Can you try to use self shielded flux cored wire with shielding gas? Is it true that self shielded flux cored wire has similar deposit characteristics to 7018? Thanks in advance
Weld.com no benefit ?!? Depending on the self-shielded wire you are using it will hurt you. The flux inside a self shielded wire is totally different than inside a dual shield wire. Some if them NEED TO BE WELDED IN OPEN AIR because parts of the flux need to react with the air to develop their full potential and strength. If you block out the atmosphere ( by using argon or co2 or any mixtures of this) you are not allowing the wire ti react with the atmosphere and develop full strength. Now granted some self shielded wire can be used with shielding gas still DCEN and often those types of wires are hard surfacing wires not joining alloys. If you use has on those it makes the “weld” deposits a little bit “cleaner” looking but in this application tensile or yield strength are really not all that important ... its more rockwell hardness that counts ....
I have a question about running double shielded flux core, when you decide to use a shielding gas with flux core, aka double shielded flux core, do you need to use the same polarity as normal flux core or do you reverse it like running normal MIG wire?
I did a LOT of mobile repairs that required welding in windy, outdoor situations. Flux core was the ONLY way to fly. This was an excellent "myth buster" vid. Redbeard, kudos on this one. Use the correct process for the task at hand...………...they all have their place. Don't take a "knife to a gunfight" applies here.
I only run flux core and metal core in my shop, i do have some solid wire for the thin fine stuff, but really life is too short to be running solid wire. I use innershield on field repairs.
I'm not a welder by trade, weld while repairing trash trucks and I've found that flux core has much less of an issue with "dirty" metal. You don't have to be nearly as OCD in your prep, like you do with gas .
I just bought a gas/gasless Mig welder that I plan to use gasless for smaller hobby stuff. I'm brand new to using one, and this video was insanely useful. Thank you so much!
Many years ago I picked up a Weld-PAK 100 with flux core wire in it from a pawn shop. It never welded well and I seemed to always fight it. 20 some years later I finally found that the polarity was backwards. I love this little machine now. It is portable and capable and I usually use it outside. Spatter has greatly decreased. Just amazing. Great video.
Thank you for sharing some of your vast knowledge! I’m 68 years old and finally at a point in my life to try a bit of welding . I wish I was younger, wish I could spend some time with a professional like yourself , but heck better late than never !
Your vids are so good. As a complete beginner hobby welder your no nonsense explanations and examples (like preheating the oven) really help me understand the principles behind the settings. Every weld I do after watching is better than my last one!
We learned the 4 main processes in a welding intro class when I went to school to be a machinist. For some reason, flux core just felt really good. I also enjoyed chipping the slag off to reveal my (im)perfect weld at the end.
been welding for about that long myself... I got one of these new flux welders for mothers day, and to fix my kids truck, and I'm going though the whole learning process, as I have NEVER used anything that didn't run without tanks haha
Untrained welder here, first time using flux core I swore in disgust. Had no other option so mucked around with settings and separation and finally in desperation reversed polarity and, whaddya know? Perfect
@@raccoonvalley3237 There should be a way you should be able to pull a panel and flip the terminals. The output side won't know how it is hooked up to the wire and ground. You may have to come up with a jumper if they did not provide provisions for an easy change.
Man, you guys are great. Some people shouldn't make videos; im so hooked watching yours because you cover details about setup, prep, common mistakes, etc. IN EACH of the videos. First time all of my questions were answered in detail. Thank you guys!!
Dude if you look at his welds you can see a seam that's telling you it's not bonded!! Y'all need to learn a pretty weld doesn't mean shit!! I have been welding longer than he has lived and I will stick to stick !!! Wire is for the people that can't stick!!!
I own 20 acres and run a small farm. I bought a Harbor Freight Titanium Easy flux 125 amp flux core welder about 5 years ago. Best decision I made. From welding to fixing and moding the tractor, implements, trailers, tools, gates, ect. I cannot count the amount of feet of FluxCore welding wire I have used. I am not a welder, never took classes, just learned by doin. My welds are not perfect, they are not clean, I have stacked dimes a couple of times but mostly it's looks like crap. But........... It works and I make 2 pieces of metal stick together and not fall apart. 😉 Love my little $140 welder!
Wow! I almost sold my Hobart 140 because of the spattering. I can weld pretty decent with my millermatic, so I just assumed the fluxcore was the issue. I had no idea about the polarity and I can’t thank you enough!
I love the people who say flux doesnt get good penetration on thick stuff, but theyre still the first to remind you that its not good for thin stuff because it burns hotter than solid wire 🤔🤔🤔
One of the most professional videos I've seen on welding. Two thumbs up! I have a portable Lincoln 180 Mig in my shop. I weld outside on projects in the summer and flux core is the ONLY possibility. This machine doesn't allow me to change polarity which makes me believe it is configured DC -ve because there is no way I get that much spatter you got on DC +ve. What I have learned over time is to stay away from no-name spools. I went back to Lincoln spools and get way better, stronger welds with min porosity. With no-name spools I found the welds were brittle.
VERY well done and in-depth review. Bought my first flux core (Titanium 125) after owning all MIG and TIG welders just for it’s portability and kept having the porosity issue. Tried switching leads and it looked like the first bead you ran. Then I watched this video and realized I had been too close to the puddle. Again, YEARS of TIG welding created a bad habit when moving down to a flux-core. 😂 But it’s the size of a toaster and can do 3/8” steel no problem, so it’s become my “friendly” welder when someone needs me to come over and weld something. Plenty of my offroad buddies appreciate this video I’m sure as well. 🤘🏻😋 Not to mention, a couple car batteries and a power inverter make my little Titanium 125 the PERFECT trail rig that damn near fits in my center console and can weld anything on the trail. Thanks brotha!!!!
Thank you for the excellent, instructive video clarifying the necessary polarity, proper tip-to-workpiece distance, choosing the correct drive roll, and many additional helpful tips.
Just brilliant!...Too many people blaming the tools instead of the technique. Thanks for the knowledge and tutorial. Your close up of the tip during actual welding is the best videography I've seen so far...it really helps me to "see" what's going on down there....good and bad. Fantastic work...well done.
I ran flux core once in welding school 9 years ago and I didn't run it again until early this year when I picked up an ESAB Rebel EMP 215 to use for the occasional mobile welding jobs. I learned that my stick-out was too close and that was the main cause of my porosity troubles during my test runs. Thanks, Weld.com.
I'm a carpenter by trade but do a lot of other stuff. I was doing body work on a '97 F150 and had to weld sheet metal. It wasn't until after I was done that I read somewhere (or saw a video) that I needed to reverse the polarity to use it as a flux core (it can be set up for either flux or mig). After I swapped the cables, it did a LOT better. Thanks for the great info.
