So you want to be a welder?

[Redneck Teepee]

KC is spot on with his post and welding rod choices, I would leave the 7018 alone until you are an accomplised welder. 7018 has what they call better "Ductility" simply put won't crack as easy, but you have to be able to lay it down properly and have a sharp or keen eye to tell the difference between the slag and the molten metal while consumming the sides of the piece's you are joining.

 

[jseyfert3]

Get your self some good twist lock connectors and make sure all of your other connections are good and solid, loose connections produce heat and eratic welding temps which is the last thing you need while learning to weld. Your stinger appears to be missing one of the insolators on the jaw so be sure and replace it too.

Is there a specific advantage to twist lock connectors over a straight pin push in connector? Like the NEMA 6-30 connector, middle one in this picture. I know twist lock connectors can't fall out, but it's not as if my dryer plug falls out all the time. Also I note the price at HD for a twist lock (NEMA L6-30) plug and socket is $40 vs $25 for the NEMA 6-30 plug and socket.

NEMA 6-30 Plug (Middle One) by jseyfert3, on Flickr

I didn't even notice the insulator missing until now, sure enough it is missing. Didn't even know what a stinger was until now. Do you mean replace the entire stinger or are spare insulator available?

Nice old buzz box. Should last you a lifetime.

You should be able to get a new bung for that lead at any dedicated welding supply (Maine Oxy, Airgas, etc.). Make sure you have all of the proper PPE, too; proper helmet, heavy gloves, a long sleeve heavy cotton shirt buttoned up at the neck and cuffs (minimum, a welding jacket is preferred), a slag chipping hammer, and safety glasses.

If you are welding inside your garage, be prepared for smoke (stick welding as very dirty) and you may want to put a thin sheet of steel down on the floor under your work; hot splatter will spawl your concrete.

6013 rod is good for less than perfect steel (rust). 7018 is stronger, and some say makes a nicer looking bead, but I have more trouble initiating an arc with it. YMMV. 3/32 diameter is probably a good starting point for most light trailer needs.

Thanks. I wonder how old it is, the serial number list on Miller's website only goes back to '68 or so and does not include any serial numbers that do not have a preceding letter, which makes me think this is older then that.

There is a welding supply company near where I live, I bought a 20 lb CO2 tank for my planted aquarium from them (used to inject CO2 into the water for increased plant growth). I'll stop by and check them out. I'm big on PPE too, so I'll be sure to get those. I got one of the HF auto-darkening helmets a while ago when I attemped to make a DIY microwave oven transformer arc welder (no luck). Adjusts from #9-#13. I'll also use a fan so I'm not breathing the smoke, and keep a fire extingusher nearby. How thick does the steel to protect the concrete have to be? And how far do weld sparks usually travel?

I'm not planning on welding anything trailer related until I get a bunch of practice. I'll have to call around and see if I can get cutoffs or leftover steel from somewhere for around scrap prices, just something to practice welding on. There's three scrapyards here in Peoria too, I wonder if they'd let me buy some scrap for cheap to practice welding on. Any other ideas for getting scrap steel to practice welding?

KC is spot on with his post and welding rod choices, I would leave the 7018 alone until you are an accomplised welder. 7018 has what they call better "Ductility" simply put won't crack as easy, but you have to be able to lay it down properly and have a sharp or keen eye to tell the difference between the slag and the molten metal while consumming the sides of the piece's you are joining.

What about the 6011 G-force mentioned to practice with (in addition to the 6013 he also said to use)?

 

[KCStudly]

The plug is less important. Some people like to use the same as a dryer plug because most people have one and it makes the welder "portable".

Not familiar with that rod.

Scrap yard is a great place to get scraps and clean metal, too. They don't always have the size you want for a project, but for learning it is the perfect source. Get to know them, be friendly. Remember, even if the place looks like a dump (... or a gear head's playground) it is a business. Let them help you, check in at the desk and tell them what you are looking for.

Unlikely that you will still be able to get a part for that old stinger, but maybe. More likely you will have to replace it; shouldn't be a big deal.

On the sheet metal for floor: doesn't have to be thick, .040 - .060 would be plenty; and it doesn't have to be that big either 3 or 4 feet square. Big enough that you don't have to move it all the time, but small enough that you can move it easily when you need to. Once you get some practice you probably won't drop that much lava (unless you are trying something awkward like overhead), but while you are learning it will be good to have. If you do any cutting with an oxyacetylene torch, "don't leave home without it".

