New to welding

Hello,

I have a small 110v Lincoln mig unit. Bought it to weld light things around the house and start learning more about welding.

I was wondering if it is safe and a standard practice to hold the metal you are welding on while welding. Can I actually hold two pieces of metal together with my hand while tacking them together?

Thanks alot!

Reply to
ECQCB
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Safe, no but then again welding and many other things in our daily lives are not safe. Getting shocked is not the issue.

I do that all the time and it is one of the things that makes MIG so fun and easy. Remember that with your gloves on you are deluged into thinking your work piece is not hot. Being in a hurry helps one to forget all the detail steps while welding. Getting burned is a "good" teacher and helps one to remember. Tacks cool quickly, but is it cool yet???

One other thing you will realize, the tacks are not very bendable like ones done with O/A so with critical stuff you will probably want to clamp anyway. Even when clamped the shrinking forces are strong!

Reply to
Zorro

Yes, I was wondering if it was safe in not getting shocked!!!

Reply to
ECQCB

I suppose getting shocked is possible though. That skinny MIG wire can pierce through your skin and if you are grounded (wet knee on good ground) you will feel it.

I've been shocked while welding before but never with a MIG... TIG & Stick yes. TIG shock was with the high frequency (somehow?) and Stick was when I touched the electrode with bare hands and wet knee on the concrete.

Getting pierced with the wire is rare and usually happens when one is checking for gas flow (gun to your ear!) or fixing a stuck wire.

Reply to
Zorro

Don't become part of the circuit!

You'll probably be wearing gloves and shoes, both of which will help to insulate you from the current flow.

You'll have the "work" / ground cable connected to one piece of the metal or to the table it is on. Start your arc more to the piece of metal that is grounded.

You'll USUALLY be all right. But I hate to make a blanket statement. I've heard stories of people getting shocked from welding. One welder was a couple stories up on some grating, got a continuous shock and later stated he actually tried to roll off the grating to break the circuit. His helper knew he was in trouble and shut the welder off!

You'll normally be all right. Just THINK about where you are and what kind of additional contact you might be making with the work and / or ground.

Al

ECQCB wrote:

Reply to
Al Patrick

Unless you or your project is wet, i wouldn't worry about it. I've never gotten shocked by my mig welder, i have however gotten burned by being careless. Handling the metal while tacking can yeild some nice spatter burns, (i get them on the tops of my feet when not wearing the proper shoes, ie: sneakers) and i've grabbed tacked items accidently without gloves. I always wear the proper eye protection, leather gloves, and boots with long pants, a lesson learned the hard way! Good luck, walt

Reply to
Walt

I have not been shocked by holding gun in one hand and work in other hand while welding with my 110V Lincoln MIG welder. MIG gun plastic is well insulated from welding current. I have been shocked by my welder during process of loading wire and feeding wire to gun. That was because the ground clamp was attached to gas fitting at back of welder. Nice shock but no damage or improvment to welder or myself.If you don't touch any current carrying parts on electrode side with gun trigger pulled and touch path to work clamp with bare or wet hands/body at same time you can't get shocked.

Reply to
R. Duncan

This is a nice feature with a better mig outfit (Miller, etc.), i had an old campbell hausfeld flux core welder that maintained current to the electrode even if the trigger button wasn't pressed. If the power switch was flicked on (on the machine) it was live. I bet it's easier getting shocked or blinded with these cheap machines. walt

Reply to
Walt

I also like to wear a cap with the peak turned backwards. I´ve had spatter land in my hair when leaning over a project, great fun for the audience but not for me. Henning

Reply to
henning

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