Thank you for your video!!! My son bought me an Everlast Flux Co 11:49 re Welder. I’m taking a class at the college with a very experienced instructor. You explained many different aspects of the differences and issues regarding Flux-core Welding. Your comments regarding the power supply + vs - will help me immensely!! Thank you!! Dave
Been welding with flux core from the beginning. Have built many trailers and fixed many trailer tongues and never a problem. Thanks for straightening this out so clearly.
Dude, great video! I haven't welded in over a decade (transitioned my career into IT) but this showed me some of the things I could've done better. I only wish there were more welders in my day who had been willing to share such knowledge. Great Job.
Just a lil fyi, in reference to the drive wheels and spool size with flux core. Due to the flux core wheels being knurled, if you use small spools of wire, it was our crews experience that the liners in our guns would wear faster. The tighter wraps coming off the small spools coupled with the knurling added to the wear of the gun liner and also the tips. Pay close attn to drive wheel tension, size, wire drive/feed speed and when feasible use a larger spool in your machine. Especially if you're on a low or fixed budget. Granted the liners and tips are consumables but you can get weeks if not months more out of liners and even tips would last longer. Our shop machines would use small spools for the convenience due to multiple projects and different specs. Our trucks would use big spools and between the two, the truck liners would last longer even though we would weld more in the field. Anyone else have same experience?
My welding experience is limited. I hope this guy is teaching and passing on his expertise some where. This presentation is extensive and clearly presented. Just right for me. Thx.
AWESOME tutorial!!! Well explained and down to earth. Been looking to expand my options, I'm an HVAC mechanic 25yrs now have been wanting to learn. This video was such a help! Thank you
One of the issues I had when I was younger with flux core while self learning to weld was using to thick of a wire on too little power. - I dont know if its right or not but today on my mig I like running thinner wire and higher speeds vs thicker wire at a little lower speed. - I dont know if its right or wrong, but my welds are better.
You answered a lot of the questions I’ve had over the years and made me realize what I did wrong many times welding flux core. Thanks so much for this video👍🏻
This vid just solved all 3 probes I was having with my cheaper welder, it runs a great bead, but I did have tons of spatter and roping, with minor feeding issues. Made these changes and the titanium runs like a Lincoln now!!! Thank you greatly!!!
Just bought a used MIG welder, and haven't laid a bead in 20 years. Thank you for sharing this. I have the wrong tension roller for my .035 flux core. I knew about the polarity, but forgot about tip distance. I think you've saved me a lot of heart ache!
I have welded many Demolition Derby cars together with 035 innershield on 10lb rolls through a Weldpak 155. I think that flux core welds rusty stuff a lot better than stick welding. Back in 1998 I built an electric over hydraulic, power up/ power down tilt car trailer, 26' tip to tail, with that flux wire and the same Lincoln WeldPak 155 welder (220 volt) and none of the welds have ever failed, and that trailer is still in use. Nothing about flux core bothers me except maybe, the higher price per roll of wire over regular solid core, though maybe with solid wire and a bottle there would possibly be an over all higher price that way too? Never had a bottle setup, just flux wire welders (2 Welpaks 110 volt, and 220 volt) and à ranger 7 stick welder.
Shoot, Ive done solid axle swaps on rock-crawlers, trailer work, built large steel gates, exhaust work, you name it - all with flux core, .035" and a 120 volt Lincoln SP-135. I have a 180 amp 220v Lincoln as well but rarely use it because 110 outlets are so plentiful and I can easily take it to work or a friends house. I never bought any tanks, Ive been using the flux core for 17 yrs now and people ALWAYS give me crap for its saying gas is the ONLY way to go. Gas is cleaner and less smoky and better for light sheetmetal but for what I do flux core is what I prefer!
I've welded on an off for 18 years and never heard anyone say anything like that but I don't really like to discuss welding with people that don't know anything about it.
I’m probably the newest newbie here, thus far I’ve followed Paul's advice on 'Mig Monday' and use flux outdoors and wire indoors. At my level every little help is grabbed. A great video with so many tips, thank you.
Flux always runs hot, projects with thinner parts throw flux out the window and use solid wire. If you get a rats nest in drive wheel tension is too high. If the wire comes out crimpled tension is too high.
@@markharrisllb Not necessarily hotter, just where the heat is applied. Like red beard said, when going Electrode negative most of the heat is put into the workpiece. sO when your working thinner material you will tend to blow out/warp w/e you're working with a lot easier than with solid wire.
Yes, you basically only want JUST enough tension to feed wire out the gun. Too much tension will also increase the depth of wire blow-back into the gun tip when that happens on occasion. Which makes it more difficult to remove from tip.
Great info guys! When I was welding barges we used a dual shield Flux core. Self-shielding wire with a shielding gas... it was a very strong weld and when the machine was set up right it made for a beautiful weld.
This channel saved my sanity. I bought a machine without any prior knowledge or experience. Guy at the store told me these 3 myths and more. I thought I was doing it all wrong. You really set my mind at ease, hehe. I'm getting some decent welds with minimum spatter.
Fluxcore equates well with 7018 stick. But I've seen instances where the Lincoln Innershield will produce a more brittle test weld. Weld two small coupons about 1 1/2", then hammer opposite weld side. 7018 will have a better root toughness
Weeeell... I only ever did stick welding, so I'm not going to pretend I know MIG or flux core, but can you really equate that skinny wire to a real electrode?
That work piece at 8:50 in your video looked like it had a scenery on it, like mountains in the back ground, very cool looking, also very professionally explained video of welding, good job 👍
As an Amishman living just outside Lancaster, I must take issue at ye English methods of subordinating my fellow brethren. My villiage council hereby shuns ye into YT jail for 2 fortnites for ye heathenous ways. May ye repente in solitude forthwithe. (PS, please don’t tell anyone I was gazing upon the You Tubes)
Great video! I have some stick experience and picked up a small mig. Some of my foul language towards that thing in flux core will now go away thanks to your informative video!
Dear Mr. Weld, Thank you for addressing the common problems and mentioning some tips that are new to me. I weld mostly with flux core. Its windy 90% of time where I work, and I've found Flux core to work well. I've had feed issues since I started using flux core, 5 years ago. I'm going to look around for a knurled feed wheel. Thanks
Been a welder for 35 years and it's all in know how the only way to learn is to do it .when I started out there wasn't guys like you on the internet teaching people the how to. Keep up the good work sir and everyone else keep welding and one day you will lay that row of Dime's.👍⚒️👨🏭
Over a decade of experience with stick, TIG, and solid wire MIG. Just tried FCAW for the first time last week. I have totally changed my mind on flux core. Worked great for working in the field on 16 ga tubing. I will look to use FCAW in all my future outdoor and on site thin gauge material projects. Flux core welding is the way to go for the DIY home improver IMHO. TIG and MIG for in shop operations, the cleanliness and ease of use is preferable. However for thin gauge materials in the field outside of the shop, FCAW is the way to go. Stick welding for any thicker gauge materials in the field is still preferred. That’s my take on it.
flux core is the way the go for hobby/outside. The best part is you don't have to worry about running out of gas on Saturday night, no trips to welding supple and realizing that they are closed, and it is cheaper. Gas is sweet though.
