mig stainless

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what cfm do you run your regulator at for stainless? thanks
Reply:I ran mine between 40 and 50 cfh on the stainless fence job I just finished, but that was outdoors with the wind trying to get around my windbreaks.  And I was using 90% He / 7.5% Ar / 2.5% CO2.  Strange as it may sound, I've never wire-fed stainless indoors.  If I was going to, I would start at 30 cfh, then drop 10 and raise 10 to see if it affected the weld.  Running more shielding gas than necessary is just throwing money away.There is a website called weldreality.com which has a lot of good info on stainless gas choices.  I would highly recommend spending some time there, even if you don't use all of the info.P.S. - My flowmeter has different flow rates printed on the side depending on whether your main ingredient is Argon, Carbon Dioxide, or Helium.  Be sure you're reading the right measure.
Reply:ok, was running around 30 indoors it worked good and made a good weld but i seemed to get a lot of spatter. i was running tri mix 90%/7.5%/ 2.5%. seemed more like a mild steel weld with straight co2.
Reply:The spatter could be caused by a lot of things, including voltage too high or too low for the wire speed, which is the most common.  I had nearly zero spatter with tri-mix on my fence job - so little that I didn't even bother to clean it.I would try adjusting your voltage and leaving wire speed alone, or vice versa.  Also remember that the smaller the wire diameter, the less stick-out you should have.  Finally, make sure you don't have any heavy air currents in the area (some people use a fan to keep the fumes away from them, and in the process ruin the gas shield).
Reply:I will try some fine tuning on my stainless settings. Thanks for the help. I'll post a update when I mess with it again.
Reply:30-35 cf/hr is the ideal setting. 45 cf/hr is acceptable when welding outside. You should avoid more than 45 cf/hr as that tends to cause strong turbulence around the weld area, which tends to mix air into the "gas envelope." If wind is a problem, You should take some leftover pieces of thin sheet metal, and make yourself some tack-on windshields.And I was using 90% He / 7.5% Ar / 2.5% CO2
Reply:good info. yes the gas is $$$$$ i will try that on my next fill up. might be why my local welding supply didnt have much of it.
Reply:Josh,Sounds like a direct quote from Ed Craig.  If you're going to quote him, at least give him the credit.How much short arc mig welding of SS have you actually done?Have you done any testing of the weld bead produced with "your recommended gas"?I've been using a helium rich tri-mix for welding marine applications for many years and I've had excellent results with the mix.  Until it's not available, or until someone can PROVE to me it's inferior, I'll continue to use it.Frankly, your post sounds like you're blowing gas out your azz.Syncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.