welder

E

Ed Clarke Knives

Joined
Mar 26, 2010
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Does anyone have a recommendation for a welder that will be used for welding a rod to hold work piece when making damascus billets? What type of weld will hold up to the heat?:confused:
 
Personally I just use the center bar as the handle by leaving it the full length. I've tried welding re-bar handles on but I've found them to just be a pain since re-bar typically is junk that doesn't weld well.

Using this method I've had success with a tiny craftsman glassless mig welder but I've upgraded to a 295amp stick welder now.

Here is a picture of what I'm describing.
process10-2012.jpg
 
I use a little mig welder. for attaching the handle I grind a point onto the handle so the weld is full penetration

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I've been using a mig welder but got tired of pulling out all that stuff for a fast weld so I bought a tiny stick welder. Its a forney AT-100 I got for $100 new from ebay. For that price I had to try it. I use it for just what your talking about and I actually just built a knife vise out of 1/4" steel and it did fine. Its for sure a light duty rig but its great for what your talking about. For anything else its hard to beat a mig though.
 
I use a miller 250X mig machine. It works great and I use it for almost all my welding. I only drag out the TIG when I need the precision and do not want a heavy bead.
 
If I could only have 1 low cost welder it would be a stick machine that could do at least 120 amps DC. I have a older Lincoln AC/DC that I paid less than $100 used and have run a big pile of rod thru. Lots of types of rod available, quickly setup and changes from type to type and size to size. No jams, nothing to replace. With 120 amps I can run 1/8 7018 and do some bigger fabrication/repairs if need be.

Best setup possible for a small shop is a Miller XMT 304 0r 350. With my 350 I can do stick or quickly connect my suitcase wire feed or spool gun. It also tigs great and if you want to tig aluminum, plug in a hi freg unit. It can handle anything from welding gum wrappers to a bridge abutment. Plug it into anything from 220 single to 480 3 phase and it detects and sets itself for that power. Draw back is the base machine is $3200. But, it is one of the very best power supply's on the market.
 
I recently got a Hobart mig from Tractor Supply. It's only the 120 volt model, but it works great for around the shop.
 
I've tried welding re-bar handles on but I've found them to just be a pain since re-bar typically is junk that doesn't weld well.
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Dan, like you found, re-bar no good at all. I use 1/2"x1" mild steel, works great, either 7018 stick weld (old Hobart 250 DC),
or mig (210 MillerMatic). Handles do not come lose.
 
Hit craigslist look for an older Lincoln stick welder, a couple hundres bucks and here is a huge plus. You can get welding electrodes of differing composition like High carbon low carbon, carbon nickle, ...You get the idea. You could use these to add layers and make paterns in the layers. Plus stick welding makes a damn strong weld and you don't need shielding gas or that expensive AND WORTHLESS flux core wire.
 
I know next to nothing about welders but I wanted to temporarily hijack this thread and ask. Is a Lincoln 225 Amp welder something that would cover the needs of most recreational welding? In other words what would something like a 225 amp NOT do?
 
Fletch Helical said:
I know next to nothing about welders but I wanted to temporarily hijack this thread and ask. Is a Lincoln 225 Amp welder something that would cover the needs of most recreational welding? In other words what would something like a 225 amp NOT do?
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it would not do thin stock and sheet metal

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Most 225 amp arc welders are refering to the AC amperage and if they switch to DC the rate is lower. DC will run better with a larger selection of rods. That being said, about the smallest stick rod is 1/16 which can weld some fairly thin stuff like exhaust tubing with a little patience (because of the increased heat it will distort thin metal more than the smallest .023 solid wire mig ) and a 225 AC machine can run 1/8 or 5/32 rod and using multiple weld stringers you can weld some pretty heavy pieces over an inch thick. With more power you can run rods as large as 1/4" and make some huge welds. Lots of types of filler metal available. Super easy to go from type to type. Stick the rod in your stinger, adjust machine and weld.

