For years I have used a very basic SIP Merlin AC Arc welder (mostly
repair work, sticking the mower deck back together, and the occasional
bit of crude fabrication). Its a transformer based lump, pretty crude
with a ridiculously poor duty cycle (weld for 7 mins, let it cool down
for half an hour - improved to weld[2] for 7 mins let it cool for 15
with the addition of a couple of large fans internally). However I put
up with it on the grounds that I don't need to weld things that often.

[2] In fact never mind welding, just turn it on a wait for ten mins and
it will overheat and cut out all by itself.

However the thought also occurred to me that one of the reasons I don't
need to weld that often is because its such a PITA to use, one tends to
find alternative ways of doing it! That and it might be quite nice to be
able to do some proper fabrication work from time to time.

So earlier in the year when an excuse was presented[1] and I finally got
round to upgrading to a decent inverter based MIG setup, which has been
really nice. At the time I bought it I also got an electrode holder so
that I could also stick weld with it if I wanted - but had never got
around to trying it out until today.

[1] Daughter needed to do some welding for a college project, but could
not go in due to lockdown.

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode... and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get pretty
decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No buzzing,
spluttering, or sticking either.

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders -
they make the whole process quite civilised!

(anyone got a use for a 150A Merlin?)



--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders -
they make the whole process quite civilised!

Tell me exactly what to buy. Seriously. The welder I bought for £50 in
1976 is beginning to get on my nerves a bit.

Bill

williamwright has brought this to us :
On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years ago,
and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders - they
make the whole process quite civilised!

Tell me exactly what to buy. Seriously. The welder I bought for £50 in 1976
is beginning to get on my nerves a bit.

Bill

I added a 240v cooling fan to the case of mine, plus a handy 13amp
socket. The fan runs whether or not it has thermally tripped. It makes
a lot of difference to the run time before tripping and to the recovery
time after tripping.

williamwright wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders -
they make the whole process quite civilised!

Tell me exactly what to buy. Seriously. The welder I bought for £50 in
1976 is beginning to get on my nerves a bit.

I have an old (very old) 140 amp AC/transformer stick welder and a
fairly new (year or so old) 140 amp inverter based stick welder. The
difference is huge! It's so much easier to strike with the new one
and it makes neater welds as well. It actually makes stick welding
almost a pleasure! :-)

--
Chris Green
·

On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:
For years I have used a very basic SIP Merlin AC Arc welder (mostly
repair work, sticking the mower deck back together, and the occasional
bit of crude fabrication). Its a transformer based lump, pretty crude
with a ridiculously poor duty cycle (weld for 7 mins, let it cool down
for half an hour - improved to weld[2] for 7 mins let it cool for 15
with the addition of a couple of large fans internally). However I put
up with it on the grounds that I don't need to weld things that often.

[2] In fact never mind welding, just turn it on a wait for ten mins and
it will overheat and cut out all by itself.

However the thought also occurred to me that one of the reasons I don't
need to weld that often is because its such a PITA to use, one tends to
find alternative ways of doing it! That and it might be quite nice to be
able to do some proper fabrication work from time to time.

So earlier in the year when an excuse was presented[1] and I finally got
round to upgrading to a decent inverter based MIG setup, which has been
really nice. At the time I bought it I also got an electrode holder so
that I could also stick weld with it if I wanted - but had never got
around to trying it out until today.

[1] Daughter needed to do some welding for a college project, but could
not go in due to lockdown.

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get pretty
decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No buzzing,
spluttering, or sticking either.

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders -
they make the whole process quite civilised!

(anyone got a use for a 150A Merlin?)



I did something similar a few months ago and wish I'd done it much
earlier. I'd had a large'ish transformer-based MIG welder for a looong
time, it worked well-enough but I used it so rarely that my welds were
always a bit embarrassing, which meant I used it less. I took the plunge
and bought a 180 inverter MIG/MMA from R-Tech and using it is a totally
different experience to using the old welder, I also switched from using
CO2 pub gas to an Argon mix. Welding is so much easier and gives
excellent quality, plus the box is much smaller and lighter. There are
cheaper units out there but R-Tech were helpful on the phone and have a
long'ish warranty. They aren't cheap, but I sold the old welder so the
upgrade cost was affordable and well worthwhile. I thoroughly recommend
R-Tech and the 180 MIG welder.

