was wondering if anyone has used one. was thinking of buying one because they are cheap and i would only ever be doing sheetmetal work. just wanted to hear some past experiences with this type welder and see if its worth buying for the purpose of sheetmetal work. putting a floor pan in or a quarter panel. patching holes that sort of thing.

 

i've built 3 sets of headers, several exhaust systems and countless other things with mine, i do have the option of hooking up a bottle and running standard wire if needed though.


flux is fine for small stuff, just take your time and you can lay down decent looking beads. I have the Lincoln weld pak 3200 HD, I couldn't ask for a better 110V welder.

 

I built a rockcrawler Jeep pretty much from the frame up with a small 120 volt 140 amp welder. I was concerned that I wouldn't get enough penetration but the only weld I ever broke was one of the spring perches on the rear axle. The Jeep actually progreesed from it's first build of a springover conversion all the way up a custom made 4 link suspension with the same welder before I ended up selling the jeep. It was also used heavily when building my Camaro. Seems to weld anything up to 3/16" fine and could probably do 1/4 if the edges are beveled(i usually bevel the 3/16 also) Definatly noy a professional welder but from my limited experience it seem like the flux cored wire gets slightly better penetration then regular wire. I actually prefer welding with flux core on the lower amp welders like mine.

I also did some rust repair with the same welder that turned out fine but they really aren't recomended for sheetmetal work. Not really sure why. Maybe someone that knows can answear that.


Mine is an old NAPA welder that was made by Lincoln. I have been very happy with it. Bought it new about 10 years ago and it gets used a lot. I can also use gas with mine if I wanted. it would be cheaper in the long run but like I said I prefer flux cored on the smaller welders. the cheapest place I found for Flux wire is at Lowes. I think I paid $40 for a ten pound spool.

 

My 80amp welder does just fine, i've done exhaust, sfc, rust fixes and even made a few tools with it. just bevel the edges of thick metal like rayar said and you're set. mine was only $100

 

As others have said, it's a great tool to have around the shop. I bought a Harbor Freight 110 volt model that runs both flux core and gas. My experience has been that the flux core burns hotter and gives better penetration, although the welds aren't as pretty. For sheet metal and small metal work, it's ideal.

 

does it burn through sheetmetal easily or is pretty easy to use i mig welded quarter panels and patches at my autobody class in school but it was a gas one is it easier or harder. the reason im asking is cause my monte ss needs a lot of rust repair and my camaro needs a roof skin i got a quote for the roof skin and it was $450 i know im capable of doing it myself i just was looking into buying one so i could fix both my cars without relying on a shop that will rip me off or do it differently than i would like

 

also should i buy one that can have gas hooked up too it??

 

You'll have to play with the settings to keep it from burning through. You can clamp a piece of copper sheet behind what you're working on to help with this problem as well. When welding thin material, you're better off laying down a very short bead (or even a tack), then moving several inches away and repeating. Heat warps the metal, and the idea is to avoid building up too much heat in any one place.

 

Even on the lowest setting I can only do tack welds on sheetmetal without burning through. I even have to be carefull on exhaust tubeing. As long as I don't have gaps in the tubeing it does fine but small gaps turn into big gaps if I am not carefull. As others have said, Very usefull tool aroung the house our shop.

 

thanks i might have to invest in a flux mig welder but should i get the kind with a gas hookup? i just dont want to buy something that will melt evevything i try to fix haha. maybe ill just try someones before i buy.

 

Lots of good advice here, if you get the Harbor freight version spend the extra cash to get the gas capable one and save the wire that comes in the welder for heavier guage metal. Prefferably non structural items.

The Harbor freight wire is pretty bad and if you try to weld thin guage the arc will be unstable, that'll make it hard or impossible to get consistant welds.

Go to home depot or lowes for name brand wire, the Lincoln brand is good.

Get some sheet stock while you are there and practice a lot before you try it on the car.

 

okay i guess its a good idea instead of regetting it later just buy the better one.

 

Follow this advice!!! I thought that I was an idiot who couldn't use a MIG welder. I put in some Lincoln wire and it was like a completely different machine. I don't know what the Harbor Freight wire was made from, but it is useless for welding.

 

Yeah, the welders them selves are passable, though you do get exactly what you pay for. The only reason I suggest getting the gas capable version is for the flexability offered down the road.

If you get into the habit of welding more often then you'll apriceate the addition of gas. The flux core just like stick arc will leave a deposit of the flux in the form of slag that'll need to be removed before you make a new weld in that area. That'll get old really fast if you are doing much thin guage work stitching hundreds of spot welds together.

 

I've never done any body work with my welder, but using flux core wire I get so much spatter I think body work would be a pain.. The same welder with gas works great though, I think its easier to see the puddle with gas too.

For what its worth, I've got a 110v Hobart welder and I like it. Most of the parts on it are from Miller.

