MIG Welding: What Size Wire Should I Use?
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- Опубликовано: 25 авг 2024
- A hands on look at the two MIG welding wire sizes that I would recommend for most people.
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You can learn to weld. I'll show you exactly what to do in my affordable online welding courses at courses.timwelds.com.
Thank you for this video. Of all the welding video's I've watched, this is the first that explained the wire difference this well.
Awesome, thank you!
The way you explained wire size to amperage was spot on 👍
Never heard it that way before, makes excellent sense.
U have a natural talent to explain these things so well!👍👍 love the great content
I’ll have a boy in October. I’d say 0.024 wire is a huge boon for garage makers. Especially 16 gauge mild steel. I think everyone should try it once! Congrats on the kid!
Congrats to you as well! I keep a spool of .024 around as well, definitely agree that it shines on the sheet metal.
yeah i built an electric motorcycle frame from scratch using 0.6mm (.023") wire. i like it better than 0.8mm for these kinds of projects.
I would agree. On things like exhaust pipe and the such so much easier to use.
Hey Tim, I've watched probably 100 welding videos in the past couple years. No one explained the diameter difference quite like your simple animation, now it makes perfect sense. Thanks.
ps. Rewound for a double take, 5? Most excellent. 👍
Very good Tim. Showing the fuses was very helpful. I use 0.30 for almost everything up to 5/16, because like most people, I can get lazy. Then .35 for more thicknesses, and for when I need multiple passes. That’s an interesting topic in itself. I don’t know if you feel that it’s out of the wheelhouse of what you’re trying to do here. But people ask me if their welder can do thicker than what the manufacturer states. I’m hesitant to say yes, because multiple passes is a different level, and I’m not sure if I should try to explain it.
Another great video Tim. I'm learning to weld stick and mig and your videos really help. 😁👍
Thank you, had to dig through a ton of videos until I found this where you actually to a test weld with each wire! Including a 0.025" (0.6mm) wire with a ~0.7mm sheet test weld would would've made this perfect comparison.
I love the way you explain everything and your calm way to
Great guidance. Using 030 on a 115v Lincoln small welder with good results, but just got a Miller 215 to run at 240 and will try 035 as I will be doing thicker plates... You are saving me time and learning curve, thank you.
Excellent video Tim. The perfect refresher for me. Gilles
Just picked up a miller 220 AC/DC… great info for a newbie to welding here. Thank uou
Awesome! That’s a great machine, you’re going to love it.
Informative video. Thanks. I'm running 0.030 on my Yeswelder 205ds
I love the puddle shot with comments, it really shows proof. I usually only weld body parts and exhaust. Lol
Punching holes thru 22g steel tubing issue - I see your welder is a Miller Multimatic 215, which I also have. I was doing some outdoor furniture repair on 22 gauge thin wall steel tubing. I verified it was steel with a magnet, and there were small areas of rust where the tubing had cracked and exposed the underlying metal. I’m using 30-35 scfm of C25, and I was indoors with no fans etc., you can clearly hear the gas flowing, so cover gas is probably not the issue. Prior welding on the chair, I ran a test bead on some thicker sheet metal scrap, and it was perfect.
I verified I had good work lead grounding very near the repair site, and the repair site was cleaned down to bare metal with a wire wheel, just enough to remove the paint, but no metal.
I am using a high quality 0.024 solid MIG wire, and started off using the Auto-Set feature as a starting point, and it immediately burned a hole right thru the tubing. I ended up turning the welder down to the 24g settings, and further reduced those using the adjustments nob, and it still burned holes in the tubing.
I tried really hard to Not Cook the metal by minimizing how long I pulled the trigger, and I tried to keep the wire moving also.
What am I missing here? Any advice would be very helpful.
Also, Miller does not recommend running E6010 stick electrodes on the 215(which doesn’t mean you can’t do it), and I understand why that is true of many inverter welders due to them having inadequate OCV. I have tried it, and I was wondering if you have tried it too? If so - what was your experience?