On 29/07/2020 09:03, Harry Bloomfield wrote:
williamwright has brought this to us :
On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders
- they make the whole process quite civilised!

Tell me exactly what to buy. Seriously. The welder I bought for £50 in
1976 is beginning to get on my nerves a bit.

Bill

I added a 240v cooling fan to the case of mine, plus a handy 13amp
socket. The fan runs whether or not it has thermally tripped. It makes a
lot of difference to the run time before tripping and to the recovery
time after tripping.

Yup, I used a pair of either 6" or 8" mains fans - it was better
certainly, but still far from good!


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On Wed, 29 Jul 2020 02:06:31 +0100, John Rumm
wrote:

For years I have used a very basic SIP Merlin AC Arc welder (mostly
repair work, sticking the mower deck back together, and the occasional
bit of crude fabrication). Its a transformer based lump, pretty crude
with a ridiculously poor duty cycle (weld for 7 mins, let it cool down
for half an hour - improved to weld[2] for 7 mins let it cool for 15
with the addition of a couple of large fans internally). However I put
up with it on the grounds that I don't need to weld things that often.

[2] In fact never mind welding, just turn it on a wait for ten mins and
it will overheat and cut out all by itself.

Yup, I have a very cheap (like 15 quid) one from Lidl and it's nearly
useless for anything serious. It does work though, for a very
restricted value of the word. ;-)

snip story

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders -
they make the whole process quite civilised!

I have a SIP branded 150Ah stick welder that I have built (and still
got) many things with, including several trailers. When you get a good
one, plugged into a good supply (and not a long extension lead) and
with the right rods, it worked very well.

(anyone got a use for a 150A Merlin?)

The Mrs bought me a Lincoln MIG years ago and that's a real pleasure
to use. Had an rental bottle on it from BOC (Argoshield Universal?)
but gave that back [1] and now have a rent free one that works out
much cheaper. I have gassless wire but not used it yet.

I did a welding class at college (one afternoon a week for 2 years)
and we covered most of the technologies available at the time and it
was very handy (for my practical lifestyle pov).

Cheers, T i m

p.s. College welding class, lad in the booth next to me stick welding
up a test piece. I here a 'pop', then see a torch come over the screen
and into my booth and hear some screams. I put my torch down and flip
my visor in time to see him busting out though the curtains behind the
booths and run over to the quenching tank, where he plunges his face
into the rusty water ...

It turns out a ball of weld / flux had ricocheted off his apron and
gone up his nose ... ;-(

They sent him to hospital 'in case' and I believe he made a full
recovery. ;-)

[1] Along with my oxy-acetylene bottles.

On 29/07/2020 02:29, williamwright wrote:

On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders
- they make the whole process quite civilised!

Tell me exactly what to buy. Seriously.

Well based on my limited experience, something inverter based with IGBTs
in the electronics.

If all you need is stick, then something like:

https://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/arc-...ch-pro-arc135/

(and having now used a decent welder in stick / MMA mode, it has greatly
expanded my concept of what kind of work I would be happy to tackle with
it - I would still probably not want to try welding very thin sheet
steel, but general fabrication with, bar, tube, angle, and square hollow
etc would be fine)

The one I went for is:

https://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/mig-...tech-i-mig180/

(many of the reasons being similar to the other poster in this thread
who got the same machine)

I also got a cart to stick it on, the stick electrode, and reels of both
0.8mm and 0.6mm wire, plus a few spare tips etc.

For shielding gas I found a local Mark One hire shop was also a
Hobbyweld agent:

https://hobbyweld.co.uk/

They do bottles with no rental element, so well suited to intermittent
users. The gas was £35 (plus you pay a £65 deposit with the first
bottle, but then just swap it for a full one for the price of the gas).
I went for the Hobbyweld 5 mix which is 93% Argon, 5% Carbon Dioxide, 2%
Oxygen.

The welder I bought for £50 in
1976 is beginning to get on my nerves a bit.

ISTR the Merlin cost me about that in the late 80's, and yup, getting on
nerves seems to be about what they are best at!

With hindsight, I bought it as a solution looking for a problem - I just
thought it would be a handy thing to have. I remember telling a work
mate who I knew was into welding, and his only question was "Why?" - the
significance of the question dawned on me over the next few years, when
as each problem presented, the solution turned out to not be that good.