 

I prefer the shielding gas...But the flux core works, i cannot stand running flux core, probably cause i spent so much time welding dump truck beds and cat buckets back together with it back in the day. Definately get one that you can add sheilding gas to later. I've got a hobart 110 at home i've had about 6 years, great machine, i have a older forney stick in case i need to do heavy work which most my stuff at the house is tacked with the 110 and finished with the stick.
As for wire anything but lincoln is JUNK!!! I weld trailer chassis for gnk and semi grain trailers for a living, i have 2 feeders on my jig and we generally run 3 33lbs spools of L56 super arc .035 a week on each feeder and never have any issues

 

I have a Lincoln 220VAC unit rated at 155 amps or so. With some care, it can weld sheetmetal down to 22 gauge using a "lots of little tacks" approach. But as has been noted, it's messy so there is a good bit of cleanup afterward.

The attached picture is the best I have readily available of some repairs I made to visible sheetmetal. Under the door, and the lower quarter panel below the body line (the horizontal weld is below the body line). Done outdoors (garage too small and too full of other stuff) with 0.035" fluxcore, no added shielding gas. Pretty sure it's Lincoln wire, I know it's not HF. Most of the welds were lap welds with the "back" panel flanged to make the outer surfaces flush - I'm neither good enough nor get enough practice to attempt buttwelding anything quite that light.


Norm

 

When I do my TA's rockers I'm torm between attempting to but weld everything or taking the surrer route and overlapping the metal.

Since none of it is cosmetic it dosnt need to look pretty, and I'm welding sfc's and a base plate for a possible cage in the same area but I keep seing my self cutting it all apart down the road to "do it right".

 

I use the wire welder with gas argon 80/20 it will weld anything from sheetmetal to 1/2 plate. It would be the way to go if you can get 220 volts.

 

Near as I can tell, it's not that big of a financial "stretch" to move up to one of the smaller 220 machines, and I'll always recommend doing so unless there's absolutely no way of getting a 220 line out to where you'll be using the welder. Funny thing about having a small welder - even if you don't see it going in to your first purchase, eventually you'll run into a situation where you need more amps than the little guy can give you.

The little 110 machines have their place, mostly if you need to weld where there is no 220 available. And they're a little lighter and easier to lug around.


Norm

 

Lots of good advice here. I have a Craftsman 110V Flux Core welder that i have been using for sheet metal repair on my Camaro. When I first tried it without any former experience i kept burning through the metal on the high setting and then with the low setting I could never get a good arc going, so i decided to take a class and see what i was doing wrong.. Well turns out everything.

The instructor was able to help me dail in the welder and showed me why I was burning through, I was also able to compare the flux vs. a gas MIG, and let me tell you I really wish I had a gas attachment for my welder. With the gas you get soo much cleaner welds, way less spatter and you can run the amps down low so it's less likely to burn through.

If your going to get a flux core make sure it has a gas upgrade option, once you do that you'll never go back to flux unless your welding outside at the track.

Here's some shots of my patch panel work on my Camaro. You can view the entire album here http://picasaweb.google.com/scarabgreen

 

I just got a Harbor Freight ad in today's mail. There is a 220V gas / gasless MIG welder for $160. This is pretty much the 220V version of their 110V welder that I run. I doubt that it's as good or as durable as a Hobart, Miller or Lincoln, but for the occasional use I need, it's been a great tool.

 

I have a gas/flux Cambell Hausfeld. It works pretty good with the gas. Its not real easy to burn holes through it. With gas the metal has to be very clean to make a good bead. I use the smallest wire for mine which is .25mm. Use that and you will notice a huge difference. I know that Miller or Lincoln makes better welders because they give you way more heat settings and speeds. Mine is working well for my application which is my floors. Until a few weeks ago, I had never welded before. Each time I get a little better.

Kevin

 

Tools and equipment are an investment, not an expense! I'd say go with a good 220V welder and gas right off... Once you learn how to weld and set up a welder you will find (and or create) many, many new uses for it!!!! I run a Lincoln 200 MIG with an additional spool gun for aluminum that I've had for 10 years or so... My pride and joy is a Miller TIG welder that I use for moly, aluminum, and a lot of sheetmetal work.

IMO the extra money for the 220V welder, even the small ones, is an excellent investment! The flux core welders are just too limited on what they are capable of doing, and for whatever reason the 220V welders produce a much more stable arc and offer a much greater selection in voltage and wire speed! A welder is just another piece of equipment that you don't think you'll use much until you get one, then you'll wonder how you ever got along without one!!! Spend a few more bucks the first time and you'll have a piece of equipment that will become even more versatile and useful as your welding skills improve...Plus, you'll find yourself tackling a lot more tasks then you ever thought you would because you are no longer limited to just bolt on parts!!!!

 

v/.

What gauge steel did you use? I have a few areas that I need to fix.

 

back in 1993,i bought a century"quick fix"75a,115v
fluxcore welder-still use it on ocasion-if surface to be
welded is clean,can make sound good looking welds.
my other wirefeed welder is a 1983 hobart"mig-man"
85a 230v using solid wire and usually c-25 gas.

 

has any one flux core welded aluminum? havent got a chance to look up much about it?
or just go with a aluminum arc rod?
I just wanted to know because I don't have the money to invest into a tig welder right now!

 

Aluminum can be MIG-welded using gas, aluminum wire and a spool gun. I don't think that aluminum wire comes in any fluxcored version, only solid.


Norm

 

alright ya I wasent sure I asked lincolin electric about it, I was also then woundering I will have to get the model # tonight because I have heard before that some welders have kits so that you can upgrade the welder to accept shielding gas?