Spoiler alert, I can easily run Lincoln E6010 5P+ rods, and have had success running 5P red rods too.
I love your content and knowledge - keep ‘em coming, I have learned a lot from you. Thanks
Good info Tim….. love the camera shots👍
THAT MADE SO MUCH SENSE TIM, THANKS FOR SHARING THIS GREAT VIDEO !
Thanks.
Could you please do a video on MIG welding thin tubes. I mostly work with 1.6mm tubing going up to maximum 2mm tubing.
I have a 200amp Pinnacle mig welder and use it with 0.8mm and 0.6mm wire.
your illustrations and explanations are exellent!
When I first started welding, whatever I did, the weld was just crap. A coworker walked up switched to .030 wire I welds worked great. Come to find out it was .040 wire inside the huge old blue welder!!!!! as always right on with your videos
Awesome! That will definitely make a difference.
I’m curious how using Flux Core wire affects those ranges since functionally it has less material to transfer the current.
Here's a little tip that might keep someone from the aggravation I experienced. I have an old Hobart 120 Handler that worked fine for a number of years until I installed a new roll of .030 wire then it wouldn't feed the wire properly. Long story short, the wire came with some tape wrapped around the spool to keep the wire from unraveling and the damn stickiness of the tape transfered onto the wire which in turn kept the wire from feeding properly. Brakleen solved the problem but not before the problem had me pulling my hair out.
Brake cleaner can be very hazardous and poisonous when burned, it’s actually gives off gas used in chemical warfare. Safer alternative would be ordinary dish soap or acetone. 👍
@@123ChrisG Brakleen evaporates very quickly so it didn't stay on the wire long enough to burn off. There are no residual toxins once it evaporates. I'm sure there are a number of ways to clean sticky tape residue off welding wire. Brakleen just worked great for me.
would love to see a comparison between 0.6 0.8 and 1.0mm wires
using a fuse to explain this was a grate idea grate work once agin
Great video, thank you
I'd be happy with any of those welds, but thanks for the explanation, at least I now know reasons behind some issues I've had. 👍
No akurat po1 taka metoda spawania od lewej do prawej to jest wielki błąd bo nie widzisz wtopienia spoiwa za palnikiem i wychodzą takie spoiny nierówne a materiał podtopiony jest na 100 proc tak się spawa elektroda prowadząc palnik od prawej do lewej ułożenie spoiny oczywiście odpowiednie ruchy palnikiem daje spoinę rowno ułożona beż podtopień materiału pozdr stary spawacz 35 lat starzu😂😂
Once again ...Thanks for the great videos...a great resource to learn to weld!!
I was using 030 wire on my Multimatic 215, but don't really liked the big size of the beads. Look like to much wire goes in.
Switched to 024 , but using auto set on machine for 030 wire and welds are looking much nicer . Even tried to weld 3/8 thick steel and used the hydraulic press to trying break the weld, but hold without problem. I am not such great welder and maybe moving slow with 030 wire, but will stick with 024 wire , rarely I weld something over 1/4 " most of welding is on 1/8 material or under .
Outstanding content thank you for this amazing information. This helps me out a lot
.035 is what I use most on my Power MIG 255
I'm assuming this is the same for Flux Core wire?
Nice easy to understand explanation... Thanks...
Hi, I have a question, my machine has presets for different wire sizes. I have some 0.9mm wire but my machine only has 0.8 or 1mm presets. Should I use the 0.8 or the 1mm preset for the 0.9wire? Best regards Mick.
Great info as I’m looking at getting the Hobart Handler 140. I guess .30 will be my weapon of choice. 👍
Handler 140 is a good choice. I first learned to weld on a 120 volt Hobart over 20 years ago. .030 should work really well for you.
that handler is a workhorse!!! great welder
What size spool of MIG wire should the hobbyist welder purchase? I was watching someone else MIG welding video and he stated that the hobbyist should only purchase 1 lb or 2 lb spools of MIG wire since it will corrode in a non-temperature controlled garage over time and damage your MIG gun. Only purchase the 10 lb spools of MIG wire if you go through a 10 lb spool in a short period of time. What are your thoughts on the age of MIG wire in a non-temperature controlled garage? Thank you for sharing your welding knowledge in videos.
