Those petite 115v wire welders that you see at Lowes and Home Depot are selling like hotcakes. Home Depot seems to all the time stock the Lincoln galvanic Weld Pak Hd. And Lowes seems to all the time have the Lincoln galvanic Pro Core 125 Mig/Flux-Corded Welder. Every time I visit Lowes or Home Depot, I cant help but consideration that the welding provide shelves have grown like crazy in between my frequent visits. My principles is that cable Tv shows like Orange County Choppers and Monster carport and helped to bring welding and fabrication more into mainstream Americana and have even created quite a buzz colse to welding and fabrication. It seems like every red blooded American male with an ounce of testosterone in his gonads wants to make something out of metal and the only real way to do that is with a welding machine. Having a welder in your carport also gives some serious bragging proprietary and makes you think you have a lot more friends than you of course do, (kind of like having a Bass boat).
But the thing that scares me a petite and should scare a lot of folks is that there is no welding police. No one to blow the whistle and stop citizen from welding stuff they shouldnt oughta weld. Its kind of like a sixteen year old being free to gad into a bicycle shop and ride off on a crotch rocket that will do 180 mph. I guess that is part of living in Free America.
LOWES
What a country!
These petite wire welders do have some limitations. Lets be clear about that. There are just some jobs you should not tackle with a 115v mig welder.
But take heart. There are many jobs that you can do, and do well with one of these 115v welding machines.
The purpose of this narrative is to elucidate how to get the most out of your 115v wire feeder welding engine and to make sure you are getting proper penetration in what you are welding.
First off, if you are going to weld a thin sheet metal quarter panel patch for a Nissan Altima, no worries. Penetration will be the least of your concerns. But if you are mental about welding something heavier like a home-built Hummer Kit using 3 inch quadrate tubing with 3/16 inch wall thickness, that is something else entirely. This is a situation where you will of course be pushing the limits of any 115v wire feed welder.
I think anytime something is welded that that would probably injure someone if the welds fail, a 220-230v Mig welding engine should be used. That said there are still going to be occasions where citizen will need to push the limits of their 115v Mig welding wire feed welders.
Here are 7 things you can do that will help to increase your chances of penetration when you of course need it.
1. Use flux core wire like Hobart Fabshield 21b and set the engine to max voltage, then adjust wire feed accordingly. Flux core just plain penetrates good that bare wire on 115v wire feeders. Make sure you consequent the recommendations on the wire for polarity. A lot of frustration has come from not changing the polarity when required.
2. Plug into a dedicated 20 amp circuit. Most household circuits are 15 amp. You might have a 20 amp in your garage. If not, consider getting one.
3. Do not, I repeat, do not use an extension cord. If you must use one you good use the shortest and thickest one you can find to avoid a power drop. Even then your engine will probably weld like it has been castrated. Get it? No balls. Ok absorbing on to #4.
4. Preheat the joint even if it is with a petite propane torch, warming a joint up to even 150 degrees is like having an additional one 10% extra amperage.
5. Do not weld downhill. Instead, weld uphill. Vertical uphill welds get more penetration than any other position joint because gravity keeps the puddle behind the arc.
6. Clean the metal with a grinder. Not having to jab straight through hot rolled mill scale, rust, or paint will greatly increase your penetration.
7. Get some small pieces of metal of the same thickness as the welding task at hand and weld a T joint. Then break it with a vise and a hammer. If it breaks of course you have problems and need to adjust the engine and/or technique until you can weld some joints that whether do not break, or if they do break, show good penetration in the corner of the joint.
If you consequent these 7 welding tips for getting good penetration with your 115 volt wire feed welder, you will be getting the most out of your mig welder.
Mig Welders - How to Get the Most Out of Your 115 Volt Wire Feed Welder LOWES
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