Why does flux core wire weld thicker metal than MIG?

[sixdogs]

Why does the same machine setup with flux core wire weld thicker metal than the same machine set up as MIG? My Lincoln SP170T owner's manual gives a chart that shows flux wire welding a noticeably thicker steel than just MIG wire with shielding gas. I don't understand this.

 

[Shield Arc]

I don't really know the technical answer. I would assume because flux core has a hotter puddle. Now dual shield with gas coverage, has the best of both worlds. Slag and gas coverage.

I have welded up to 4-inch thick material with 1/16-inch Mig wire. Worked in a fab shop in the 1970s, we had to test every 3-months with Mig on 1-inch thick V-butt plates.

 

[sixdogs]

Flux core with gas. Very interesting.

 

[Shield Arc]

You'll see dual shield used more often than Mig in structural fab shops. And boy is it fast! :cool2:

 

[CNC Dan]

Why does the same machine setup with flux core wire weld thicker metal than the same machine set up as MIG? My Lincoln SP170T owner's manual gives a chart that shows flux wire welding a noticeably thicker steel than just MIG wire with shielding gas. I don't understand this.

I think it has to do with the vapor that the flux core wire makes.

Kind of like using helium, instead of argon, will produced a hotter weld (same current) with TIG welding.

 

[sixdogs]

You'll see dual shield used more often than Mig in structural fab shops. And boy is it fast! :cool2:

What does the weld look like? Quality?

 

[Shield Arc]

Here are some dual shield welds I made a few years ago.
First pictures shows the slag coverage.
Third picture is a vertical up hill weld.

 

[sixdogs]

wow is that impressive.

 

[Shield Arc]

I didn't do any of the welding, I was the project superintendent. This was for an outfall just down river of the Bonneville dam, on the Columbia river. We drove 10-feet diameter pipe, drilled them out, and welded another section to the driven section, and drove it. The outboard piles went over 200-feet into the rock. All welded with dual shield, 100% x-ray.

 

[CNC Dan]

I didn't do any of the welding, I was the project superintendent. This was for an outfall just down river of the Bonneville dam, on the Columbia river. We drove 10-feet diameter pipe, drilled them out, and welded another section to the driven section, and drove it. The outboard piles went over 200-feet into the rock. All welded with dual shield, 100% x-ray.

Would love to be able to have a close up look at that kind of operation. how long does it take to drive a pile that deep, and how far does it go with each blow of the pile driver.