If I'd known when I was 18 what I know now at 39, I'd have skipped college and gone to Vo-Tech school. But hindsight is 20-20, they say.... and now I'd like to know what you all think is the best way to weld. I understand from my checking into it that there are different kinds of welding... my father always welded with acetylene/oxygen and a torch. I know this setup also allows for cutting metal with the torch, as I've seen him do that, too. I also know there are MIG welders. Are there other types of welding that might be useful or practical for working on old cars? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each for a small shop and an amateur? Which kind do you use, and why? I'm thinking of taking up welding, since I'm going to need some done on this car. And I'd like to know which way to go, since I'll have to have equipment to do it with. Thanks, Jean My72Mav
Welding Hi, I'm as amateur as they come, when it comes to welding, but I have done some work on a buddy's '50 Ford Tudor, filling holes where he took his gravel guards off, shaved the door handles, antenna hole, trunk handle, and soon, I'm going back to spot weld his hood. The '50's had a piece of trim running down the middle that held the two piece hood together. He wants it taken off, and welded up to make it one piece, and get rid of that trim piece. I've also done the shock tower mod on my '76, and am currently pulling the side trim off and filling those holes. All of the welding that I've done, was done with a Hobart Handler 135 MIG. It also has the capability of doing gas welding (for aluminum). It's a great little unit, and not too bad expensive. Just wanted to throw that out there! -Eric
well, you only named 2 types of welding (Machinist here) MIG (metal in gas) welding is relatively easy to do, and is rather contained, basically with a good unit, you can weld thick metal al the way down to sheet metal, but the units can be costly. O/A welding is not widely used anymore do how long it takes, and is limited to what you can weld. I prefer TIG, It's very hard to get used to, kind of like soldering, but you can use tig on any metal ad far as I know, would probably not be too good for sheet metal, never tried, but those units are big $$. And theres also SMAW (Stick) weld, no good for sheet metal, but is a very versatile unit otherwise, no tanks to lug araound and you can weld nicely with some practice and very little surface prep. If you plan on getting a welder, might want to consider a good wire feed welder, similar to a MIG, but doesn't require Argon(pretty sure) gas, I will probably get one of those down the road, uses a flux core wire, and from what I've seen, almost s good as a mig welder. I need to practice a lot more with welding, but I know how to make functional beads, they just aren't pretty Shaun
Maybe I didn't make myself clear. The Hobart Handler 135 is a wire-feed welding unit, it also has a place to connect the gauges and gas if you need to do some MIG welding. The gas isn't required, but is needed for certain applications. It also came with the gauges, and I think retail is only around $800.00. -Eric
Jean, Several years ago I went to my local Vo-tech at night to learn stick welding properly. Years after that I learned how to MIG weld in my friend's body shop. Stick welding is great to use on the farm to repair broken disc harrows and to fabricate most anything large. The equipment is fairly cheap and it's a good way to start out. MIG welding however is what you want to use on automotive applications. It gives you a lot more control over the job at hand and you can use it for very delicate work like sheet metal as Shaun said. The equipment is more expensive and you have to learn how to set up the machine, but is by far more versatile. I'm glad I learned stick welding first, as it gave me the basics in welding techniques. Once I picked up the MIG, I was almost instantly an ace and couldn't believe how much nicer it was to use. Just my experiences, hope you got something out of it. Sam
I would suggest a decent MIG welder. Mig welding provides a sheilding gas around your welds 1 of 2 ways. The first is with flux core wire. As the wire is melted, the flux burns and forms a gas pool around the weld. The second uses solid core wire and gas is supplied from an external tank. I woud spend the money and get the gas set up. You will make much cleaner welds and can weld thinner metal than a flux core wire. I had a Lincoln Weld Pac 100 which I can highly recommend.
I am still using the Lincoln Weld pac 100, love that little sucker. Using a Argon gas, bottle is small, lasts a good while on sheet metal. Have done welding every which way cept tig. Prefer Mig with argon gas on anything sheet metal and basically anything automotive. Dan
I am a welder and I would recommend the MIG welder with argon gas. (75% argon 25% oxygen). As for a brand, I own a Miller 130 which works great. The Lincoln is also good. Remember, you get what you pay for so stay away from an inexpensive off brands.
I'm a welder also. And I agree with Nick. I use mainly stick welding at work, but at home I have a Century pow'r-mate 100 120v. The trouble with small units like these are they need a high amp feed to run. I have a 220v line out in my garage and I would rather have a 220v unit. But I did split that down to a heavy 110v line that could cover it. Also, isn't it argon and CO2??? Don't you want to keep O2 out of your weld? I prefer straight CO2 for mild steel. And you have to use straight argon for aluminum looks like i was a couple seconds late
Your right Dennis, I mean't to write carbon dioxide but was thinking of something else and didn't proof read.
I havn't had the chance to weld SS but I do have a spool of wire for that....Someday. There are a few other things that will help along with a class on welding. Like an electronic hood, a good area to work in, and I hate leather gloves.
I never wear gloves and have the stupid scarred up hands and arms to prove it. I advise everyone to wear all safety items. Dan
