Anything welding

Good to hear. Can't beat the price!

 

agreed - I have these as well (40 grit) based on prior recommendations probably way up in this thread. They've been great for me. They're too thick when new for my HF angle grinder if I use the guard so my dewalt covers double duty until the flap wears down a tad.

 

Don’t know who it was I was talking with about blue Demon wire the other day. But got 4 10 pound spools of Facebook market for $40 the woman didn’t know what she had LOL

 

I love benchmark abrasives! All I use now

 

So day 2 of dicking around on the little flux core guy, I think I did a lot better than day 1! Just spent an hour or so laying down stringers on a 10” or so piece of 1/8” x 2” bar stock.

I read somewhere that it’s basically just making a puddle, then moving while trying to keep it the same size and that clicked so much more than everything else Id read. Slag was coming off easier (so satisfying when it just peels off in one smack), I wasn’t blowing through, etc.

I’m a happy camper. And yes, probably not great by any means, or even good, and I can’t do straight lines to save my life but I’m still stoked on the progress vs day 1. Also ground off more than I wanted to while cleaning the whole piece. Whoops.

 

Wire wheel is your friend

 

tee joints are the way to go ! weld one side Then break then to check your penetration though on 1/8" penetration is so good it will bend before breaking

Crank the output up or travel slower !

 

Practicing by welding joints is infinitely better than laying a bead on a flat piece of metal in my experience when I was starting out. You should try that next if you can.

 

The peeps I've taught always respond well to the concept of leading the puddle, painting the puddle, keeping consistent width on the puddle, etc. rather than focusing on where they're pointing with the tungsten/stick/wire.

 

My best welding instructor Used to say" make the puddle stand up and dance to your tune"

 

Thanks for all the feedback everyone!

Yeahhh, I have a wire wheel and a wire cup, but already had the flap disc on the grinder from when I cleaned the piece initially.. laziness won on that one haha I need to get a cheap second grinder and just leave a wire wheel on that

I think I was getting pretty decent penetration, at least judging by the heat marks on the back. Definitely had the output lower than day 1 though. I was blowing through it then and definitely needed to bring it down some, I think I went too far down though.

I tried a T on day one and think that was just too much to take in at once. Keeping it straight, where to put it, angle of the torch, tip to surface distance, etc etc etc. After today and having more practice like, actually focusing on what the puddle is doing, distance, angle, and just being more comfortable instead of being overwhelmed by everything I think I'm in good shape to try more T stuff tomorrow or next weekend. I still have a couple feet of this bar stock left I can chop down into whatever size coupons to monkey around with.

 

That's why you own multiple

 

Getting a second grinder made a world of difference for me, saves so much time. One with a cutting disc and one a flap disc. I still want a third with a wire wheel on it but haven’t made it a priority.

 

Do it! The time savings is well worth it!

Toss in a cordless with a cut off wheel and all bases are covered.

 

You count grinders 123 many !

Like clamps I never heard anyone ever say I have to many grinders or clamps

I really would need to walk around and look I just go with many!

 

That’s what I want, a cordless dewalt since that’s the platform I decided on. I’ve used one before and it’s a great grinder, very convenient for a quick cut here and there.

 

For those of us that still deal with corded tools, think about changing the plug.

The tools are usually double insulated, so they only require a 2 prong plug.

The time lost trying to plug in the grinder the correct way will easily offset the price of a 3 prong plug.

I can't change out the plugs fast enough.

There is only one way to plug the thing in and it's a bi- focal process friendly situation.

Buy quality plugs and it's a 1 time deal. The old plugs will go on the new tools when you wear them out.

 

Are you swapping tools all the time ?

I don`t have any trouble then the grinders do tend to stay plugged in on the welding table .

I just don`t plug and unplug things that much. I have a 4 outlet extension cord when working on equipment plugged in at the start unplugged when done

If I change the plug I will change to cord as well

 

Well, perfect timing on the grinder talk.. 20% off at harbor freight this weekend, guess I'm swinging through tomorrow. My current one is a 18v makita so time to add a cheapo wired one to the mix.

 

I had one of the cheapo cheapo $9 grinders exclusively on wire wheel duty, since that seemed like a good low precision job for it. It was pretty happy with it cooking along and abusing it, but now seems to have a mind of its own on when it wants to turn on now. Can't complain for $9, but hopefully some of the newer brands HF has last a bit longer