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I started welding a short time ago as a hobby not professional. It is a bit difficult to learn when there is nobody to show you right and wrong. I live in Northern NJ and do not know any welders. So I shot some video of me welding  in hopes to get some feedback. This video is of me welding using a Millermatic 212. I would appreciate it if anyone could take the time and let me know how badly I am doing.Here is the Youtube link.
Reply:to much filler try welding i strait no cir. motion
Reply:First take a second and add your location to your User CP at the upper left on the screen. That way we always know where you are from. There's several guys here from the NY city / Northern NJ area here. Someone may be willing to help or be able to suggest a local tech school with a good night class you can take. You're a bit far from me, but if you get jammed up PM me, and we'll see what we can work out.I'll give you credit, thats one of the best amateur welding video's I've seen, much better than the usual "My welds suck! Why?" sorts of post that normally get posted.I agree I'd do straight stringers and skip the circular motion. you shouldn't need it with steel that thin. On your "T" joint it looked like you were pointed at about 60 deg down at the lower plate rather than 45 deg. (May be an illusion due to the angle of the vid) That plus the extra wire means you laid more weld on the bottom plate and less on the vert.All in all not to bad as a beginner. You're real close on the settings from the sound..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:Thanks for the reply..I thought of moving a bit faster to deposit less filler but I figured I would not get enough penetration. I will try it next time.If I move in a straight line instead of circular motions would I get a nice looking bead?
Reply:Yes you will get a nice bead. A lot of people have a misconception about what a "Good" mig bead should look like.If you want to do a motion you would need to turn down the wire speed and probably the "heat" as well to keep the same "sound" and deposit less material as you go.First concentrate on getting good penetration without undercut and poor fusion at the toes of the weld, as well as a nice consistant travel speed. Once you can do that with stringer beads all the time, you can start getting fancy and play with the looks..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:The proof is in the pudding. Clamp the coupon in a vice and bend test it, try to break the joint. That will tell how you’re doing with fission. I think you may be over welding the joint, too much bead, keep the wire at the edge of the puddle for more penetration and don’t weld on top of the bead. Each leg of the bead should be as long as the thickness of the stock. T joint of 1/8” stock should have each leg of the triangle as seen looking down the length of the bead 1/8 “.  Otherwise not bad for a start.
Reply:Wow, I actually got to see a YouTube video without my computer crashing!  Amazing!Dont weave it, just move the torch straight ahead.   Looks like you have enough heat to make a nice flat wet-in weld, but they're a little over-filled.  Move a little faster, or turn down the wire speed a little.MM350P/Python/Q300MM175/Q300DialarcHFHTP MIG200PowCon300SMHypertherm380ThermalArc185Purox oaF350CrewCab4x4LoadNGo utilitybedBobcat250XMT304/Optima/SpoolmaticSuitcase12RC/Q300Suitcase8RC/Q400Passport/Q300Smith op
Reply:beads are not bad.  On light gauge pickup your forward speed to reduce bead size.  The bead does not have to be so large.  Some of the toes of your fillets not "blended" .  Sometimes a very small increase in voltage will wet the bead out more.  Your wire should be 45 degrees to the plate and then the wire should point about one wire thickness off the exact corner toward the horizontal surface.  Kinda hard to explain but does help blend in the lower toe to the horizontal.  Really nice bead in terms of no spatter so your settings are good other than a tweak to your personal taste.I have to add : top marks for vid quality
Reply:I agree on your t joint your angle is off a few degrees..You need to be at a 45 degree angle at all times.. I do circles also your just going to slow and consitrating on the bottom plate or base plate insted of more on your t peice.. just remember the puddle will fall down because of gravity.. When i do my circles i concentrate a second more on top then bottom kind of like a cursive e..
Reply:Lots of good basic infohttp://www.millerwelds.com/resources...ur-skills/mig/Last edited by transit; 11-10-2009 at 11:45 AM.