The little bb's aren't friendly. They'll melt your shoe laces, burn thru non-leather shoes and find a way to get to your skin. If you get in to any awkward positions, wearing foam ear plugs is a good idea, otherwise it is better to be able to hear the electrode.

Personally I'm not a fan of the auto-darkening hoods. Supposedly they have gotten better over the years, but I have been flashed by them before in a couple of situations. That and I still try to flip them down when they already are, so I just use a standard flip helmet. I guess that makes me old school... or just old.

 

[MtnDon]

Must be very old... it's the only red Miller I recall seeing.

I love the auto darkening hoods. Check with a sparker before every session. I find that waving my hand rapidly when looking at bright light is enough to trigger mine.

 

[Redneck Teepee]

The twist lock I am refering to is for you welding leads, tweeco makes very good products and should suit you well on these plus a stinger replacement, 250 amp rateing for all will do just fine. Stick with the 6011 and 6013 rods for learning and once you feel like you got it down pretty good the better rod's are 6010 (AKA P-5) and 7018 (AKA LH-70 or low hydrogen) LH-70 should only be used to fill and cap... AFTER...you have filled butted joints with the 60 series rods and or heli-arc process. I could go on all day but I don't think at this time it would make any sense to you. Practice, practice, practice along with maybe a night class at the JC will make you a better welder...did I mention pratice?

 

[jseyfert3]

The twist lock I am refering to is for you welding leads, tweeco makes very good products and should suit you well on these plus a stinger replacement, 250 amp rateing for all will do just fine. Stick with the 6011 and 6013 rods for learning and once you feel like you got it down pretty good the better rod's are 6010 (AKA P-5) and 7018 (AKA LH-70 or low hydrogen) LH-70 should only be used to fill and cap... AFTER...you have filled butted joints with the 60 series rods and or heli-arc process. I could go on all day but I don't think at this time it would make any sense to you. Practice, practice, practice along with maybe a night class at the JC will make you a better welder...did I mention pratice?

Ah, you mean between the welding leads and the welder? That would be pricey, there are 15 female connectors on the welder because it does not have a switch to select voltage like most other welders I've seen, you have to move the weld lead from one plug to another.

And I'll practice a lot. Strike up a good relationship with the local scrap yard I suppose. Buy, practice, sell back once I'm done. Taking a class won't work at the moment, but I'll look into it.

 

[Redneck Teepee]

The twist lock I am refering to is for you welding leads, tweeco makes very good products and should suit you well on these plus a stinger replacement, 250 amp rateing for all will do just fine. Stick with the 6011 and 6013 rods for learning and once you feel like you got it down pretty good the better rod's are 6010 (AKA P-5) and 7018 (AKA LH-70 or low hydrogen) LH-70 should only be used to fill and cap... AFTER...you have filled butted joints with the 60 series rods and or heli-arc process. I could go on all day but I don't think at this time it would make any sense to you. Practice, practice, practice along with maybe a night class at the JC will make you a better welder...did I mention pratice?

Ah, you mean between the welding leads and the welder? That would be pricey, there are 15 female connectors on the welder because it does not have a switch to select voltage like most other welders I've seen, you have to move the weld lead from one plug to another.

And I'll practice a lot. Strike up a good relationship with the local scrap yard I suppose. Buy, practice, sell back once I'm done. Taking a class won't work at the moment, but I'll look into it.

Well now that you said 15 connectors I went back and studied the welder pictures you posted and you have different plug ins for different amperages (no fine tuning) you are stuck with what it puts out at that port. As far as the missing connector that you need they possibly could still make it but doubtful, I you have a lathe you can turn one out or any machine shop can for you.

 

[jseyfert3]

Since the other is good, I could put a new twist lock connector for the ground wire and use the good old connector for the stinger wire. Otherwise I don't have a lathe, so I will look into a machine shop.

The plug is less important. Some people like to use the same as a dryer plug because most people have one and it makes the welder "portable".

Not familiar with that rod.

Scrap yard is a great place to get scraps and clean metal, too. They don't always have the size you want for a project, but for learning it is the perfect source. Get to know them, be friendly. Remember, even if the place looks like a dump (... or a gear head's playground) it is a business. Let them help you, check in at the desk and tell them what you are looking for.

