Mig is fine, as long as you weld well, grind the excess (and NO more) before hammering, and you turn up the energy input and spend less time on the trigger.Outlaw said:so assuming you have a long weld and an almost perfect fitment between panels. Lets go with Mig since thats what I have until I get a Tig. I clamp and spot weld the middle and outsides. I planish those welds after cool and come back and weld in between the first welds, cool and planish. I keep doing this until the seam is continious welded. My question is: At some point in time if the fittment is butted together (no gap), will the metal start getting tighter and tighter? Will it get tight enough to warp the butt joint or cause the joint to overlap?
Think that's who it is. Best I remember his truck fender weld looked continuous like a tig weld.Outlaw said:Does anyone ever weld using the connect the dots mig method with a precision torch like the henrob? The guy welding at Daytone, Jim Spradley?
If thats Henrob Jim you are talking about, I helped him on those fenders back in 2002 or something, and the fenders measured 19 ga, and that exactly what we put back in as replacement pieces to widen themjlcustomz said:The guy I see at Daytona every year selling the Henrobs displays an older truck fender welded up that is likely an 18 gauge as opposed to the 20 gauge of later older vehicles. I learned welding on a traditional torch as a kid & found the henrob easy for 18 gauge steel, so it may work for your 50's stuff.. As mentioned , the softer & less likely to crack welds are a positive thing to planish.
For thicker sheet metal , the biggest difference you'll see between precision torch & tig is the usefulness of the [gas pedal] control. If you are intent on getting a tig, practicing with a Henrob will make the tig learning process that much easier. The hardest part of learning curve for a tig then will be holding the tip close enough without touching it, which may make it actually stick & will contaminate it, requiring stopping & regrinding it or better yet, swapping another preground ready to go rod & redressing the bad ones later.
Small world.jlcustomz said:The guy I see at Daytona every year selling the Henrobs displays an older truck fender welded up that is likely an 18 gauge as opposed to the 20 gauge of later older vehicles. I learned welding on a traditional torch as a kid & found the henrob easy for 18 gauge steel, so it may work for your 50's stuff.. As mentioned , the softer & less likely to crack welds are a positive thing to planish.
For thicker sheet metal , the biggest difference you'll see between precision torch & tig is the usefulness of the [gas pedal] control. If you are intent on getting a tig, practicing with a Henrob will make the tig learning process that much easier. The hardest part of learning curve for a tig then will be holding the tip close enough without touching it, which may make it actually stick & will contaminate it, requiring stopping & regrinding it or better yet, swapping another preground ready to go rod & redressing the bad ones later.
Small world.jlcustomz said:The guy I see at Daytona every year selling the Henrobs displays an older truck fender welded up that is likely an 18 gauge as opposed to the 20 gauge of later older vehicles. I learned welding on a traditional torch as a kid & found the henrob easy for 18 gauge steel, so it may work for your 50's stuff.. As mentioned , the softer & less likely to crack welds are a positive thing to planish.
For thicker sheet metal , the biggest difference you'll see between precision torch & tig is the usefulness of the [gas pedal] control. If you are intent on getting a tig, practicing with a Henrob will make the tig learning process that much easier. The hardest part of learning curve for a tig then will be holding the tip close enough without touching it, which may make it actually stick & will contaminate it, requiring stopping & regrinding it or better yet, swapping another preground ready to go rod & redressing the bad ones later.
I got a back up tank for the tig.. It's a little tiny thing but it gets me through when the big one goes out.. I panic if anything happens to the tig welder anymore.. Funny because at one time I thought it would be a piece of equipment I would never need.Marty Comstock said:Mig can be done successfully with a closed gap, I do it often, trick is go in hot, but VERY little trigger time. I always grind the backside of any weld I do, and if you can get a dolly in there, you can get a grinder in there. Otherwise, its a moot point.
Why do I use a mig rather than a TIG sometimes? Why sometimes we are out of argon, someone else is using the TIG or the MIG is just closer to me. Same reasons why I chose the torches over TIG, more often than not, depends on whats within reach
I was wondering what you were going to decide on.Outlaw said:I wished I would have learned this when I was younger. I can do lots of things well. My mig welding has come a long ways in five years. Torch has been in and out but never mastered. Im going to try Tig based on Chads tutorial here. I will try the henrob again with your advise and see how it goes, but I think the speed part will be a challenge for me. Im pretty stoked on the new Lincoln Square Wave 200. They are still on back order but should be available in February.