Blowing Holes In Sheet Metal Flux Welding

Am i just doing it wrong.

Blowing holes in sheet metal flux welding.

This machine is one of the most basic welders available on the market today. Use thin wire one big mistake we see with beginners is using welding wire that is too thick for the metal they re welding. If it s blowing through quickly then maybe the power is set too high on the welder. For thinner gauge sheet metal like 18 or 20 gauge we suggest 023 6mm wire in your mig welder.

If your welding wire is too thick it will take more heat to melt the wire than the substrate and can make it even more prone to blowing holes in the panel. On sheet metal you always stitch weld to prevent blowing holes and warping the metal from overheating. This works as a backing bar obviously and also as a chill strip that helps conduct heat away so you don t blow holes in it. This instructable is intended to teach you how to use the lincoln weld pak hd flux cored arc welder.

Try going for a wire of 023 inches when welding sheet metal. Andy gives helpful insights and tips to mig weld thin sheet metal. Keep the stick out short stickout of your mig wire is important when welding any type of metal but especially sheet. Make sure to use an electrode wire that is thinner as it uses lesser heat and prevents blowing holes on to the sheet metal.

Maintain a travel speed that allows the weld metal to fill the melted out areas of the base metal completely or if you are using a weaving technique pause at each side of the weld bead. For sheet metal i use ine welding wire and it is just as good as their flux cored wire if you want you can grab one here. Its also important to have it very clean i use a wire wheel etc to clean prior to welding. That way you dont erode the metal away.

Reducing the power and wire speed might help although the metal needs to be completely shiny and clean for low power stuff to work at all. Basic guide to flux cored arc welding. Stick welding burning holes through thin metal 05 15 2011 10 32 am. I keep blowing through my thin sheet.

To prevent lack of fusion the failure of the weld metal to fuse completely with the base metal or the preceding weld bead in multi pass applications. If you are butt welding try to minimise the gap between the two sheets. Its great on thicker material but on thin stuff 50 of the time cause me to blow a hole through it. I have a welding addiction the only stupid question is the one you didn t ask.

To fix that hole and to do any more welding with out blowing through you could clamp a copper backing bar to the backside of the weld.