Mig (wire feed) there are 3 basic types of wire.
Solid. Usually smaller diameter from .023 up to .035. These need a shielding gas (Co2, argon or a mix) and produce a clean weld and can do some very thin pieces, but will not make a good weld on anything over 1/4 thick as they are so cold that they do not penetrate deep into a heavier piece that sucks up the heat. Many types of wire available including aluminum. (The samller machines will really have problems with aluminum)

Flux core. The down and dirty of wire. Has flux in center of wire. Wire of course is larger to carry this. Not as many wire types available a will not make as nice of weld deposit as the other types. Weld needs cleaned to remove slag. Will not weld as thin a material as solid wire, but with a large enough machine you can do huge welds. My LN 25 with the solid wire gun can run 3/32 wire and put down some big honking welds

Dual shield. This wire has flux on the inside and shelding gas on the outside. Makes a nice weld fast. Need slagged but, not heavy slag coat. For heavier welds. Usually from .045 to 3/32 wire. 3/32 flux is huge and hot/ You can lay down a bead that will fill a 3/4" deep and wide V. It will glow red for several seconds after you finish. It will light your clothes on fire. I have never seen it run up hill. .045 will make weld on stuff from 1/4 up and you can run it uphill. They make automatic machines that can make monster welds with dual shield.

Tig. This method uses a torch that holds piece of tunsten rod of various diameters and has a ceramic cup around it that an inert gas (usually argon) flows thru to keep oxygen away from the weld. Super clean welds. Very fine control especially with a foot pedal to control the power while you weld while using a water cooled torch. There are guys that can actually weld 2 gum wrappers together with these things. Almost any metal can be welded with the right tig setup. The most difficult process to master well as you need to feed the filler metal with one hand while running the torch with the other. You can heat stuff up and melt with the torch with out adding filler which is not possible with the other types of welding.

Aluminum is almost impossible with AC stick. There is DC aluminum stick rod. It is very difficult to weld with and dirty. Most wire feeds will run aluminum after a fashion. Jamming a lot and being a pain, you really need special drive rollers, the shortest whip possible, a large liner and a slightly over sized tip to have much success with a regular wire feed on aluminum and it will still jam a often. Spool guns work much better. They are small wire feed units that the wire feeds that attach to a parent machine and hold and feed the wire right at the tip. There are also expensive push pull units that have a coordinated drive at both the machine and the tip. The best aluminum welds are tig and that requires a high freq power source or converter.

Sub arc. The monster of welding. Automatic machine feeds huge wire while covering the puddle with flux (usually supplied as powder)

Usually the bigger the beed the more stresses you induce into the weld area.

Ramble ramble ramble
 
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Very good info I was just wondering because I noticed a 225 amp Lincoln on Craigslist for $175 and was wondering if it's worth getting. I don't mind having a bit too much power but I didn't want to get anything that would be limited to only doing fairly thin stock. Ib2 thanks for the detialed run down, very helpful.
 
I would keep my eyes open for a similar machine that was DC capable. A DC rating of 120 is about the same as an AC 225. DC is worth it. You should be able to find such a machine for that kind of money. I have had one I paid under a $100 for years and I keep it for a back up. It is always ready and willing to work.

I also have a small Miller 220volt wire feed. It can do most small wire, runs sheilding gas and I have used it for aluminum. But, mostly it sets because it is so easy to go with stick and I don't have to change wire types, rollers. tips. Just pick the stick type and size I want. Set the machine around the right range and weld.

With a small DC stick machine you can easily go from say 6013 1/16 stick at 50 amps to weld something 1/16 thick to 1/8 7018 at 120 amps to make a good solid weld (several passes) on a 1" thick piece for a press. Stainless? Clamp in a piece of 3/32 309 rod at 80 amps and your welding. Occasional piece of aluminum over 1/8 thick you can do with the aluminum rod too. About $30 a 1/2 lb and a stick goes fast. Pieces must be super clean. It is like running 6010 thats on speed. Takes a bit to learn and figure out. Smoky dirty, but aluminum always is.
 
Wait you're losing me here, since I'm not good at hardly any electrical talk and I don't speak much welder either :o.

Explain the differences between a 225 amp machine and whatever I should be looking for that is DC capable if you don't mind please. I was looking at the Depot the other night they sell a brand new lincoln 225 amp machine right now for like $260. I see the same ones on Craigslist for anywhere between $100-250. Bear in mind I know about as much (and quite possibly less) as a 3rd grader knows about welding machines right now. So proceed with that in mind if you don't mind.
 
If you don't "speak much welder" I would suggest buying and reading a book before spending money on a welder. I make my students buy the Welder's Handbook by Richard Finch (HP Books). Last I checked they still sold it at Home Depot for about $20. Amazon has it too. It's a good basic book that covers all types of welding except forge. It will give you a good idea about what you can (and can't) do with any of the welding machines that you are likely to find for sale
 
Everyone has been sooo helpful!!! Thanks so much everyone for the great info. Looks like I'll start with a stick welder, and use a longer center bar or some mild steel for a handle. Thanks again.
 
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