Would have helped had you mentioned flux core wire as well... curious to know if the same info was true. I was under the impression FCW ran a bit hotter than regular mig..
Very well explained!!!
How about penetration? Although you use the same settings, the penetration might be little different. Would like to see the cross cut of those samples.
I run .023 ,.030 and .035 on an old SP150
I understand the video and your great description just one part is your system says volts and mine is amps and can't figure how to what amps to run 0.030 or 0.035 wire on my 110 volt, Flux 135 amp, yeswelder ?
Does the wire size recommendations change any with sold vs flux core?
As always thanks for the content! Quality!
Hi guys. I am welding some really thin sheet steel on my classic car. Im totally new to this and got myself a hitbox gasless mig welder but im having difficulty with the amp settings. I feel its burning through at even the lowest settings. It came with 0.8mm flux cored wire so im thinking maybe its too thick for this job as the sheet steel is around 0.75mm. Help would be really appreciated, thanks
You left out one important thing.
Multiple passes instead of one pass welding.
MANY people want to weld 3/8" full penetration one pass welds and be done, but in reality that is a big machine, when a smaller machine using multiple passes (2 -3) will also do the job.
It isn't the fillet size, its the penetration, that matters.
A big wire moving fast is the same as a small wire moving slow, right?
hello and thanks for the info, what you say is also warm for machines that work at 220v?, thanks again.
Please, how many types of wire do we have for mig welding
Thanks ! Tim✌😎
youre awesome tim thank you so much
Please, I want to know the factories that manufacture C or Two welding wire machines
Congratulations on that soon to be 5!
My wife says 3 is enough …. And i dont feel like finding another wife … lol
Thanks! It's always fun to see your cute kiddos on your channel.
thank you
thank you!!
If the material is 1mm stainless, what size wire I use and what setting do you recommend?
Good job
Awesome video, good info
Hi Tim , I am a home brewer for some years now and would like to do some changes on a very thin 304 stainless tank I have (e.g. drill some holes and weld some parts ) . The problem is that the tank is 0.8mm and would like your opinion as to whether Mig or Tig would be the solution and ...how . Have you done any videos on very thin metal welding e.g. welding a 0.8mm on top of another 0.8mm or welding a 3 mm on a 0.8mm ? I have a feeling other subscribers would be interested in such a technique . Best regards , John .
Can I use a mig welder to make a set of exhaust headers. and make transmission bracket.
Great info.
Good video but honestly, unless you’re really limited on amperage an experienced welder can use either just a matter of dialing the machine in
There's a huge overlap and I'm honestly not too picky, but it's worthwhile to get the best fit for the typical case.
Lot more heat input with the larger wire
Great video... Thanks
will there be burning holes issue relationship with the size?
can you use a piece of mig wire in a arc welder would in work.
Which Miller Machine were you using in this video
What grade of steel is your table made of?
I wanna weld honda accord frame rail, what wire should I use, it's a spot welding, I have basic mig welder from harbor freight
Outstanding
Tim most sheet metal welder use .023 or .024 mig wire ?
Is 0.045 to big for doing 1/4 inch outside on a metal structure?
My question is for shop use which burns better 110 or 220 v welder
Define "burns better". 220 can weld thicker material generally. If you are doing 1/16" material, there may be little difference.
Where can I get scrap metal to practice on?
Ye, but what frequency, amps and wire speed is needed for 0.6 mm wire. Just started school and using it at home is a headache. Could help a lot if someone could just tell me the needed requirements.
Wait. Recommend? Sweet spot? Isn't there some kind of mathematics, some calculation to be done in order to select exactly the correct size?
now do flux core sizes plz :)
Hi. I'm new to welding. And I'm using a FCAW. I noticed that it splatter a lot. I read something that it should be DCEN. I'm not quite sure about the polarity of mine since there's no sign outside of it. Also, what tips can you give me in using it? I'm usually welding a 1.5mm square tube. When should I know if I should adjust my wire speed?
