another mig owner thread

[Regneufeld]

If you don't mind the welds being a bit cruder looking (but just as strong), try straight CO2 gas. Much cheaper to buy and as it's a liquid it goes much farther than compressed gas.

that was something I was going to ask someone about. They gave me the mixed stuff I believe but was wondering what the other options were for. I am not to worried about gas usage as I do not weld that much.

been reading on here till my head hurts, and really need to work with it for a while before I even know what to ask at this point. Seems like a pretty safe place to learn

 

[sammyslab]

that was something I was going to ask someone about. They gave me the mixed stuff I believe but was wondering what the other options were for. I am not to worried about gas usage as I do not weld that much.

been reading on here till my head hurts, and really need to work with it for a while before I even know what to ask at this point. Seems like a pretty safe place to learn

Hi Regneufeld... I saw this thread today and wanted to respond to your welder question. First of all,,,,,, I have the exact same machine as yours. I bought it new in 1999 for $1,700. These were some of Miller's best welding machines. They have a very smooth start as you will notice. They weld very nicely once you get used to them. I don't weld very much myself; just as a hobby but I take the side panel off and blow it out very good with an air hose before plugging it in. The spiders seem to like it very much as a home. I also use a weld wire lubricant via swabbers (for lack of a better word) before the feed mechanism of the wire feeder. This keeps the wire clean and lubricated while traveling thru the hose. My gas flow is set on about 25 cfm and generally 30 if I'm welding outside.
If I could figure out how to post a pic I'll do that. The welder still looks like new. I had to build a special cart to keep the 33 lb roll from touching the tank. It looks great as well.
As far as gas is concerned, I use 75/25 CO2/Argon. There is less spatter with this mix but a little penetration. You can get 100% CO2 and get better penetration but with a lot more spatter. These are for mild steel...
You got a great deal,,, enjoy it!!! Ron

 

[BukitCase]

One more thing to consider - I have a mm252, so my wire spool is inside the box - and I STILL went and bought one of these

Brinkmann Premium 60 in. Universal Grill Cover-812-1095-S at The Home Depot

With an open feeder such as yours, especially considering how long it will probably take you to go thru a 33 lb. spool, I would be even MORE likely to do it.

Also, with your climate I would either remove the wire spool and take it in the house (major PITA) or find a place for a small incandescent bulb near the feeder - just enough to keep things above dew point so you're not trying to run RUSTY wire thru the gun... Steve

 

[Arc weld]

What's nice about your new machine is the feeder is separate from the machine. If you bought a longer control cord, gas hose and welding cables, you could mount the feeder on its own cart to move it where ever you need it or even mount it on a boom. When I used to have a wire feeder for my portable, I could use a 2 wire extension cord to run the feeder.