Ima Noob, Need Advice

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Hey guys well my business is really starting to develop. Racing company in NJ. And we have decided that we want to do all our fab work in house. I just started welding, im using an electric mig for practice and just needed some advice on my work. I just made some lines and wanted to get critiqued as much as posiable to be able to get better. So critique away!!
Reply:Looks like fluxcore (self shielding) wire.  Gas and bare wire is the way to go.David Real world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:What type of machine are you using? Do you have shielding gas or are you using flux cored wire?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:Well im no pro but it looks like it needs more heat and slower travel speed to me, not very good penatration "Cold" weld. The bead is very narrow and tall.just my opinion im sure you will get more.Good luckDonnelly Small Engine & WeldingFoley AlabamaLincoln 225 TigLinoln 215 migHypertherm Powermax 65Ellis 1600 sawEllis 6000 belt grinderJD2 Model 4 tubing benderAtlas  12"X54" metal latheLots of large hammers
Reply:If that is bare wire with a gas, lower the wirefeed speed, to eliminate the spatter at that voltage setting.  JohnSMAW,GMAW,FCAW,GTAW,SAW,PAC/PAW/OFCand Shielding Gases.  There all here. :
Reply:the feed setting is on 3 and the only voltage setting is MIN and MAX, theese are all on MAX
Reply:I'd shoot those pigeons.  You said you have pictures of some welds?Just kidding!There are so many variables to balance for a good MIG weld, where do we start?The main variables are wire feed speed (wfs), voltage, tip to work distance, gas type, travel speed, torch angle.Higher wfs is higher current, heat, and penetration.Wfs must be balanced by voltage:low voltage = short arc, stubbing, and spatterhigh voltage = long arc, big globs, and spattercorrect voltage = sound of frying baconTip to work distance (stickout) should be around 1/2 to 3/4", 5/8 nominal.Short stickout gives higher current (a good thing), while longer stickout causes resistance heating of the wire and less heat to the weld.Gas type affects heat transfer to the weld, penetration, arc stability, and spatter.100% CO2 is hottest, deepest, most spatter.100% Argon is coldest, may work according to some, but needs O2 or CO2 for arc stability.75% Argon/25% CO2 is best general low spatter gas for short arc MIG.Travel speed, not too fast/not too slow, what can I say?Torch angle, around +/- 20 degrees off of perpendicular to the joint.drag angle = more penetration, narrow/humped beadpush angle = less penetration, wider/flatter bead
Reply:Originally Posted by AngeloAJCthe feed setting is on 3 and the only voltage setting is MIN and MAX, theese are all on MAX
Reply:If from what it sounds like...You want to start fabbing racing parts in house?Better learn to weld and weld good before just "doing it"...It will not come overnite but you need lots'o seat time my friend before putting "stuff" out there that is in a racing enviorment where others are involved..But you came to the right place for welding advice.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:In all honesty if you have ask how to weld you are not qualified to build any thing to sell. If your business is really taking off hire a qualified welder to do your welding. Continue working to develope until you are skilled enough to know what it takes to make a sound weld.
Reply:Great write up Pulser, only thing I'd throw in is when welding watch the puddle, look at the 2 peices of metal how well they are melting in, and flow it together to get a nice consistent bead. Try welding 2 pieces together and and post some pics (front and back)..........Zap does have a good point, what kind of parts are you planning to build?.If you don't want to stand behind our Troops, feel free to stand in front of them.
Reply:Originally Posted by OldtimerIn all honesty if you have ask how to weld you are not qualified to build any thing to sell. If your business is really taking off hire a qualified welder to do your welding. Continue working to develope until you are skilled enough to know what it takes to make a sound weld.
