arc welding stainless???

[bob large]

I'm changing out my exhaust with stainless. Most of it is .049 wall, 304 Stainless steel.

can i weld it with my AC arc welder?

what are the correct rods?

should i spend some money on a new MIG welder instead?

[beartj]

should i spend some money on a new MIG welder instead?

The answer to this question is almost always, a resounding yes. :D


Sorry, I couldnt be of real help I'm sure someone who knows will chime in soon enough. I've always TIG'd stainless, even used a MIG with standard mild steel wire to tack it if it was in a funky place where I had no visibility(then pulled it out and finish welded with TIG on the bench).

[bob large]

ya i would love to get a tig but i don't have 1500 buck sitting around for just one or two projects.

[Static-XJ]

Yes, you can stick weld stainless. The biggest issue will likely be how thin the tubing is. Try to get the smallest diameter rod you can find, this will allow you to keep the amps down. If you don't mind the weld rusting, use whatever carbon steel rod you have lying around, unless it's 6010/1 due to their deep penetration. If you want to keep the corrosion resistance, head down to your LWS and see what they have in small quantity, small diameter 308 stainless rod. Fill them in on what you need to weld, including the wall thickness, and that you will be using AC.

If you get a small mig, in general you're not going to want to use the same gas mix as you would use for carbon steel.

[trkklr77]

ya i would love to get a tig but i don't have 1500 buck sitting around for just one or two projects.

when you buy a tig, you make shit up just to weld.





if you buy a tig you will use it for the rest of your life, or its...........

[Wyoming9]

I don`t know about if you have a Tig you will use it all the time.

Maybe if you just play from time to time or do super critical welds . It is all in what you work on.

Mine for the most part just sat in the corner. I found that most customers didn`t want to pay the extra rate for GTAW . There are always those things like thin Aluminum Weldments where you have no choice

If you are good with your AC welder I see no reason why you couldnt tack it in place. drop it down and finish it. Welding with a mirror gets old real fast

[bob large]

ya it looks really strait (from the header to the end of the muffler) so from that aspect it going to be simple. but i have lots of welds since i bought all the bends separately (i can't bend pipe) and i got weld on clamps for the cat/ muffler / and the cutout (so i can take it down real easy). so its something like 9 welds from the header to the mufler. then probable be another 8 or 9 after that (over the axle around the rear leaf spring etc... :shaking:

[jasonmt]

If your AC power source is a Lincoln tombstone or similar you are looking at a tough task as most 3/32" 308 & 309 filler is not going to want to strike an arc on those type of machines at a low enough amperage that it will not blow through the material. There may be suppliers of smaller diameter 308/309 filler (Harris?) that may work though.

If I HAD to use a AC buzzbox to weld ~18 gauge 304 SS tubing I would be looking for the small diameter 1/16" 6013 filler from Lincoln and others and live with the lessened corrosion resistance at the joints.

[bob large]

yep that exactly what i have. and that's what i was thinking might happen.

so a new mig welder sounds like the ticket.

the Hobart Handler 187 from tractor supply seams like a good deal.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay_10551_10001_36272_-1______14151|14220|14238|36272?listingPage=true&Special=false

[ChiScouter]

yep that exactly what i have. and that's what i was thinking might happen.

so a new mig welder sounds like the ticket.

the Hobart Handler 187 from tractor supply seams like a good deal.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay_10551_10001_36272_-1______14151|14220|14238|36272?listingPage=true&Special=false

Before you buy another machine I would recommend that you get on a welding forum and do a ton of research to make sure that the welder you buy will actually work for what you are trying to do. All those little welders claim to be able to do aluminum, but I have never seen anyone who was able to do a decent aluminum weld with one. Don't spend the dough until you are positive that the machine will do the work.

[fairlane_68]

when you buy a tig, you make shit up just to weld.





if you buy a tig you will use it for the rest of your life, or its...........


ANd a TIG welder can pay for itself after a while. It's a money maker if you want it to be.



And I think to MIG/TIG weld stainless steel, it requires Helium for shielding gas. I'm only 70% sure of that though.

[keebler303]

ANd a TIG welder can pay for itself after a while. It's a money maker if you want it to be.

And I think to MIG/TIG weld stainless steel, it requires Helium for shielding gas. I'm only 70% sure of that though.

Helium used to be used for welding aluminum, still is in some cases, but pure argon is by far the most common now. I use 100% argon for welding steel, SS, and aluminum and it seems to work pretty good.

Matt

[minam44]

At the stainless steel welding company I worked for, we would use Tri-Mix (Helium, Argon, and CO2) when MIG welding Stainless, and 100% Argon with the TIG, for all types of common metal.

[fairlane_68]

Helium used to be used for welding aluminum, still is in some cases, but pure argon is by far the most common now. I use 100% argon for welding steel, SS, and aluminum and it seems to work pretty good.

Matt

yeah...straight Argon seems to be the best way to go if you have multiple welders...why pay for two bottles of different gases, when one will do for just about everything. I leased one bottle, and I just switch it between welders when I need to. I do have a little bottle of ArCO2 for mobility purposes.

[bob large]

what size wire should i use? .06, .08, or .09??

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/1594/handler187guide.gif (http://imageshack.us)
http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/handler187guide.gif/1/w858.png (http://g.imageshack.us/img15/handler187guide.gif/1/)