MIG welding settings?

[Nodroz]

Hello,

I just bought a multifunctional welder that is able to weld MIG, TIG and with sticks.

Now I'm experiencing some problems with the settings. I've seen a lot of videos on the internet where people have a chart of the basic welding settings on the inside of their machine. I don't have this. There's also nothing in the manual about the settings whatsoever.

Now my question is, is there any general saying to know how much volt do I need and how fast my wire speed should be?

When do you know if you're welding too cold or too hot?
When do you know if your wire speed is too fast or too slow?

I read that you need 1amp per 0.001" thickness. Is there any similar trick for the voltage and wire setting?

How much flow rate do you need for welding inside a garage with the door open. Almost zero wind is coming there. Do you need to adjust the flow rate of the gas when welding a corner / overhead / horizontal / overlapping / butt joints / etc etc ?

Thanks in advance,
Alex

 

[OzFab]

my question is, is there any general saying to know how much volt do I need and how fast my wire speed should be?

If there is I don't know of any. Others with more welding knowledge might...

When do you know if you're welding too cold or too hot?

If the weld is too cold the bead will sit high on the join. if it's too hot you'll be making holes.

When do you know if your wire speed is too fast or too slow?

When the wire speed is just right, the machine will make a constant buzz, it won't be jumpy or staggered.

Get yourself a bit of thick scrap &, holding the gun in one hand, pull the trigger as if to weld & adjust the wire speed with the other hand & you'll hear the difference.

Now turn up the power & try again

How much flow rate do you need for welding inside a garage with the door open. Almost zero wind is coming there. Do you need to adjust the flow rate of the gas when welding a corner / overhead / horizontal / overlapping / butt joints / etc etc ?

The gas flow rate should stay constant at around 15 CFH (although I usually run around 12) & weld out of the wind. Having said that, you should always weld in a well ventilated area

 

[Nodroz]

Thanks a lot Fabroman.

I've been outside for 2 hours. I took some scrap metal, cleaned all the rust off it and started welding beams. I had different voltages and different wire speeds. I'm starting to find the right setting for my 1" x 1" with 1.6mm thickness metal (mainly metal used for my gokart).

The right voltage is sometimes really hard to find. Sometimes you're just 0.1 off too high and it's starting to burn through, or when it's set a little too low the weld doesn't penetrate and just lays on top of the weld.

I noticed you have more margin with the wire speed settings. I tried to turn up quite high, and it started to splatter a lot, then I turned it down too low and it was like a contact each half a sec. Then I took the middle of them both and I was able to find about the right speed. Like baking eggs on a Sunday morning.

How about welding gaps? Should you turn down the voltage and crank up or down? the wire speed, or leave it as it is when you're welding without a gap.

Are there any rules for when you have to push/pull the weld?

 

[fowler]

U are supposed to push with a mig and u can do what ever with a stick

U push as the shield gas is making a bubble as u go

In industry they would require this but on a go kart it's what ever is easiest
It doesn't make a hell of a differance and until u get quite experienced the welder will be a bit out on the settings most of the time

A good weld sounds like crackling bacon

 

[Doc Sprocket]

I taught myself a saying when I was learning-

"Don't drag your @ss when you're welding with gas", so push only. With FCAW, you can either push or pull, with a slight effect on penetration.

Most of what you're asking will make itself pretty clear as you practise. Try to avoid gaps in your fitment when dealing with thinner materials. If you DO have to stitch up a gap- turn the heat way down, and knock the feed speed down too. Tack across the gap in VERY short bursts (just enough to deposit a drop of metal) with time in between shots for the drop to solidify. Work along the joint, spacing the drops apart as far as they are wide. O O O O O O O O

Then, after cooling a bit, you should be able to turn things up abit, and run a bead along the whole joint.

This is what works for me on thinner materials.

 

[DaiSan76]

If there's slag, drag. With gas it works better to push, gives you less spatter.
For a starting point, take your voltage, lets say 17.5, remove the decimal point and add 10 for the wirespeed, so 17.5 Volts is 185 wirespeed. That will get you in the ballpark, then you can adjust up or down a few points to fit your style.

 

[Nodroz]

If there's slag, drag. With gas it works better to push, gives you less spatter.
For a starting point, take your voltage, lets say 17.5, remove the decimal point and add 10 for the wirespeed, so 17.5 Volts is 185 wirespeed. That will get you in the ballpark, then you can adjust up or down a few points to fit your style.

Thanks a lot! I'll try it out tomorrow!

Thanks to toystory and fowler aswell! My welds are looking better and better the more I practice and get to know my welder.

 

[Doc Sprocket]

Good on ya- Keep at it!

 

[GregMartin]

Lots of good stuff here.
Someone recently suggested starting a dedicated post on welding, this would be a pretty good start.