How do things look/work with the Auto-Set on .030 and 16ga.?

 

Haven't tried it.. But if auto matches the door chart that would make it 4/40.. I would prob blow it lol.. 110v plug!

 

Just for U sir guess I will Thursday .. I tried .035 wire cranked all the way down and man it was like acid lol.. Then put .023 and said that's not the answer..

 

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You need to get your welder set up so you can run beads by themselves without blowing through, consistently. Double check everything. Does that welder have a low/high current switch?

One trick you can do to keep welding straight is to put two tacks one at each end of your desired bead. You will be able to see the tack as light will reflect off it, and just go straight for it. Might help you with weaving off course.

Clearly you need to do a lot more practicing. At least your welds don't look like they're full of porosity, so you can rule out a gas problem.

metalmagpie

 

Thanks.. That's why I am/was reluctant to turn it up.. At the current settings I basically will not blow thru on a joint "unless" it's 2 end pieces and I travel like like a turtle..

I wish I knew someone around me that welds.. I have no real voice to point out mishaps/etc.. The machine sounds like it's in a sweet spot - but how sweet I don't know because I have no real hx of such conditions :-(..

There is no high/low switch.. Only 110 / 220v mode.. I may try the 220v mode but the volt/amp curve looks like it's a little weaker down low as it intended for thicker metal.. Meaning I have to turn up the settings for same thickness at thinner metal.. "That's in theory/print on the auto chart settings/etc"

 

Thanks.. That's why I am/was reluctant to turn it up.. At the current settings I basically will blow thru on a joint / end pieces if I travel like like a turtle..

I wish I knew someone around me that welds.. I have no real voice to point out mishaps/etc.. The machine sounds like it's in a sweet spot - but how sweet I don't know because I have no real hx of such conditions :-(..

There is no high/low switch.. Only 110 / 220v mode.. I may try the 220v mode but the volt/amp curve looks like it's a little weaker down low as it intended for thicker metal.. Meaning I have to turn up the settings for same thickness at thinner metal.. "That's in theory/print on the auto chart settings/etc"

Edited

 

First take a minute and add your location to your profile so we know where you are roughly. People can't volunteer to help if they don't know where you are.

On the 110/220 thing, at thicknesses under 1/8", it really doesn't matter if you are on 110v or 220v power. The machine can provide plenty of power for hose welds. Once you hit 1/8" you pretty much top out at what you can practically do using 110v power and anything thicker, you really need to use 220v power to get good results. 1/8" benefits from the extra power, but it's not 100% mandatory if you prep well and take your time.

At about 16ga, dropping down to .023 wire can help. The smaller wire can allow you a bit more adjustment to fine tune things, and the wire doesn't require as much power to melt, so you can keep the settings slightly lower and still get good results. 16 ga is about the thinnest most new welders can handle and it can be a bit tricky when you start working with edges vs fillets or lap joints. Having said that .030 wire will be fine on material this size. 16 ga is about as thin as I'd want to go most times using that size wire though.

Keep in mind the side wall of the tube will take more heat than an open edge will. So try to keep most of your weld on the tube wall and wash the puddle over onto the edge and back to the wall when the edge starts to get out of control. It will take some time to get good at you aim so you can put the puddle where you want. Sounds like you are already doing this. And pushing the bead also helps. However using an "e" motion tends to keep you in the puddle longer. If you use this method, you have to adjust and travel faster. Most times with thin material like this, I either travel straight with no motions, or if I do use a motion, It's a slight C or z motion or even just a tiny wiggle. All I do is move side to side enough to make sure I get both sides tied together well and try and stay as much as possible on the heavier piece. The only time I usually have students use an "e" motion is when they simply can't slow down enough and usually on thicker material.

One "trick" to remember with "thin" metal is to watch how far away your gun is from the work. Normally you'd want to be about 1/4" to 3/8" max from gun to work ( stick out). The closer you are at a given voltage, the "hotter" the weld is. So a trick to fine tune the heat when welding thin stuff is to back off slightly. This gives you a colder puddle. This can be tough to use in practice for newer welders who can't manage to maintain a consistent distance, but if you understand this, you may be able to understand better why one time you can do just fine, and then the next time you are either too cold, or too hot and blow holes. Once you eventually learn to read the puddle, you can manipulate your stick out so that you can have better control while welding based on what you see happening.


Overall the beads you show don't look all that bad. I've seen a lot worse over the years helping people learn. It just takes practice.

 

Thank Mr. Moderator!

San Antonio Texas!

I have "temporarily" come to the conclusion I am in the correct/good sweet zone/ball park on settings.

I may try the .023 again but I really wanted to get going on .030 for 1/16 - 3/16 gauge.. Where I most likely will be at 90% of the time.

INSERT: Reason I backed off the .023 was the amount of fill - but I can have a look again. That and guess I didn't have it cranked up enough to blow thru ;-)



I have also noted that the following will of course help - slow down/speed up based on joint.. I just tried a quick t joint slowing down a little bit - nothing fancy just put it on the floor and turned the 211 on and welded it.. The profile of the bead did change/flatten out. Will post it later just for the record.

One reason I am tackling the 16 gauge is it's what I "wish" to use for furniture/custom jigs/etc.. Meaning mounting something in my truck or camper shell/etc. Nothing critical or moving lol.. I will post the mount I making for a internal frame for a industrial sewing machine.. Its a industrial sewing machine in a 12X30 portable box.. Used for climbing/caving webbing stitching... You have tot trust me on this one - even at this point the frame I am showing is far better the plywood internal frame with wood screws in it.. That and particle board inside.. I am/will weld all sides on most joints.. Than the 5/8 inch outside wood will be drilled on bolted to the "steel" internal frame... and the end handles bolted to the internal steel frame! Much better! I got 1/8 inch tubing but its just too heavy lol.. The finished box is approaching being to heavy as it is lol...

After I get better I will start on 1/8 or 3/16 wall tubing... Which is coming.. I am getting 40 2" pieces of .120 wall 2x1 and start welding t joints and end joints.... The learning curve should be more forgiving on .120 and .188 wall.

 

See above post on weld note..