welding

JYGirl, I bought that very machine 25 years ago and have used it in my shop since. We've done A LOT of work with it and it justs works and works and works! The guys are right about the rod, I've just completed assembling my exhaust pipes and welded them together with a 3/32" rod 6013 Turned down as low as it can. Simple butt weld and chip off the flux, a little grinding and painting, it looks great.

It does take practice so don't give up! Yes, you're gonna make some scrap metal! But with some practice I'm sure you can master the basics!
Lastly, learn the required safety practices! You only get one set of eyes! Welding is many, many times brighter than the sun, it can hurt you and faster than you can imagine, so work safe!

if you are going to do thin sheet metal your better with a small MIG then a stick welder but the stick is good for heavy steel very handy for farm use .i had one i did all my frame work with back in the late 70s and early 80 then did all the body metal with a gas torch set up so with the MIG you can do both sheet steel and frame work.still use stick for very thick steel 1 inch and up and iron welding

I never thought about exhaust and making a trailer. what great ideas. got a set of original glasspacks for xmas. now i can learn how to put them on. after about a month of learning this thing. you guys have made my night.:D

Here is a tip for ya:

When tackling something which is too thin to weld with your setup :

Take a 1/8" acetylene rod and put it between the ground clamp and the work. It will get HOT so make sure you accomodate that.

The acy. rod will soak up some of the voltage, and allow you to weld thinner stuff.

ALSO.. a nice quality auto dark helmet will make life MUCH easier. You can set the darkness of the filter, the off delay, and sensitivity to your needs. If you can't afford that, then put a high wattage worklamp next to the work. Then you can see the work without flipping the helmet.

IMO learning how to weld with a stick welder and with and oxygen/acetylene torch will be the background for a future of welding and fabricating skills. Get some scrap steel and practice, heck, be a "sculptor" and weld up a bunch of left over junk, put it in the lawn and call in art!!!!! Once you learn to control the heat and penetration with a stick, and can run a pretty bead moving up to a MIG some day will be a cake walk... Now if you could just find a pair of bottles and a torch set for the same price!!!!! Same thing here, if you can make a good, solid weld with a torch, moving up to a TIG some day will be much easier as you will already have a grasp of the torch and heat control!!!!~!

honestly my opinion is a mig either a lincoln 175 or a millermatic 185 both great machines.

Dave funny that you said that. Hubby came home with the lincoln arc and a couple of bottles with gauges and cutting torch. all for me to play with this weekend. wants me to cut up a old pop up camper. he has a guy coming by to show me how to use everything. hopefully the weather will co-operate.

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Originally Posted by vytamenc

honestly my opinion is a mig either a lincoln 175 or a millermatic 185 both great machines.

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Barb is not buying a welder, just wants to put to use a stick she was given and learn the basics of welding and fabrication..... My own personal experience has taught me it doesn't take a MIG to become a competent welder!!!!!!!

Thanks EG I will remember all that you have told me.

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Originally Posted by jyardgirl

Dave funny that you said that. Hubby came home with the lincoln arc and a couple of bottles with gauges and cutting torch. all for me to play with this weekend. wants me to cut up a old pop up camper. he has a guy coming by to show me how to use everything. hopefully the weather will co-operate.

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Well, there ya go!!!!! Now just practice, practice, practice....
BTW, I'm gonna be building a new chassis table in the fall, you might as well plan on buying my old one...... Should be ready to start on your first ground up project by then!!!!!!!!!;) ;)

Barb....if you have a library nearby, it will likely have a few books related to beginning welding. I'm just beginning also, and have found the library stuff pretty helpful. But it's tough doing the welding while holding a book in one hand. HA!

Thanks Dave I might take you up on that. Neighbor has a bronco she is trying to give away and i am looking hard at that. Thanks roof I will look into books at the library.

Hi, with practice,you'll find you can weld almost any thickness or position with that cheap little buzz box. Most of what you need to learn can't really be taught,it comes with practice. You'll get very frustrated when you first try it, most people get the rod stuck trying to use the proper amperage. One thing I found when I started was to use shorter (half used) rods. You can also turn up the heat a little to get you started,but you will get burn through so be prepared. Have fun with it. Hank

thanks hank. have never welded before but did plenty of sautering on plumbing. really enjoyed it. I will remember about the half rods.

soldering, my dear, you did soldering.