Stainless welding options

[bigdeano]

I have some stainless rods that I use for these projects. They work great. Slag peels right off and the weld bead is super pretty. Almost as easy as using a 7014 rod. Wish I had the number or I'd give it to you.

Sounds like the E308L-16 rods I use to weld 304 stainless.

 

[Gary Fowler]

When I said 316L I was referring to the stock and not so much the wire. I have never seen 304 wire. I thought it started at 308.

Is the higher grade SS more for chemical corrosion than for rust? I work one place and they had a machine made by George Ficsher. It used a chemical to clean the metal with a tungsten and a scrubby. It would even take some of the discoloration out of the welds

You are right in 308 wire is used to match the chemical composition of the 304 grade material in the as-welded condition. Without looking into section IX for the chemical composition again, IIRC the 316 has some Mo. in it and maybe even more nickel than 304 but 304 has more chromium. One tends to forget that stuff after a few years of not having to open a Code book and the CRS syndrome kicks in more frequently as one gets older.

EDIT: Well I had to look it up just to see how my memory was working
316 stainless material and rod is sometimes called 16-12-2 which corresponds to the Chromium, Nickel and Molybdenum content.
304 material is call 18-8 and has no moly in it
308 material used to make the alloy welding rods has 20%Cr. 10 % Ni so it will more closely match the chemical content and coloring of the 304 stainless base metal when welded. When welding a small % of the chromium and nickel will vaporize so electrodes usually do contain a bit more of the base elements.

 

[Jim in ICT]

So much concern for the correct filler metal! Sodo is welding S/S towel holders with S6 wire and C25. No time for all this, just use what ya got. Any bailing wire laying around?
Just kidding.

 

[dragoneggs]

I'm no welder but I do work with metals (structural bonding) and we use 316 vs 304 for marine/offshore applications. The 316L is the industry preferred material over 316 for welding as the carbon content is significantly less providing a less susceptible corrosive material after it is welded. Granted, your railing is probably not going to be subjected to salt spray but long term the 316L is the better choice not taking into account cost/availability. Unfortunately I am tainted with a mechanical engineering degree with a materials emphasis. Just wish that made me a better welder!

 

[Walkin Horse]

You gotta have us weldors. Even engineers need heroes.

 

[Shield Arc]

Just wish that made me a better welder!

Any old CC welder, and a Tig rig with a bottle of argon, and you can weld stainless steel.
TIG Torch SR 17V 25R 150Amp Air Cooled | eBay
HTP Argon CO2 MIG TIG Flow Meter Regulator Welding Weld | eBay

 

[dstig1]

Sodo was making something he didn't care a lot about for a rental. This is the opposite end of the spectrum...

Dragoneggs- gotcha beat on this one - I'm a materials engineer with a mechanical bent... There is no need for 316, and while i'm sure I can find it in filler reasonably, getting it for railing parts will be painful and expensive (I guess expensive is painful, too ) If I find I need to passivate it down the road, I can go back and do that I suppose, but i doubt it will be necessary for this. We are not coastal in Wisc...

I will be using my XMT as the power source for this. I will get a foot pedal for sure, and of course a torch plus argon bottle/flowmeter. I am also going to look for a hi Freq box for it like a Miller 251D. I suspect that will make life a lot easier for not a lot of extra dough, though I have lift-arc capability built into the box already. I will dedicate abrasives to this so i don't get any cross contamination. Odds are that I will not need to do anything other than this project at that time, so odds of messing with plain steel at the same time are low.

SA- good to see you back. Appreciate any advice.

 

[dragoneggs]

Sodo was making something he didn't care a lot about for a rental. This is the opposite end of the spectrum...

Dragoneggs- gotcha beat on this one - I'm a materials engineer with a mechanical bent... There is no need for 316, and while i'm sure I can find it in filler reasonably, getting it for railing parts will be painful and expensive (I guess expensive is painful, too ) If I find I need to passivate it down the road, I can go back and do that I suppose, but i doubt it will be necessary for this. We are not coastal in Wisc...

I will be using my XMT as the power source for this. I will get a foot pedal for sure, and of course a torch plus argon bottle/flowmeter. I am also going to look for a hi Freq box for it like a Miller 251D. I suspect that will make life a lot easier for not a lot of extra dough, though I have lift-arc capability built into the box already. I will dedicate abrasives to this so i don't get any cross contamination. Odds are that I will not need to do anything other than this project at that time, so odds of messing with plain steel at the same time are low.

SA- good to see you back. Appreciate any advice.

Oh I totally agree with you Dave on the need for 316 for this application. Just being ****.

 

[Walkin Horse]

Why are you going to put a hi freq box on there. Does your xmt have ac.

Also on lift arc you have a good chance of breaking the tip off of your tungsten. Practice your scratch starts. Tungsten inclusion isn't a big deal on this but once you shatter it, it tends to booger up faster.

One other thing. Have your tig rig equipped with a gas lense. It gives you better gas distribution. I will post a picture of one later.

 

[Shield Arc]

Here is a picture of a gas lens (bottom), and a Tig rig torch (top).