Flux Core Welding

Keith1138

Keith1138

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 18, 2015
Location
Harrisburg NC
I have been thinking about getting a cheap flux core welder that i can run off of a normal GRF outlet. My hope is to use it to fix some rock sliders, make some skid plates, and possibly weld on some unibody stiffeners down the road. Mainly to just weld together small pieces of metal. I will not use it to weld anything too serious like steering or suspension parts.

i don't know much about welding besides weld prep and to take your time because not enough heat is bad but too much is also bad.

Any tips or advice?
 
My Lincoln weld pack 140 is a beast for a 120volt setup. I grabbed that as a starter MIG that does both flux core and MIG. I welded everything on my Jeep (sliders, steering, bumpers, axle truss) with that because that is all I had. Now I have a 220v stick for the anything over 3/16” thick.

Get a good helmet and watch a few hours on YouTube. You’ll be alright.


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I'm the pro with flux machine lol. You'll be able to weld anything if you use flux wire (burns way hotter than mig). Use .30 though, .35 wire is too hot, will trip duty cycle too much. .30 will weld up to 1/4" steel at half power easy...at full heat your burning holes in 3/8 stuff. I've used 110v flux Lincoln 140 for 11yrs and you can weld anything. Mig on that welder however you gotta slow down and really burn in even on highest heat. Klutch 140 is awesome welder for the price btw
 
I've had a Hobart 140 for 13 years now. Get some scrap metal and practice with it. The more you burn the more you learn. Don't buy a harbor freight cheapo machine, you will be mad.
 
Well I was looking at a harbor freight one because I cant dish out over 150 plus helmet and gloves and scrap steel right now.

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Keith1138 said:
Well I was looking at a harbor freight one because I cant dish out over 150 plus helmet and gloves and scrap steel right now.

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you will seriously HATE the harbor freight cheapo ones...they're not even worth welding sheetmetal lol, (they really are pretty bad). I used one once and wow, worthless. If anything, keep an eye out for used 130/140 amp welder for around $100...they come and go.
 
Do not buy a cheap harbor freight welder like a Chicago Electric. The Vulcans are great. Just go straight to something like a Lincoln, Klutch, Vulcan, Hobart or Esab or something.

I just got done welding my rock rings on with a cheap, Bebe heard of this before, Firepower 125 MiG welder. It took forever! Duty cycle isn’t long so I couldn’t weld very long, and the power was very inconsistent so it was hard to keep the heat and puddle going. Every time the power would struggle, my wire speed slowed down too so it would start spattering. Very annoying.

I know you think you just wanna learn and weld a little this or that, but trust me you will be miles ahead with a good Lincoln 140 or something similar. You’re only as good as the tools you’re using. A good little 110v MiG/flux welder will suit your needs for year. The cheap harbor freight junk will cause you to replace it in no time and be money wasted.
 
Beside my ol Lincoln Stick 220V welder, I bought Hobart 175 / 220V. I still run flux core. Started out years back, with the .30 wire & was welding good. Switched to .35, thinking I could weld/fill thicker better. At some point, I just wasn't using it, & when I tried again, it kept welding my tips. I finally gave up. Then I was reading some welding advise here. I went & bought .30 & tips again. Now it welds very well again! I think my .35 wire just got old, maybe collected moisture. I might try a new helmet, as my problem now is Seeing my weld! I recently had a Shop do some welding for me. There using a 120V with built in transformer that steps it up, if needed. Also run shielding gas. They say, I'd get better welds with gas [I have the adapter, but no tank], And, I'd be able to see better. Sounds right.
 
Keith1138 said:
I have been thinking about getting a cheap flux core welder that i can run off of a normal GRF outlet. My hope is to use it to fix some rock sliders, make some skid plates, and possibly weld on some unibody stiffeners down the road. Any tips or advice?
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for what it's worth, save your money bud and bring your stuff here on a weekend and be happy to help you weld it, teach you while we're at it and you can save up for descent unit. You'll get to see the Klutch 140 in action with Mig setup and I can throw on the flux wire too to show you how that goes. Just food for thought.
 
Ill probably just keep my eye out for a welder that isn't Chicago welder from harbor freight. Any thing to be on the look out for when buying a used welder?
 
Also some people are crazy for what they asking for the used cheap harbor freight welders. You can find them for sale on facebook for way more than they cost new.
 
Here's a tip, buy a really good chisel. The reason being is you will have weld spatter on everything. The chisel takes all of that off pretty quick. If you plan to stick with flux you'll be using it a lot.
 
@rodney eppes

Oh and one time I did get a bad spool of fc wire of the store shelf. Not sure if it got moist or made with not right flux or what but it would not burn right. Had some problems explaining it to the lady at the hardware store, "well how is another spool going to be any different"....smh... "Just exchange it, this one is bad internally, it's got compound inside the wire" oh and fwiw, I'm running it through an AC HF FC 90a welder. It'll do 3/16"-1/4" ok but you got to take your time. Never had much problems with the over temp cut off, unless I was burning more than 6" of 1/4" plate together.. it's no production unit for sure, but hobby it's just fine. It is more picky about wire being AC output. (I believe the wire is es90-gs1 or some such, and the -gs1 or whatever makes the difference - I can look tomorrow)
 
marty79 said:
for what it's worth, save your money bud and bring your stuff here on a weekend and be happy to help you weld it, teach you while we're at it and you can save up for descent unit. You'll get to see the Klutch 140 in action with Mig setup and I can throw on the flux wire too to show you how that goes. Just food for thought.
Click to expand...

I’m sitting here rubbing my eyes. Did fuller just use punctuation?


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McCracken said:
Here's a tip, buy a really good chisel. The reason being is you will have weld spatter on everything. The chisel takes all of that off pretty quick. If you plan to stick with flux you'll be using it a lot.
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Anti-spatter spray helps, too.

Well, it doesn't prevent the spatter, but at least helps cleaning it off easier
 
RatLabGuy said:
Anti-spatter spray helps, too.

Well, it doesn't prevent the spatter, but at least helps cleaning it off easier
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yes it does reduce spatter. At least the stuff I use does. I'd post a pic of it but can't find the can that I had. Anchor brand - for industrial use only. I think it's methylene chloride mostly. Supposed to let it dry 30 seconds before welding. You can also use it on the tip/nozzle and it reduces spatter at least 75%.
 
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