--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

John Rumm presented the following explanation :
With hindsight, I bought it as a solution looking for a problem - I just
thought it would be a handy thing to have. I remember telling a work mate who
I knew was into welding, and his only question was "Why?" - the significance
of the question dawned on me over the next few years, when as each problem
presented, the solution turned out to not be that good.

I bought my transformer stick welder in the mid-80's second hand,
complete with a pile of new angle iron. I learned stick welding working
on a contract in Italy and fancied keeping my hand in. I had in mind to
make lots of heavy duty shelves for my new garage. I ended up with two
at each side, near the car door and they are still there, but over full
now. It has come in useful many times since then for lots of jobs.

Since then, I bought a transformer MIG welder, but that has been much
less useful or used.

Best welding accessory I bought was a auto-dimming welding helmet.

On Wed, 29 Jul 2020 12:12:22 +0100, John Rumm
wrote:

snip

I added a 240v cooling fan to the case of mine, plus a handy 13amp
socket. The fan runs whether or not it has thermally tripped. It makes a
lot of difference to the run time before tripping and to the recovery
time after tripping.

Yup, I used a pair of either 6" or 8" mains fans - it was better
certainly, but still far from good!

I actually have two of the cheap Lidl / Alto stick welders (I just
wanted to try them for the S&G's) and the 'better' of the two is fan
cooled as you say.

I wasn't aware of any 'duty cycle' with my old SIP stick welder as it
never cut out on me. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get pretty
decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No buzzing,
spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

On 29/07/2020 13:11, Harry Bloomfield wrote:
John Rumm presented the following explanation :
With hindsight, I bought it as a solution looking for a problem - I
just thought it would be a handy thing to have. I remember telling a
work mate who I knew was into welding, and his only question was
"Why?" - the significance of the question dawned on me over the next
few years, when as each problem presented, the solution turned out to
not be that good.

I bought my transformer stick welder in the mid-80's second hand,
complete with a pile of new angle iron. I learned stick welding working
on a contract in Italy and fancied keeping my hand in. I had in mind to
make lots of heavy duty shelves for my new garage. I ended up with two
at each side, near the car door and they are still there, but over full
now. It has come in useful many times since then for lots of jobs.

Since then, I bought a transformer MIG welder, but that has been much
less useful or used.

Best welding accessory I bought was a auto-dimming welding helmet.

Yup :-)

(I am tempted to get one of the R-Tech XL ones - they have a bigger
window so you get a better view of what you are doing)

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have a
third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them from
CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen mins
with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

IME gasless wire is a bit sensitive to wind too. Another +1 for even the
cheap lidl stick inverter welder being quite easy to use (although I
find its limit to be 2mm sticks).

On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have a
third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them from
CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes. There was
a lot more platter though.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen mins
with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do all
three MMA/MIG/TIG.

[1] I would obviously need a bottle of pure argon.

On 29/07/2020 11:25, wrote:



I did something similar a few months ago and wish I'd done it much
earlier. I'd had a large'ish transformer-based MIG welder for a looong
time, it worked well-enough but I used it so rarely that my welds were
always a bit embarrassing, which meant I used it less. I took the plunge
and bought a 180 inverter MIG/MMA from R-Tech and using it is a totally
different experience to using the old welder, I also switched from using
CO2 pub gas to an Argon mix. Welding is so much easier and gives
excellent quality, plus the box is much smaller and lighter. There are
cheaper units out there but R-Tech were helpful on the phone and have a
long'ish warranty. They aren't cheap, but I sold the old welder so the
upgrade cost was affordable and well worthwhile. I thoroughly recommend
R-Tech and the 180 MIG welder.

And that is fine on 240V? I have a SIP 240v MIG that feels underpowered,
as does the cheap Lidl MMA inverter.

And if I could do a trade I would actually be reducing my tool count!

On 29/07/2020 15:38, newshound wrote:
On 29/07/2020 11:25, wrote:



I did something similar a few months ago and wish I'd done it much
earlier. I'd had a large'ish transformer-based MIG welder for a looong
time, it worked well-enough but I used it so rarely that my welds were
always a bit embarrassing, which meant I used it less. I took the
plunge and bought a 180 inverter MIG/MMA from R-Tech and using it is a
totally different experience to using the old welder, I also switched
from using CO2 pub gas to an Argon mix. Welding is so much easier and
gives excellent quality, plus the box is much smaller and lighter.
There are cheaper units out there but R-Tech were helpful on the phone
and have a long'ish warranty. They aren't cheap, but I sold the old
welder so the upgrade cost was affordable and well worthwhile. I
thoroughly recommend R-Tech and the 180 MIG welder.