Connect the earth cable in to the postive socket ? Weld power cable in to neg socket ? Have you got the right cable rollers in the drive ?
most of my welding is on sheet metal and I use .024 wire . Your comments please
Tim how would . 023 or . 024 do on the thin stuff!
It works great. If I were only doing thin stuff, I’d use it more. I tend towards .030 because it gives a little better range on the thicker end.
Haha if you are welding from 22 gauge up to 1/8th inch that’s 3.2mm then Tim recommends around 30 thou wire but you can go to 35 mil. Should give you a weld bead of around 70M angstroms wide.
Of course you can get welding wire down to around 2.36 calibre or smaller and up to about 0.00000656 football fields in diameter or larger.
Haha! I was waiting for a units comment on this one...
@@TimWelds not your fault that units are so effed up, it’s the way the world is.
Where would I get some plates to practice on?Just started welding about two weeks ago and I’ve run out of stuff to weld.
Check your local metal supply store. Just Google that. My local store has a scrap bin they don't charge anything for if you're just grabbing some practice pieces.
I use 0.035 professionally, I find that 0.030 makes good esthetic welds, but lacks durability and speed, whereas 0.045 is not very pretty, but is durable and fast, so for me 0.035 is kind of a sweet spot, it's versatile and can run low enough to make nice looking welds yet capable of reaching a spray... we just qualified and had 3 welders pass a 3g uphill on 1" plate with 0.035 wire and 90/10 gas on a pulse spray transfer @225wfs
My go-to settings are
Esthetic -
220/17.5-18V
Versatile -
280-325/19-19.5V
Durability/speed -
425-450/20-21v
Anything 3/8" and up -
425-450/27.5-28.5v
All ran on 0.035 wire using 90/10 gas but most importantly keeping a very short stick out almost to the point of the nozzle touching the base metal... if it pops, it's usually due to bad/poor technique and too long of a stick out... I find a lot of welders try to make up for poor technique by increasing voltage, but then they create a lot of spatter and then blame the process for the mess or the popping when the reality is they just need to shorten their stick out
Hey Tim I am new to welding I have something to ask. You did a video on gasses you can use for various applications but you said not much about the stainless steel welding both MIG and TIG. Anyway, Stainless Steel is a big part for every welder hobbyist or pro. I want to know more about it. Furthermore, I am a farmer and I am planning to use my welding in the farm but we have a lot of galvanized metals from pipes to sheet. There are not many people touching this subject so you can prepare tutorials. All welders here (Greece ) say that when you weld on galvanized metal you destroy it because current can kick away the zinc from the parent metal because it is like you reverse the galvanization procedure. Is that true? Is there anything that can be done to avoid that? Thank you in advance I would be grateful if you can answer me. P.S. it will be a big help for all of us if you can give the numbers in metrics system because it is difficult for us to follow you some times or the alternative would be to add a spoiler on the screen showing both inches and metrics. Thanks again!
For the galvanised steel; pure CO2 or use a gasless wire. For the stainless; argon with 1-2% CO2 or 1-2% O2. Run the gasless wire on the negative terminal, all the other wires, positive..
The galvanize will somewhat act as a contaminant. It makes the puddle a bit wild. Also, the fumes from welding through galvanize are not good for your health at all. Ideally the weld area would have the galvanizing removed. Your corrosion resistance will be gone on the weld either way. Here in the US, you can buy "cold galvanize" in a spray can to re-coat the weld area.
🍻 Cheers, another great simple explanation for us beginners.
I'm looking to upgrade, and am considering a multi voltage gas compatible unit from WeldPro, Mig155GD.
It seems really well engineered and is
within my budget 🙏.
Any inputs welcome.
Thanks, G.
