My 'new' welding table and first welding project

dragoneggs · Apr 17, 2014

I recently bought a Miller 211 Mig and and picked up a Harbor Freight Welder cabinet that I really like. Now the story gets a little interesting as I went to the local dump and recycle station in hopes of finding some scrap to practice on. Well, I did go dumpster diving in the metal scrap bin and pulled out a beat up Craftsman rollaway tool chest!!! The casters were shot and I replaced with HF swivels w/locks. I tore apart the drawers and bent the slides and guides back into working order and then had a revelation! :lightbulb: This will be my welding table. I bought a 2ft by 4ft by 1/2in steel plate and tacked onto the top of the tool chest.
:cool2:

So, time for my first project after very little practicing... I know, I know... I bought some square tube and started welding up a frame for our new greenhouse workbench. worked out great!

I don't want to show any hi-res close ups of my welds as they are horrible looking but here is my 10ft long by 30in wide by 36in high potting bench frame.

weldingisfun · Apr 17, 2014

There is nothing wrong with your welds. Looks good. Hope you get a lot of use out of everything.

square1 · Apr 17, 2014

I don't want to show any hi-res close ups of my welds as they are horrible looking

meh, a little spot putty, a little paint...

Shield Arc · Apr 17, 2014

weldingisfun said:
There is nothing wrong with your welds.

Who am I to judge, but the one weld I can see, is to cold, and he didn't wrap the corner. But I'm new to this, and learning all the time.

AaronS · Apr 17, 2014

Great idea on using the tool chest for your table! I like!

k0ua · Apr 17, 2014

I would say you really lucked out on the cabinet/welding table.:thumbsup:

ThomasH · Apr 17, 2014

You learn by doing and getting help. So your first welds aren't the best, but you do have to start somewhere. If the table works for you, then they are strong enough. In the spirit of helping you, if I were you I would post pictures, and I bet you would get helpful feedback. Well, most of the time anyway...

dragoneggs · Apr 17, 2014

Shield Arc said:
Who am I to judge, but the one weld I can see, is to cold, and he didn't wrap the corner. But I'm new to this, and learning all the time.

Yeah my big problem I think was starting on thin gauge material. The tube is square 1-1/4in section, 16gauge. I was easily getting burn through especially trying to weld an edge to mid section.

Shield Arc · Apr 17, 2014

One of the biggest problems with Mig welders is guys run them to cold. Cold lap is a big issue with Mig welders. Personally I'd rather see a little undercut than cold lap. At least with undercut you know you have penetration. With cold lap you have no idea how bad it is, because you can't see through the weld. Mig welders are notorious for cold lap welds. The weld looks great but it's useless:thumbdown:.

dragoneggs · Apr 17, 2014

I need to pay you a visit Shield Arc! There must be a trick to find the happy balance of no cold lap and burning through on thin gauge. I suppose it is easier on thicker material. Time to go back to the garage and practice.

Shield Arc · Apr 17, 2014

dragoneggs said:
I need to pay you a visit Shield Arc!

I'm home pretty much 24/7.

Shield Arc · Apr 17, 2014

I'm not real good with thin material, coming from a structural back ground. There was one time where 3/8-inch material made me nervous!

I'd like to get my hands on your welder. I've never run one, but have heard great things about them. Not to sure I would like that auto set. I don't like people telling me what to do, much less a welding machine! :laughing:

yomax4 · Apr 17, 2014

The Miller Auto Set is really not Auto Set. it is however a brilliant marketing ploy.. It doubled the sales in the unit class that offered it. You still have to " dial it in ".. Which means it's not much different than reading the parameters off of the cover or in the manual and getting close. No matter though, Any welder that welds is a great tool..