Reply:Angelo,I support you bro. It takes time. It takes effort. It takes knowledge. Keep working at it and take the advice you get here as well as get some real seat time in a learning environment from a qualified instructor such as a local college. Everyone started somewhere and back then, when they started, if they all "reconsidered their course of action" they wouldn't be able to lay a bead down now. I think your travel speed looks too fast for starters. Slow it down, take some more pics and resubmit to the thread and prepare for the beatings to continue.Welcome to our forum. Jump in and get dirty!Lincoln Power Mig 210MP MIGLincoln Power Mig 350MP - MIG and Push-PullLincoln TIG 300-300Lincoln Hobby-Weld 110v  Thanks JLAMESCK TIG TORCH, gas diffuser, pyrex cupThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 101My brain
Reply:Very good recommendations - all of them.John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:Originally Posted by SWellsGreat write up Pulser, only thing I'd throw in is when welding watch the puddle, look at the 2 peices of metal how well they are melting in, and flow it together to get a nice consistent bead. Try welding 2 pieces together and and post some pics (front and back)..........Zap does have a good point, what kind of parts are you planning to build?.
Reply:ok guys thank you for all the good advice. I never said I was the one that was going to be welding the company parts. I am just trying to weld as much as possiable to start developing another fabricating skill.
Reply:Originally Posted by AngeloAJCI never said I was the one that was going to be welding the company parts. I am just trying to weld as much as possiable to start developing another fabricating skill.
Reply:That flux core wire you are using is not the look you want on parts you are going to sell for racing. But as for fabricating certain things it'll do. And slow down wait on the puddle and then start the bead travel. And as everyone has said, seat time / practice practice practice. Oh and not to shabby for a first attempt.Miller Thunderbolt 225Millermatic 130 XPLincoln HD 100 Forney C-5bt Arc welderPlasma Cutter Gianteach Cut40ACent Machinery Bandsaw Cent Machinery 16Speed Drill PressChicago Electric 130amp tig/90 ArcHobart 190 Mig spoolgun ready
Reply:Does anyone recomend a mig and tig welder i need them for the shop now..I really dont want to spend an arm and a leg because we still have to finish the car
Reply:i am in the same boat as you Angelo, as far as a straight bead is concerned. mine suck worse than yours. i have found that if you try to weave the bead back and forth, it helps to keep more heat in the area and the bead to lay down more. i am with everyone else here when i say that you need more practice before you go to sell parts with welds like that on them, but you will get the hang of it. it just takes time and determination.Later,Andy
Reply:Originally Posted by AngeloAJCok guys thank you for all the good advice. I never said I was the one that was going to be welding the company parts. I am just trying to weld as much as possiable to start developing another fabricating skill.
Reply:I've built a lot of stuff using old millermatic 210's. They can run all day on 1/4" and below. Keep in mind the type of duty cycle you need for what you are doing. If you are manufacturing anything you don't want to be shutting down to let your machine cool off and exceeding duty cycle gets expensive really fast. Make sure the guy doing the welding really knows what he is doing as your reputation and business ride on it, not to mention the liability and legal issues.Joker, not really as most of us knew what we wanted to be, and the guys with the HF welders that want to jump straight into the business are a modern phenomenon, and get people hurt or killed. When most of us started out the cheapest migs and tigs were incredibly expensive, fairly large, took lots of power to run, and if you were lucky enough to be in a shop that had one you had to work your way up to being allowed to use it. In fact there were only two kids in my high school (small town only 450-500 students) that had a welding machine sitting in the garage. Not like today where anyone can pick up a lunchbox size mig for 150 bucks. After seeing the things I have seen from beginners on here and in day to day life coupled with the way he wrote his post I can see why they told him to reconsider. We've all seen what happens to guys who get in over their head, and try to keep young guys from doing the same. All it takes to ruin your life, business and career is for one person to be seriously injured or killed because your product failed.Last edited by Jolly Roger; 05-15-2008 at 07:36 PM.Reason: rewordingThe difference between art and craft is the quality of the workmanship. I am an artist.
Reply:Jolly,Point well taken.Lincoln Power Mig 210MP MIGLincoln Power Mig 350MP - MIG and Push-PullLincoln TIG 300-300Lincoln Hobby-Weld 110v  Thanks JLAMESCK TIG TORCH, gas diffuser, pyrex cupThermal Dynamics Cutmaster 101My brain