And that is fine on 240V? I have a SIP 240v MIG that feels underpowered,
as does the cheap Lidl MMA inverter.
Yes, I'm running it on a 13A plug and welding up to 3mm MS. The
manufacturer says a 16A plug will be needed to use the highest settings
but I'll deal with that when I need to.
It looks like JR and I bought the same model welder so maybe he can
report on using it with thicker steel.
The only thing I don't like is the display of current, which works
(apparently) when welding ... but who looks at a display when they're
welding?

And if I could do a trade I would actually be reducing my tool count!

On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what
a difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and
smooth with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to
get pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice.
No buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have a
third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them from
CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes. There was
a lot more platter though.

I think it also depends a bit on the wire chosen - some are more fussy
than others.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen mins
with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do all
three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed to
only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending up
with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to get a
stand-alone setup later.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but it
obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 17:16, wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:38, newshound wrote:
On 29/07/2020 11:25, wrote:



I did something similar a few months ago and wish I'd done it much
earlier. I'd had a large'ish transformer-based MIG welder for a
looong time, it worked well-enough but I used it so rarely that my
welds were always a bit embarrassing, which meant I used it less. I
took the plunge and bought a 180 inverter MIG/MMA from R-Tech and
using it is a totally different experience to using the old welder, I
also switched from using CO2 pub gas to an Argon mix. Welding is so
much easier and gives excellent quality, plus the box is much smaller
and lighter. There are cheaper units out there but R-Tech were
helpful on the phone and have a long'ish warranty. They aren't cheap,
but I sold the old welder so the upgrade cost was affordable and well
worthwhile. I thoroughly recommend R-Tech and the 180 MIG welder.

And that is fine on 240V? I have a SIP 240v MIG that feels
underpowered, as does the cheap Lidl MMA inverter.
Yes, I'm running it on a 13A plug and welding up to 3mm MS. The
manufacturer says a 16A plug will be needed to use the highest settings
but I'll deal with that when I need to.

I have installed a blue commando style socket for it in the workshop,
but so far have not found anything that needed more than the 13A supply.

(note that until the other day, it was still loaded with 0.6mm wire
which was more suited to daughter's project using lots of 0.8mm steel -
so it was not being taxed. I was using 2.5mm rods, and that was fine on
a plug. I did not try my 4mm rods)

It looks like JR and I bought the same model welder so maybe he can
report on using it with thicker steel.

Will do, when I have something heavier to weld.

The only thing I don't like is the display of current, which works
(apparently) when welding ... but who looks at a display when they're
welding?

:-) yup, you need to set your camera to film it!

(a sample and hold would be handy)


And if I could do a trade I would actually be reducing my tool count!

Yeah, I can see this growing... AC/DC tig, plasma cutter, etc.


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On Wednesday, 29 July 2020 19:46:22 UTC+1, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 17:16, wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:38, newshound wrote:
On 29/07/2020 11:25, wrote:



I did something similar a few months ago and wish I'd done it much
earlier. I'd had a large'ish transformer-based MIG welder for a
looong time, it worked well-enough but I used it so rarely that my
welds were always a bit embarrassing, which meant I used it less. I
took the plunge and bought a 180 inverter MIG/MMA from R-Tech and
using it is a totally different experience to using the old welder, I
also switched from using CO2 pub gas to an Argon mix. Welding is so
much easier and gives excellent quality, plus the box is much smaller
and lighter. There are cheaper units out there but R-Tech were
helpful on the phone and have a long'ish warranty. They aren't cheap,
but I sold the old welder so the upgrade cost was affordable and well
worthwhile. I thoroughly recommend R-Tech and the 180 MIG welder.

And that is fine on 240V? I have a SIP 240v MIG that feels
underpowered, as does the cheap Lidl MMA inverter.
Yes, I'm running it on a 13A plug and welding up to 3mm MS. The
manufacturer says a 16A plug will be needed to use the highest settings
but I'll deal with that when I need to.

I have installed a blue commando style socket for it in the workshop,
but so far have not found anything that needed more than the 13A supply.

(note that until the other day, it was still loaded with 0.6mm wire
which was more suited to daughter's project using lots of 0.8mm steel -
so it was not being taxed. I was using 2.5mm rods, and that was fine on
a plug. I did not try my 4mm rods)

It looks like JR and I bought the same model welder so maybe he can
report on using it with thicker steel.

