which way is which.
 
Miller inside, Lincoln outside. The only decent machine you are going to find is going to be a Miller and their bottom of the line MIG welder is going to run you about $600 (new). You could probably find a decent used one for half the price though. Take it from a welder (me) you get what you pay for when purchasing a wire feed welder. On the other hand, if you need a decent stick welding machine go to harbor freight. Their stick machine is AWESOME for the price. Just DO NOT get their wire feeders...
 
12345678910 said:
When it comes to polarity, flux core wire is one way, using solid wire with gas is the other, look it up as to which way is which.
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Normally, GMAW (solid wire with gas shielding) is DCEP, electrode positive.

FCAW (flux cored wire) is normally DCEN, electrode negative.

The only time I ever switch polarity to the opposite of what is specified is in thicker-than-sheet stock with a 110v GMAW machine that isn't a Miller or a Lincoln (which seem to make great welds like they're supposed to). If you really want to make a strong, full penetration weld on the cheap, a stick welder is the way to go.
 
Miller inside, Lincoln outside. The only decent machine you are going to find is going to be a Miller and their bottom of the line MIG welder is going to run you about $600 (new). You could probably find a decent used one for half the price though. Take it from a welder (me) you get what you pay for when purchasing a wire feed welder. On the other hand, if you need a decent stick welding machine go to harbor freight. Their stick machine is AWESOME for the price. Just DO NOT get their wire feeders...
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Well dang, what's a good 110V stick welder I could buy to get good welds when it comes to welding a length of rebar to barstock or even to a smaller size damascus billet without the weld breaking after 1 -2 forging heats? I asked that in my other thread, whether or not a stick welder or something else for that matter would be better when only using 110V, that will give better penetration the the welder I had. Basically, what are the best (non sheild gas requiring) welders I could get for only ~110V use? This is refreshing, I was starting to feel hopeless with all of these confusing acronyms :confused: lol

~Paul
My YT Channel Lsubslimed
 
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I am also a noob to welding, so after many hours of DD, I opted for a dual voltage machine; it will run on 110V if that is all that is available, or hotter on 220V if you have it (or when you get it). I am pretty happy with it. It is a MGAW machine by Lincoln Electric: POWER MIG 180 Dual MIG Welder . Accessories/consumables available at Home Depot and parts/service easy to find as well.
 
I worked as a welder for several years before getting tired of hacking up black crud at the end of the day. I'm kinda spoiled as I've worked with nice, big, expensive machines. The one I've used for several years at my shop is a 45 year old Foney, only moving parts were the on/off switch. It's about had it, coil's going out. I've got a Longevity 315amp on order and will be picking up a harbor freight 250 amp AC machine tomorrow on sale for 199$.(took a look at one today, basically a transformer and rheostat, nothing fancy.) The longevity is a DC machine, and between the two should do everything I need. Will it compare to a professional machine? No, but then I don't weld professionally any more. And I hate the idea of dropping a couple grand for something I won't be using that much. I have used Lincoln and Miller in the past, and not real impressed with there cracker box welders, trouble is I haven't seen a mid range from them, it's either cheap or expensive, no in between. My father has a Lincoln tombstone and while it's possible to weld with it, it's never been what I'd consider a decent machine. Will either hold up to long term use? Don't know, but I'll find out. Might be wishing I'd gotten that Lincoln Idealarc, but we'll see.

Now were talking stick welders, not migs. Migs are OK, but I really don't like flux core and don't want to mess around with having to have gas on hand. That and I'm subject to switch from 6011 to 7018, and others depending on what I'm doing. For me a stick welder is just more convenient. Also I've seen a lot of welds with migs that had 100% penetration on one side, and little to non on the other, but from the outside looked like a decent weld. Yes, I know how to avoid that, but I believe a beginner is better served learning on a stick first.

The best machine I've ever used was an old Lincoln with a flat head 4 cylinder continental engine and a generator, not an alternator. It'd burn a 1/4" rod like it was nothing. I used it on one project with 200' of lead and it never slowed up. But I can't justify the expense or upkeep on one.

Do all the research you can and figure out what will work best for you.
 
I have a Readywelder portable mig welder. It runs off deep cycle or dual purpose batteries - pure DC power. Flux core on reverse polarity, gas on reg polarity. Stainless and aluminum, with the appropriate gas. I use .20 to .35 regularly, with a variety of 12 volt and 6 volt battery configurations. With three batteries, it'll operate at 350 amps with a 100% duty cycle. With two batteries, it'll be at around 250 amps, and will weld 3/4" steel in a single pass, equivalent to a bigger Miller or Lincoln. Voltage is controlled by wire thickness, wire feed speed and stick-out.

That said, it's a specific-purpose welder. It is most useful to me on the farm because broken equipment is hard to take back to a power outlet. My excavator has 2 batteries, and I welded the bucket linkage about 1/2 mile up in the woods. It saved my an entire day, and diesel. However, for a shop with power, I'd recommend a stick welder.
 
Stick welders, I don't get it. I've only ever used MIG, meaning I've never actually used a stick welder. I started welding with flux and got pretty decent at it, but the smoke I would have to clean afterwards was horrible. I switched to a 220v welder with gas and everything was so much easier and cleaner. The only hassle is filling the little bottle of stargon about every 40 forges that I build. What are the advantages of Stick welders, other than higher power and a larger electrode?

Oh, and I did a lot of research over the weekend and it seems the newer HF "black" welders are lower quality than the previous "blue" welders. Any opinions on this, as I've only used the "blue" welders over the years.
 
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