If you have the power to run in spray transfer with out blowing breakers, yeah. But for short circuit, even globular, self shielding is great for small jobs.
i bought a flux core welder and did not know about the feed roller being knurled to grip the wire now im going to check thanks i learned something today and also checking the polarity awesome info thanks
Thanks. This is some great information. I have had so many guys give me crap over my flux core welder. Now I have a video to show them, and not just my 20+ year old utility trailer I built from bed-rail and my Harbor Freight 110V flux core welder. Thanks for the video.
Awesome video! No BS, Straight to the issue, what causes issue, how to fix issue. I am brand new at this. Taken all kinds of advice from friend's and colleagues. Some so called "pro's" also. Not once was switching polarity mentioned! Thank you
@@BustedGeezerGarage I have a lot to learn. I always assumed stick welding was the method used for outdoor structural. I learned Tig welding first, and when I got my own Mig machine it came with a roll of fluxcore, and I never heard of it before. I tried it, saw it was messy as hell, but I used it outdoors and on dirty steel, mostly to repair my truck frame and I also fabricated custom rear end shackles, both of which held up to all my abuses, so I loved it for what it was: a strong weld that is quick and easy to implement. Its dirty, so what. I save my tig for aluminum and stainless, and now I had a way to deal with dirty, rusty mild steel. And now you're telling me it is what the pros use, that's pretty cool. I kinda just thought fluxcore was my dirty little secret, shared by other poor country boys.
@@daverodgers779 did it show a reason to switch in the first place? I guess I need the DIY welding picture book version. LOL. I just "had to have a welder" then used it a couple times and into the shed it went.
@@immrnoidall yes, if you are welding gas less, you use one polarity, if using gas, you reverse the polarity. It wasn’t till I got it home and unpacked it that I realised I had the option to use gas, I am just a hobby welder.
I did a DC conversion to my Harbor Freight flux core. I can already tell a difference, even though I haven't added the capacitors yet. Honestly I am unsure as to what AC flux core welding would be good for. LOL
Great video! I'm mostly a newbie, and would like to remind the other newbies that: Having the right gun feed tube liner (coiled wire) helps too; trying to stuff 0.045 up a 0.035 tube is a bit difficult, and small wire will rattle around in a large liner, won't feed smoothly because it can S-curve instead of pushing past friction and advancing. Sometimes the liner needs cleaning. To help the liner stay clean, one trick is to push the wire from the spool through a foam earplug before it gets to the drive rollers. Take the earplug out first...
OOhrah sir. very informative and very helpful! I've been a hobbyist welder for several years now. I do a decent job but constantly run into problems with my flux core welder. the info you provided has made a drastic impact in my overall welding performance. thank you.
Listen to this guy. He knows welding. Look at his shop and the equipment he has. I ran a welding supply store for 22 years and knew exactly what he was saying. Great job and excellent video.
My dad, who is an old school rod welder, always has had a dislike for fluxcore, as ive gotten older ive really gotten to love it. Especially in the field where the slightest breeze can blow your MIG gas away, flux always kills it. It has always impressed me how well it works with thicker materials. It definitely has its place in the world.
Started out on stick. Always saw flux and never really thought about it until recently, went and got the harbor freight flux 125 for the hell of it. Was shocked at how well it performed!
Most of my hates and others I bet, the flux core welder brought was a cheap high low power job to do car work, then spent half my time filling in holes. But once you learn the nature of the beast I would weld a tank with one... I wouldn't drive it though because my welds are crap!!!
The absolute biggest problem with people buying 120v machines is first they hook it up to a 100' 14 ga extension cord, plugged into a 15 amp outlet. By the time they pull the trigger when set on full heat of 140 amps they might, might be getting 90 amps at the tip. Get a rated 20 amp cord that's no longer than 25', plug it into a 20 amp outlet and BAM, it's like a whole different machine!!!
@@AZBADBOYz You just described me. Bought a Hobart 140 and had it plugged into a 15 amp circuit with a 50' 14 ga cord and was told I needed to rethink my setup. I wired a dedicated 20 amp circuit for the welder and bought a 25' 12 ga cord and it definitely made a big difference in how the welder worked. Now I can actually tell the difference between the amperage settings.
@@TheFootbaldd Are you on drugs because your post sounds like you're on drugs? I don't see your math on plugging a 120v machine into 240v? My reply was on the common mistakes made by the common Harry homeowner using a 120v machine as mentioned in the video! Kids, this is why you always make sure your ground doesn't have damaged sheathing. Hi amperage to your body causes damage and so does drugs. Don't do drugs!
I'm a 74 yearol "Novice." I really appreciate your videos. I'm coming along nicely with my flux core machine, but all the guidance is most helpful to me to fulfill one of my dreams.
Wow,you know but more importantly know how to teach welding! I learned more in 10 minutes with you than any other videos combined! You saved me big hassles.
Great video! Nice to watch a welding video that is about welding. Not the person making the video. This guy is a true pro. Doesn't need to tell you how good a welder he is. Just watch, listen and see.
An oldie but goodie. Great information especially since after 20 years of having my oil changed professionally, I’m going back to doing it myself. Cost and lack of professionalism are factors in my decision. Thanks Todd
There are quite a few videos on RUclips of how to mod those Harbor Freight ones. Thing with them is, factory they aren't even DC. Even with decent wire they spatter like mad and it's hard to get a good weld with them. They are usable, but not fun. I plan on seeing if I can get dads and do a DC conversion and other mods to make it work a little better as a DIY project.
@@RotaryTurbo I've been able to weld everything from 22 gauge up to 1/4" with my Harbor Freight flux core welder. Not saying the welds were beautiful or I didn't blow holes all over the place, but you can definitely get a real weld with ease. On clean 1/8" steel it will weld just great.
Did a DC conversion and proper polarity (4 way bridge rectifier and some caps), switched to Lincoln wire and few other mods to my 12 year old HF several years ago and the welding quality went way up. Recommended.
@@RotaryTurbo They most definitely are DC, they don't spatter much at all when used correctly and for the money work really well. I have two, a 90 amp transformer power supply, and a 125 amp rectifier power supply, and they BOTH run DCEN. The only mod I did was to make a 10 lb spool adapter for the rectifier machine to avoid the cost of 2 lb spools, other than that they run beautifully. I have a Associate Degree in welding technologies and have worked as a Union Boilermaker, structural steel, and shipyards, and I am now retired at age 66, I sorta know what I am talking about.
@Josh Smith I worked at a place welding heavy machinery and equipment anywhere from 1/2"-1 1/2" steel and pans with a 12k miller. We ran 1/16" and 3/32 esab dual shield. After working there I'd rather run fluxcore anymore.
