What Type of welder do I need? Flux MIG or ArC to do bodywork?

[RadioRedline]

What Type of welder do I need? Flux MIG or ArC to do bodywork?

 

Radio

[izzo]

wire feed mig, even just cheapy one from harbor freight works good.

 

make sure you dont lay one fat bead, tack it all over, and do multiple short strips. Heat will cause it to warp if you are not careful

[Gary]

from the arcs ive used, id hate to do panelwork with em

 

MIG is easy to stitch with, ideally you want gassed but flux core does alright. just get the settings bang on before you try (so scrap panel etc, try a lot of settings)

[RadioRedline]

this one?

 

http://www.bosstoolsupply.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=17971

[izzo]

that one is gasless, might be worth finding one that does either so you can use either and see what works best?

 

it should do alright otherwise, after all the tin on these datsuns is really thin.

[flyerdan]

Check your local craigslist, here in Salem there are welders and air compressors listed every day. Buyers market right now.

[RadioRedline]

http://cgi.ebay.com/MIG-135-G-FLUX-MIG-MAG-WELDER-LINCOLN-COMPATIBLE-220-V_W0QQitemZ230392570111QQcmdZViewItemQQptZBI_Welders?hash=item35a477a0ff#ht_3066wt_1167

 

or maybe this one does both

[murderwagon]

a mig is definitely easier for a beginner welder but keep an eye on craigslist and ebay and what not i found a real cool stick welder from the 70s and it has a 900 pound copper core and it is the smoothest welder i have ever used i bought it for 75$ i planed on scraping it out for 4000 haha but i will never every sell it and it has a tig setting as well haven't used it yet but its awesome my recommendation for brand is a miller but find a good cheaper used one dont buy a junk cheap mig you get what you pay for

[Guest DatsuNoob]

I use flux core wire and it's just fine. .030" innershield is what I buy at Lowes, but .025" may work a little better. I've found that using a good amount of heat for just a quick little tack produces good penetration, lays flatter (less grinding), and less prone to warping since you're not on the material for that long. Gas is good too, but I dont see it absoultely necessary to throw $50+ at the welding supply shop to refill my bottle if I can produce results just as good with flux core.

[Madness]

if you're using flux core make sure to clean off all of the slag before you put another tack on top of it, otherwise you'll have pockets of slag in the welds that will turn into little holes after grinding.

 

 

Flux Core = buy a wire brush

[yellowdatsun]

Make sure you know your terms........Arc can refer to two types of units, a standard stick type arc welder, and a Mig without gas is also considered an arc. The back half of M-IG stands for "inert gas", so without the gas, it's not a mig. A standard stick type arc welder would be the worse possible thing you could use on a car. Those are for making buildings and ships.

 

With welders the old adage is 100% true, you get what you pay for. Buy the best one you can afford, and if you can only afford a $200 one, then don't buy one at all.

 

Buy a brand name like Lincoln, Miller and such.

 

The ones Harbor freight sells are garbage.

 

Make sure you can adjust the heat with at least 4 settings, and wire speed infinitely.

 

Use a shielding gas....yes it costs more, but the welds look 500% better. The flux core wire actually burns *deeper* into the metal than the shielding gas, so for body work it is much worse. Harder to control for delicate things.

 

Been welding for 20 years, trust me.

Edited November 6, 2009 by yellowdatsun

[Roadracer Al]

Stick is definitely for heavy steel work, not sheet metal work.

 

+1 on buying a non-abused brand-name used unit.

 

Flux core MIG wire is basically a tiny stick-welding rod turned inside out. It creates the inert shielding gas by boiling the flux in the center of the wire ---- so you have this flux steaming & bubbling in the middle of your weld puddle all the time, throwing spatters of molten metal around.

 

While flux-core does technically does have "inert gas", if you care what your welds look like, spend the extra on a better unit. Flux-core welds look like crap, and make extra work, IMHO.

 

The only thing flux core is better at than gas-supply is welding outdoors in a breeze.

[RadioRedline]

Thanks gents my buddy harley and I picked up a mastercraft mig 500$ reg on sale for 249! CDN Gas and gasless flux! Thanks for all the HELP!

 

Radio

[72240z]

a mig is definitely easier for a beginner welder but keep an eye on craigslist and ebay - dont buy a junk cheap mig you get what you pay for

 

Beginner or not mig is the correct tool and arc is not.

I actually own that mig 100, picked it up for 50 bucks lol. 5 years I have used it to stitch weld. So I would say its worth way more then what anyone would pay for it.

 

Like suggested you just have to make sure the settings are right and welds are clean, before you lay more or paint. I find a flapper disk or a light quick grind pass works just fine. IDK if I'd call it slag without explanation too, its nothing like the slag of an arc. More like a film imo.

 

This is all moot since he's picked up his welder, which seems like a good fit.

[izzo]

Beginner or not mig is the correct tool and arc is not.

I actually own that mig 100, picked it up for 50 bucks lol. 5 years I have used it to stitch weld. So I would say its worth way more then what anyone would pay for it.

 

Like suggested you just have to make sure the settings are right and welds are clean, before you lay more or paint. I find a flapper disk or a light quick grind pass works just fine. IDK if I'd call it slag without explanation too, its nothing like the slag of an arc. More like a film imo.

 

This is all moot since he's picked up his welder, which seems like a good fit.

 

 

 

I will vouch, arc is not the way to go. Learned that shit.

 

I thought maybe if i used 6013 with shallow penetration on the lowest settings i could get away with it. It worked for one pass (on a two inch square on the floorboard) I let it cool, and just couldn't get it to weld for shit the rest and ended up burning up the metal. Course now i have some shop time and can weld better with arc, i wouldn't try it again :lol: