[pfabhobby]

Hello,
I am looking for some advice on MIG welding. Most of the steel I use is 1/8 thick or less, thin stuff. I only weld as a hobbyist, but want to do more.
I have a stick welder and also a mig setup for only flux-core at the moment. I want to replace the rocker panels on my truck as they are rotting away. I was told to use the mig with a shielding gas.

- what gas is best argon or argon\co2?
- are the regulators specific? so can a argon\co2 reg be used on a bottle that is just argon?
- any recommendations on the gas bottle?

Thank You!

 

[M J D]

What's your budget? A good low cost option is the primeweld 180. Mix gas is a better option for light gauge body work.

 

[scsmith42]

What he said above.

Yes, same regulator. Gas mix usually best for mile steel and hard wire.

A lot of MIG machines will run both flux core and solid wire, you may want to sell the one that you have and replace it with one that will do both.

I’ll say this though, 100% of my light gauge MIG welding is hard wire.

 

[cornchip]

c25 gas is commonly used. most every floating ball style regulator will have several scales for various gasses. if your current machine doesnt have a gas inlet on the back then youll need to get a new different machine. as for which machine ,seems like brand x has mentioned some of the prime weld machines dont have a low enough voltage to be any good at body work. maybe he can chime in

 

[ManoKai]

@pfabhobby - thread relevancy. c25 shielding with .025/.030 wires common for 18-22ga steel sheet work. skip fluxcore.

a MIG machine that outputs 15-24V is base for sheet metal work. many rigs in the pool. the primeweld mig 180, at literature level, meets the requirement.

advice. get real/real good with fit-up on any panel surfaces before burn-in. surface conformity (ie. shape, form) and geo control of seams/joints are key.

 

[cornchip]

maybe it was the 200 and 285 that were on the cusp of not being able to go low enough on amps and volts. 15.5 (assuming thats really its lowest) might just barely be low enough. i dont do body panel stuff but im able to go down 14.5 and 10a according to the book

 

[smithdoor]

For most work fluxcore no gas to buy .
E71T-11 0.030 will do most work.
240 volt or dual voltage.
100 amps at 60% duty cycle.
If need budget friendly or size 20% duty cycle

Dave

Hello,
I am looking for some advice on MIG welding. Most of the steel I use is 1/8 thick or less, thin stuff. I only weld as a hobbyist, but want to do more.
I have a stick welder and also a mig setup for only flux-core at the moment. I want to replace the rocker panels on my truck as they are rotting away. I was told to use the mig with a shielding gas.

- what gas is best argon or argon\co2?
- are the regulators specific? so can a argon\co2 reg be used on a bottle that is just argon?
- any recommendations on the gas bottle?

Thank You!

 

[Dan]

Advertised lowend for the Prime weld 180 is 15.5 volt. That's a touch on the high side to be a good or better autobody sheet metal unit.

 

[N2 Welding]

I've read to use .023 to .025 easy grind wire. https://www.airgas.com/product/Weld...ucts/Filler-Metal/MIG-Wire-(GMAW-&-SAW)/MIG-Wire---Carbon-Steel/p/ESA700706460H


https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum....com/forum/threads/real-life-experiences-with-esab-easy-grind-mig-wire.1138948/

 

[Brand X]

This..The Klutch machines are solid If you want 120 volt only the Esab Rouge EM-140 is about as good as it gets..

The 120 volt only Primeweld 145 is no longer made..It was too hot for thinner autobody work..15.5 bottom end on a 120 volt unit is kind of stupid anyway. (IMO)

I found my Blue demon 140 with .030 flux core dials down really well. When in the manual mode it dials down to 10 volts....035 galv. fence welding is possible.Dialed up a bit off the bottom..

The Little Forney Easyweld 140 is a nice little unit too.. Does not have a ton wfs but use larger wire f you need max output..

https://www.amazon.com/Forney-Easy-...658769&sprefix=esapb,aps,395&sr=8-19-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9tdGY&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DDC95WLW/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_2?smid=AF8EGQ3KRZQB6&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/ESAB-Flux-Co..._tag=se&keywords=esab+rouge+140&qid=1736657331&sprefix=esab+roug,aps,407&sr=8-1

 

[cornchip]

This..The Klutch machines are solid If you want 120 volt only the Esab Rouge EM-140 is about as good as it gets..

The 120 volt only Primeweld 145 is no longer made..It was too hot for thinner autobody work..15.5 bottom end on a 120 volt unit is kind of stupid anyway. (IMO)

I found my Blue demon 140 with .030 flux core dials down really well. When in the manual mode it dials down to 10 volts....035 galv. fence welding is possible.Dialed up a bit off the bottom..

The Little Forney Easyweld 140 is a nice little unit too.. Does not have a ton wfs but use larger wire f you need max output..

https://www.amazon.com/Forney-Easy-...658769&sprefix=esapb,aps,395&sr=8-19-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9tdGY&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DDC95WLW/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_2?smid=AF8EGQ3KRZQB6&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/ESAB-Flux-Co..._tag=se&keywords=esab+rouge+140&qid=1736657331&sprefix=esab+roug,aps,407&sr=8-1

got my hands on one of these recently to try out. book says low end is 11v 30a

 

[pfabhobby]

Wow, Lots of info, Thank You to all that replied. I do have a machine that does both Flux and gas, I think it a 20% duty cycle. I got it harbor freight 5+ years ago, just to get into it and it was so cheap at the time with a sale and discounts I couldn't pass it up as budget was a factor. I have had a stick welded for 10+ years and always revert back to that when I look at how bad my flux core welds are .

I will go back through the owners manual and look through it for all that was posted.

Thanks Again Everyone.

 

[pfabhobby]

I looked at the specs on my machine:
power input: 240V , 20A
welding output: 30 -170 A
duty cycle: 20% at 110A
wire: .023 - .035
capacity: 22GA to 1/4"
mild steel and stainless only.

Looks like I need to do some research on all this stuff. I took a class at a community college once, but it was just go weld, no explanation.

 

[Brand X]

The Razorweld (Jasic) are generally solid.. I had one of their Plasma cutters (Ironton from NT)

 

[duramax-rob]

I did body work at new car dealerships for 35 years. I was I-CAR certified. insurance institute. was certified on a Lincoln sp-125 welder. 125 amps that welding anything on a unibody car except aluminum. it is a 120 volt welder. a friend of mines body. shop still uses 120 volt welders. get one that has variable settings on the wire speed AND AMPS!!! you can fine tune the sweet spot on scrap metal before doing it on replacement parts. that's same size welder I used at home to do side work also. one shop I worked at had 250 amp welders and were almost imposible to find sweet spot. could make work but just not as good

 

[cornchip]

The Razorweld (Jasic) are generally solid.. I had one of their Plasma cutters (Ironton from NT)

for the price it looks pretty good but it just showed up and havent got a chance to use it yet

 

[pfabhobby]

Thank You!

 

[SDouglas]

120v welder with infinitely variable speed and voltage, 0.023 ER70s6 wire and C25 steel mix gas to keep it simple.

Personally I'd leave a root gap and use silicon bronze wire. Silicon bronze brazing wire is the newish standard in the body industry. Leaves good support on the back side, flexes more than steel mig without cracking, inputs less heat and doesn't rust.

MIG or braze,every few welds (short stiches), stop and blow air on the sheet metal to cool it off to prevent warping. After that, the each weld will be cold for a second if you start on a tac or the end of a weld. To prevent a bunch of cold starts, start just off the last weld and weld into it and then immediately jump back to where you just started and go the other direction a short distance. The thicker the sheet metal, the more welds you can do between cooling the sheet metal.

 

[woodworker_nathan]

120v welder with infinitely variable speed and voltage, 0.023 ER70s6 wire and C25 steel mix gas to keep it simple.

Personally I'd leave a root gap and use silicon bronze wire. Silicon bronze brazing wire is the newish standard in the body industry. Leaves good support on the back side, flexes more than steel mig without cracking, inputs less heat and doesn't rust.

MIG or braze,every few welds (short stiches), stop and blow air on the sheet metal to cool it off to prevent warping. After that, the each weld will be cold for a second if you start on a tac or the end of a weld. To prevent a bunch of cold starts, start just off the last weld and weld into it and then immediately jump back to where you just started and go the other direction a short distance. The thicker the sheet metal, the more welds you can do between cooling the sheet metal.

I've seen guys use large copper bars behind welds to pull heat away and act as a non permanent backing plate.

 

[N2 Welding]

I was under the impression some body cut outs that use new panels in place would have a backer sheet of thin sheet to aid in alignment issues and reduce burn through.