What did you learn that made it better? I can mig weld with gas pretty well, and I can stick weld pretty well, but my flux core Mig welds look like garbage no matter what. Porosity and spatter along the whole thing. I am definitely running DCEN, and I've tried adjusting wire speed up and down, while welding, changing my speed of travel, but they just come out terribly every time. Usually the slag doesn't even chip off lol, it's just all one shitty material. Could it all just be a bad brand of wire? Or is there some sort of trick for flux core?
So helpful I was setting up my new welder today and was super bummed out when things were going right watched a bunch of videos none of them answered my questions this was very helpful hoping to get back at it tomorrow with better results
I have 24 year old flux 90 amp Campbell Hausfield from Walmart. That old thing is still a good welder for what it is. I added a fan for coming when it was new to increase the duty cycle from 15 % up to most times 100%. But I think I will try swapping the connections inside and see if I can run reverse polarity on it. That will really help my quality of work on . Little projects. I've known about doing this but never thought about it on this unit as it's set up for just DC positive operation. Thanks for making me brave, I can't loose on this old box.
I use only flux cored wire here in the qeer old corrupt uk and have never used a shroud on my mig as gas is produced at the pool. Nice to see and hear u say that shroud is not needed as a lot of welders who say a shroud is needed wen using flux cored..many thanks..
@@jakobbolyer1735 I have never done double shielded flux core, but have been curious about it. Have a fairly cheap Hobart MIG machine running flux core all the time, just don't have the money for a big bottle of gas. They are kind of pricey.
Morbian13 I have a esab rebel 205 Ac/dc but I haven’t bought gas bottles for home use yet I get by mostly with stick(6011,7018) and flux core I used dual shield at a machine shop I used to work at when we had to weld on heavy equipment and stack multiple beads for strength
Wow all I had at the time was a cheap HF Flux core wire feed that I used to weld perches on my ford 9 inch, didn't know if they were too thick of a metal to weld, but they actually held up! Even after several hard launches, Thanks for sharing this video, I feel alot more confident about fluxcore now
Kind of like infinite stick welding. Everyone seems to crap on flux core but I can see the benefits now when someone takes the time to explain it. Thanks for the video.
Go to www.weld.com/helpme to get help with your welds.
Can you try to use self shielded flux cored wire with shielding gas?
Is it true that self shielded flux cored wire has similar deposit characteristics to 7018?
Thanks in advance
@@daniele3275 If people REALLY want us to show that we can, but I can assure you that adding gas to self shielded fcaw has no benefit.
Weld.com no benefit ?!?
Depending on the self-shielded wire you are using it will hurt you.
The flux inside a self shielded wire is totally different than inside a dual shield wire.
Some if them NEED TO BE WELDED IN OPEN AIR because parts of the flux need to react with the air to develop their full potential and strength.
If you block out the atmosphere ( by using argon or co2 or any mixtures of this) you are not allowing the wire ti react with the atmosphere and develop full strength.
Now granted some self shielded wire can be used with shielding gas still DCEN and often those types of wires are hard surfacing wires not joining alloys.
If you use has on those it makes the “weld” deposits a little bit “cleaner” looking but in this application tensile or yield strength are really not all that important ... its more rockwell hardness that counts ....
I have a question about running double shielded flux core, when you decide to use a shielding gas with flux core, aka double shielded flux core, do you need to use the same polarity as normal flux core or do you reverse it like running normal MIG wire?
Morbian13 yes DCEP just like regular mig . 75/25 gas just like regular mig or 100% co2
"It's like horsecrap in Amish town.. it's everywhere..." - Hooked. Subscribed.
Brilliant
😂😂😂😂
Unless you're a good bootlicker for management, you're going to get fired for uttering that one.
@@ProleDaddy no he won’t. Sit down and shut up.
Love this comment. Also very true.
I did a LOT of mobile repairs that required welding in windy, outdoor situations. Flux core was the ONLY way to fly. This was an excellent "myth buster" vid. Redbeard, kudos on this one. Use the correct process for the task at hand...………...they all have their place. Don't take a "knife to a gunfight" applies here.
Absolutely 👍
I only run flux core and metal core in my shop, i do have some solid wire for the thin fine stuff, but really life is too short to be running solid wire. I use innershield on field repairs.
I'm not a welder by trade, weld while repairing trash trucks and I've found that flux core has much less of an issue with "dirty" metal. You don't have to be nearly as OCD in your prep, like you do with gas .
@canuckguy worried I try to avoid spitting in the wind or pulling the mask on the old Lone Ranger AND I at all costs don't mess around with Jim!
canuckguy worried
3 steps towards the door dude
I just bought a gas/gasless Mig welder that I plan to use gasless for smaller hobby stuff. I'm brand new to using one, and this video was insanely useful. Thank you so much!
Many years ago I picked up a Weld-PAK 100 with flux core wire in it from a pawn shop. It never welded well and I seemed to always fight it. 20 some years later I finally found that the polarity was backwards. I love this little machine now. It is portable and capable and I usually use it outside. Spatter has greatly decreased. Just amazing. Great video.
Thank you for sharing some of your vast knowledge! I’m 68 years old and finally at a point in my life to try a bit of welding .
I wish I was younger, wish I could spend some time with a professional like yourself , but heck better late than never !
me too
Horse crap in Amish town lol I'm using that at work for sure
Yup that was funny.............
2:20 for context and yes, made me LOL. Then I reminisced on the pleasure of working in a shop, the improvements to my vocabulary that resulted! :)
Going to have to remember that one.
Same
chris jones thats the line that made me sub! I died laughing!
Your vids are so good. As a complete beginner hobby welder your no nonsense explanations and examples (like preheating the oven) really help me understand the principles behind the settings. Every weld I do after watching is better than my last one!
We learned the 4 main processes in a welding intro class when I went to school to be a machinist. For some reason, flux core just felt really good. I also enjoyed chipping the slag off to reveal my (im)perfect weld at the end.
I’ve been a welder/fabricator for over 35 yrs, it just goes to prove you are never to old to learn new things, thanks!
been welding for about that long myself... I got one of these new flux welders for mothers day, and to fix my kids truck, and I'm going though the whole learning process, as I have NEVER used anything that didn't run without tanks haha
I cant believe anyone punched dislike.
This was the tightest video I have ever seen. The production and time to value was off the chart.
Myths come from somewhere.
those would be from solid core wire fan boys. I would always pick flux core over solid wire
It's the guys who are mad that they bought a $1k+ mig set up and still weld like shit.
Just folks that dropped a few grand on shielded welders that didn't make them good welders
@@WayneWerner Like a box full of Snap On doesn't make you a mechanic or myself either!
Untrained welder here, first time using flux core I swore in disgust. Had no other option so mucked around with settings and separation and finally in desperation reversed polarity and, whaddya know? Perfect
my crap welder came with a giant sticker showing you have to reverse polarity depending on solid vs flux..
It's printed on the welder.
Some crappy welders u can't change the polarity
@@raccoonvalley3237 There should be a way you should be able to pull a panel and flip the terminals. The output side won't know how it is hooked up to the wire and ground. You may have to come up with a jumper if they did not provide provisions for an easy change.