Unlikely that you will still be able to get a part for that old stinger, but maybe. More likely you will have to replace it; shouldn't be a big deal.

On the sheet metal for floor: doesn't have to be thick, .040 - .060 would be plenty; and it doesn't have to be that big either 3 or 4 feet square. Big enough that you don't have to move it all the time, but small enough that you can move it easily when you need to. Once you get some practice you probably won't drop that much lava (unless you are trying something awkward like overhead), but while you are learning it will be good to have. If you do any cutting with an oxyacetylene torch, "don't leave home without it".

The little bb's aren't friendly. They'll melt your shoe laces, burn thru non-leather shoes and find a way to get to your skin. If you get in to any awkward positions, wearing foam ear plugs is a good idea, otherwise it is better to be able to hear the electrode.

Personally I'm not a fan of the auto-darkening hoods. Supposedly they have gotten better over the years, but I have been flashed by them before in a couple of situations. That and I still try to flip them down when they already are, so I just use a standard flip helmet. I guess that makes me old school... or just old.

Well, I won't be using a dryer connector since I'll be installing an outlet in my garage. While a dryer plug may be more universal, installing a dryer plug for a welder is against code unless the welder requires both 120 and 240 Volts at the same time.

Good to know scrap yards are places to get good metal and scraps. Hopefully the ones here are willing to sell to me. I'll try to go visit one of them in the near future and see if I can buy from them.

Are the foam earplugs for awkward positions to keep hot droppings from falling in your ear canal?

I'll give the auto-darkening hood a shot, if I don't like it I could always get a fixed shade. As I understand, with an auto-darkening helmet, it still filters out IR and UV even when it hasn't darkened (assuming it fails to darken for some reason like you mentioned happened to you). Messing around with my Harbor Freight one, it triggered with bright lights seemingly very easily.

 

[KCStudly]

Are the foam earplugs for awkward positions to keep hot droppings from falling in your ear canal?

Yes, and slag that you chip off.

The better you get with stick and out of position welding, the less likely you will be to have a bead roll out on you, and your slag will start coming off in nice big long pieces, but it is still a dirty process. MIG welding is a little better because there is no slag to speak of, but you can still get splatter.

TIG is my preference because it is so much cleaner and controlled; easy to see what the bead is doing and make it do what you want it to. Of course it is more expensive to get started with the equipment and is a little slower than MIG, but to me the advantages are worth it.

 

[jseyfert3]

Are the foam earplugs for awkward positions to keep hot droppings from falling in your ear canal?

Yes, and slag that you chip off.

The better you get with stick and out of position welding, the less likely you will be to have a bead roll out on you, and your slag will start coming off in nice big long pieces, but it is still a dirty process. MIG welding is a little better because there is no slag to speak of, but you can still get splatter.

TIG is my preference because it is so much cleaner and controlled; easy to see what the bead is doing and make it do what you want it to. Of course it is more expensive to get started with the equipment and is a little slower than MIG, but to me the advantages are worth it.

Hopefully I can try out TIG welding this summer. I got an internship at a company my brother works for, and he does a lot of assembling there, including TIG welding. Not your usually assembling, either, although it's not life critical applications like airplane assembly (I don't think he has any welding certifications).

Anyhow, I'm looking forward to striking that first arc.

 

[KCStudly]

That will be a great opportunity for you. I can tell from the brief "conversations" that we have had that you will make the most of it. Sounds like a great kick start to a technical career!

 

[LashleyT]

I would like to just tack weld a HF trailer kit together to insure a good ground on the frame. I was looking at a small 80 amp arc HF welder, but my shop only has a 30amp supply. Will this pop the breaker when used?

Thanks - Tom

 

[KCStudly]

The 80 amp rating is the power available at the arc. It should work fine on a 30 amp service, but has a 110 plug so will probably even work on a 15 amp circuit.

That's a pretty small welder. 35/ct duty cycle at 75 amp.

From my experience, the worst thing a novice welder can do is to try to learn on a poor quality machine. Do you have prior welding experience? (That may be a rhetorical question, because if you did, you probably wouldn't be looking at that welder!)

