anti-spatter gel

[oregonaaron]

Hi guys.
Do any of you use ant-spatter gel to protect mig gun tips and nozzles? Is it worth it and does it work? Thanks.

[Dave I]

Ive got the anti splatter stuff in the aerosol can made by lincoln. It seems to work. It says you can also spray it on the object you are welding and that seems to help also. I havent tried the gel stuff though.

[Markopolo]

I use WD-40. Spray the nozzle real good, and also the work....
and weld right through it....works pretty good !

[echo8287]

I've got a little tub of the gel. You let the nozzle get hot and dip it it the plastic jar. It works pretty good. The best thing is to get a 1/2 copper pipe cleaning brush and you can run that in the nozzle and twist and its clean. David

[Franz]

A jar of the gell will last a long time IF used properly, and seems to be a better protection system than the spray.
The tip must be hot when dipped into the gel, and must be allowed to drip off all excess gel if you don't want a contaminated weld pool.

[Planet X]

No, but I have some (gel) just in case I have to weld with straight CO2;)

[Franz]

Well, be sure and let us know if you get that good Xman.:rolleyes:
Co2 is a hell of a lot cheaper than C25:cool2:

[Planet X]

Originally posted by Franz
Well, be sure and let us know if you get that good Xman.:rolleyes:


Hmm , is that how I come across... that I'm bragging? Is it the pictures or my words ? There has been only one weld picture that I was 'proud' about, everything else seemed pretty standard-nothing to talk smack about though.
The C02 thing-well I guessed it would get a rise , but it was just in fun. I don't care what you weld with, but if somebody puts an opinion about something on a public forum-one should expect differing opinions. Methinks.:eek:

Oregonaaron, as time goes on and you get used to your machine, you will need anti-spatter goops less and less. Seems to me that cleaning out the spatter build up is easy enough by hand. You may also run into some burn-back where you melt your wire to your contact tip- if it is not too bad you can just file this off and go about your welding buisness. If it is really stuck on just cut the tip off . KEEP the contact tip-you can recycle them if you do some spray transfer welding- the shorter tip will automatically help you get a longer stickout that is required for spray transfer. Or if your mig gun has an adjustable nozzle they can still be used again by adjusting the nozzle in some .

[Franz]

Xman, there is a strong rumor goin around you use the gel for hair wax, would you care to confirm or deny that?
Antispatter either gel or spray really comes into play more in verticle mode than it does in horizontal, and is a definite MUST in overhead. Accumulated crud inside the nozzle isn't a problem till it builds to the point it effects gas flow. A good old fashioned jackknife will generally scrape out accumulated crud, and a wirewheel takes care of the outside if that's important.
New guys seem to have more problems with spatter blowing back because they run the gun too close to the weld.
Gel is also handy when you want to smear some along the weld path to make cleanup easy, and as Xman can tell you, it makes a great butchcut wax and also works on moustaches.

[Planet X]

Say Franz, what ever happened to Ollie? Did the fame & success cause a tragic drug habit or was it wallowing self-pity after your show 'Cuckla Fran & Ollie' got the axe?



:p

[Franz]

Well, me and shemp went and started the weldin works, and Mo & Larry bought a McDonald's franchise, Ollie, last I heard was drivin a Mr Softee truck summers and drinkin winters.

You still haven't confirmed or denied that rumor.

[OlPilot]

Franz, I ran across a guy who said he dips the nozzle of his mig torch into Vaseline and it works as well as the anti-spatter gels. Of course, its a lot cheaper, too. However, I haven't seen any of his work. I guess he'll try KY Jelly next.

Seriously, I hadn't heard of using petroleum jelly before and don't know how much contamination it might carry to the weld. Any comment?

BTW, it was 22F here this morning. We'd appreciate it if you would suck all that cold NY and Canuk air back up your way! Ran across the attached sign In Mississippi.

[Franz]

OP I never used vaselene on my MIG gun, but I do cook up equal parts of vaselene and neatsfoot oil and use that on my boots. It is a lot cheaper than the fancy store waterproofing, and it works well. Of course I do have to cook it when the wife is out of town.

I've seen that sign before, and thought about having my buddy withthe sign shop make me one, so I could sharpen hell out of the edges, and see how many stupud busturds cut themselves to find out. Of course I would eliminate the line about the bridge being out.

[CBT]

I use it on the metal around the weld area on the finer projects
It really cuts down on paint prep

[arcdawg]

the nozzle gel works good, its a preventive matience type thing to do, the cleaner the tip is the easier it is for your wire to come out, and as far as the WD40 i would stay away from that when welding, its FLAMABLE, side note lets not start the mudslinging so soon

[Brainfarth]

The nozzle dip stuff works great just be sure to scrape things clean before use or the dingle berries will hook onto the old crud.
A friend a few years ago turned me onto some anti splatter spray that was alot safer and smelled better than the 550(?) stuff.... It was Pam(the stuff you cook with) and it worked just as good as the chemical counterpart.
<

[Markopolo]

arcdawg....I didn't think that wd-40 was a good choice, but
in my defense, I was told to use it by the guy at the
welding store that sold me my equipment. He said weldors
sometimes even use "Pam"...(the stuff girlfriend sprays
the pans with). To be honest....i'm wondering if the
whole "anti-spatter spray, gel...or whatever" is even necessary ?
Maybe it's just a bunch of hoopla !

[Markopolo]

Thanks brainfarth......so I'm not the only one who's heard
the rumor about "Pam" ?

[arcdawg]

hey marcko i wasnt pointing any fingers, we used to clean our c.r.s. at work with denatured alchol and once a week someone would start a rag fire in the shop........... your welding supplier is just that, a salesman who hasnt a clue, flamable liquids have no place next to a welding station

[Jerry]

I dip cone into gel and like Franz said will last a long time, you dip when cone is hot, if you dip when cone is somewhat cold you'll have a big snot inside of cone of jel.

Splatter spray is used for the work piece to help spatter in not sticking to project. Steel, you can use it or not I don't use it, BUT with stainless steel I always use it. Those bb's will stick like nothing you ever seen before to stainless.

[Franz]

Anybody bothered to read the fine print on the spray can to see what the propellant gas is? Last one I looked at said PROPANE.
That oughta get Jack's attention.

[fla jim]

I'm with Jerry and Franz. I do a quick dip on a hot Nozzle
I bet that propane thing will get Jacks attention. It could be exciting to spray on hot metal:blob2:
I've heard of pam being used, but its easier just to dip

[arcdawg]

does anti spater gel or spray effect the weld ? like contaminate it or does it just burn up? and can it be used on more than just steel? and is it just for mig welding.... i ve had good luck with the gel on c.r.s. but never tried the spray,i was thinks about clean up when using 6011 rod ?

[Markopolo]

Clean-up after using 6011 is a chipping hammer & a wire brush.

[Brainfarth]

The only thing I have ever had problems with concering a spray for dingleberries(on the metal itself) is that if you spray a splatter spray on metal at a joint(like a flat 90-overlap) and weld only part of it, it give the remainder of the liquid a chance to seep into the crack overnight. The next day you might have problems with porosity when you first start welding.. It is a good idea to burn the chemical out of the weld area before starting a weld.