I had the same issue, until I read on the inside cover on my Lincoln SP100, to reverse polarity when using shielded wire.
Okay Sparky, here’s the deal,,, 👍🏻 nice job.
Over 45 years welding experience here. 41 years on current fabrication shop job.
Man, you guys are great. Some people shouldn't make videos; im so hooked watching yours because you cover details about setup, prep, common mistakes, etc. IN EACH of the videos. First time all of my questions were answered in detail. Thank you guys!!
Dude if you look at his welds you can see a seam that's telling you it's not bonded!! Y'all need to learn a pretty weld doesn't mean shit!! I have been welding longer than he has lived and I will stick to stick !!! Wire is for the people that can't stick!!!
I own 20 acres and run a small farm. I bought a Harbor Freight Titanium Easy flux 125 amp flux core welder about 5 years ago.
Best decision I made. From welding to fixing and moding the tractor, implements, trailers, tools, gates, ect. I cannot count the amount of feet of FluxCore welding wire I have used.
I am not a welder, never took classes, just learned by doin. My welds are not perfect, they are not clean, I have stacked dimes a couple of times but mostly it's looks like crap. But........... It works and I make 2 pieces of metal stick together and not fall apart. 😉
Love my little $140 welder!
Wow! I almost sold my Hobart 140 because of the spattering. I can weld pretty decent with my millermatic, so I just assumed the fluxcore was the issue. I had no idea about the polarity and I can’t thank you enough!
WHAT?!?! JUST CHANGING THE POLARITY FIXES THAT?!?!? DUDE! I thought I was just a trash welder 🤣
Me too!
@@garynew9637 me too! however i dont know if my harbor freight 90 amp can be switched. and the tension wheel is wrong too....damn harbor freight.
we had 1 machine that welded like this and it was named the spatter welder...everyone avoided it and would steal parts of it
@@Lindenmooch It can, it's just inside the machine, usually where the wire feeds into the whip.
Never knew about the wire feed wheel. Great information here.
I love the people who say flux doesnt get good penetration on thick stuff, but theyre still the first to remind you that its not good for thin stuff because it burns hotter than solid wire 🤔🤔🤔
Now I'm wondering, is it actually decent for thin stuff? Obviously those opinions aren't credible, so I'm not sure.
@@CoDisafishy it'll do it perfectly as long as you take your time and let the metal cool down
Move fastee
Actually I prefer small flux core wire like .023 for welding on auto sheet metal over MIG any day.
Like i said. People arent moving fast enough. Keeping heat in one area too long
I’m actually blown away at how nice that bead came out
noxxi knox HAHAHAHAHA
One of the most professional videos I've seen on welding. Two thumbs up! I have a portable Lincoln 180 Mig in my shop. I weld outside on projects in the summer and flux core is the ONLY possibility. This machine doesn't allow me to change polarity which makes me believe it is configured DC -ve because there is no way I get that much spatter you got on DC +ve. What I have learned over time is to stay away from no-name spools. I went back to Lincoln spools and get way better, stronger welds with min porosity. With no-name spools I found the welds were brittle.
It's always nice to have someone that knows what they are talking about explaining things to you in a way that you can understand. THANKS!
yes he was great !!
VERY well done and in-depth review. Bought my first flux core (Titanium 125) after owning all MIG and TIG welders just for it’s portability and kept having the porosity issue. Tried switching leads and it looked like the first bead you ran. Then I watched this video and realized I had been too close to the puddle. Again, YEARS of TIG welding created a bad habit when moving down to a flux-core. 😂 But it’s the size of a toaster and can do 3/8” steel no problem, so it’s become my “friendly” welder when someone needs me to come over and weld something. Plenty of my offroad buddies appreciate this video I’m sure as well. 🤘🏻😋 Not to mention, a couple car batteries and a power inverter make my little Titanium 125 the PERFECT trail rig that damn near fits in my center console and can weld anything on the trail. Thanks brotha!!!!
Thank you for the excellent, instructive video clarifying the necessary polarity, proper tip-to-workpiece distance, choosing the correct drive roll, and many additional helpful tips.
Just brilliant!...Too many people blaming the tools instead of the technique. Thanks for the knowledge and tutorial. Your close up of the tip during actual welding is the best videography I've seen so far...it really helps me to "see" what's going on down there....good and bad. Fantastic work...well done.
What a pleasure to watch someone who really knows their subject. And knows how to impart that knowledge. Thankyou.
I ran flux core once in welding school 9 years ago and I didn't run it again until early this year when I picked up an ESAB Rebel EMP 215 to use for the occasional mobile welding jobs. I learned that my stick-out was too close and that was the main cause of my porosity troubles during my test runs. Thanks, Weld.com.
I'm a carpenter by trade but do a lot of other stuff. I was doing body work on a '97 F150 and had to weld sheet metal. It wasn't until after I was done that I read somewhere (or saw a video) that I needed to reverse the polarity to use it as a flux core (it can be set up for either flux or mig). After I swapped the cables, it did a LOT better. Thanks for the great info.
Thank you for your video!!! My son bought me an Everlast Flux Co 11:49 re Welder. I’m taking a class at the college with a very experienced instructor. You explained many different aspects of the differences and issues regarding Flux-core Welding. Your comments regarding the power supply + vs - will help me immensely!!
Thank you!! Dave
Been welding with flux core from the beginning. Have built many trailers and fixed many trailer tongues and never a problem. Thanks for straightening this out so clearly.
Dude, great video! I haven't welded in over a decade (transitioned my career into IT) but this showed me some of the things I could've done better. I only wish there were more welders in my day who had been willing to share such knowledge. Great Job.
Ditto
Just a lil fyi, in reference to the drive wheels and spool size with flux core. Due to the flux core wheels being knurled, if you use small spools of wire, it was our crews experience that the liners in our guns would wear faster. The tighter wraps coming off the small spools coupled with the knurling added to the wear of the gun liner and also the tips. Pay close attn to drive wheel tension, size, wire drive/feed speed and when feasible use a larger spool in your machine. Especially if you're on a low or fixed budget. Granted the liners and tips are consumables but you can get weeks if not months more out of liners and even tips would last longer. Our shop machines would use small spools for the convenience due to multiple projects and different specs. Our trucks would use big spools and between the two, the truck liners would last longer even though we would weld more in the field. Anyone else have same experience?
I don't weld every day and I do sometimes have feeding issues but I've gotten a couple year out of my leads. They could probably use replacing though
RIP that contact tip on the work distance to short shot
Lol
Thinking the same thing, boss gonna start taking it out of your pay
LMAO
My welding experience is limited. I hope this guy is teaching and passing on his expertise some where. This presentation is extensive and clearly presented. Just right for me. Thx.
