Who uses Pulsed MIG setups in their work?

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If you use Pulsed MIG, what kind of setups are you running? As far as machines, wires, guns, basically your setup. What kind of work do you do? Structural steel, trailer/vehicle manufacturing, etc. Also what type of metals are you fabricating with? Mild steel, aluminum, stainless and so on.Do you like using pulsed MIG compared to some other process? Why, pro's and con's?
Reply:When I was on the floor ( I just recently went to the office 'dark side' LOL) that's all I used, got to the point I had to rethink using a non-pulse machine. Usually .035 hard wire because I was welding anything from 3/4 plate to 16ga wipecoat bodymetal. Very easy to control should you have a less than perfect fitup Anything from a rusty old salt encrused spreader body to new material.A Bernard  centerfire  gun which is great except when you're welding out of position as the gas holes plug up bad, you have to make sure you use lots of tip dip. I've used a cobra gun for some aluminum but wasn't totally impressed with it, I think it was me not the machine as I didn't have time to mess around with it. It worked fine just took a lot to get dialed in......Mike
Reply:Same here with alum. I don't use pulse with my MM350p on alum because it is in spray anyway and only compromises the power. However I have seen Lincoln's pulse on pulsed steel welding and was astounded at the quality of the weld. Would have one but just don't do that much steel mig work.Weld like a "WELDOR", not a wel-"DERR" MillerDynasty700DX,Dynasty350DX4ea,Dynasty200DX,Li  ncolnSW200-2ea.,MillerMatic350P,MillerMatic200w/spoolgun,MKCobraMig260,Lincoln SP-170T,PlasmaCam/Hypertherm1250,HFProTig2ea,MigMax1ea.
Reply:i rarely touch pulse find its slower process it can be more forgiving in some ways but can also hide deep weld defects like lack of root pen i feel its just another shiney part the saleman try and pushHigh Octane Welding
Reply:I use pulse MIG (Lincoln Power Wave) for steel, stainless, silicon bronze, and some aluminum. Virtually zero spatter, makes out-of-position welding faster and easier. Beads are smooth with little or no ripples, except for pulse-on-pulse. Much wider thickness range with one size of wire- I can weld type M copper tubing (the thin stuff) with .035 bronze wire with no burn-through.Another big advantage is that you only have to set the wire speed, the machine adjusts all the other parameters for you. On this machine, that extends to CV (non-pulse) modes as well. One-knob control, but you can adjust the voltage if you want to.Basically nothing magic but it makes everything easier, especially if you weld many different metals or do a lot of out-of-position welding.JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps
Reply:Originally Posted by Silicon-basedI use pulse MIG (Lincoln Power Wave) for steel, stainless, silicon bronze, and some aluminum. Virtually zero spatter, makes out-of-position welding faster and easier. Beads are smooth with little or no ripples, except for pulse-on-pulse. Much wider thickness range with one size of wire- I can weld type M copper tubing (the thin stuff) with .035 bronze wire with no burn-through.Another big advantage is that you only have to set the wire speed, the machine adjusts all the other parameters for you. On this machine, that extends to CV (non-pulse) modes as well. One-knob control, but you can adjust the voltage if you want to.Basically nothing magic but it makes everything easier, especially if you weld many different metals or do a lot of out-of-position welding.John
Reply:The V350 Pro "Advanced Process" model has pulse modes; the "factory" model does not. The pulse modes in the V350 Pro are not as numerous or advanced as those in the current Power Waves. The Power Waves have a mode called "Rapid Arc" which works with both metal core and solid wire. It was originally made for high-speed automatic welding but it is da ballz for out-of-position welding, especially with metal core.On the other hand, a good gas-shielded flux-core wire like UltraCore 71A85 would probably do very well with the equipment you already have, and the cost is not that much higher than good-quality solid wire.If you want to give yourself and the Big Boss a real comparison, invite your local Lincoln and Miller reps to demonstrate their pulse machines in your plant. Just make sure there is a real advantage vs. a properly set up and dialed in standard machine before spending the company's $$. JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps
Reply:X2. On getting the lincoln and Miller reps to do on site demos.Tiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Ive used lincoln STT machines for years for pipe in oil and gas, as well as fronius 270amp pulse mig machines offshore, for the same, pipe root, then duelshield fill and cap, makes life very easy.Sent from my LG-P716 using Tapatalk
Reply:As ttoks reminds me, Fronius and OTC Daihen also make very good pulse MIG machines. Not as well known as Miller and Lincoln but highly regarded in industry, worth checking them out if your company is investing in new equipment.JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps
Reply:I HIGHLY reccomend fronius machines, they are incredibly versitile, very efficiant, reliable and run an amazingly smooth arc, i've used they're 270 pulse machines  for everything from structural fabrication, to power station boiler tube and main steam lines and pipe for offshore oil and gas, they have been a step above anything else ive used in they're  respective uses.Sent from my LG-P716 using Tapatalk
Reply:We use ESAB DigiPulse and Lincoln PowerWave 400's at work. Both are great machines. I really like the pulse feature, but it's not a necessity. I find it does make for a smoother weld with less splatter.Ed
Reply:I started a playing with it. What gas are you guys using for solid 0.035 wire? I had one of my C300s running 380ipm today with some kids playing with it. 75/25 mixTeach Ag Mech - Mike At Home:Lincoln Electric AC225Miller Challenger 172Gas AxeWork:eclectic bunch of 90's vintage blue boxes
Reply:I cant believe you guys are questioning its use on aluminum and touting its ability on steel. I use them at work, and I keep it set up with a push pull because of its stunning performance on aluminum, especially out of position. My engineers tell me the gas mixture used on the steel yields a deposit with a lower charpy v-notch rating than 75/25.Constant Current Weldor.
Reply:Originally Posted by teachagmechI started a playing with it. What gas are you guys using for solid 0.035 wire? I had one of my C300s running 380ipm today with some kids playing with it. 75/25 mix
Reply:Originally Posted by Silicon-basedFor steel I like C8 (92% Ar, 8% CO2) but C5 or C10 are very similar. Choose C5 if you are going to weld stainless as well, but C3 is really the best for stainless.C25 is not good for pulse because you can't get into a true spray transfer. The arc will be rough and spattery.Once you get the right gas with that .035 wire, try mode 13 (Rapid Arc). Then you will have an idea of what the Power Waves can do. John
Reply:Yeah, I'm thinking of to c10 or similar for all my mig now I got a pulse machine.  The default listing on my Miller for pulse  is 90/10Tiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:We have had pulse weld deposits tested for penetration, tensile strength, ect. It passed D1.8 seismic qualifications. Pulse feature is basically just a way to use spray transfer out of position. So once its set up correctly, you get much of the benefits of spray, like excellent wet out, penetration, and a little more tolerance to scale and rust.
Reply:When setting up the pulse, what causes A) porosity and B) the crackling/spattering sound? Happens periodically on pulse and rapidarc. What settings do you change to alleviate undercut? ThanksTeach Ag Mech - Mike At Home:Lincoln Electric AC225Miller Challenger 172Gas AxeWork:eclectic bunch of 90's vintage blue boxes
Reply:Both of those problems are usually caused by contamination of the base metal- mill scale, oil, etc. It makes a nasty sound but doesn't usually make much spatter unless it is bad. It helps to pay with the default settings in pulse. I usually set the arc length a little higher and the arc control a bit lower than the defaults. Also play with the run-in settings; I think mine is 100 ipm.Also, if you have problems/questions call the Advanced Process Group at Lincoln: 877-837-8145. They are very helpful.JohnA few weldersA lot of hammersA whole lot of C-clamps