Mig Welds

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I am new to the welding world. I just purchased a Marquette 110 mig welder. Right now it has the trimix gas attached so I figured I would just use it to practice. I will try and add photos for my question. My first couple of welds were rather chunky looking. After setting changes my welds started to come out kind of straight and even, but they look like a fat pencil lead. They are not spreading left and right at all. Any suggestions to acheive the so called "stack of quarters" look?
Reply:Is that mild steel? Trimix is for stainlessIBEW 1412Hobart HH210Lincoln 225ACLincoln Ranger 305DLincoln Precision Tig 185Lincoln Pro Mig 255CMiller Spectrum 2050
Reply:It's hard to tell from the picts, but it looks like you are moving to fast in the 2nd pict. That or you need to turn up the heat.A few helpful hints. First resize the picts first please. The web program cuts off the text if the picts too large. 2nd post up as much info as possible on the settings, heat, wire speed, wire size and type ( solid or FC if you are using that instead of solid and gas), metal type and thickness as well as the gas you posted. As said trimix is usually for SS, I've never tried to weld mild with it so can't say if part of your issue is gas related.Since the machine is 110v about the best you might get is maybe 1/8" with the machine cranked up.  Some of the smaller 110v migs won't do more than 1/16" with gas. Flux core wire will help with penetration some, but not all that much on a small machine.Don't expect the stack of dimes look from mig. That look comes from tig or O/A welds usually. Good mig welds are generally smooth.Take a look at this post I did else where. It covers how to get better picts of welds. I believe you will need to register to see the example picts I included.http://microzone.us/weldingforum/ind...ic,1488.0.html..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Any suggestions to acheive the so called "stack of quarters" look?
Reply:Yes it is steel and a friend gave me a tank with trimix in it. I figured I would just use it for some practice welds until I can either buy another tank or get that one filled with the proper mix.
Reply:You could try game tokens, yeah? How about puka shells? Snake belly scales? No., that would be a weave... I know, try making a stack of really small poker chips, or maybe pez candies, yeah! That's the ticket, puka shell, poker candies!!  Attached ImagesLast edited by tanglediver; 11-29-2009 at 10:46 PM.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Wow, I didn't expect to find so many comedians on a welding forum. We are at 50 percent already.
Reply:I think they are giving you a hard time because we have quite a few people coming in and wanting to do "stack of dimes" welds long before they do a structurally sound weld. So you have a 110v welder, I'm assuming it peaks at about 130amps or somewhere around there, your not going to weld much more then 3/16" using solid wire, and that itself is only going to happen once you have the procedures figured out. I would suggest getting some 1/8" scrap and trading out your trimix for 75/25. The smalled welders dont usually like strait CO2 from what I have seen.Just lay some beads, no weave, no whipping, no nonsense, just learn to run a strait smooth bead that has proper penetration into the base metal. Post some pictures and everyone will be more then helpful with getting you in the right direction. Just make sure they are clear enough we can see whats going on.No one here is tryign to bust your balls, it's just there are so many people putting the cart before the horse it gets old sometimes.If you cannot convince them, confuse them.         Harry S Truman
Reply:Thanks 500hp, I'll keep practicing and then I will repost. Just so everyone knows, I'm not looking to become a professional welder overnight, I just thought maybe there was something I might be doing wrong such as in my settings or something. Can I keep practicing with trimix? Thanks again.
Reply:Don't be sad kelpike, I was responding as much to Sandy's post, it reminded me of some Monty Python material from way back when. Deep breath...UHHH, huhhhh. Better.If I had some tri-mix, I would put it to the side for later. Get some 75/25 ~ Ar/CO2. Then, crank your machine to full voltage and hit that exact same practice plate again. When you do, adjust the wire feed speed until it sounds like the most delicious bacon you ever had frying on the stove. Adjust the wire speed as you run a bead. You will hear the pitch change up, then down again. When you hit the sweet spot, the pitch will probably be at its highest note. Until you dial in the machine, practice is futile. You will waste your time, material, and consumables. This only holds true for solid wire mig, I mean the bacon sound etc. Try that. City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Hi tanglediver, I will look into picking up another tank with the proper mix. Then I will try and zero in my machine. The advice from you and 500hpSilverado will get me on the right track. Thank you very much.
Reply:i run 100% co2 in my 110v mig...but i have had tons of practice with it...and ive been welding for a while....but honestly if you can get pure co2 to practice with...its cheaper, but harder to use..if you can get a nice bead with it, you can get a beautiful bead with 75/25.....the less stable arc of pure co2 is tough to get used to...keep on sparkin brahda