AWESOME tutorial!!! Well explained and down to earth. Been looking to expand my options, I'm an HVAC mechanic 25yrs now have been wanting to learn. This video was such a help! Thank you
One of the issues I had when I was younger with flux core while self learning to weld was using to thick of a wire on too little power. - I dont know if its right or not but today on my mig I like running thinner wire and higher speeds vs thicker wire at a little lower speed. - I dont know if its right or wrong, but my welds are better.
My machine runs .035 for flux core and .030 for solid mig, but uses the same recommended settings on the machine, with just the reversed polarity
I have to say, this is one of the best welding information channels on here. Hands down.
You answered a lot of the questions I’ve had over the years and made me realize what I did wrong many times welding flux core. Thanks so much for this video👍🏻
This vid just solved all 3 probes I was having with my cheaper welder, it runs a great bead, but I did have tons of spatter and roping, with minor feeding issues. Made these changes and the titanium runs like a Lincoln now!!! Thank you greatly!!!
Just bought a used MIG welder, and haven't laid a bead in 20 years. Thank you for sharing this. I have the wrong tension roller for my .035 flux core. I knew about the polarity, but forgot about tip distance. I think you've saved me a lot of heart ache!
Great presentation. I've been a welder all my working life an have used a lot of flux core. Well explained and demonstrated. Cheers Deno.
I have welded many Demolition Derby cars together with 035 innershield on 10lb rolls through a Weldpak 155. I think that flux core welds rusty stuff a lot better than stick welding. Back in 1998 I built an electric over hydraulic, power up/ power down tilt car trailer, 26' tip to tail, with that flux wire and the same Lincoln WeldPak 155 welder (220 volt) and none of the welds have ever failed, and that trailer is still in use. Nothing about flux core bothers me except maybe, the higher price per roll of wire over regular solid core, though maybe with solid wire and a bottle there would possibly be an over all higher price that way too? Never had a bottle setup, just flux wire welders (2 Welpaks 110 volt, and 220 volt) and à ranger 7 stick welder.
Thanks Bob, I run the 220 volt WELDPAK 155 too, great little machine and my bigger rigs are blue or yellow.
Shoot, Ive done solid axle swaps on rock-crawlers, trailer work, built large steel gates, exhaust work, you name it - all with flux core, .035" and a 120 volt Lincoln SP-135. I have a 180 amp 220v Lincoln as well but rarely use it because 110 outlets are so plentiful and I can easily take it to work or a friends house. I never bought any tanks, Ive been using the flux core for 17 yrs now and people ALWAYS give me crap for its saying gas is the ONLY way to go. Gas is cleaner and less smoky and better for light sheetmetal but for what I do flux core is what I prefer!
Most flux naysayers aren't even welders.
Are to! They watched a video on it once.
That’s for sure. Most are keyboard warriors and can’t even fix a sandwich much less weld some stuff together.
I've welded on an off for 18 years and never heard anyone say anything like that but I don't really like to discuss welding with people that don't know anything about it.
Well said and noticed that myself quite a lot
Well said, i used flux properly and never had problems, penetration is better on thick material too.
I’m probably the newest newbie here, thus far I’ve followed Paul's advice on 'Mig Monday' and use flux outdoors and wire indoors. At my level every little help is grabbed.
A great video with so many tips, thank you.
Flux always runs hot, projects with thinner parts throw flux out the window and use solid wire. If you get a rats nest in drive wheel tension is too high. If the wire comes out crimpled tension is too high.
Mister Harvey D Thank you, I had no idea one ran hotter than the other.
@@markharrisllb Not necessarily hotter, just where the heat is applied. Like red beard said, when going Electrode negative most of the heat is put into the workpiece. sO when your working thinner material you will tend to blow out/warp w/e you're working with a lot easier than with solid wire.
pngu1nsnp Thank you, I appreciate that.
Yes, you basically only want JUST enough tension to feed wire out the gun. Too much tension will also increase the depth of wire blow-back into the gun tip when that happens on occasion. Which makes it more difficult to remove from tip.
Great info guys! When I was welding barges we used a dual shield Flux core. Self-shielding wire with a shielding gas... it was a very strong weld and when the machine was set up right it made for a beautiful weld.
You aint gonna beat dual shield.lay down a ton of weld quick,it lays down beautiful.
Nice job. I’m getting ready to start trying welding for the first time with a cheap HF flux welder. Retired and always wanted to know how to do it.
HF is a good start. Look at the reviews, they’re helpful. There’s a learning curve, but then it becomes fun.
shit, even with gas in the shop flux is great for quick mobile stuff, tanks get heavy.
Didn't know Argon hoses weighed so much? Usually get 2 -33lbs spools of dual shield off one bottle of Argon/CO
@@donovanmorris163 tanks not hoses.
@@Ramdodge582 plus its nearly impossible to weld with gas outside unless you crank it up to waste it, or build a hut lol!
@@Hammerjockeyrepair no its not, I did some welding on a railing system outside no problem. Sheet of cardboard as a wind break worked like a champ.
Great video. I have a cheap flux core machine and I’m trying to get all the advantages I can. This helped a lot. Thanks.
I absolutely love flux core! Probably my favorite welding process.
Used to do fluxcore day in day out til I switched jobs. Now I miss it. So much less spatter than solid wire
Its just so quick and easy
Try flux core with gas, you will be amazed again!
This channel saved my sanity. I bought a machine without any prior knowledge or experience. Guy at the store told me these 3 myths and more. I thought I was doing it all wrong. You really set my mind at ease, hehe. I'm getting some decent welds with minimum spatter.
I'd say that flux core would equate to stick welding. No one questions the integrity of a stick weld, so why question a flux core weld?
Fluxcore equates well with 7018 stick. But I've seen instances where the Lincoln Innershield will produce a more brittle test weld. Weld two small coupons about 1 1/2", then hammer opposite weld side. 7018 will have a better root toughness
Weeeell... I only ever did stick welding, so I'm not going to pretend I know MIG or flux core, but can you really equate that skinny wire to a real electrode?
A real eye opener video. I should be using flux core with my everlast welder more often it seems.
That work piece at 8:50 in your video looked like it had a scenery on it, like mountains in the back ground, very cool looking, also very professionally explained video of welding, good job 👍
"Horse crap in Amish town" made me laugh so hard I had to rewind and play it for my wife, who also laughed pretty hard. (Both welders)
As an Amishman living just outside Lancaster, I must take issue at ye English methods of subordinating my fellow brethren. My villiage council hereby shuns ye into YT jail for 2 fortnites for ye heathenous ways. May ye repente in solitude forthwithe. (PS, please don’t tell anyone I was gazing upon the You Tubes)
@@ChatGPT1111 your secret is safe with us, nor will we tell of the bicycle powered mig welder you have hidden away in the woods!
@@daverodgers779 TIG, not MIG ye Heathen, who do ye thinketh aye am, a mere talisman apprentice?
@@ChatGPT1111 please, I beg your forgiveness, it is not a mistake I shall ever make again.
@@daverodgers779 all ritey then! Please marry my sister.
