Stick or MIG on thick plate???

[zman007007]

JCC, did the welder you look at, look like this? I bought this one about 1 1/2 years ago, from Lowes. I have been very impressed with how it welds. I am experienced in welding, so I know a bit about welding. not everything but some. In my 30 some years of welding I have tig welded, stick and migged. I had never tho had the chance to flux core wire weld. I was very impressed with it. It came with the gauges and hose to hook to the 75/25, ie. argon tank, but after welding with it outside I decided I don't need it. I was welding 1/4" to 3/8" metal on the settings shown in the pics and did great. I did have to make more than one pass, but what the heck, I wasn"t trying to make production on anything. I was using .030 wire and tips on this. I think with the .045 tip and wire it recommends for 1/2" steel it would do fine. Just would have to do several passes. zman

 

[crazyal]

I guess it comes down to how much you are willing to spend. Clearly a DC stick welder is much cheaper than a powerful mig but unlike a stick 99% of the time I can lay down a great weld with my Lincoln 255 welder. Because I use gas laying down multiple passes is painless. I can't tell you how well a 180 would work since mine is a bigger industrial unit though.

If you do go the stick welder route play with it some before trying to do something like a backhoe. The last thing you'll want to do is lay down some poor welds that you'll either be grinding out or could crack when in use and cause other problems.

 

[JCC]

Thanks everyone for your replies, you have helped me zero in on what I need terms of specs and the pros and cons of MIG vs stick.

Well I did some more research and decided to buy a Hobart Handler 210 MIG welder. Its rated up to 210A and 3/8" welds with one pass. That is a little short of 250A which is ideal for 1/2". If I bevel the plates, use a root gap and maybe pre-heat with multiple passes I think it should be fine.

Speed is not super important to me since I am not doing this for a living. What is more important is that I am comfortable doing the welding which I will be with MIG. Maybe I am being a big chicken but the stick welding kind of scares me. If all else fails I have a friend in PA with a Lincoln buzz box which I can use, but I am trying to avoid the learning curve.

And I found a deal for the welder only $700, that is just $30 more that the Lincoln MIG Pro 180 at Lowes. Now I am off trying to sell my current welder and some other stuff to pay for the new welder.

 

[u2cme21999]

I would try a ASAB 250amp,you can weld sheet metal all the way up to 1 inch plate--I have even welded 2 inch thick blocks on an over head crane boom,and never had one break off,it is a great all around mig,perfect for 1/2 inch plate

 

[Transit]

Something no one has addressed, how will you be cutting the stock?

 

[kjung17]

You are right on with the root gap (no wider than your filler rod/wire) and bevel (35 degrees or so). Stick or wire doesn't matter. Multiple passes. Clean between passes. With that method, you can weld any thickness. Preheat unnecessary on 1/2". If you mess it up, grind it out. It's hard to ruin metal. Good luck.

 

[Gary Fowler]

The root gap not wider than filler metal only works for stick rod. You wont get full penetration with a mig with .030 or .045 gap. you need a minimum of 1/8" to get the penetration you need. We use 3/16 gap for tacking on larger pipe which sucks down to about 5/32 after it is all tacked up. Run it downhill and keep the wire feed pointed into the puddle. Takes some practice to keep the wire from porcupining inside but once you get the hang of it, it makes a nice weld. I know most of you think if it burns thru it is bad.

 

[JCC]

Something no one has addressed, how will you be cutting the stock?

I have that covered, I have a Milwaukee, 6370-20 metal cutting circular saw, will cut 1/2" plate like cutting through 2x4 wood. Amazing saw.

 

[kjung17]

I have that covered, I have a Milwaukee, 6370-20 metal cutting circular saw, will cut 1/2" plate like cutting through 2x4 wood. Amazing saw.

Wow. Nice saw.

 

[Ford tractor]

I would have either gone for a 250 amp class mig or a much (MUCH!) cheaper AC/DC stick welder. The learning curve for stick welding isn't very steep if you have already taught yourself what a good looking mig weld looks like.