Gasless MIG - easy?

of a design I like is about the same price as a welder (wire for the welde r as well would make it just a little bit more). I have been offered some s ecurity fencing panels for free collection and have some trapping experienc e.

Just in case it was not obvious I am planning to make a trap out of the cut up panels.

Don't bother with a gasless. Better to buy a decent second-hand welder for the same money.

mig-welding.co.uk is the place for welding advice etc.

There is an art to mig welding, and you don't pick it up in 5minutes ether. I can stick weld, and co2 weld, but mig welding is a bit different, and would never get my ticket with it.

I can't stick weld but I can manage MIG. Gasless is more convenient than normal CO2 and is (slightly) better out of doors, but any breezes reduce the quality of the shield. Gasless generally looks less pretty. There are plenty of videos on you-tube. Make sure you get a self-darkening helmet, this makes it much easier.

But I'm not sure exactly what you are trying to do. If you are working with mesh panels you might find silver soldering would do (that was how I modified a car dog-gate for a different vehicle). And you can either do that with a plumbers propane torch or MAPP kit (google).

Of all the welding methods I would have said MIG or MAG is perhaps the easiest. Not sure what you mean by CO2 welding?

I would prefer to use a proper shielding gas, but given the cosy of gas and the bottle charges. Gasless MIG is a practical alternative.

Gasless MIG is far better outdoors, where the shielding gas is less affected by wind, but produces a lot more spatter and hence a less aesthetic weld.

I have always used stick or oxy until I got a mig tig welder, now I mostly use gassless mig, easiest of the lot. I just built this with it (to carry long lengths of stuff)

A mig/tig welder? Wossat?

Jim K

On mine you can DC stick weld with one lead,gas less or with gas mig with another ,put on the tig lead and handpiece and gas and away you go with tig.

Here is an example.

Answers on the different types or methods of welding here:

Yep, I've seen plenty of them in my days of steelwork fabrication.

You can run gasless migs on gas ... buy the conversion kits ... regulator, pipe & gas bottle.

Have to agree ... found MIG easiest to learn

Mig is like a continuous stick weld with Gas providing the shield rather than stick coating.

Tig uses an inverter to create a vey controllable arc, which you use with an appropriate filler rod .... think of it as using electricity to produce a welding flame .... a very clean one so ideal for Aluminium & stainless.

f*ck me, a coffin trailer, do you hire it out to the chavs that can't afford a hearse :)

If the coffins were 5 metres or so long.(it is 6 metres from ball to rear.)

Mine came with it, just need to connect gas up change wire, if you can afford the gas.( i did buy the tig handpiece and hose extra but have not the gas to try it.)

rly easy to teach myself how to weld? Would it run from a standard socket?

of a design I like is about the same price as a welder (wire for the welde r as well would make it just a little bit more). I have been offered some s ecurity fencing panels for free collection and have some trapping experienc e.

The details say that it requires a 13A supply, so it would appear to run fr om a domestic outlet. But how far are your hen sheds from that socket or will you be working close to it IYSWIM?

Lots of respondents are decrying gasless MIG but I rebuilt a trailer using an SIP Migmate 130 running gasless wire. Yes it doesn't look as good as ga s shielded MIG but it is fit for purpose. Gasless wire will deteriorate if not kept somewhere warm and dry. Mine lives in the airing cupboard.

This is the best book about welding that I have ever read:

There are lots of really helpful people here:

Do buy an autodarkening mask.

It is worth looking at the earth clamp on whatever (electric!) machine you buy and replacing it with a serious welding clamp if it looks as though it was stolen from a cheap jump lead.

Unfortunately, cheap welding machines can make learning to weld a frustrati ng experience. If you can find one, it is well worth taking an evening cla ss in welding - unless you know someone prepared to teach you. Be aware t hat welding can be addictive: after my recent welding course I have decided to splash some cash on one of these:

or

or

The R-Tech gets good reports on the welding forum mentioned above.

If you want use gas shielding; look at Hobbyweld (

HTH

Richard

Thanks everyone for your replies. I will look into mig-welding.co.uk and the book.