material thickness

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As I shop for my first welder I notice that several migs claim they can weld 3/16 material w/ argon, or up to 1/2 w/ flux core. I was under the influence that gas mig was better. Whats going on?On a side note, when it says 3/16 material is that referring to the penitration depth  of the bead at full power? As in I could burn through it if I wanted to?Thanks a lotLarry
Reply:1/2" with fluxcore is most possible..But not with a 110 machine...Gas is less mess..There are a few here that do heavy metal with fluxcore..They will be along shortly.....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:What size machine are you looking at?  Bare wire is nice to work with.  With the right application and power, it will weld almost anything.  Cored wire Runs HOTTER than bare wire.  1/2" needs AT LEAST 150 to 200 amps and multipass even with cored wire.  Cored wire runs more like a stick that never ends.  Its hotter and gets more penetration for the amps you have.  My SP100 (110v mig) claims 3/16 with bare wire and 5/16 with cored gasless wire. That is correct as long as its plugged into a good 25 amp outlet.As a rule of thumb, to weld plate in one pass, you need 1 amp for .001" of plate.  SO 1/4 plate needs 250 amps to weld in one pass.  Vee both sides of the 1/4" plate and weld both sides properly and you could do it with 125 amps or maybe even 100 amps with proper prep including preheat.  Less amps if you use self shielded wire.It would be tough to burn through 3/16 with a 110 volt mig.  But you can weld 3/16 plate with it.  Other things count like joint design, fitup, position and operator skill.DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.
Reply:Gas metal arc welding (mig) does not penetrate as well as innershield (flux core). Each process is favorable for different applications, to learn them all takes time.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