Will do, when I have something heavier to weld.

The only thing I don't like is the display of current, which works
(apparently) when welding ... but who looks at a display when they're
welding?

:-) yup, you need to set your camera to film it!

(a sample and hold would be handy)


And if I could do a trade I would actually be reducing my tool count!

Yeah, I can see this growing... AC/DC tig, plasma cutter, etc.

Maybe try these electrodes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j61ezBX-EyA
They're a bit beyond my welders though.


NT

On 29/07/2020 20:21, Jimk wrote:
newshound Wrote in message:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode... and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

IME gasless wire is a bit sensitive to wind too.

Any more than separate gas in windy conditions?

Not unaffected, but still far less sensitive...

(if you look at some of the more recent project Brupeg welding, they
have been doing lots of flux core, so as to cope with the wind)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq9...qfhPKkKFvFkY4A


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Jimk wrote:
newshound Wrote in message:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode... and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

IME gasless wire is a bit sensitive to wind too.

Any more than separate gas in windy conditions?

All the advice I have seen suggests that gasless is better in outdoor
windy conditions. In fact it seems one of the reasons for choosing
gasless is when welding outdoors.

--
Chris Green
·

On 29/07/2020 22:12, Chris Green wrote:
Jimk wrote:
newshound Wrote in message:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode... and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

IME gasless wire is a bit sensitive to wind too.

Any more than separate gas in windy conditions?

All the advice I have seen suggests that gasless is better in outdoor
windy conditions. In fact it seems one of the reasons for choosing
gasless is when welding outdoors.

There are also some "dual shield" processes that use flux core with a
shielding gas as well.


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 19:39:21, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what
a difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and
smooth with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy
to get pretty decent results with relatively little skill or
practice. No buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have a
third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them from
CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes. There
was a lot more platter though.

I think it also depends a bit on the wire chosen - some are more fussy
than others.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen
mins with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do
all three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed to
only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending up
with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to get a
stand-alone setup later.

I can see your viewpoint, but inverters give ultimate control over
current and voltage. I see no reason why you can't have master of all 3.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but it
obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)

So not a scratch start?

On 29/07/2020 12:39, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:29, williamwright wrote:

On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders
- they make the whole process quite civilised!

Tell me exactly what to buy. Seriously.

Well based on my limited experience, something inverter based with IGBTs
in the electronics.

If all you need is stick, then something like:

https://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/arc-...ch-pro-arc135/

(and having now used a decent welder in stick / MMA mode, it has greatly
expanded my concept of what kind of work I would be happy to tackle with
it - I would still probably not want to try welding very thin sheet
steel, but general fabrication with, bar, tube, angle, and square hollow
etc would be fine)

The one I went for is:

https://www.r-techwelding.co.uk/mig-...tech-i-mig180/

(many of the reasons being similar to the other poster in this thread
who got the same machine)

I also got a cart to stick it on, the stick electrode, and reels of both
0.8mm and 0.6mm wire, plus a few spare tips etc.

For shielding gas I found a local Mark One hire shop was also a
Hobbyweld agent:

https://hobbyweld.co.uk/

They do bottles with no rental element, so well suited to intermittent
users. The gas was £35 (plus you pay a £65 deposit with the first
bottle, but then just swap it for a full one for the price of the gas).
I went for the Hobbyweld 5 mix which is 93% Argon, 5% Carbon Dioxide, 2%
Oxygen.

The welder I bought for £50 in 1976 is beginning to get on my nerves a
bit.

ISTR the Merlin cost me about that in the late 80's, and yup, getting on
nerves seems to be about what they are best at!

With hindsight, I bought it as a solution looking for a problem - I just
thought it would be a handy thing to have. I remember telling a work
mate who I knew was into welding, and his only question was "Why?" - the
significance of the question dawned on me over the next few years, when
as each problem presented, the solution turned out to not be that good.



Thanks John. Very helpful.

Bill

newshound Wrote in message:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode... and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

IME gasless wire is a bit sensitive to wind too.

Any more than separate gas in windy conditions?


--
Jimk


----Android NewsGroup Reader----
http://usenet.sinaapp.com/

Chris Green Wrote in message:
Jimk wrote:
newshound Wrote in message:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode... and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get
pretty decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No
buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

IME gasless wire is a bit sensitive to wind too.

