Since I'm pretty hopeless at MIG welding thin steel - car stuff - I wondered if a spot welder (from one side) would be easier, since it would do quite a bit of the stuff I need.
So, am I right in saying it needs to be AC rather than DC? And that they are usually quite low current?
If so, would the el cheapo one that Lidl are offering this Monday do - with a spot weld fitting from Ebay? I realise the length of time matters as well as current, but I'm sure I could knock up a timer.
"Dave Plowman (News)" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:
This is an arc + spot-weld-bolt-on?
Don't waste your money. We tried that on one of the 2cvs a year or two ago, with the bolt-on that Frost (reputable, compared to fleaBay) sell. The guy doing the welding was a professional welder. He couldn't get it to do anything useful.
Yes - the welder is a 40-80 amp one. The spot welder thingie uses carbon rods.
In what way? Not enough power or too much? In theory, it should be a simple task with less skill needed.
"Dave Plowman (News)" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:
I can't weld, so - with the aid of a bit of temporal distance - all I can reliably say is that it wouldn't stick two bits of metal together in any kind of reliable way. So we went back to drill & mig. This was on shiny-new-panel to shiny-new-panel, too.
x2
I am not a welder either but am OK with arc and need more practice with my mig
The best welder I know and have I known several top ones says the arc to spot kits are a waste of time. Something to do with the cleanliness of the surfaces and the need for pressure at the site of the weld
Drill and mig only way to go unless you can braze with gas
Regards
They'll act as a power source for a DIY spot welder big enough to weld sheetmetal. However a spotwelder also needs mechanical clamping - usually with a footpedal and lever arrangement. You can make this yourself if it's bench-mounted, but not for a take-it-to-the-car model (you'd be better buying one from Machine Mart).
The hand-pressure spot weld kits are useless, because they don't apply any clamping pressure.
To be honest, spot welding isn't much use for repair and it's sod-all use for restoration. It's a great weay to build a car on an assembly line, when the various bits arrive in the right sequence and you just have to assemble them, while there's access, with a simple weld as- designed. For repair, then if you're lucky it'll fit a new wing more easily than anything else, but otherwise forget it.
If you can't MIG, then get yourself some decent gas (not CO2), get a decent automatic helmet, ideally a decent welder (not SIP) and then a wheelbarrow full of scrap to practice on. Learn the theory (5 minutes, essential), then practice with the dials turned right up, on 3mm steel. Then practice again, on 20 & 22 gauge.
All interesting stuff so it looks like a no-no.
How do pro body shops do spot welds with access to one side only?
Heh heh - I bought mine as a Practical Classics best buy. I've modified the drive to PWM control - so at least that speed stays as set now even on very slow. What else is wrong with them?
They don't - they do plug welds instead.
Everything that could be cheap and nasty _is_ cheap and nasty.
The mechanical design of the wirefeed, doesn't.
If you can remember how to open the wire door of your welder without looking, something is wrong. If you habitually weld with the wire door off, for easy access, then you're using a SIP.
Think of it as the difference between a Silverline and a Makita jigsaw you can cut a straight line with a silverline jigsaw but.......
-In article , Andy Dingley scribeth thus
As someone who's only used Arc can you recommend a MIG/TIG whatever? welder for say around 1 mm sheet type steel welding and if that machine could also do Aluminium that would be very useful;))..
Cheers....
Spot welders use far more current than mig/arc/etc, and there's no way you can spot weld from one side only. And of course the metal junction must be clean. I don't see how you could use one to repair cars.
NT
Haven't looked for a couple opf years, and given the way copper prices have gone, that's a long time.
Murex are about the best UK machines, but not cheap now unless you're either serious or buying S/H. Second to that, Cebora used to be the best at a lower price.
Any of them (that are robust and reliable) will do steel of that thickness, or up to 3mm, without any trouble. 6mm and upwards starts to be more of a test for small machines.
For aluminium, you probably want to (eventually) use a "spool on gun" torch, so that it's not feeding the tricky aluminium wire up the hose. You don't need to buy this today, but make sure you get a machine with a Euro socket removable hose. Spool guns can also be expensive, as you usually have to buy them new - they're rare S/H.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.