Happy Gilmore · Apr 17, 2014

Post some weld pics, I too would like to see them and read feedback. Granted I'm learning stick, but would eventually like to try MIG.

robstaples · Apr 17, 2014

Dragon, Nice job. I have the same 211. Love it. I use .030 wire and pulse on off letting it cool to avoid burn thru. Take a scrap and non auto mode and start lowering the voltage letting the piece cool between passes.
I added a small wire gun, second tank (Argon) and have a great time welding aluminum. 211 does a nice job on that too. Best part, if you scratch your paint, it doesn't rust.

dragoneggs · Apr 17, 2014

robstaples said:
Dragon, Nice job. I have the same 211. Love it. I use .030 wire and pulse on off letting it cool to avoid burn thru. Take a scrap and non auto mode and start lowering the voltage letting the piece cool between passes.
I added a small wire gun, second tank (Argon) and have a great time welding aluminum. 211 does a nice job on that too. Best part, if you scratch your paint, it doesn't rust.

Thanks Rob, I should have tried 'pulsing'. Really, there were multiple attempts on many the joints and I only brushed clean in between instead of grinding. I did grind the finish flat where it was an appearance thing (plainly visible). I probably should have ground some between passes when I had a very poor bead but I was concerned about the stock thickness (16gauge) and taking too much metal away. I NEED to practice and I think on thicker material. I think my speed was too fast and my surface prep on re-trys was poor.

I bought the spool gun too and hope to eventually weld aluminum but only want to bite off one learning curve at a time. The Miller rebate 'forced' me. I know one thing for sure, the welder doesn't deserve me.... yet! :ashamed:

Arc weld · Apr 18, 2014

You shouldn't have to pulse(pull the trigger on and off) on 16 gauge if you have a tight fit up but 16 gauge would still be tricky for a beginner. Generally with MIG you want to twist your wrist side to side or go in little circles to ensure fusion at the edges. 16 gauge not so much. Thin material with stick, then I'm like Shield Arc.

ullinghair: Give me 1/2" and I'm fine.

dragoneggs · Apr 18, 2014

Arc weld said:
You shouldn't have to pulse(pull the trigger on and off) on 16 gauge if you have a tight fit up but 16 gauge would still be tricky for a beginner. Generally with MIG you want to twist your wrist side to side or go in little circles to ensure fusion at the edges. 16 gauge not so much. Thin material with stick, then I'm like Shield Arc.ullinghair: Give me 1/2" and I'm fine.

Thanks Arc! Actually now that you mention it, I think a big part of my problem was indeed fit up. Some of my joints were not 'tight' due to sloppy square (lesson learned). I will practice that on my scraps leftover! How's that for getting the cart before the horse!

Shield Arc · Apr 18, 2014

When I built this lumber rack, all the square tube is 1/16-inch wall. I used .023 wire. My Linde Mig machine had lots of trouble feeding that small of wire. I had to keep the gun as straight as possible at all times. If I would have had the Dynasty at the time I would have just Tig welded everything.
A lot of times on thin material, if I can I run everything down hill. But when building things you can't always roll it around to the best position.

4shorts · Apr 18, 2014

Well sir it's just great to see you getting into welding. Knowing you, you will keep at it until you master it. Your off to a great start plus you have a nice unit to weld with with. I've NEVER had a Miller unit let me down and that's why I use them exclusively.

As far as triggering or I call it "throttling" your torch, well I do it on times and always have. If I'm using a heavy wire and I need to weld a thin metal and a short run I'll do it that way every time because for one it works well, looks great, less warpage and if you get good at it you will get that " roll of dimes" look plus in my case it saves me the time of not having to switch over to a smaller wire or set up the tig unit for a tiny job.

Penetration is critical. Don't let your welds get to high. If they are grind them out and go higher on the amperage. Doing so will ensure a stronger weld. I like to go higher than the recommended amperage anyway and move at a faster pace with the mig. Less chance of burn through, faster work and better looking weld. Clean metal and tight fitment is essential to a successful weld.

If I'm welding really thin meterial I'll even down weld to reduce the chance of burn through. Also be aware that welding anything galivinized is extremely dangerous to your health so use Google for the proper procedure or email me if you want.

There's lots of great advise here so your in good hands. I just wanted to add my :2cents: worth. Looking forward to seeing more of your work.
Thanks for posting and stay safe.