Some Pictures of my welds

[kfriend]

Being a newb, I'm just looking for some input on improving the quality of my beads.

The pictures here are only my second attempt with a mig to do a butt-weld.
1/8" steel
Machine set at 4/30-40 (adjusted a little to see if it improved quality)

[kfriend]

2/2

pic 2/2

[kfriend]

well I see people are looking but not posting any advice.

You gentlemen are much more experienced than I...just looking for input.

thanks-
Ken

[deere_x475guy]

kfriend....I don't really feel like I have the knowledge to critque your welds but tomorrow morning others will be on with a lot more experience that will be here to help you out.

Good luck and have fun

Bob

[cope]

Originally posted by kfriend
well I see people are looking but not posting any advice.

You gentlemen are much more experienced than I...just looking for input.

thanks-
Ken

Ken, give more details please. What machine/settings/wire type. Appears to be flux core. One thing you need to do is clean the surface with either a sander or grinder before welding. Hard for a MIG to deal with dirty metal.

[bluesman2a]

1) slow down your travel with the gun.
2) use a small overlapping circular motion when you travel (others here in other threads have explained this better than I ever could, try a search).
3) turn up your heat, see how the bead just sits up on top of the metal? It should sink into it somewhat. Imagine water beading in a corner and how the edges adhese to the walls.
4) not sure on your line-speed, but that break in the middle of your "bead" may be indicative of too slow a line speed. If you feel the gun pusshing your hand back, then your linespeed is too fast. If you hear the "sizzling bacon" stop for a second, your line speed is too slow.

I'm sure others who know more than I will be able to add to what I have and/or correct what I've said here.

[Guest]

Re: Some Pictures of my welds

Originally posted by kfriend
Being a newb, I'm just looking for some input on improving the quality of my beads.

The pictures here are only my second attempt with a mig to do a butt-weld.
1/8" steel
Machine set at 4/30-40 (adjusted a little to see if it improved quality)

In this picture, you are pushing the weld, not pulling which will give you better coverage with the flux....and you are traveling a little too fast....tubular wire take a tad longer to build up. You can open the gap up some, too. The beauty if MIG is it's ability to fill a gap. Bluesman gives some good advice.

This is pushing the weld:

/............. <--

This is pulling like in fluxcore welding:

............../ -->

[bjdenommee]

Slow down and clean up the materails, the chart in the machine is just for referance. Adjust a little at a time , and try again and again.

Get as comfortable as possible with your machine, and that alone will build up your confidence.

Just for giggles, what is the polarity of the machine?

Good Luck & Get back to us
Bernie

[Dan]

Ken,

Yesterday, I posted some helpful info in your previous post if you haven t read it yet please do.

As others have already stated the main thing that it looks like you need to do is slow down your rate of travel.

By the way, the yellowish color in the weld area comes from the fluxcore wire.

To show you what the HH 125 is capable of producing I am attaching a picture of a weld that I ran on 1/8" mild steel with the HH 125 that I tested. On the picture I have shown the oscillation that I used to create the weld and also an arrow to indicate my direction of travel. By the way I am right handed. Just remember with fluxcore wire you need to pull the weld bead.

[bjdenommee]

Very nice pic Dan, nice weld too.

[kfriend]

Ok. I admit that I tried a few different things and "PUSHED" sometimes and "Pulled" others.

I'll give it another shot tonight and see if I can improve. I told you it was ugly. And you gentlemen are right, I'm sure I'm rushing too, first I was expecting too much of a puddle and now I'm rushing...

DAN-Very nice looking weld. I hope to one day lay down welds like that.

[Roger]

You have only made a few practice welds and Dan has used 100s or 1000s of pounds of wire making welds. Lots of practice will train you what to look at and how to react to what your seeing. Looking at frount of puddle can see your penitration. Looking at back of puddle shows bead profile. Looking at side of puddle shows how sides are digging or blending in which is really important as you weave puddle side to side.

The weld and weave pattern Dan showed is one of many ways to weave. Slowing down or slight pause at side of weave is common.

First learn to make straight beads with no weave with constant width weld bead and consistant ripple patterns in weld with no slag holes.

Try concentrating more on one part of the puddle for a few welds then another part for a few welds. This trains your eye what to look at and can see resulting weld bead. Try changing only one thing at a time on practice bead.

When your welds start looking good then try breaking them to see if they are strong. Saw them apart to see if they have slag inclusions or other problems.

[bjdenommee]

Ken
How are you doing? send us more pics of your welds.

Thanks
Bernie

[Hobart Expert Rock]

KFRIEND..............ARE WE DOING ANY BETTER........... PRACTICE DOES MAKE FOR BETTER WELDS..................HAVE SOME FUN WITH IT..........GRAB SOME SCRAP AND WELD UP SOME STRANGE LOOKING THINGS................T, BUTT JOINTS, OVERLAPS, 90 DEGREE WELDS........................ROCK................. .
[email protected]

[kfriend]

Haven't had the opportunity to play around for the past few days. My kid has been sick and requires alot of attention.

Hoping to get down and dirty tonight

Again, thanks for all of the input.