Welder?
 

Hey guys, what kind and size of welders are you using to do these projects. I've done a little welding and plan on buying a welder to help me on my projects (one of which is a FI ZC). I'm looking to weld charge pipes, exhaust, etc. Any suggestions?

Re:Welder?
 

Mine is a lincoln 110v Mig welder. It fits the full size spool of wire and is mounted on a cart with a full size argon bottle..

I always use 75% arg to 25% co2 instead of the other way.. The welds look much better and heat is much easier to control..
Ive welded quarter panels on with it.. not spot welds either but one long bead.. No warpage at all!

A tig is better for making pipes but alot more expensive too. ;D

Re:Welder?
 

I will second wildmans setup. I think that it is the best bang for the buck to have a small true mig wirefeed with a bottle. The cheap fluxcore migs work too, but they have a lot of slag, and spatter. I do not know if I would trust the welds in a pressure situation unless you add a ton of material. Tig is nice, but expensive and takes a long time to learn how to do well.

Re:Welder?
 

hobart tigmate runs off a 220 and has a full size argon bottle. still need to make a cart for it.

Beau

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i know its not great but i have a lincoln 110v wire feeder without gas....it works fine, and ive welded notches into the frame of my old truck without a problem...as for the welds holding pressure, thats another matter

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Ok, so im looking for a MIG welder, but is 80 amp enough? or will i need 130 or more to make some nice charge pipes, intercooler tanks, etc?

Re:Welder?
 

there is a "gas kit" for the lincoln 110v welder. i bought mine as a gassless unit and added the parts from the kit to make it true mig.. I think this is a 120 amp max unit it has 4 power settings. Ive done alot of frame work with it.. it can weld straight through plate up to 1/2" on high. if that gives you anything to guage by. ::)

Re:Welder?
 

i just recieved a cheapo 70amp gasless campbell hausfeld... never welded before, so practiced on this old chair i had in the garage, the steel is thin, and it would burn through when i would try to form a bead and move slowly... i could only get decent beads by moving back and forth and going over the weld pretty fast... it doesnt have a control on the welder.. what could be the reason for burnin through?

thanks..

Re:Welder?
 

burning through is a result from to much heat. your settings are to high.

this is how i see it. spend good money on a welder and it will last you A LONG time.

i bought a little eletric 400$ special thing. and i mean the things a piece of ---- compared to a miller m200. cant weld anything bigger then 1/8" no penetration.

i will classify all eletric (gasless) welders up in a few words.

BAG O ASS. worst investment ever.

miller m200 and the air liquide ones are about 1500 cdn. worth every penny.

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lol, ok well i got this one free.. so i hope i dont ---- up any charge pipes witht his thing... heh :-\

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saw WALLY-WORLD had a 115V arc welder, are they worth anything for welding up manifolds, mounts, chrage pipes, etc.

Re:Welder?
 

nah i bought an arc stick welder at sears and its so hard and ugly looking...i mean with practice maybe, no not even with practice...it sucks . unless you are on a tight budget go for it i had no job back then so only choice plus i wasnt gonna weld any thing major, but the point here i guess is if you dont care about looks then go for it. ill show you my welds for my down pipe and manifold...its embarassing.
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/...0/fca7a522.jpg

Re:Welder?
 

I've got a L/I Gas MIG... I've made plenty exhausts with it..
works well... for around $250..

-Henry

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For you guys with the 110V gassles welders, dont get rid of them when you get a beter unit.I turned a Lincoln 110 into a aluminum spool gun unit the spool gun and feed kit from Miller. On the lowest setting I can make beautiful beads on 1/8" aluminum tubes for IC piping. On the highest setting it will penetrate 1/2" with no problems.I have had this setup for years so I dont know what it would cost to do this now, but it is way cheaper than a TIG or a Pulsar aluminum only mig from miller. ;D

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so, that's one vote for a "no" on wire feed arc welders, anyone else want to chime in?

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i will be using my gasless mig welder on my manifold and i have no worries or doubts about it....its no perfect but im confident in my welds

Re:Welder?
 

wait so you can get an upgrade type thing for the arc welders to get wire fed? how so? i might try it...how much?

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just wanna see how i post pics http://www.imagestation.com/picture/...0/fca7a522.jpg did it work?

Re:Welder?
 

skanky welds...

I like it ;D

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run a grinder over it, it would like just fine, imho.

Re:Welder?
 

if you have a wire feeder arc welder, a mig conversion kit from lincoln electric is just under $100.. if you have a stick arc welder you have to buy a spool feed, and a gun and a gas kit.. not worth it, it will cost more than buying a mig and you can prolly pawn your stick welder for cash..

keep in mind you also have tio buy a cylinder for the gas.. I got a big 80ft^3 filled for $130 and it is $24 to refill

Re:Welder?
 

wow that is really ghetto, i guess ill get a mig instead of a wirefeed, it would be hard to sell anything with those kind of welds.

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so, welds are good for hold pressure?(boost)

Re:Welder?
 

Well yes? why wouldnt they? welds are incredibly strong

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ewwww heh, those stick welds look a lil :-\ but if they work its all good, ive been messin around with this cheap 70amp wire feed and it welds alot better than i expected.. ;)

Re:Welder?
 

well guys i suprised the hell outta myself today. had some old ss 2.5 exhaust pipe so i decided to give my dam eletric another go.

i found the best way to do it. is to lay a spot weld then another. u hold it on to long and bang u got a hole.

it looks pretty good.

Re:Welder?
 

so the cheap $170 welding machine is a way to go for some ghetto homemade manifolds :)

Jeff-

Re:Welder?
 

I made my manifold with flux core wire from my cheap ass lincoln welder, and it works, but could look way better and not leak so much. I think mig with gas is the way to go. How much are you guys paying for renting cylinders/buying gas?

Is it OK to just use CO2? I read somewhere that it is.

Re:Welder?
 

I bought my tank for $130 filled, it is an 80 ft^3 which is pretty big.. it stands waist high... it costs $24 to refill it with co2/argon mix