Full disclosure: I'm sure that lots of people have managed to get good results on certain projects using that welder, and I am fortunate to have lots of welding experience using quality industrial equipment. But I have also used those little wimpy units a time or two, and I stand by my position: avoid them. Maybe I'm just too old school, but if you want to take up welding and you are tight on budget you should be looking for an older buzz box. Here's an example in MI http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/tls/4751296041.html

 

[LashleyT]

Thanks KC
No never struck an arc in my life and I am on a retirees budget..

 

[dales133]

I used to weld everyday for a living in my late teens early 20 and couldn't agree more with KC that a low amp cheap welder will do you no favors at all.
I got a Chinese made inverter mig with European Moffet cards and built to high specs and it's never let me down at all.
My point being even the very basic big name brand welders can be a waste of time and money ....shop around.
I got mine on ebay with a remote wire feed and all the gizmos for 600 aussie with is a steal so do your home work first

 

[Kaz-TNT]

I know it's an old subject but : For all the beginner's or any one afraid to jump in on welding there isn't an easier machine to learn is the hobart140 mig . Go ahead and burn through a few rolls of flux core and practice on any scrap you can find. Then go ahead and buy a harbor freight auto darkening helmet and a big spool of solid welding wire(it works fine..REALLY!)and a cart for your new mig. . Then on your way stop and get a 60# bottle of gas. Now your up around $600.00 but well worth the money! You will learn something and accomplish something, many thing's because you will always find another use for that welder.

 

[Dale M.]

I know it's an old subject but : For all the beginner's or any one afraid to jump in on welding there isn't an easier machine to learn is the hobart140 mig . Go ahead and burn through a few rolls of flux core and practice on any scrap you can find. Then go ahead and buy a harbor freight auto darkening helmet and a big spool of solid welding wire(it works fine..REALLY!)and a cart for your new mig. . Then on your way stop and get a 60# bottle of gas. Now your up around $600.00 but well worth the money! You will learn something and accomplish something, many thing's because you will always find another use for that welder.

YES!... HH 140 is awesome machine (I have one) for smaller unit and low production work.... Limits out to about 1/4 material so should be able to do most welding duties in trailer builds...

Dale

 

[kitecop]

I have lincoln 135amp mig. I pretty much use flux wire through it exclusively but i can use mig wire and shielding gas. Flux wire actually allows you to weld thicker material that mig wire w gas. The welds w have splatter but its much cheaper that using shielding gas.

One thing to remember about a welder is that eventually, it will pay for itself 100 times over. So i would go for the $500 machines vs the HF stuff. Ive had mine for about 15yrs and put atleast 30lbs of wire through it and its just getting broken in. Also the cheap machines dont have very high duty cycles so longer passes can be an issue especially back to back.

I just got a Everlast inverter Tig machine but have not tried it out. There are lots of good reviews on these so if you want the capability to do aluminum and stainless as well you may want to go Tig right off the bat. For that you will be in the $1200 range at minimum and $3k for a miller or lincoln setup. There are some pretty sweet spool guns out there that allow u to weld aluminum with a mig welder u just have to use pure argon shielding gas. I have tried one out that a mobile welder had and it was as easy as using a caulking gun, it blew my mind.

 

[cryptojones]

My company is offering a MIG welding class, can I use the principals learned there to do stick welding?

 

[KCStudly]

Some welding techniques are "universal" across various types of welding (Stick, TIG, MIG and gas, to name the most common), so there would certainly be a benefit to taking a MIG course for the first time welder. However, stick welding is quite a bit different from MIG welding in several big ways, so a complete novice would probably want to study/practice both techniques.

The first couple of things that come to mind are:
1. MIG offers high visibility and is cleaner; whereas stick is flux shielded. With stick you weld more by feel and have to chip the flux "crust" off afterwards.
2. With MIG you don't have to advance the filler as you travel, the wire feeder does that for you; whereas with stick you have to feed the rod by hand as you travel. Again, this is sort of by feel.
3. MIG is much easier to initiate an arc, just pull the trigger and point; whereas with stick you need to learn how to do a scratch (or poke) start. Some varieties of filler rod are more finicky than others and can be a pain to start.
4. SAFETY! With MIG, once you let go of the trigger the current is shut off; whereas with stick the stinger is always live whenever the welder is turned on, so you have to be careful where you lay the stinger down, otherwise you can inadvertently strike an arc.

I'm sure there are many more differences, but these are the key difference in technique that I can think of off the top of my head.