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MIG welder gas or gasless
helbus - January 15th, 2006 at 11:31 AM

Some info for all of the DIY welders planning on getting a MIG to restore their VW.

These articles not only give you some welding information, they also will to help you decide on what you want to buy, and what will suit your application.

http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/choosing_mig_welder.htm 

http://www.difflock.com/buyersguide/tools/welding3.shtml 


Fred Bloggs - January 15th, 2006 at 05:47 PM

Thanks for that.
Very informative for the novice.

Fred


Stanley - January 15th, 2006 at 07:11 PM

I'm still tossing up whether to go mig or tig.


71superbug - May 2nd, 2006 at 08:10 PM

tigs only for thinner guage metal isnt it?

like stainless?

Anthony


JazzyG - May 18th, 2006 at 03:41 PM

No, you can use TIG for anything, people just use MIG because it's quicker. TIG will also give you better penetration and consequently a stronger weld. A lot of folk don't like TIG because because it's slow, but it is the best form, IMO of arc welding. If you need to do bigger welds quickly, get a good stick welder (if you get an inverter TIG it'll also do stick). The other advantage of stick over MIG is you can use it outside. Just my 2c worth.


Volksaddict - May 18th, 2006 at 05:33 PM

Ifvyou can use a gas axe ..you should be able to use a Tig...your spot on jazzyg with your advice...from my experience


malcolm - May 19th, 2006 at 03:01 PM

with a TIG weld you can work it better and it the metal want crack along the edge of the weld when working it as with mig the trouble with mig it,s a hard weld .If your going to do a lot of butt welding go for a TIG .


RATAFIED - April 11th, 2009 at 08:01 PM

very cooooooooool info as i wont to buy a small gas-less mig just for small work


glencsiro - September 24th, 2009 at 08:46 PM

I find the mig great for tacking welds together but not as good a weld as a good tig, with a tig it's a bit of a bugger to hold your job together then feed your filler rod and hold the hand piece when tacking some things together.


matberry - September 24th, 2009 at 08:56 PM

I've just got back to a gas mig from gasless......I'll never bother with gasless again.


helbus - September 24th, 2009 at 11:19 PM

Personally I use MIG to spot weld, stitch weld, thick material over 2.0mm, and tack joins ready for other welding.

I alway gas (oxy) weld panel steel that is to be panel beated and metal finished. I TIG on stainless, aluminium and high strength or chrome moly steel.


HappyDaze - September 25th, 2009 at 07:55 AM

Spot on helbus. Oxy is the way to go for panel steel, ideally without filler rod. Fit is very important - no gaps - and after tacking, weld only about 20mm at a time, hammering and cooling after each weld. It seems slow, but when the weld is finished it should be ready to file up, with very little left to do - NO BOG!
Ideally for chrome-moly, manganese-moly filler rod should be used.

Cheers, Greg


racebettle - August 23rd, 2010 at 08:22 PM

HAMMER WELDING IS THE ONLY FORM OFF WELDING SHEETMETAL mig is to brittle and bracks if you try any form of panelbeating and tig is far to hot of a weld unless you have a ac/dc machine then you can do a coldweld. but there is a problem with this very few people can panelbeat not panel bash and second even less people can oxy weld propley. so most people use a mig because it is the easiest and then just bog it up


dubnbass - May 6th, 2011 at 07:28 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by JazzyG
No, you can use TIG for anything, people just use MIG because it's quicker. TIG will also give you better penetration and consequently a stronger weld. A lot of folk don't like TIG because because it's slow, but it is the best form, IMO of arc welding. If you need to do bigger welds quickly, get a good stick welder (if you get an inverter TIG it'll also do stick). The other advantage of stick over MIG is you can use it outside. Just my 2c worth.



what make u think u cant use mig welder outside ? alot of guys do all the time at my work???


bugmaniaar - December 9th, 2012 at 04:39 PM

Hi all
Simple question,maybe a simple answer??
I have a gasless mig.
Can i use it to weld a stainless exhaust???
Thanks,CC


modnrod - August 7th, 2014 at 12:27 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by bugmaniaar
Hi all
Simple question,maybe a simple answer??
I have a gasless mig.
Can i use it to weld a stainless exhaust???
Thanks,CC


Yes.
But........

I weld a small spot, wait for a second or two until the metal just goess off from dull red, then weld another spot, then wait, then weld, etc, etc, otherwise you'll blow holes through the pipe (especially stainless, coz it's thinner and harder). What I end up with is a series of small spotwelds all joined up, both in looks and in practise. Not as pretty as a real TIG or MIG finish, but none of my pipes have broken apart after years of use so I can live with it. Also, gasless wire isn't stainless, so you MAY get slight corrosion on the weld itself.

If I was a welder though, instead of a bloke who can join 2 bits of pipe together, I might have a different answer. :lol:


TAFEteacher - November 14th, 2014 at 01:31 PM

Actually chrome moly is better welded using something like ER70-S which is amild steel rod.


helbus - November 14th, 2014 at 07:19 PM

Just an update on my preferred method of butt welding panel steel. I have been using the TIG for a few years now instead of the oxy. It creates such a smooth weld with no wire, that I can weld through the middle of a door skin in one pass from one side to the other and the ability to hammer, file and metal finish the join is far ahead of MIG, and better and quicker than oxy. Just takes practice. You have to do hundreds of hours to get to the point where you use no filler rod, and get smooth weld inside and out. The panels must fit precisley and they must be both clean on both sides. One of the other advantages is that there is no grinding required afterwards. It does take a lot more time otherwise.


m4co - March 8th, 2016 at 09:18 PM

I have used gasless mig for the rust repairs on my Beetle. I just bought the welder on ebay and started practicing welding on scrap until I kind of got the hang of it. I have discovered that the wire that you use has a large impact on how your weld will turn out. There are a few different types that are chemically different and weld very differently. My favorite wire that I have found for sheet metal welding is 0.8mm Smith and Arrow Flux cored wire E71T-GS. I have also tried Cigweld Flux wire and Weldcorp from Bunnings but they are not suited to sheet metal, they burn much hotter even on the lowest setting and are only suited to a single pass (doesn't like to weld on top of an existing weld, where as the Smith and Arrow has no problem).


ScroopyNoopers - March 8th, 2017 at 12:02 PM

interested to read your comments, helbus, especially as oxy seems to have become the only form of welding in which I demonstrate even a hint of competence lol...


hotboostgt - April 15th, 2020 at 05:07 PM

Thanks for the information.


supa74 - October 12th, 2022 at 12:03 PM

Welded with mig gasless for years and then went to mig gas and it was like goimg to melted butter, it was simple, no splatter or etc. Ill never go back to a gasless , if goin with a tig and want to save, theres an option usin tig attachment with a dc gas welder, had a welding friend used his tig welder attachment and hooked it up to my big lincoln dc welder on wheels, myself i prefer gas mig