Great video! I have some stick experience and picked up a small mig. Some of my foul language towards that thing in flux core will now go away thanks to your informative video!
Dear Mr. Weld,
Thank you for addressing the common problems and mentioning some tips that are new to me. I weld mostly with flux core. Its windy 90% of time where I work, and I've found Flux core to work well.
I've had feed issues since I started using flux core, 5 years ago. I'm going to look around for a knurled feed wheel. Thanks
Thank you for the knowledge(the -/+ switch), i'm just getting started.
I’m just another rookie on the block doing it Wrong , thanks for all those tips my Lincoln 180 is going with Startrek to find new frontiers .
Hey Al, can I tag along too? I am a newbie.
Thanks for the tips. I was using my tip a little close I think, I was having a few porosity spots. 👍
Been a welder for 35 years and it's all in know how the only way to learn is to do it .when I started out there wasn't guys like you on the internet teaching people the how to. Keep up the good work sir and everyone else keep welding and one day you will lay that row of Dime's.👍⚒️👨🏭
Over a decade of experience with stick, TIG, and solid wire MIG. Just tried FCAW for the first time last week. I have totally changed my mind on flux core. Worked great for working in the field on 16 ga tubing. I will look to use FCAW in all my future outdoor and on site thin gauge material projects. Flux core welding is the way to go for the DIY home improver IMHO. TIG and MIG for in shop operations, the cleanliness and ease of use is preferable. However for thin gauge materials in the field outside of the shop, FCAW is the way to go. Stick welding for any thicker gauge materials in the field is still preferred. That’s my take on it.
Agree! I can run all processes, but FCAW still has its benefits. No gas needed, it's easier to tack with than stick or TIG.
@@landonlehman5497 Can you weld on 24 gauge steel with a fluxcore machine?
flux core is the way the go for hobby/outside. The best part is you don't have to worry about running out of gas on Saturday night, no trips to welding supple and realizing that they are closed, and it is cheaper. Gas is sweet though.
If you have the power to run in spray transfer with out blowing breakers, yeah. But for short circuit, even globular, self shielding is great for small jobs.
i bought a flux core welder and did not know about the feed roller being knurled to grip the wire now im going to check thanks i learned something today and also checking the polarity awesome info thanks
Been using my everlast flux core since I bought it and still learned something new today.
Thanks. This is some great information. I have had so many guys give me crap over my flux core welder. Now I have a video to show them, and not just my 20+ year old utility trailer I built from bed-rail and my Harbor Freight 110V flux core welder.
Thanks for the video.
Awesome video! No BS, Straight to the issue, what causes issue, how to fix issue. I am brand new at this. Taken all kinds of advice from friend's and colleagues. Some so called "pro's" also. Not once was switching polarity mentioned! Thank you
Flux core is the method used to do high-rise steel. That's how it's done.
Is that right?
@@dennismcclelland8196 Yes. One of my friends is a high-rise specialist and welding instructor. That is what they use.
@@BustedGeezerGarage I have a lot to learn. I always assumed stick welding was the method used for outdoor structural. I learned Tig welding first, and when I got my own Mig machine it came with a roll of fluxcore, and I never heard of it before. I tried it, saw it was messy as hell, but I used it outdoors and on dirty steel, mostly to repair my truck frame and I also fabricated custom rear end shackles, both of which held up to all my abuses, so I loved it for what it was: a strong weld that is quick and easy to implement. Its dirty, so what. I save my tig for aluminum and stainless, and now I had a way to deal with dirty, rusty mild steel. And now you're telling me it is what the pros use, that's pretty cool. I kinda just thought fluxcore was my dirty little secret, shared by other poor country boys.
mostly 232 wire, .072 diameter
Thats actually exactly how I make pizza... been wondering why my pizza is always so porous
Galen Lehman it’s always best to use flux on pizza
just reverse the polarity spray pan with anti splatter.
Thank you, self taught welder here can’t wait to switch the leads.
ME too. the last time i used my welder ,it looked exactly like the welds he did," Horse crap in Amish town"?
@@immrnoidall I just got a new mig, I didn’t make the mistake of incorrect polarity, because the instructions manual was all pictures!
@@daverodgers779 did it show a reason to switch in the first place? I guess I need the DIY welding picture book version. LOL. I just "had to have a welder" then used it a couple times and into the shed it went.
@@immrnoidall yes, if you are welding gas less, you use one polarity, if using gas, you reverse the polarity. It wasn’t till I got it home and unpacked it that I realised I had the option to use gas, I am just a hobby welder.
I did a DC conversion to my Harbor Freight flux core. I can already tell a difference, even though I haven't added the capacitors yet. Honestly I am unsure as to what AC flux core welding would be good for. LOL
Great video!
I'm mostly a newbie, and would like to remind the other newbies that:
Having the right gun feed tube liner (coiled wire) helps too; trying to stuff 0.045 up a 0.035 tube is a bit difficult, and small wire will rattle around in a large liner, won't feed smoothly because it can S-curve instead of pushing past friction and advancing.
Sometimes the liner needs cleaning.
To help the liner stay clean, one trick is to push the wire from the spool through a foam earplug before it gets to the drive rollers.
Take the earplug out first...
Weld aid makes cleaner and pads that you leave in place and continuously cleans the wire.
OOhrah sir. very informative and very helpful! I've been a hobbyist welder for several years now. I do a decent job but constantly run into problems with my flux core welder. the info you provided has made a drastic impact in my overall welding performance. thank you.
Nicely done video. Thank you. It has given me more confidence in practicing my flux core welding. 👍
Hands down the best info, this has fixed every issue I've been having. Thanks so much
Listen to this guy. He knows welding. Look at his shop and the equipment he has.
I ran a welding supply store for 22 years and knew exactly what he was saying.
Great job and excellent video.
My dad, who is an old school rod welder, always has had a dislike for fluxcore, as ive gotten older ive really gotten to love it. Especially in the field where the slightest breeze can blow your MIG gas away, flux always kills it.
It has always impressed me how well it works with thicker materials. It definitely has its place in the world.
This is hands down the best advice you will get doing Flux core mig.
I need to do some outdoor welding with my everlast mig welder. If I can't make something to block the wind it'll be a flux core day.
Started out on stick. Always saw flux and never really thought about it until recently, went and got the harbor freight flux 125 for the hell of it. Was shocked at how well it performed!
Me 2
It's nice but I like stick fore bigger stuff
it is a good little welder, i like mine for home projects
Most of my hates and others I bet, the flux core welder brought was a cheap high low power job to do car work, then spent half my time filling in holes. But once you learn the nature of the beast I would weld a tank with one... I wouldn't drive it though because my welds are crap!!!
Practice practice practice
The absolute biggest problem with people buying 120v machines is first they hook it up to a 100' 14 ga extension cord, plugged into a 15 amp outlet. By the time they pull the trigger when set on full heat of 140 amps they might, might be getting 90 amps at the tip.
