Need mig welding tips

[tspring1]

mig wire feed

Should the wire feed stop and start. If I hold the trigger down it will feed out about 3 inches of wire then stop and feed out 3 more inches. The stopping and starting makes it hard to lay down a good bead.

 

[Stpman]

Sounds like a "spot" feature I have on one of my machines, If your machine doesn't have that feature check the tension of the drive rolls and the tip. When you pull the trigger the wire should be a constant speed.

 

[tspring1]

I can hear the motor on the wire spool motor starting and stopping.

 

[Stpman]

check for a broken or loose wire in the gun or at the machine

 

[night rider]

No, it should not start and stop. The wire should come out at a constant speed the whole time you hold the trigger down. The only time it should stop is when you let go of trigger

 

[COPO]

Years ago I took a once a week night course at the local College and believe this is the best way to start. There are different welding techniques we took, such as horizontal and vertical welding. There were some projects we did to hand in and show the instructor for his critique.

 

[southern-breeze]

and also never have a lighter in your shirt pocket if you are stick welding ,cause we had a guy set his shirt on fire from this .and he was lucky to get it put out in time

 

[anesthes]

I can hear the motor on the wire spool motor starting and stopping.

You need to set the tension on the roller/follower for the gauge wire you are using, also they typically run a plastic shaft on those welders. I normally put a little grease on them which keeps the roll smooth. Don't get any grease on the wire.

Make sure you are using the right size tip for the wire.

I have an old 80amp CH welder I've had for probably 15 years. Been welding for 18 years. It's a great machine for quick welds, and working outside. Limited on thickness, you can't do 1/4" without a multi pass but for most stuff it's just fine.

-- Joe

 

[Paul1979]

I recommend this book: http://www.amazon.com/How-To-Weld-M...174X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333563416&sr=8-1

I'm very happy with it. There are specific chapters for specific types of welding. It has exercises to help you practice different welds in different positions. Tons of photos to show you what good welds and bad welds look like so you can tell if you're making progress.

 

[vernonwright]

Biggest thing to welding is your ground and you get the feel of it. It is easy to plug weld do both sides of the panel then filll in the gaps p.o.r 15. It about four passes then seam seal it