type of gas and pressure setting for mig

"monkeydave" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@news.homeimprovementbanter.com...

My lincoln mig uses a mix of co2 with the argon bottle. I got a flowmeter on my regulator. 12lbs sound about right.

When you hit the switch, you should have about 3/8 stick out, while lightly pressing against your gloves. Thats how I set mine up anyhow.

I get a good burn going on steel, run a bead about 6 to 12 inches. Just to keep up. Using 030 wire. Never bothered with the flux or 040 stuff.

to fast a feed of the wire, the stick will jam alot, to slow a feed, you ain't going anywhere. To high a voltage, it will burn right down to your tip, not so good...

xman

Argon is right for stainless an aluminium. No CO2(-mix) for both!

Nick

Straight argon for SS. Mild steel works better with Ag/CO2 mix or CO2. I'd say learn to use it well with mild steel before you try SS. Thin SS may need backing gas on the other side.

The regulator should be adjusted for flow rate, not for pressure! The flow should usually be about 20 CFH (cubic feet per hour) if you're in still air. If there's a slight breeze you can up it to 25 or maybe even 30 but if the breeze is that strong you can probably forget it.

Look at the gauge on the low pressure side of your regulator. If it reads CFH or SCFH you're in business. If it reads actual pressure you have the wrong type.

Pure argon should be OK for stainless and aluminum but depending on your welder you probably won't have much luck with aluminum. There are aluminum kits available for the brand name welders such as Lincoln and Miller and even with the kits it isn't the best choice for aluminum. The kits usually include a new teflon liner and a different feed roller that can grip the aluminum better.

For normal mild steel you're better off with a mix of CO2 and argon, usually

I'm guessing that your cheap MIG won't be able to handle aluminum at all and probably won't be so good for SS either. Even if it can handle it you should practice quite a bit with mild steel first. If you can't get it to do a good job with that you can forget either of the others. And based on what I've seen of that type of welder you're probably going to be limited to about 1/8" thick with gas, maybe 3/16" with fluxcore.

As for the mild steel, what welder are you using? What size wire? If we knew that we could offer tips such as wire speed and power settings that should help.

Best Regards, Keith Marshall snipped-for-privacy@progressivelogic.com

"I'm not grown up enough to be so old!"

"monkeydave" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@news.homeimprovementbanter.com...

You can use one calibrated in pressure. The MIG will have an orifice inside that will set the flowrate as a function of pressure. Just get a 1 qt baggie, adjust your regulator so the welder fills the baggie with gas in about 6 seconds. That's about 20 cu ft /hr.

Don My hat is off!! In four lines of laymans lingo you have given me a work-a-round for a gage setting that has been buggig me for quite a while. THANKS much :-) Bob

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