First time sticking metal together

[ThatOneGuy]

So this last weekend I bought a mig welder I'm using flux core. This is my first time ever using a welder. I will never call my self a welder, however sometimes it would be nice to stick things together. I'm wondering if I could get some constructive feedback. Maybe dirtman will chime in keep in mind this is my 4th weld the first 3 were horrid but progressed a bit

 

[Dirtman]

Increase voltage (heat setting), reduce amperage (wire speed), slow down travel speed (your hand). You're moving too fast and don't have enough penetration. (Insert sex joke here). Don't start practicing by performing butt welds, start by just practicing laying beads on flat plate. Get a sense for your settings and hand movements first until you start getting fairly even consistent beads.

 

[ThatOneGuy]

Ty I appreciate the feed back reading and watching videos is one thing. However having some one say hey fucktard this is where you went wrong helps lol. I'm just antsy to drive my truck and a new battery tray is the last big step.

 

[Dirtman]

One of the biggest mistakes I see new people do is not focusing on the puddle and just zipping along, then trying to decipher what they did wrong when they are finished. You need to get your head in there and watch the puddle. make adjustments as you go. You want to keep that puddle about the shape of a 9mm bullet. If it starts looking like a 5.56 bullet you're going too fast, if it starts looking like a shotgun slug you're going too slow.

Good puddle...

Too fast puddle...

Too slow puddle...

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Get lots of light on it too. Two 500 watt bulbs, one from each side will really help you see what your doing.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

Cleaning the metal real good first also helps. The suggested settings inside the door flap is a good reference, from there test/practice on some scrap similar to what you wanna weld, and adjust as needed to dial in before welding your work piece.

 

[sgtsandman]

A good channel on YouTube to watch is Chuckee2009. When he first started the channel, he did a lot of videos on welding with different types of equipment.

While videos won’t replace hands on, it helps with some hints and tricks.

He is no longer making content but last I checked, his channel was still up. Of course the guys here will help too.

 

[Ranger850]

Focus on the puddle, like @Dirtman said. (IIRC) > Then pull, don't push it to where you're going. With welding aluminum, it's opposite, push the puddle, don't pull it.

 

[pjtoledo]

So this last weekend I bought a mig welder I'm using flux core. This is my first time ever using a welder. I will never call my self a welder, however sometimes it would be nice to stick things together. I'm wondering if I could get some constructive feedback. Maybe dirtman will chime in keep in mind this is my 4th weld the first 3 were horrid but progressed a bitView attachment 50443

that's odd, I have quite a few similar welds....

with the few welds I attempted I found that tri-focals are about the worst thing there is with welding. couldn't see a thing as the lowers didn't line
up with the welding lens.

got a pair of glasses that are close-ups only. now I can at least see what I'm screwing up.

when welding scrap for practice cut it in half afterwards to see what kind of penetration you have.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Oh yeah, glasses...
I wear bifocals. Usually the close up part of the lens is on the bottom. I got a special set of glasses made with the close up part at the top of the lens, much better. Also there are magnifying inserts for the helmet that are cheaper than new glasses.

 

[Will]

I can't weld wearing glasses anymore at all.

I was only formally trained with gas welding. That's the best to learn with because it comes at you the slowest. You form the pool as gently as you want and then feed in the filler at your own pace, as needed. It's not as bright, either. I went to stick then and it sticks. That's the hardest part to learn--to strike the arc. But then, again, you control the pool and feed in the filler as needed. With the wire-feed, it's all about setting up the machine. It's the easiest IF you get the machine set up properly. It's easy to make a nice bead that sits up on top the the work and doesn't penetrate, which is what your weld looks like. Especially a 120v machine. If that's what you have, bevel a V in there and then fill the bevel. Bring your own penetration. BYOP. Starting with a gas or stick welder gives you a quicker leaning of what penetration is.

I have a nice Lincoln MIG but I still mostly use the Hobart 220V stick welder. I like clamping in sticks. Plus, you don't need to clean anything. As long as you can complete the circuit, you can weld it--just don't wear nylon clothing. Get stuff that says cotton. 3/8" plate in one pass or an exhaust pipe using 1/16" rod. I even did cast iron before, using cast iron rod and heating the piece in the oven before and after and letting it cool in there. My bandsaw had fallen over and broken a cast bracket. It worked perfectly. I've also cut metal with the stick welder using the rod for that purpose. Not as clean as a plasma cutter, mind.

 

[Curious Hound]

My trifocals are sometimes the problem. But lighting bites me more often. I'm usually welding outside. As I move around the work piece, getting a better position for each part of the weld, my body will cast a shadow from the sun. Or I'll turn around and the sun will come in the back of my helmet. It messes with the automatic helmet. I need to learn to manage that better and maybe buy a better quality helmet.

 

[Dirtman]

Welding makes its own light. If you can't see the weld with zero additional lighting, you're using the wrong shade lense.

 

[ThatOneGuy]

Thank you guys for the advice. I worked on it a bit after work today. The welder I have is 220v. Dirtman you were right about the settings I turned up the voltage and slowed down, what really caused me issues was I had the helmet set to go too dark I lightened the settings and could actually see the pool. I'm not gonna say they were pretty, however I did achieve good penetration on the butt joints for my battery tray. Even tried to stress them to the breaking point and they held so far anyway. I plan to stop by the scrap yard for some scrap to practice on. Quick question though one of my tips the wire melted into and is stuck. Is it a lost cause or is there a good way to clear it out.

 

[Dirtman]

Use a pair of dikes to cut the melted wire blob off as flush as you can to the end of the tip and then use a file or some sandpaper to gently remove the rest and make the end of the tip flat. As soon as the melted wire is flush to the tip itll just pop out.