Are arc welders any good

[IDBob]

well i spent 3 hours tonight with a mig wleder and a new bump trailer. man do those welds look like garbage. i got a few good puddles and some good penatration. but soem of the welds are so overly built up because i couldnt see what i was welding. and that stupid wire kept getting jammed up in the machine. i should have drug out the arc welder and been done in a hour or so with it. plus i burnt a hole in my new shirt right in the pocket. now my lighter wont stay in the pocket anymore.

That's the dickens fordman. Your going to have to practice with that mig outfit. I bought a Miller a few years ago and sure have been happy with it. Holding the feed gun at an angle helps you keep an eye on the bead. Don't know what's causing your jamming, but that sure can put a crimp in the welding. Hope you have better luck with the arc welder.

[flyboy2610]

Set the welder up for GMAW (true MIG welding) and not FCAW.
Flux core wire puts out a lot of smoke, and it's tough to see what you're doing.
It takes practice to get good at MIG welding. I weld at work, and I 'practice' with each weld I make.
As far as jamming, make sure you are using the right size contact tip for the wire you're using. Don't have the feed roller tension set too tightly, either. Make sure the wire spool can rotate freely on the spindle, but that it's still set tight enough that the wire doesn't uncoil on you.
One of the biggest mistakes people make when first learning to MIG weld is that they try to weld too fast. Slow down and let the puddle develop, then go just fast enough to avoid putting too much heat in one area and burning through the metal. Practice, and burn through some crap metal so you can get a feel for what it looks like just before the metal burns through.
Make sure you have the machine set properly for the thickness of steel you're working with. And clean the steel first. MIG doesn't deal too well with rust, grease, and oil.
Keep at it. You'll get it.
I welded my trailer with a 110 Lincoln welder. I had no problems.

[fordman]

well the welder is the problem. i didnt have to weld slowly or fast either. that wasnt my problem the welder just wasnt working right. it may have had something to do with the tension in the rollers because the speed was jumping around on me. and then the wire would stick to the tip and then it would jam up. as far as seeing. i need a lighter set of glass for the hood. everyone one uses a number 9 i cant see good enough through a 9 i think i need a number 10 glass.

[IDBob]

Are you running gas or fluxcore wire? Like flyboy said fluxcore puts out a bunch of smoke and makes it much harder to see the weld.

Sure hope you get it fixed, it's a handy machine when it works right. I'm working on a Suzuki Samari V-6 conversion and doing a spring over right now and all my welding is being done on the mig welder. When they work they are really dandy.

[fordman]

argon it wasnt the smoke. i have never been able to see the seam that i am welding very good. it the tint of the helmet that has always been the problem for me. this helmet isnt mine.

[tfnaaf]

A good helmet makes all the difference

[67mann]

Just got an auto helmut from Maxtools(free gloves/deal)and by far the best improvement made. light sensitivity adustment and overall darkness
adjustment.

[flyboy2610]

At work I have the shade set on 9.
It sounds like you may have a dirty wire liner. Disassemble the torch and completely remove the liner, then GENTLY blow it out with compressed air. Don't use too much pressure or you could really jam up whatever is in there.

[fordman]

see what i mean everyone uses the number 9's. i hate them. i think its the wire tension now that i have had time to think about it.

[fourtss]

I say lots of super glue

on a serious note, I was taugh by a pipe fitter,on abuzz box, it was the best, I currently, have a mig, and an old arc welder, I gave $20.00 for the arc,at an auction and it works great, I gave $185.00 for the mig (new), and it works okay, I think that most guys have there own preference, maybe you could find a welding shop, and see if they would show you the pro's an con's of both, and maybe teach you a little bout welding, then you'd be able to decide a little easier

[Leadfoot]

stick is ok but I would look for a machine that can be converted to a spool gun. I weld a lot and my work horse is a old miller with a spool gun.

but a miller spool gun is not cheep.

for a starter set up I would go with the lincoln cheepy mig welder. say like a weld pack.

or even a lincoln stick machine and a spool gun lincoln spool guns start at like $225 new. with this set up you would have the best of both, the ability to weld heavy steel, thin steel with the gun and even aluminum with the gun.

[averagef250]

You can't put a spool gun on a stick welder.

MIG is constant current variable voltage. Stick and TIG are Variable current constant voltage. Wire power supplies may look like stick supplies but they aren't, they are variable voltage or the toggle between both.

[Leadfoot]

very strange, avenger, don't tell my welder shes bin doing the impossible.

but with that said you ever herd of a weld controller, you know the module box that the gun hooks to?

like my old miller reliant. and yes it is a stick machine with a spool gun and it has bin welding for like 25 years with a spool gun. and doses stick. so I do not know what you go on about?????????????????