Just got new mig

[artistic]

I just got a new mig welder. What should I test it on? I'm thinking I should get two pieces of scrap metal and just try welding them together. I'm a little scared to weld because I dont want to fuck it up. I want to build a go kart, but I'll probrably wait until I can make a decent weld before I start it, because I dont want to be driving it and have it fall apart from my crappy welds. - andrew

BTW, any tips on how I should set it up for welding? There's different settings and I'm not too sure what they should be set to for what metals. Will I screw up my welder If I have it on the wrong setting while I'm welding something?

[TheSilentChamber]

Wow.. You baught a welder and have no idea how to weld with it? did you buy it new? if you did it should have came with a book. It should also have a table on the inside of the lid showing the wire speed and amp setting for differnt thicknesses of metal at differnt wire thicknesses.

[artistic]

I got it for christmas. I sort of have an idea on how to use it, but am still not sure about how much gas to use,wire speed, settings ect. I talked to my dad's friend who welds for a living and he's going to show me how to use it .

[artistic]

BTW, It's 115 volts, am I able to weld a go kart frame with this? What else can I do with this?

[mike@af]

What brand, what model, what amperage?

[artistic]

Deca , Decamig 100e , 115volts, on the mig itself it says on the different settings,Welding amps 35,45,65 and high 70. For input amps it says 8,11,16 and 20.

[mike@af]

You should be able to weld up to 10Gage, which is roughly .125" and as thin as 20Gage, which is about .036".

By the way, is it MIG, or is it Flux Core. If its fluxcore, convert it to MIG; and use C-25 Sheilding Gas.

[artistic]

It's a mig . .125" of an inch? It's that thin? I want to be able to build a go kart/dune buggy. Would I be able to use this welder or not?

[mike@af]

.125 is 1/8" Get a ruler and see.

For go-cart tubing I'd suggest a tube with a wall thickness of about .10 Which is 12Gage. See if you can find some scrap, and check the pentration on it.

[artistic]

I think I might return it and get a better one. Would it be wise to get one that welds up to 1/4 of an inch or should I go for more? I dont really have a lot of money and I think to upgrade to one that welds 1/4 will cost me about 250.

[mike@af]

1/4" Welder would be ideal. Plus, you rarely weld anything thicker, unless its industrial. The 1/4" would probably be better.

[Cbass]

It never hurts to have a more powerful welder, except in the pocketbook. It's unlike you'll need to be welding anything that's 1/4" thick, but you might want to use 3/16" for structural reinforcement, or skidplates.

Building a gokart is no minor fabrication project. From personal experience, I'd make a jig on a thick steel slab, just so I wouldn't have to keep measuring things and making sure that the chassis is true.

[RandomTask]

.125 is generally thick, anything thicker and you have to start heat treating the metal when you weld. a strong structural chrome moly is .095 thick with .065 used for side bars and crash protection. In all honesty, I would have bought a TIG for a first welder, once you learn to weld on a TIG, MIG welding isn't hard to figure out. For your MIG welder I would use an Argon CO2 mix , (75% argon, 25%CO2) this bottle would probably set you back $100 + deposit at your local Arcet or welding supply. To learn to weld, start with flat, straight objects butted against eachother, some plate steel with some square stock or sort, it will teach you how to penetrate your welds and avoid blow throughs. Remember, the thinner the material you weld on, the more likely you are to blow through it with a higher amperage (that is, get the metal too hot/molten it drips and creates a hole in it)

As far as your go-kart frame, fun little project, make sure you triangulate your frame, don't just make a sqaure box with a motor. I would use some 1" .095 wall box chrome moly, it can take stronger load than tube, and is easier to cut and weld. Let me know if you're interested, I could do some quick drawings for you (pending on what you want) for a go kart frame, it wouldn't take me but 1/2 an hour to throw it into and stress analysis it in CATIA.... good luck!

[artistic]

Hey thanks for the info, I'd still like to upgrade to a welder that can weld up to 1/4 inch if I can still return it. I'd rather buy one that can weld thicker to start with then use this one now and eventualyl have to buy another. I think it would be cheaper but if I can't return this one then I'm going to buy the tank and fill it and all the plumbing and everything needed. I have the regulater,the wire that came with it (that is for steel), gloves, and a welding mask. and the welder, but i might get a better one if i can. I have a good plan in my head for a go kart frame and I downloaded that rhyno 3d program but it was completely useless to me because I didnt know how to make the stuff 3d. I drew a quick sketch and its not just a square box .

It's a square box on the bottom with a larger one about 5 inches higher and its about 3 or 4 inches wider on each side and in the front and back and there are diagnal supports attatched to the bottom box. I stil havnt decided how im going to go with the steering system yet, I might make my own or buy some pieces for it. If you could draw me up a couple drawings I'd appreciate it a lot and It would definatly help .

[duplox]

If you can email or post some of your sketches of it, I can make it into a 3d model, also make some changes if neccesary. I'm pretty proficient at rhino3d, been using it for a few years now.
If you want to post your pictures here and need hosting, I can help you with that as well.