Killer Weldz Thread

Fired up the old Miller 210 and made it earn it's keep today.
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Burned me some rods tonight. Just some flat stacking fun. 6013 and 7018 plus a stab at two random stainless steel rods I came to posses. Fun time using the new fixed gold shade helmet. Viewing area is unparalleled.

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I don't have the opportunity to do much heavy welding anymore where I work. So when I was asked to fix a frame issue that our vendor screwed up I jumped at the chance. Been about 10 years since I ran verticals and did over head like this. I am quite rusty but I think will be ok.


https://photos.app.goo.gl/BmYjXuAWNt65Z8l83
 
Dual shield is fun! I like stuff like that repair. What kind of behemoth axle is that??
 
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I've been super disappointed in my mild steel and stainless lately. And in the last few years it just seemed to get worse. Today I had a break through.




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Welcome to the over 40 couple club. I didn't know what I had been missing.
 
Here's some of my mig welds nowadays, since I'm not spray arching lol. Not too shabby
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marty79 said:
Here's some of my mig welds nowadays, since I'm not spray arching lol. Not too shabby
View attachment 263444 View attachment 263445
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Not to clutter the thread, or to nite your welds, but isn't the rule of thumb that the bead should extend into either side of the joint the thickness of the material? Photos might be decieving me or maybe misremembering the general rule. Looks great otherwise!
 
a_kelley said:
Not to clutter the thread, or to nite your welds, but isn't the rule of thumb that the bead should extend into either side of the joint the thickness of the material? Photos might be decieving me or maybe misremembering the general rule. Looks great otherwise!
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its a 110V mig with flux on it. doesn't get hot enough to flow well. Looks like he has the technique, just not the equipment.. Wait, that doesn't sound right.:lol:
 
Jeff B said:
its a 110V mig with flux on it. doesn't get hot enough to flow well. Looks like he has the technique, just not the equipment.. Wait, that doesn't sound right.:lol:
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No no this is at work y'all with big machine. Those beads are bout 1/2" wide, one plate is higher than the other
And FYI, I got rid of my little welder and bought a big boy
 
marty79 said:
No no this is at work y'all with big machine. Those beads are bout 1/2" wide, one plate is higher than the other
And FYI, I got rid of my little welder and bought a big boy
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Turn the heat up and let it flow then.
 
Mac5005 said:
Make sure you focus on tracing the front edge of the puddle and move with short circuit mig.

Trying to go slow to “burn it in” with short circuit will result in a cold weld that will fail.
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Yep......75% failure at that! Penetration in Short-Circuit is like an oxymoron. You need it. You get it. Just not much of it and it has to be perfect.

A stick electrode in unskilled hands will yield better penetration then any Short-Circuit done by a seasoned veteran. Undercut is the SMAW's demon, lack of fusion is Short-Circuit GMAW.

DUAL SHIELD FOR THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS
 
Mac5005 said:
Make sure you focus on tracing the front edge of the puddle and move fast with short circuit mig.

Trying to go slow to “burn it in” with short circuit will result in a cold weld that will fail.
Click to expand...
Ok I'm lost. So I looked up short circuit welding..low heat welding? Is that right?
That is Miller 250 set at 24volts, wire at 4.2ish. the machine is old and the lead on it sucks horrible. I've tried to turn it up but it just spatters everywhere and looks like crap. 21-24 volts is best it does, higher than that and it just gets weird and messy.
(Sure miss those 440 welders at my last job)
 
marty79 said:
Ok I'm lost. So I looked up short circuit welding..low heat welding? Is that right?
That is Miller 250 set at 24volts, wire at 4.2ish. the machine is old and the lead on it sucks horrible. I've tried to turn it up but it just spatters everywhere and looks like crap. 21-24 volts is best it does, higher than that and it just gets weird and messy.
(Sure miss those 440 welders at my last job)
Click to expand...

MIG transfer modes are really just a function of wire size, voltage and gas. Short circuit is the most common and like WARRIORWELDING said, lack of fusion is the most common problem with it. Any given wire diameter has a usable voltage range and different voltages/gases get different transfer modes. Short circuit is the coldest of the modes, but as you’ve seen w cranking the heat way up, it’s better than getting into spray voltages without spray gas.

I also say get you some dual shield and don’t look back. You can run the same mix gas and still use hardwire for smaller stuff. Here's some barnes shackle hangers I put together for my truck a while back. Short circuit hardwire on the left, dual shield on the right. I just think the flux lays in a lot better.
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Short circuit is generally below 24 volts.

The pic I quoted of yours looks like short circuit mig.

It’s paramount to trace the front edge of the puddle and move fast to keep the arc on the front edge of the puddle where it meets the base metal.

Just not so fast that you undercut the edges of your weave.

Fwiw I’ve welded 3/8 plate and sch80 6” pipe with settings as low as 17.5v, 175 wire that resulted in 99-105 amps that didn’t fail in destructive testing.

The point I was making, is that the technique is everything in short circuit. Changing the settings to make a quality weld are a band aid to a poor technique.
 
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