How To Wire Weld Sheet Metal

Mig welding uses an arc of electricity to create a short circuit between a continuously fed anode the wire fed welding gun and a cathode the metal being welded.

How to wire weld sheet metal. This means the. While wire feed welding sheet metal go for short bursts of welding instead of a going on a long bead. Problems with welding sheet metal. Mig welding for thin metal.

Keep the stick out short stickout of your mig wire is important when welding any type of metal but especially sheet metal. Move the torch faster and or reduce the amp setting of the welder and the lower the wire speed. The real trick to weld sheet metal is to use a wire feed. As a rule when mig welding sheet metal never use a body filler metal that is thicker than the base metal.

We need to establish what is considered thin metal. Mig is one of the best ways to weld 20 gauge sheet metal. Learn how to mig weld automotive sheet metal in about 5 minutes or less. When welding 304 stainless steel er308 er308l and er308lsi wires are compatible but for welding 316l stainless you need a 316l wire.

To weld sheet metal with solid wires use electrode positive ep or reverse polarity. Using a thinner wire 0 30 instead of 0 35 will also help. Just kidding this tip is to explain how to weld sheet metal with a stick welder. If you are burning through the metal you re not moving the torch fast enough and or your welder is set too high.

For sheet metal i use ine welding wire and it is just as good as their flux cored wire if you want you can grab one here. Mig welding is one of the simplest to use for welding. A wire feed or tig welder is ideal for sheet metal but we will assume that you don t have one. It is an arc welding process that where you feed a solid wire electrode through a.

With these materials use a tri mix gas 90 helium 8 argon and 2 co 2. Holding the tip too far from the surface will cause the wire to have to come out too far to touch the metal. For thinner gauge sheet metal like 18 or 20 gauge we suggest 023 6mm wire in your mig welder. Mig welding was developed in the 1940 s and 60 years later the general principle is still very much the same.

It is recommended that a welder should use 023 or 024 inch wire for light gauge sheet metal work.