Get a rated 20 amp cord that's no longer than 25', plug it into a 20 amp outlet and BAM, it's like a whole different machine!!!
@@AZBADBOYz You just described me. Bought a Hobart 140 and had it plugged into a 15 amp circuit with a 50' 14 ga cord and was told I needed to rethink my setup. I wired a dedicated 20 amp circuit for the welder and bought a 25' 12 ga cord and it definitely made a big difference in how the welder worked. Now I can actually tell the difference between the amperage settings.
@@TheFootbaldd Are you on drugs because your post sounds like you're on drugs?
I don't see your math on plugging a 120v machine into 240v? My reply was on the common mistakes made by the common Harry homeowner using a 120v machine as mentioned in the video!
Kids, this is why you always make sure your ground doesn't have damaged sheathing. Hi amperage to your body causes damage and so does drugs. Don't do drugs!
I'm a 74 yearol "Novice." I really appreciate your videos. I'm coming along nicely with my flux core machine, but all the guidance is most helpful to me to fulfill one of my dreams.
Wow,you know but more importantly know how to teach welding! I learned more in 10 minutes with you than any other videos combined! You saved me big hassles.
Thank you!
That was a killer episode and made a lot of sense to me as a welding tinkerer myself.
Thanks for sharing and as always keep building👍
Glad to help
Used Flux core with co2 made some of the best looking welds, i ever welded.
Yep!
Nice
“Horse crap in Amish town” immediately subscribed
Great video! Nice to watch a welding video that is about welding. Not the person making the video. This guy is a true pro. Doesn't need to tell you how good a welder he is. Just watch, listen and see.
An oldie but goodie. Great information especially since after 20 years of having my oil changed professionally, I’m going back to doing it myself. Cost and lack of professionalism are factors in my decision. Thanks Todd
Took me about 15 years to learn to love fluxcore. It has a time/place advantage.
FWIW, showing us this on a Harbor Freight flux-core mig would be more relatable to the home hobbyists.
There are quite a few videos on RUclips of how to mod those Harbor Freight ones. Thing with them is, factory they aren't even DC. Even with decent wire they spatter like mad and it's hard to get a good weld with them. They are usable, but not fun. I plan on seeing if I can get dads and do a DC conversion and other mods to make it work a little better as a DIY project.
In dad's he used Lincoln Electric wire to make it usable. The Harbor Freight flux core wouldn't even produce a weld in any way we tried.
@@RotaryTurbo I've been able to weld everything from 22 gauge up to 1/4" with my Harbor Freight flux core welder. Not saying the welds were beautiful or I didn't blow holes all over the place, but you can definitely get a real weld with ease. On clean 1/8" steel it will weld just great.
Did a DC conversion and proper polarity (4 way bridge rectifier and some caps), switched to Lincoln wire and few other mods to my 12 year old HF several years ago and the welding quality went way up. Recommended.
@@RotaryTurbo They most definitely are DC, they don't spatter much at all when used correctly and for the money work really well. I have two, a 90 amp transformer power supply, and a 125 amp rectifier power supply, and they BOTH run DCEN. The only mod I did was to make a 10 lb spool adapter for the rectifier machine to avoid the cost of 2 lb spools, other than that they run beautifully. I have a Associate Degree in welding technologies and have worked as a Union Boilermaker, structural steel, and shipyards, and I am now retired at age 66, I sorta know what I am talking about.
I thought flux was kinda crappy.... untill I went to trade school.
Wait until you have to get into using hardwire over crappy metal
Josh Smith I have personally used 3/32” wire on multiple occasions. I have seen 1/4” wire but never got to use it.
@Josh Smith I worked at a place welding heavy machinery and equipment anywhere from 1/2"-1 1/2" steel and pans with a 12k miller. We ran 1/16" and 3/32 esab dual shield. After working there I'd rather run fluxcore anymore.
HeyIts Yetsi what’s your definition of crappy metal? Impurity’s, millscale and rust or crappy quality material?
What did you learn that made it better? I can mig weld with gas pretty well, and I can stick weld pretty well, but my flux core Mig welds look like garbage no matter what. Porosity and spatter along the whole thing. I am definitely running DCEN, and I've tried adjusting wire speed up and down, while welding, changing my speed of travel, but they just come out terribly every time. Usually the slag doesn't even chip off lol, it's just all one shitty material.
Could it all just be a bad brand of wire? Or is there some sort of trick for flux core?
So helpful I was setting up my new welder today and was super bummed out when things were going right watched a bunch of videos none of them answered my questions this was very helpful hoping to get back at it tomorrow with better results
I have 24 year old flux 90 amp Campbell Hausfield from Walmart. That old thing is still a good welder for what it is. I added a fan for coming when it was new to increase the duty cycle from 15 % up to most times 100%. But I think I will try swapping the connections inside and see if I can run reverse polarity on it. That will really help my quality of work on . Little projects. I've known about doing this but never thought about it on this unit as it's set up for just DC positive operation. Thanks for making me brave, I can't loose on this old box.
Thank you guys!!!
You’ve shut many “couch experts”!!
Oooh maaan!
Oh boy!
Oh mama.
This dude, get's it.
He just get's it.
This was exactly what I needed. Thanks so much guys.
Thanks for the class. I was thinking I might have to get a different one than I have. But you have shown me I just need more things to weld together.
I use only flux cored wire here in the qeer old corrupt uk and have never used a shroud on my mig as gas is produced at the pool. Nice to see and hear u say that shroud is not needed as a lot of welders who say a shroud is needed wen using flux cored..many thanks..
Be right back, I have to go to the shop and stare at my welder for a min or two and see if this polarity switcheroo is even possible on my antique.
Raise the door where your wire goes and you should be able to see 2 wires close to the front
"...you don't get enough penetration; we're going to discuss that in depth later" LOL!
Now show them Dual Shielding, (pros-n-Cons)
I hear it is a much hotter weld.
Morbian13 it is and you can really stack them and make them lay down real nice
@@jakobbolyer1735 I have never done double shielded flux core, but have been curious about it. Have a fairly cheap Hobart MIG machine running flux core all the time, just don't have the money for a big bottle of gas. They are kind of pricey.
Morbian13 I have a esab rebel 205 Ac/dc but I haven’t bought gas bottles for home use yet I get by mostly with stick(6011,7018) and flux core I used dual shield at a machine shop I used to work at when we had to weld on heavy equipment and stack multiple beads for strength
@@jakobbolyer1735 I have a second machine for stick/TIG/plasma cutting, but don't have bottles for gas lol.
Wow all I had at the time was a cheap HF Flux core wire feed that I used to weld perches on my ford 9 inch, didn't know if they were too thick of a metal to weld, but they actually held up! Even after several hard launches, Thanks for sharing this video, I feel alot more confident about fluxcore now
Kind of like infinite stick welding. Everyone seems to crap on flux core but I can see the benefits now when someone takes the time to explain it. Thanks for the video.