What Size Wire For MIG Welder

admin

How do you fellas decide what gauge wire (bare steel) to use with your machines?  I have a Miller 130, so only use it for 1/8" thick steel or less.  Use stick welder for thicker stuff.  So far, I've tried 0.023, 0.030, and 0.035 wire.  Comments please!
Reply:0.30 will handle just about everything you need for an all around welder.
Reply:I run .023 on my 135 mig and .030 on my 180Cwww.georgesplasmacuttershop.comPlasma Cutter and Welder Sales and Repairs--Ebay storeTec.Mo. Dealer Consumables for the PT and IPT torch's
Reply:I have tried all three in my HH210MVP and they all run well in my opinion but there are things to consider. 1- .23 wire will allow me to turn my machine down and weld thinner metal like body panels (spot welds of course to minimize distortion. 2- .30 is usually the best all around wire because it is middle of the road. You can weld thinner and or you can weld heavier were you need more filler. The arc and puddle wet out are very good with .30 on my machine.3- .35 Happens to be what i have in my machine now because i have been doing some farm machinery and trailer hitch repairs. Heavy welding.I have not used the smaller migs but if you are welding thin sheet metal all the time then .23 will be your friend and it will give you more punch on thicker metals.  You may want to get a spool of both and see how they act on a couple different metal thicknesses. Pay attention to Arc power and how well the puddle wets out or flows. The .23 really flies off the spool but 2lbs is 2 lbs and 11 lbs is 11 lbs. I say this because some people believe you use more wire with the .23. In theory you do use more linear footage but not any more wire volume/lbs. Now there are a slew of different kinds of wire but Er70-s6 is the go to for me and most other back yard guys unless you don't have gas capability. In that case you will need to use a flux core wire to give you the shielding needed. Hope this helps some.......Last edited by Fireman Bill; 09-18-2014 at 08:33 PM.Reason: spellingFireman BillHH 210 MVPMM 211 Spoolmate 100Lotas LTP5000D PlasmaOxy/Accet (Victor)Wards AC/DC buzz box30 ton old hyd pressA few brand name toolsA bunch of cheap toolsA wife to worry me and4 dogs to supervise me
Reply:.023 or .30 tops. I think any larger is too much for a 130. Your gas has a impact too. The 120 volt machines will give you more penetration with a 100 % CO2 .  The 75 /25 will have less spatter. If you use CO2 you should have a dedicated CO2 only regulator and not a mix gas regulator.
Reply:i run .023 in my 110 mig for sheet metal. then up to 3/16s i run .030 lots of the little migs won't burn .035 wire as well.AHP alphatig 200xclarke 130en MIG (first welder i ever bought)NT Plasma 375craftsman 240/180 ac/dc ARCcustom 60x30x30 powder coating ovenhttps://www.facebook.com/pages/Rossi...18853401526643
Reply:The only .035 that belongs in a 110v mig is flux. If it's solid use the other two sizes.I use .030 on my smaller machine and .035 on my 200amp welderTorchmate 2x2 CNC with Flashcut CNC controlsHypertherm Powermax45 Esab ET220i Razorweld 195 MigRazorweld 200ac/dc TigTormach 770, Tormach xstechRazorweld, Vipercut/Vipermig, SSC Foot Pedal Dealer
Reply:Originally Posted by BD1   If you use CO2 you should have a dedicated CO2 only regulator and not a mix gas regulator.
Reply:Feeding out 0.025 wire faster compared to slower feeding 0.035 does wonders for over head.old Miller spectrum 625 Lincoln SP-135 T, CO2+0.025 wireMiller model 250 and WP-18V torchCraftsman 100amp AC/DC and WP-17V torchCentury 115-004 HF arc stabilizerHome made 4 transformer spot welderHome made alternator welder
Reply:I use .023/CO2 and .030 flux cored wire in my HH140. Anything else, and the machine doesn't weld as good, it seems.
Reply:When I had a hobart 130 mig I used only .023 wire with good results. With the smaller mig I think for most welding the smaller wire is better. May want to use thicker .030 wire for heaver metal depending on the top out amps of your individual welder. I liked .023 wire and didn't change it.  With my Hobart 210 I like the .030 wire but will change it to .023 wire for thinner stuff as needed.
Reply:.023 solid with the 130 Miller. If it's the 130 XP then you can run .030 a bit better then the standard model 130. Still .023 will give the machine more then it can handle, so nothing gained by using .030 wire in those machines. Had both, so this is from personal experience. I run .023 solid in my Thermal-arc 141i for the same reasons, but it can handle a bit more then the 390 IPM the machine can run that wire at. Your Miller will run at a higher IPM, so .023 is the right wire for it. .030 will be lumpy as heck, and just not wet out very good on the older MM-130 machine.Esab/Lorch ET-220iEsab 160i caddyThermal LM-200 Lincoln feedersThermal Pee-Wee 85sThermal 60i- 3phase /RPC powered (Beast)Thermal Drag-gun 35CINE 1500 Klutch 140i