Anything welding

Welded this super kick ass turn down onto an oem muffler. No more melting limit straps.

 

Tig welders what machine are ya using I just purchased a everlast power tig 200dv pretty satisfied with it so far

 

Well turns out shipping is only $7 so not the end of the world. Now we wait for it to arrive. I'm going to put the plasma on my existing cheapo welding cart and build a new one for my welder.

 

That's some big wire.

 

Where in NC are you? If you're ever in the area I will let you mess around with my welder and I can give some pointers. As someone who started out on a super cheap flux core welder, it's an unreal difference jumping up to a nicer welder.

 

Was that the Chicago Electric flux core wire welder?

There is nothing worse to learn to wire weld with. Myself and my crew all have one, we are all very good wire welders. These machines are only drug out when we need emergencies out in the sticks.

I guess, what I'm trying to say is you won't ever have good looking welds. Ours look look like ass, and we know what we are doing.

I will say, once you decide welding is a skill you want to be proficient at, a decent MIG welding rig will make your welds magical!

Don't get discouraged. That welder has a very large learning curve.

 

Should I grind this down and re do?

 

Hey thanks! I actually live on Fort Bragg in Fayetteville. (Married housing, not barracks...so I’ve got a carport haha). I will take you up on that offer any time.

 

Thanks man. Yeah I’m just getting into this. Someday I’ll pick up a better welder, I appreciate the encouragement!

 

My recommendation would be to practice on scraps first and get a feel for the welder, and then move onto the bumper. Try various joints. Not trying to be rude but you need some practice before welding something that'll be mounted to a vehicle.

 

Yes. But let it be a learning experience in doing it. If you have a chisel take it and a hammer and wedge it between the piece you welded on and the bumper. Just going on looks I bet youll be surprised how easily that piece just comes off due to lack of fusion and where it is stuck on youll get a better idea of what that looks like. (but pictures are always deceiving!)

But some tips....

-Make sure the wire can flow smoothly from the gun. IE the tip isnt boggered up
-Make sure you have a good ground. That often means removing paint/dirt/grease
-Make sure the weld area is clean...again remove paint/dirt/grease.
-Practice somewhere you can be comfortable on to get things dialed in. Not at odd angles or anything but just on a workbench on some scrap pieces. The odd position welding will come later!

Those machines kind of...suck sadly. Hard to really learn on and can be frustrating for a new welder.

But lastly...go see @EatSleepTacos Youll get to try his machine out. But if you bring his Im sure he can help you get it dialed in as well. It can be hard to really know what to do when having problems when you are new so having someone help ya is quite beneficial.


lastly....dont give up! Most everyone has been exactly where you are

 

So much this! It's easy to get discouraged. Just keep at it and you'll get better, I promise.

 

No offense taken at all. I will do that tomorrow after work. This is the best (looks like it actually is holding...not pretty haha) looking one so far, I think?

 

I really appreciate all the tips. I will do the chisel test tomorrow. Are there any ways that I can tell when I have actual fusion? Heat marks on the backside of the workpiece?

 

A great test is to take two pieces of metal and weld them together. Put it in a vice and bash on it with a hammer. If it bends as if it were one piece, fusion. If it breaks at the weld, no fusion.

 

Another thing....can you see what you are doing? Seriously, can you see the 2 pieces of metal, and the pool of metal between them. This is very important. Like EatSleepTaco said, practice on some scrap metal but if you can't see the puddle of metal, stop. Go to walmart, and get some glasses or get a cheater lenses in your shield.
Zim

 

We hate to say it, but those welds look like shit. I can't sugar coat it. I'm sorry.

You get extra, extra internet points for posting and asking what can be done to improve. Like said above, we all started out making shit welds. You get to improve faster by having us give you pointers. I hope you can recognize this and appreciate this.

Take advantage of the offers above. Grab a decent 6 pack and get some valuable pointers.



Beer money is never poorly spent when grabbing info.

 

Yeah I see the welds and the puddle. I couldnt see any puddle when I had the HF welder on Low/3, but I switched it to Hi/7 as per someone's advice here, and I actually saw a puddle form after a few seconds. I have an auto-darkening shield from HF, it seems to work fine. That's a good idea though for the cheater lenses, thanks.

Yeah I know the welds are fugly, i'm not under any illusion that they are presentable. And also they dont even fuse the two metals. I think initially it was just spatter holding my stuff together. Anyone stationed at Fort Bragg is under a 50 mile radius lockdown, so I wont be able to head up to VA until this Corona Virus thing is over. But I will keep practicing on my extra steel and monitor this thread.

Also for everyone worried about the bumper falling off, dont worry, i'm not in any rush to get this thing done. It wont go on until there are some actual decent welds. My wife has the same concerns as you guys, anyways...so it'll be a bit.

Another question for anyone: When I start a weld, do I need to hold the stick in place for a few seconds to get a puddle started, then begin pulling down the joint? This is based on the fact that it seems like it takes a few seconds to see a puddle form with my current settings (hi/7).

 

Yes, you want to see the puddle form before you start dragging. And drag at a slow enough rate (while slightly oscillating your torch) that you see a consistent puddle form across your joint

 

Check out Jody at welding tips and tricks on YouTube. He has a lot of good info there.