Flux core wire?

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RRR I have had a few hoods in my time... Miller, Jackson and Speed Glass(now 3M) I just replaced me original Speed Glass with the above mentioned hood after better than 20 years of service with only replacing the head gear once and the batteries several times. IMHO the Speed Glass is the best hood on the market. I hope this one will serve me as long as the last one and should in all possibilities be the last hood I purchase in my life. Nothing wrong with Miller or any of the above mentioned hoods but this is just my preference.
Kevin
 
How would you guys rate that hand held flash shield that Lincoln throws in the box of their mig welders?

I used to have some welders "glasses" lol from my grandfather.... mean tan lines using those things.
 
Great for observing not so much for welding, especially if welding out of position.
 
Garry in AZ said:
To answer the original question, I suggest you buy a small bottle of 75/25 gas and a spool of solid core wire. The results are much cleaner, and in my opinion the welds are higher quality. The gauge of wire really depends on what you will be welding. Given the electrical limits of the HF welder, .030 wire is going to be the best compromise for general use. If you are going to do sheet metal repair, then going down to .023 wire is a good idea.
But honestly, try solid core wire with gas... you'll really like the results compared to flux core wire.
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Thanks for the advice my welder is not setup to run gas it's a flux core welder I'm not sure how or if I can run gas on it. I know the flux core is messy I knew that when i bought it I'm not worried about it the splatter is nothing a grinder won't take off I'm welding lawn mower decks and outdoor equipment I'm not worried about neatness lol I do want to try it on some body panels just to see if I can I want the out come lol I have access to a stick and mig if I need it but they are both 220 I wanted a 110 I could use around the house that's I why I went with the flux core so far it's working perfect.
 
dartfreak75 a couple of tips:1) If it has slag you drag as a rule of thumb. 2) If welding vertical and the material is less than 1/4" than you can run downhill, 1/4" and thicker you should run uphill with a slight push travel angle, when I say slight, pointing the gun straight in is 90 degrees you want about a 80 degrees gun nozzle up using a slight Z pattern pausing ever so slightly on the toe lines to allow undercut to fill in. 3) When welding in the flat or horizontal position drag the gun with a slight C/crescent moon movement, this is assuming you are right handed if you are left handed than it would be a backwards C. 4) clean after every pass or anytime you stop before putting another bead on top of the slag, if not cleaned it causes slag entrapment which can cause the weld to fail.
Hope this helps and good luck. If you have any questions I'm more than happy to try and help.
Kevin
 
Has anyone ever tried the blue demon wire that's sold at Amazon? Its pretty good price and has good reviews?
 
dartfreak75 said:
Has anyone ever tried the blue demon wire that's sold at Amazon? Its pretty good price and has good reviews?
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I just retired from selling welding equipment after 30 years and we sold the Blue Demon wire was a very good wire it's made by Esab. I also agree that the Speedglass helmet is a great helmet I've had mine for 20 years but I don't use it on a daily basis. Using gas CO2 or 75/25 is the only way to go especially on thinner material and cuts down on smoke and splatter
 
I may get a spool of blue demon and Lincoln just to see if there is any noticeable difference heck on Amazon the Lincoln is cheaper Haha. I kinda just want to experiment with some different wire brands and sizes just see what the difference is.
 
I had a gift card for HF and was out of MIG wire so I just bought a small spool of the 'new' Vulcan line of .035 welding stuff they carry. I was suprised at the way this new wire behaved, in a good way. Spatter was down 50% Id say, and the bead looked more consistent. Maybe the new stuff is actually from another supplier..or maybe it wasn't 8 years old like my old wire. I would not hesitate to put a large spool in my 131, the drag is adjustable and it rotates pretty good in there. FYI, the 20% off coupons "don't work" on the Vulcan line, but if you talk to a manager and tell him your not buying a Vulcan welder then he may fold and let you use it. It was the first time my coupon didn't work, and I looked at the fine print and it said Vulcan welders, not consumables. He told the clerk to give me the $4 off so I grabbed a 20 pack of AA alkaline batteries. I told the clerk they already got the $50 that was on the card.
 
That is good to know I to wondered about the Vulcan wire. Iv read nothing but good things about the Vulcan machines except for the usual haters that have never used one they just know you have to spend 1200$ to get a usable welder. I know the 20% off coupon wouldn't work on my Chicago welder either really sucks but I was able to use it on some other stuff I was buying anyways.
 
The Lincoln wire Has about 90% less splatter then HF wire. Don't go cheap on the materials. Like buying cheap paint or tape and expecting good results. And Practice, practice, practice, and Clean, clean, clean what you are welding.
 
Be sure also your drive rolls are correct. Knurled for flux core and Aluminum wire V groove or U groove for hard wire. Also when using flux cored wire or Aluminum wire always use next size tip such as .030 wire use .035 tip. Flux wires aren't true in size and this prevents it from sticking and the Aluminum expands so fast it helps it from sticking
 
Del said:
Be sure also your drive rolls are correct. Knurled for flux core and Aluminum wire V groove or U groove for hard wire.
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Interesting, I saw those knurled rollers and thought that was a great idea as I currently use flux on V rollers and had a hard time getting the feed steady no matter how tight I had the tension. They are $6 on Amazon, My next purchase.
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https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073S4133X/?tag=joeychgo-20
 
RustyRatRod said:
Regardless of cost, posting up good recommendations will help those seeking advice. At least they will be able to see a range of cost and benefits and features associated with cost. I am curious myself, as my helmet stopped working a while back, so I am in the market for a new one too.
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Just a suggestion, this seems to be pretty decent and is what I got with my new welder.
It has all the cool features including "True color"
Eastwood XL View Auto Darkening Welding Helmet - XL9300
 
TrailBeast said:
Just a suggestion, this seems to be pretty decent and is what I got with my new welder.
It has all the cool features including "True color"
Eastwood XL View Auto Darkening Welding Helmet - XL9300
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Thats a nice one. True color eh? Interesting......I bought an OTOS Chameleon at Pomona for $5 8 years ago. The guy had a whole bin full of them. Was selling them for face shields only as they 'didnt work'. I bought it and replaced the 5 yr CR2032 battery in it and its worked ever since, although its dead now. New battery time.....
Chameleon-8141-Ksp-Welding-Helmet-Safety-Industria.jpg
 
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MOPAROFFICIAL said:
How would you guys rate that hand held flash shield that Lincoln throws in the box of their mig welders?

I used to have some welders "glasses" lol from my grandfather.... mean tan lines using those things.
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I use my hand held shield all of the time that came with my Lincoln.
 
I have a Holbort auto-darking helmet that I bought on clearance at tractor supply for $20. I wish at the time I would have bought two of them.
Don't know why it was on clearance because they still sell it, in less the price was marked wrong, but it nice, and it has solar powered batteries.
I have had it for about 4 years now and it has worked flawless, except for the time I left it covered up for about 6 months, and the battery charge went dead.
 
pishta said:
Thats a nice one. True color eh? Interesting......
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Yes, it doesn't have that heavy tinted color when you are welding.
Everything has it's normal color when it's in welding mode, and then in grinder mode it's like a light pair of sunglasses. (not actually clear)

It also has the solar battery charging system, but obviously it's not so much solar as it is UV charged from welding more than literal solar.
Seems to me anyway.:D
 
Pop the cartridge out and pull the back off. I bet you got a CR2032 button cell in there. The instructions in the helmet say the battery is good for 5 years.
 
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