Here is my list of mig welding tips that I think can make a real difference to you when you are using your wire feed welder.
115 volt mig welders have some limitations but they are still an excellent way to get started welding. For way less than 500 dollars, you can order a good 115 v MIG welder online and start practicing welding within a week. (sometimes shipping is even free) What can you get for less than 500 dollars? You can buy the most powerful 115 v MIG welder available that will weld up to 1/4" steel.
I don't ever recommend buying a 115 v MIG welder that is a flux core only welder...(unless it is a smokin deal like a reputable brand for less than 200 dollars). A flux core only MIG welder is just not versatile enough. Once you add the ability to weld with bare wire, lots of options become possible.
For less than 500 bucks you can buy a Hobart mig welding machine that runs off of 115 volts and welds with bare wire or flux core.
1. Clean materials. You should always work with clean materials. Make sure that the metal you are going to weld is clean and free from anything that can contaminate the weld. Anything like rust particularly heavy rust, old paint, grease and any oils need to be removed before you mig weld.
2. Earth clamp. The Earth clamp is often overlooked when people start having mig welding problems. You've got to understand that when you are welding you are essentially creating a big electrical circuit. Any break in the circuit will cause you troubles. So check your earth clamp to make sure that everything is secure and that the contact points are clean. You might need to touch them up with some sand paper.
3. Gasless mig wire. It's a known fact that the self shielding flux core wires make a fair amount of welding spatter. One of the best things you can do is to use some anti spatter. It is available in aerosol cans and liquid form where you can fill up a spray bottle and squeeze it on by hand. Another little tip, make sure you get the least toxic stuff available, some of them are pretty bad to your health.
4. Mig welding wire. Use the best possible welding wire that you can get your hands on. There's so much rubbish wire out there in the marketplace that most of the time they do more damage than good. A good mig wire will be accurate in its dimension throughout the whole spool. A decent mig wire will also have a very good copper coating on it. The wire should never go over size either.
5. Mig welding
tips. If you're having trouble with bad welds and wire sticking, one area to look at may be the contact tips. With a lot of the cheaper contact tips the internal bore of the hole that the wire has to travel through can be very rough, course and uneven. This can lead to erratic and unstable arcs, wire burn backs, erratic feeding and higher consumable costs.
Sometimes it really does pay just to use genuine parts.
