Newbie needs help!

admin

I am very new to welding and am having problems getting the mig with gas to weld correct.  I have a 110 mig and core flux welder that I am able to use the core flux and run a decent bead, but want to weld 21 gauge steel and am having blow through with the core flux.  I have tried to use the mig with gas and cannot get it to weld a decent bead.  If I use the heat setting recommended it will not even start to penetrate the metal all I end up with is a pile.  I have to turn it up to the highest setting to get it to work, but that is after many attempts.  I have tried ajusting the gas, and the wire speed to no avail. I am not able to get the bacon frying sound that I can with the core flux.  I want to weld sheet metal on my truck but worry that the core flux will be to hot.  Is it my technique or the welder, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.....Thanks
Reply:It won't weld on 21 gauge using gas unless you turn it up high?Did you change polarity when you changed wire?  Using solid wire and gas, the wire should be positive and the work clamp negative (DCEP).What stickout are you running (the distance from the contact tip to the work).   Sounds like your stickout may be way too long.  Try to keep the tip of the gun about a 1/4" to 1/2" from the work.  That may work better for you.Favorite right now is a Miller Syncro 200.Tons of tools and I blame at least one of them when things don't go right.
Reply:yes that is correct, I have to have the setting on the highest to get any penetration at all.  I did changed the polarity setting when I switched to gas.  Everything that I read says that mig is much easier but I am not having any luck at all.  I will try to hold the tip closer to the metal, but I have varied that too.  Will the amount of gas flow affect it?  Thanks
Reply:What type of machine is it?Have to admit I'm stumped.If it burns through with flux core, you should at least get some pretty decent penetration switching to MIG.  It should be pretty hard not to burn through something that thin.To answer your question, yes gas flow will affect it but more in terms of weld quality.  Sounds like you have bigger issues going on there.Maybe post some pics of what the attempts look like and that might help diagnosis.Favorite right now is a Miller Syncro 200.Tons of tools and I blame at least one of them when things don't go right.
Reply:I tried what you suggested in regards to holding the tip closer and I was able to run a bead on a setting of 2 instead of 4, so I think that with some more practice things will improve. Thanks for your help!!
Reply:Phila is giving you some good advice, but i am gonna say let's back up a minute.  To start with what brand and diameter wire are you using?  Also what gas are you using, and what machine is it?  If you let us know these things we might can give you some insight as to what to do or change.I'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:I have a Campbell Hausfeld 115 volt mig and coreflux.  I am using campbell hausfeld wire .035 for mild steel with 75/25 gas. Any help is appreciated....Thanks
Reply:Do you have your work clamp attached directly to the piece of metal on a clean, paint free area?John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:Get a one pounder of .030 and give it a shot. I think you'll be a lot happier with the results. If I was wanting to do any panel work I'd use .023/.025 actually. Try the .030 first.
Reply:Sandy is dead on !! For bodywork I use a Lincoln 125+ with .023 wire to get the weld I want. Also, all wire is not equal, buy good wire.Anything worth doing is worth doing RIGHT
Reply:Just asking the obvious, but you are using .035 solid wire and not the same flux cored wire with the gas?  I would also recommend C02 over 75/25 it will give ya better penetration with the smaller units.  plus as mentioned above I think you would be much better going with a smaller diameter wire.I'm a Lover, Fighter, Wild horse Rider, and a pretty good welding man......
Reply:Originally Posted by mustnggtkc2001I have a Campbell Hausfeld 115 volt mig and coreflux.  I am using campbell hausfeld wire .035 for mild steel with 75/25 gas. Any help is appreciated....Thanks
Reply:I have the welder set to the mig setting and am using solid .035 mig wirewith gas.  I will try the .030 smaller wire and change to C02 and see if that helps and double check to make sure my clamp is attached to clean surface.  Thanks for all your suggestions, I will let ya know what happens.
Reply:For auto sheetmetal, set the unit up with an .023 solid wire and stick with the 75% Ar / 25% CO² for your shielding gas. The issues you're having  with trying to run the .035 solid wire on the machines lowest settings , is because the out put power level is to low to run an .035 solid wire. At the lower settings the smaller diameter .023 wire should work just fine.
Reply:Thanks that makes sense, I will give the .023 wire a try......