Any more than separate gas in windy conditions?

All the advice I have seen suggests that gasless is better in outdoor
windy conditions. In fact it seems one of the reasons for choosing
gasless is when welding outdoors.


Indeed.
--
Jimk


----Android NewsGroup Reader----
http://usenet.sinaapp.com/

On 30/07/2020 00:31, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 19:39:21, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow
what a difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet
and smooth with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost
easy to get pretty decent results with relatively little skill or
practice. No buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have a
third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them
from CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes. There
was a lot more platter though.

I think it also depends a bit on the wire chosen - some are more fussy
than others.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen
mins with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do
all three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed to
only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending up
with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to get a
stand-alone setup later.

I can see your viewpoint, but inverters give ultimate control over
current and voltage. I see no reason why you can't have master of all 3.

Are you aware of any multi process machines that can do AC tig, with HF
start, foot pedal, variable frequency, mark space etc?

I found plenty that will do DC tig.

In the end I figures a separate machine would probably be easier -
especially as it would save swapping gas when swapping process.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but
it obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)

So not a scratch start?

Yup, IFAIU Lift start and scratch start are just different names for the
same thing (as opposed to HF start on a more sophisticated machine)

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

John Rumm wrote:

IFAIU Lift start and scratch start are just different names for the
same thingÂ* (as opposed to HF start on a more sophisticated machine)

I thought (based only on watching welders on youtube) that touching TIG
electrodes to the work was a real no-no?

Does anyone really use the terms SMAW/GMAW/GTAW rather than
stick/MIG/TIG, or is that just an American thing, or a professional
welders thing?

On 30/07/2020 12:31, Andy Burns wrote:
John Rumm wrote:

IFAIU Lift start and scratch start are just different names for the
same thingÂ* (as opposed to HF start on a more sophisticated machine)

I thought (based only on watching welders on youtube) that touching TIG
electrodes to the work was a real no-no?

Does anyone really use the terms SMAW/GMAW/GTAW rather than
stick/MIG/TIG, or is that just an American thing, or a professional
welders thing?

I thought they were just the American terms. In the UK, MMA/MIG/TIG all
seem widely understood. There's also SAW and Electroslag and, I suppose,
thermite!

On 30/07/2020 12:31, Andy Burns wrote:
John Rumm wrote:

IFAIU Lift start and scratch start are just different names for the
same thingÂ* (as opposed to HF start on a more sophisticated machine)

I thought (based only on watching welders on youtube) that touching TIG
electrodes to the work was a real no-no?

You don't want to dip the electrode into the weld puddle, but that
different from striking the arc against the (solid) work before the
puddle has formed.

Does anyone really use the terms SMAW/GMAW/GTAW rather than
stick/MIG/TIG, or is that just an American thing, or a professional
welders thing?

Colleges seem quite keen on using the "proper" terms - to the point of
calling MIG, MAG in many cases (since most "MIG" gases have some active
(i.e. O2) gas content as well).


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 19:39, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what
a difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and
smooth with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy
to get pretty decent results with relatively little skill or
practice. No buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have a
third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them from
CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes. There
was a lot more platter though.

I think it also depends a bit on the wire chosen - some are more fussy
than others.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen
mins with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do
all three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed to
only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending up
with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to get a
stand-alone setup later.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but it
obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)


I also started-out with the idea that I would look for a 3-in-1 machine
because I had thoughts of learning to TIG weld. The reviews of the cheap
machines put me off them and the price of the non-cheap machines put me
of those as well. I decided to go for what seemed/seems to be a good
2-in-1 on the basis that I didn't really know why I wanted to TIG weld
and am far from short of jobs, or things to learn.

On 30/07/2020 12:17:35, John Rumm wrote:
On 30/07/2020 00:31, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 19:39:21, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow
what a difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet
and smooth with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost
easy to get pretty decent results with relatively little skill or
practice. No buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have
a third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them
from CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes. There
was a lot more platter though.

I think it also depends a bit on the wire chosen - some are more
fussy than others.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen
mins with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do
all three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed
to only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending
up with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to
get a stand-alone setup later.

I can see your viewpoint, but inverters give ultimate control over
current and voltage. I see no reason why you can't have master of all 3.

Are you aware of any multi process machines that can do AC tig, with HF
start, foot pedal, variable frequency, mark space etc?

