Choosing a Welder?

PB Forum :: Mechanics' Lounge
Choosing a Welder?
Author Message
flag matthew13sanderson
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:39 Quote
well i dont know much about welding but usually the bigger the better...and it depends on what you are welding. if its alluminum you want a mig and steel you would want a tig. its also common for bike frame builders to use a torch and melt peices together.
flag dotca
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:44 Quote
matthew13sanderson wrote:
well i dont know much about welding but usually the bigger the better...and it depends on what you are welding. if its alluminum you want a mig and steel you would want a tig. its also common for bike frame builders to use a torch and melt peices together.

Alu, you want tig, not mig.
flag matthew13sanderson
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:46 Quote
dotca wrote:
Alu, you want tig, not mig.

yeah your right..just learning tup
flag mathewgehman
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:48 Quote
it all depends on the gauge [thickness] of the metal, and you can use mig for alu but you need 100% argon and alu wire
flag matthew13sanderson
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:50 Quote
mathewgehman wrote:
it all depends on the gauge [thickness] of the metal, and you can use mig for alu but you need 100% argon and alu wire

yeah you can use mig on stuff that isnt under constant presure...bike frames are no good for it thoe.... unless you want frame that is steel or not very strong
flag jonbikes
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:50 Quote
You can use MIG and TIG for both steel AND aluminum, you just use different electrodes and fillers, as well as different shielding gasses.


EDIT- ^^^what do you mean by you can use mig on stuff that is under constant pressure?
flag matthew13sanderson
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:51 Quote
jonbikes wrote:
You can use MIG and TIG for both steel AND aluminum, you just use different electrodes and fillers, as well as different shielding gasses.

your right to but to make things more stronger you would want to use the proper welder
flag jonbikes
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 15:51 Quote
Both mig and tig are proper procedures on both aluminum and steel.
flag vps-rider
Posted: Jul 23, 2009 at 20:24 Quote
the whole melting together with a torch only works on steel and it hardly works at all just get it done properly by a welding shop and then you will have no problems
flag ricar
Posted: Jul 24, 2009 at 2:44 Quote
Actually that is oxy fuel welding and it works very well. Just not as well as TIG. MIG is a great way to weld Alu. Just not as good as TIG when it comes to bikes.
flag brokentapedeck
Posted: Jul 24, 2009 at 2:59 Quote
Did the frame of truck with a Lincoln weld pac 110 that was well over 4 years ago and i got about 60,000 very hard miles on her. after the work.

Unsecure image, only https images allowed: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v623/p169/1cd67cee.jpg
Unsecure image, only https images allowed: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v623/p169/4e223561.jpg
Unsecure image, only https images allowed: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v623/p169/truck/IMG00061.jpg
Unsecure image, only https images allowed: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v623/p169/truck/IMG00063.jpg
Unsecure image, only https images allowed: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v623/p169/truck/IMG00070.jpg
Unsecure image, only https images allowed: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v623/p169/truck/joshandsamstruck005.jpg
flag srobinson
Posted: Jul 24, 2009 at 16:21 Quote
^^Nice work, that thing looks sweet.

And please, if you don't know what you're talking about STOP POSING IS THIS THREAD!

To clear it up:

Tig is the best option for ANY material. However, it won't do quite as thick metal as others, and getting high powered machines is really expensive

Mig is best used for steel, but can do aluminum (poorly)

Stick can weld steel (the most common welder on job sites, because of simplicity) and aluminum (VERY poorly)

Torch (Oxy acetylene) can weld any material decently if you are extremely good at it.

Torch (Oxy propane) can do light gauge steel and is easier on alu (but still really hard)
flag ezekiel
Posted: Jul 24, 2009 at 16:27 Quote
srobinson wrote:
Mig is best used for steel, but can do aluminum (poorly)

MIG welded aluminum is not as pretty as a TIG welded joint but that doesn't mean that it does it poorly. The joints are strong enough that they're trusted on tractor trailers.
flag dotca
Posted: Jul 24, 2009 at 17:22 Quote
srobinson wrote:
^^Nice work, that thing looks sweet.

And please, if you don't know what you're talking about STOP POSING IS THIS THREAD!

To clear it up:

Tig is the best option for ANY material. However, it won't do quite as thick metal as others, and getting high powered machines is really expensive

Mig is best used for steel, but can do aluminum (poorly)

Stick can weld steel (the most common welder on job sites, because of simplicity) and aluminum (VERY poorly)

Torch (Oxy acetylene) can weld any material decently if you are extremely good at it.

Torch (Oxy propane) can do light gauge steel and is easier on alu (but still really hard)

Oxy acetylene is fun to weld with, as it's the only one I'm actually good at welding with! Hahaha.
flag ricar
Posted: Jul 24, 2009 at 17:33 Quote
Really. MIG is DC+ which is the best for Alu. With TIG you can (on some welders) balance the wave for more cleaning action or more penetration. TIG requires the use of A/C current, MIG still only needs DC, which means you are getting maximum cleaning at all times. TIG can not deal with that heat. Technically TIG is better on paper but if you have the machine and a 30' bead you need to run you would be silly to even concider TIG.

 


Copyright © 2000 - 2024. Pinkbike.com. All rights reserved.
dv42 0.041933
Mobile Version of Website