Ideal MIG welder set up for body work... What to use? What works best? HELP!

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wjaholic

wjaholic

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I have a 220 Millermatic 210, It works great and I love it. But when I get to some really thin sheet metal I really have to fight it. I am using .030 Flux core wire which isn't the best for welding/repairing sheetmetal. I am looking into shielding gas (75/25) and switching to solid wire. I am tempted to stick with .030 but was wondering if it would be better to go with a smaller dia. like .023. Would that just cause me more problems later on?

With the single phase 220v mig welders like mine, What have you guys found that works for you? I know some applications a TIG will work out great but... I don't have one.... at least not yet.

Thanks!!!
 
Just adding gas and switching to a smaller diameter wire will make a huge difference. Do it.
 
I agree. I'm a total newbie and gas and smaller wire made a huge difference for me. Much cleaner welds.
 
I myself have a seperate 110v wire feed for sheetmetal but if you run a 75/25 gas and go to .023 wire in your welder which is what I use it will work great.


Chuck
 
Don't try to weld sheetmetal with .030 wire, especially Flux Core. Otherwise you may be doing lots of this...
hammerhead.gif


Get some .023-.025

The basic reason is that thicker wire requires more heat to fuse. Heat is the last thing you want on sheetmetal panels.

Flux core wire at equivalent thickness, burns hotter than solid wire. That's why when you look at the settings sheet, flux will weld thicker material. It get s hotter and penetrates better.

TIG is better for doing panels, but, much more difficult to control. It has a smaller heat effected zone than a MIG because you can pedal in the amount of heat.

hammerhead.gif


hammerhead.gif
 
Go with the gas and smaller dia. wire. Be sure to make some test/practice welds on similiar gauge scrap metal before you start on expensive or non-replaceable quarters or fenders. When welding vertically, start at the top and work down. Don't try to make one continuos bead, you'll warp the panel. Make a bunch of "stitch" welds or even perforate the panel and "rosette" weld the panles on after flanging it. Get used to the weld, grind, weld, grind routine! LOL!

Good luck!
 
As has been said... you will find the 75/25 gas and small wire to be the ticket. Your welder will probably also suggest reversing the polarity. Check the manual or there may be a diagram of polarity inside the door.
 
THANKS!

Oh yeah, inside of the door and all over the manual it sceams at you to change the polarity.


I am going to swtich over to solid wire, I am running a liner for .030 & .035 wire, same with the tips. When I swtich over to the smaller wire I will have to get a new (smaller) liner and a fist full of tips. Very Cool!


Thanks again!
 
Oh....don't forget to disconnect the vehicle battery when welding on it. You could fry some electricals.
 
I'd go with the Lincoln 3200 model gas welder running on 115 volts rather than the 220 volt units. You can weld pretty thick stuff with this (1/4 inch no problem) and still have all the portability to take it anywhere without having to find the 220 volt power supply. Ninety percent of most home welding is on 1/8 inch material or less.
 
wjaholic said:
THANKS!

Oh yeah, inside of the door and all over the manual it sceams at you to change the polarity.


I am going to swtich over to solid wire, I am running a liner for .030 & .035 wire, same with the tips. When I swtich over to the smaller wire I will have to get a new (smaller) liner and a fist full of tips. Very Cool!


Thanks again!
Click to expand...

You do not need to change the liner to run a smaller wire. You will need to pick up the correct size tips for the wire you are running (p/n 087 299 for .023/.025 wire) .Your weld current is transfered to the wire at the tip so it is important to have the correct size. Using a larger hole will give you a wandering arc and less than satisfactory welds. You will also have to install the correct size drive rolls. Your welder should have came with the .030/.035 drive roll kit. you can attempt to use this to feed the smaller wire but it will probably not feed smoothly. More than likely you will need the 087 131 drive roll kit for .023/.025 wire. se the guide on the welder to set you base settings for what you are welding and fine tune from there. ou will get some nice recults with the Miller.
 
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