Welding advice, please

[Shield Arc]

What brand and number of wire are you running?

Proper setting are the best way to go, but with FCAW-SS you will have some splatter, and lots of smoke. I like Lincoln's NR-212, and Hobart's 21-B for general fab work.

 

[moored4]

That is a nice table! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Flux core wire will give you splatter! There is a anti splatter spray that you can get that can help it to not stick.

Addition that I would add would be.

1. A brace on one end from leg to leg about 6 to 8" down to hold your C clamps

2.A piece of pipe with the id large enough so you can put the head of your lead in it. Weld it to the leg on your working arm side, Right handed then right side.

3.The angle that has been spoken about is laid at like a 'V' at one edge and does not protrude above the top edge, I have to take a picture that I will post later, if someone else has one handy then please feel free to jump in.

Again that table is a NICE addition to your shop and will help your back and your welding! Your doing GREAT!!:thumbsup:

 

[moored4]

What brand and number of wire are you running?

Proper setting are the best way to go, but with FCAW-SS you will have some splatter, and lots of smoke. I like Lincoln's NR-212, and Hobart's 21-B for general fab work.

Shield Arc; I think that you致e done this once before! :laughing: :thumbsup:

 

[troutsqueezer]

I was going to bring up the fact that a wire brush is probably not up to the task of preparing the joint before welding but you seem to have figured that out. Angle grinders can be had cheap, put on a flap disk and you're on your way.

 

[Perplexed]

Shield, I'll have to look again at the spool of wire for the info. It was what was supplied with the Hot Max welder as "general use" for mild carbon steel, but the ink on the label was somewhat smeared, so I had trouble reading the label. IIRC, it was 70-T1 or some such, but I don't remember the maker.

By the way, the welder came set up for flux core welding, with the (+) and (-) wires set up thusly, but I double-checked anyway.

Moore, I'll have to look for some of that anti-splatter spray, especially if I'm going to weld up "pretty" stuff Thanks for the other tips; I think this bench will see appendages welded to it over time. I do understand what you mean by the angle iron and how it's welded to the bench - kind of like a rain gutter, no?

And again, thanks to all for the compliments!

 

[moored4]

Moore, I'll have to look for some of that anti-splatter spray, especially if I'm going to weld up "pretty" stuff Thanks for the other tips; I think this bench will see appendages welded to it over time. I do understand what you mean by the angle iron and how it's welded to the bench - kind of like a rain gutter, no?

And again, thanks to all for the compliments!

kind of like a rain gutter, YES!:thumbsup:

 

[Shield Arc]

Shield Arc; I think that you致e done this once before! :laughing: :thumbsup:

This coming Friday will be two whole weeks.

 

[rankrank1]

Moore, I'll have to look for some of that anti-splatter spray...

And again, thanks to all for the compliments!

Lots of guys use Pam cooking spray (or generic alternatives readily available from any discount dollar store) for welding anti-spatter spray. Have no idea if it is better or not, but it will be cheaper.

 

[k0ua]

Thanks, but if you saw the table up close, you'd see why I consider it a "decent" first attempt. Two of the legs aren't exactly square to the top, so if you look closely, you can see the legs aren't all parallel :ashamed: I tried hammering the worst back into line, but the welds weren't giving up anything! How do you folks position - and hold - a table leg so it's perpendicular to the top in both axes, before welding it in place?

Here's a shot of the best welds on this table. Trust me, the other welds aren't as neat-looking I did notice a lot of splatter up to 2-3" away from each weld, plus a lot of tan-colored "soot" (for lack of a better word). The splatter can only be scraped or ground off, but the "soot" comes off with a paper towel. From what I've read, a certain amount of splatter is to be expected with flux core welding, but is there a way to minimize the splatter? I tried different wire feed speeds, holding the gun at different angles and distances from the work, fast/slow welding, etc. But nothing seemed to help reduce the splatter. Also, what's with the "soot" ? Is that normal?

Go watch this video, it explains how to do this very thing (align the legs) far better than I can. In fact you may like some of the other vids there also. Jody at Weldingtipsandtricks.com has a lot of good stuff.

YouTube - weldingtipsandtricks's Channel


James K0UA

 

[Perplexed]

Pam cooking spray?? I'll have to get some from the kitchen and try it...

That welding video was cool, especially where he used the tack welds to "pull" the leg back to vertical. Thanks!