Cab Corner Tips

[avejoe]

Well I started welding patch panels yesterday. I also started welding yesterday too. All of my welds are in areas that will be hidden so I was not too concerned with how the welds looked.

They look pretty bad. I either get little balls or I blow through. After I grind the little balls down, I can live with them.

I am using a flux core wire feed welder.

I'm getting ready to start on the corners and I am concerned about how my welds are gonna look.

I would appreciate any tips for putting in the corners.

Thanks!

[botboy]

Using flux core wire will give you dirty welds, and hot ones too. Excess heat distorts sheet metal and will cause far more problems than you want to deal with. I would recommend upgrading to standard mig wire instead of flux shielded wire and use mig gas (60/40 argon/CO2) to shield your welds. You can rent/refill a gas bottle from northern hydraulics, home Depot or many other farm/truck supply stores. You'll also need a a regulator, which you can pick up for under $120 from ebay or a similar store, and a different tip for your welder.

Also, you should pick up some scrap sheet metal and practice welding that together, rather than learning on the truck. If you're blowing thru you need to adjust your voltage, wire speed or both. You're going to get little balls no matter what as a result of splatter. The wire comes apart before it actually touches the surface of the metal, because of the extreme heat generated by the electrical art.