Best Gas Mig Welding Sheet Metal

Holding the tip too far from the surface will cause the wire to have to come out too far to touch the metal.

Best gas mig welding sheet metal.

This is the most common shielding gas utilized in the mig welding process. It is the only shielding gas that can be used without the addition of an inert gas. As a rule when mig welding sheet metal never use a body filler metal that is thicker than the base metal. Co2 is a good choice for welding thick material which requires deep penetration.

As for shielding gas a higher argon based gas is recommended. It s one of the highest quality machines available and comes incredibly low priced. When starting to learn auto body sheet metal welding with a mig welder you should opt for a shielding gas that has a higher proportion of argon gas. The majority of the sheet metal welding i ve done was with a 90 amp 110 volt welder.

It is better to use instead of a high percentage of co2. For mig welding sheet metal it is often recommended to use an electrode wire of the smallest diameter to prevent burn through and warping. The best one to use is a mixture of 75 argon 25 carbon dioxide. For thinner gauge sheet metal like 18 or 20 gauge we suggest 023 6mm wire in your mig welder.

The main reason to use a smaller diameter wire is that it takes less heat for melting and hence the metal around the weld is not heated to a very great extent. In some cases there is tri mix shielding gas containing 90 helium 7 5 argon and 2 5 carbon dioxide. Mig welding gas for stainless steel welding welding of stainless steel is typically done with c2 or 2 carbon dioxide and 98 argon. Never go for a thinner base metal for the auto body sheet welding to get the best result out of it.

To weld sheet metal with solid wires use electrode positive ep or reverse polarity. Keep the stick out short stickout of your mig wire is important when welding any type of metal but especially sheet metal. With these materials use a tri mix gas 90 helium 8 argon and 2 co 2. The best thing about argon is that it carries less heat than co2 which further results in less spatter.

While sheet metal is primarily a tig welding job there are times when it s handy to have an available mig welder to fuse sheet metal. Wires are compatible but for welding 316l stainless you need a 316l wire. The hobart handler 140 mig is the best affordable mig welder for sheet metal. Mig welding is the preferred method for most automotive bodywork and since sheet metal is the thinnest of metals a large expensive mig unit is usually not required.

Choose the best gas for your process. Mig welding sheet metal.