I found plenty that will do DC tig.

In the end I figures a separate machine would probably be easier -
especially as it would save swapping gas when swapping process.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but
it obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)

So not a scratch start?

Yup, IFAIU Lift start and scratch start are just different names for the
same thingÂ* (as opposed to HF start on a more sophisticated machine)

Some articles seem to think differently:

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/b...-scratch-start

On 30/07/2020 13:05, wrote:
On 29/07/2020 19:39, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do
all three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed to
only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending up
with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to get a
stand-alone setup later.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but
it obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)



I also started-out with the idea that I would look for a 3-in-1 machine
because I had thoughts of learning to TIG weld. The reviews of the cheap
machines put me off them and the price of the non-cheap machines put me
of those as well.

Yup often the way!

I decided to go for what seemed/seems to be a good
2-in-1 on the basis that I didn't really know why I wanted to TIG weld
and am far from short of jobs, or things to learn.

I often have to fight the feature creep when buying new stuff like that,
just because "it would be nice" or "might come in useful"!

In the end I decided that the mostly non digital MiG/Stick combo, covers
all of what I have done in the past and way more, and gives a much
better platform for basic fabrication.

I can probably live without TIG unless I particularly want to do
something that only TIG will do, so cross that bridge when it comes!




--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 30/07/2020 15:39, Fredxx wrote:
On 30/07/2020 12:17:35, John Rumm wrote:
On 30/07/2020 00:31, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 19:39:21, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 15:32, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 14:33:23, John Rumm wrote:
On 29/07/2020 13:16, Fredxx wrote:
On 29/07/2020 02:06:31, John Rumm wrote:

snip

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was
quite strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow
what a difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs
quiet and smooth with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it
almost easy to get pretty decent results with relatively little
skill or practice. No buzzing, spluttering, or sticking either.

Of course gasless wire would have done the trick too.

Indeed, but I have not got any of that in stock[1], but still have
a third of a 5kg box of 2.5mm electrodes left (which I bought them
from CPC *years* ago :-)

[1] and the slight faff or remembering to swap the polarity.

I have welded satisfactorily when not swapping the electrodes.
There was a lot more platter though.

I think it also depends a bit on the wire chosen - some are more
fussy than others.

(It was telling that I got through about 8 rods in ten to fifteen
mins with the other welder that would have been over an hours work!)

I have a very old MIG welder and was thinking of making the jump to
TIG[1] with AC/DC provision to weld aluminium. Some machines can do
all three MMA/MIG/TIG.

I looked at a few, but most of the three in ones I looked at seemed
to only do DC tig. In the end I thought there was a danger of ending
up with a jack of all trades master of none result, and decided to
get a stand-alone setup later.

I can see your viewpoint, but inverters give ultimate control over
current and voltage. I see no reason why you can't have master of all 3.

Are you aware of any multi process machines that can do AC tig, with
HF start, foot pedal, variable frequency, mark space etc?

I found plenty that will do DC tig.

In the end I figures a separate machine would probably be easier -
especially as it would save swapping gas when swapping process.

(in fact you can do "austere" lift start DC tig with my machine, but
it obviously lacks the finesse that you get with a "real" tig machine)

So not a scratch start?

Yup, IFAIU Lift start and scratch start are just different names for
the same thingÂ* (as opposed to HF start on a more sophisticated machine)

Some articles seem to think differently:

https://www.everlastgenerators.com/b...-scratch-start

Seems more like an argument in semantics - since both involve making and
breaking contact between the electrode and the metal to start the arc.
Its seems to be a question of how much lateral motion occurs in the
process.


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 29/07/2020 02:06, John Rumm wrote:
For years I have used a very basic SIP Merlin AC Arc welder (mostly
repair work, sticking the mower deck back together, and the occasional
bit of crude fabrication). Its a transformer based lump, pretty crude
with a ridiculously poor duty cycle (weld for 7 mins, let it cool down
for half an hour - improved to weld[2] for 7 mins let it cool for 15
with the addition of a couple of large fans internally). However I put
up with it on the grounds that I don't need to weld things that often.

[2] In fact never mind welding, just turn it on a wait for ten mins and
it will overheat and cut out all by itself.

However the thought also occurred to me that one of the reasons I don't
need to weld that often is because its such a PITA to use, one tends to
find alternative ways of doing it! That and it might be quite nice to be
able to do some proper fabrication work from time to time.