Thanks! I've never used any WeldPro equipment. Having tried several budget friendly machines, some work great (including the Harbor Freight Titanium 170) and some have been total junk. I took a quick look at that WeldPro, and the Amazon reviews indicate that many people like it, so you have that to go off of. One limitation that I saw is that it only fits 2 lb spools of wire. In that price range, I would also consider the PrimeWeld MIG 180. I have never used their MIG welders either, but I have their TIG welder and it's really good for the price as is their customer service. Probably can't go wrong either way. Cheers!
@@TimWelds ,, thanks for your in depth comments and observation. I didn't notice the 2# spool capability either. I'll definitely research the PrimeWeld 180 👍.
Thanks Tim.
lovely
would of been nice to see .23 & .25
i have question co2 10% is good for short circuit or bad?
Its neither good nor bad. You can use it instead of 25% co2 BUT your settings are slightly different. A little less voltage i believe.
If you're only running short circuit and have the choice, I'd go with 25% CO2. That being said, if you want the flexibility to run spray transfer as well, or if availability is a problem 10% CO2 will work for short arc. As ZILA said, you'll need to adjust your settings differently for different gasses.
I’ve done a lot of 98% argon 2%co2 on 0.35 and .040 hot and great penetration was also welding 3/8 and thicker material
Mate
When sizing your wire you need to give the metric as well as the imperial…,
No he doesn’t.
With a powerful enough welding machine and a wire feeder FAST enough …. 1/4” with 030 is no problem at all ….
You may end up in some globular though …
Definitely agree, I've run quite a bit of 1/4" on .030 wire with the wire speed cooking at over 450 ipm. I actually went on a globular rant when making this video, but cut it out to save for another video and avoid overcomplicating the matter.
@@TimWelds exactly! And with over 600 ipm and uf you have enough arc voltage available in your machine you can get in the neighborhood of 200 amp with 030 wire! That is nothing to sneeze at.
My 110v mig came with 0.8 diameter flux wire lol
Mention of 0.6mm or 0.025" would be good.
It's extremely useful for people getting in to welding (those who will be watching the video ) as they often don't have the machine to be welding heavier material.
Poor show to leave it out.
A proper filet weld should be pretty flat. All your welds were humped in the middle, probably from from running your bead straight. Why not run it with a pattern to get a proper flat weld? Circular, straight step, or c patterns would all give better welds. Pretty sure a hump in the middle like that can lead to stress cracks down the road. Fine for a paycheck, not great for a warranty provider.
Note to new welders:. Just buy a bit of different sizes and test yourself. Welding is different for everyone because of travel speed and pattern.
I try to weld everything with 0.45😂😂😂
👍👍👍
1.2 and just fire it in 🤣🤣
I restore old cars with a lot of rusty metal!!! So for me .023 is best because Rusty Sheet Metal burns through really Fast!!!! .030 will blow holes in almost every time!!! Would NEVER use .035 restoring cars!!!
Rock On!!!
Hey!! Very good! I see you are making the transition to metric from imperial. Imperial is for Napoleon. It's dead. It might twitch a bit still but... it's on the way out. Good. Let it suffer for all the harm it has caused! Mwoehahahahaha! 😈
Many channels have solid info but as soon as I notice they are suffering from imperialism, I'm gone. Good to see you are more professional than that! 😅😁
🎉🎉🎉🎉👍
Thanks!
Most of my welding was on Japanese car panels and used 0.6 mm wire, it also worked well building a trailer from 1/8" wall square tube. Here, I can only get 0.9 mm wire, and is useless welding 14 gauge square tube. And it won't feed through my 0.8 mm tips, one of the problems of changing from an international standards country, to a USA abortion of measurements country.
How can you not mention if you're using sheield gas or flux core? How can you completely omit 0.24" which is the most popular? Not a very good video.
The title of the video is MIG, not FCAW. .024” is much less common than these sizes. I suppose your comment leaves something to be desired as well. 🤷♂️
Yep. Gettin started is what it's all about. Peace
And in case somebody doesn't know ... get started with Lord Jesus by being born again of water and Spirit.
Means you start by going to a man of God who knows the difference between titles baptism and baptism in the title-name-title of Lord Jesus Christ