Cry for help - Welding

[John Marchant]

Is there anyone in the Newhaven, Sussex area that can help show me where I am going wrong with welding? Free beer and anything that I can help with in return. I am mig welding with argolite gas and getting it right (I think) some of the time but not sure. Really wish I had bought a chassis
Any help gratefully received........

[Talonmotorsport]

Post a few pics of what you have done and what MIG,wire and gas pressure your using and it maybe clear why your not getting the results you want.

[Marcus]

If you have a gas/no gas welder, it's worth checking the polarity of the torch as it's different for the different modes. We spent ages with our SIP welder making pigeon shit welds until we realised!!

[ozzy1]

Firstly i would get a copy of CKC,april edition i think had a good article from AshG on mig welding.
As mentioned make sure you have the earth clamp and torch polarity correct as it is opposite to using flux core wire.
Dont be afraid to try different power settings and gas flow rates.My mig is a 200 amp but only has 4 settings,i have found that the 2nd setting is best on the chassis with a gas flow rate of 10l/min as im indoors in my shed.
The best thing to do obviously is just practice on some box section not straight on the chassis.Once you get it right it will sound like bacon sizzling in a frying pan .Strange i know but when it happens you will know.

[axle]

Sorry mate No where near you I am in scotland, but read the book and the your welder manual. Wear welding gloves and try holding the back of the welding torch with your left hand to make the correct angle.

Hope this is of some help.
Good luck

Originally Posted by John Marchant

Is there anyone in the Newhaven, Sussex area that can help show me where I am going wrong with welding? Free beer and anything that I can help with in return. I am mig welding with argolite gas and getting it right (I think) some of the time but not sure. Really wish I had bought a chassis
Any help gratefully received........

[spud69]

One of the best things you can do John is to get a good quality auto helmet so that you can see the weld pool as you are welding keeping the spark within the weld pool going in a "U" shape along the joint - effectively pushing the pool along with the spark. Keep the gaps between cuts as tight as possible until you get the hang of the way the weld pool behaves.

Turn up the power to as much as you can get away with and the gas flow at about 10 l/min. Also make sure your wire feed is as smooth as possible as this will make for a better more controllable weld.

Practice.....AndyH.....

[RAYLEE29]

Hi, just a thought what is argolite? not heard of it myself.
does it have any co2 in it if not youll never get a good weld on steel.
for steel you need an active gas (something with co2 in),if you use a non actve gas (pure argon or not enough co2) your welds will be porous and have loads of pin holes in them.
hope this helps Ray

[John Marchant]

Sorry it was argo shioeld from BOC argon and Co2 mix.
Thanks to all for help and advice but may have to give up on the project for now as I just have too much onmy plate at the moment.

[james3004]

I found argonsheild universal a little better than argonsheild light, not that that really helps