So earlier in the year when an excuse was presented[1] and I finally got
round to upgrading to a decent inverter based MIG setup, which has been
really nice. At the time I bought it I also got an electrode holder so
that I could also stick weld with it if I wanted - but had never got
around to trying it out until today.

[1] Daughter needed to do some welding for a college project, but could
not go in due to lockdown.

I wanted to weld up some bits of rebar outside, and the wind was quite
strong. So, ideal time to try it in MMA mode...Â* and wow what a
difference! You can strike an arc with ease, it runs quiet and smooth
with a really nice stable DC arc, and makes it almost easy to get pretty
decent results with relatively little skill or practice. No buzzing,
spluttering, or sticking either.

So moral of the story, I wish I had gone for something like it years
ago, and I now have a new found respect for IGBT inverter arc welders -
they make the whole process quite civilised!

(anyone got a use for a 150A Merlin?)



Ive always thought stick welding was a black art. You've now inspired me
to buy some rods and try out the the electrode holder that came with my
inverter MIG.

Mike

On 31/07/2020 09:03, Muddymike wrote:




Ive always thought stick welding was a black art. You've now inspired me
to buy some rods and try out the the electrode holder that came with my
inverter MIG.

Mike

Start with thinner sticks! They are less sticky.

On Fri, 31 Jul 2020 09:03:54 +0100, Muddymike
wrote:

snip

Ive always thought stick welding was a black art.

Not black art but one of those things where 1) it's much easier using
the right gear 2) in the right position 3) on the right job (to start
with especially) and 4) ideally with a mentor to give you tips re the
approach and what is right (setup wise, rather than what should right.
The books / chart says 60A but in fact on that particular setup you
actually *need* 75A etc).

You've now inspired me
to buy some rods and try out the the electrode holder that came with my
inverter MIG.

At welding class (48 years ago) I think we started with just running
some beads on some flat (clean) steel sheet. Once you have nice
consistent beads (where the flux comes off it big chunks (or one
piece) with one light tap), go for a fillet weld between a couple of
off cuts with a bit of angle ground on each plate to form a 90 Degree
'V'.

If you get it right with a slight raised weld over the base metal and
good penetration you can put it in the vice and see how easy it is to
break the weld open (it shouldn't be of course). ;-)

The good thing about being able to stick weld is with good kit it's
one of the simplest with no gasses, electronics or feed motors etc.
All you really need to do is keep the rods dry (or put them in the
oven for a bit if they do get damp).

Cheers, T i m

p.s. Whilst I could weld (stick / gas) and had my own gear from an
early age, I got loads of good mentoring from a coded welder who
really did make it look so easy. Even welding a h/d pipe overhead in
cramped conditions. ;-)

On Friday, 31 July 2020 10:43:59 UTC+1, T i m wrote:
On Fri, 31 Jul 2020 09:03:54 +0100, Muddymike
wrote:

Ive always thought stick welding was a black art.

it is, but not hard to learn. Maybe a grey-black art.


The good thing about being able to stick weld is with good kit it's
one of the simplest with no gasses, electronics or feed motors etc.

If you want easy welding go with gasless mig, WAY easier than stick. Ye olde arc welding with sticks is far cheaper, useful when you've got a lot to do.

And with arc the easiest way to do a weld is to lay the stick on the workpiece, stand back and let it do the weld for you. Short the end to workpiece momentarily to get it going.


NT

On 31/07/2020 10:43, T i m wrote:
On Fri, 31 Jul 2020 09:03:54 +0100, Muddymike
wrote:

snip

Ive always thought stick welding was a black art.

Not black art but one of those things where 1) it's much easier using
the right gear 2) in the right position 3) on the right job (to start
with especially) and 4) ideally with a mentor to give you tips re the
approach and what is right (setup wise, rather than what should right.
The books / chart says 60A but in fact on that particular setup you
actually *need* 75A etc).

I have found being able to get into a comfortable position helps greatly
- even simple things like when using a new (i.e. long) rod, using my
free hand to prop the electrode somewhere nearer the business end, makes
for a much easier job of keeping it where you want and not waggling all
over the place!

p.s. Whilst I could weld (stick / gas) and had my own gear from an
early age, I got loads of good mentoring from a coded welder who
really did make it look so easy. Even welding a h/d pipe overhead in
cramped conditions. ;-)

I count anything under 2' from the ground as cramped conditions these days!


--
Cheers,

John.

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