New to wire welding

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Crazy4408pac

Crazy4408pac

N. Michigan
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Traverse City Michigan
Have some pix and some questions. Below are some pix of the welds on the new floor pan, in my 72 Swinger. Not the best but ok for my first time. I can stick weld and oxy braze, quit well. Learned many years ago in high school. This is my first try at wire. Used a cheapo Chicago Electric 90AMP flux wire and .030" wire.

My next thing will be the (pardon me if I don't use the correct terms), lips on the fenders. I plan on buying new inner fenders. Too bad they don't re-pop fenders.

Here's a question: Should I cut a piece the full length or use a couple of pieces then tack them together after welding them to the fender?

Have 73 Charger with a 440/727/489, that I will be pulling out and putting in the Dart. Will be using an Alter-K for that.

I'm going to try and get the Dart done as far as body work and the Alter-K before I pull the Charger apart. I'll be using the drive shaft and the pumpkin from the Charger, in the Dart. Have a 70 B-Body 8 3/4 I'll be using. Just have to move the perches in 1/2"
 

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just my $.o2. Go to wire with gas. heat low. wire speed slow. Move stinger quickly. Roughly 1" per second. Hard to get used to but it works. PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE.
 
What he said. Flux core wire is not as good for sheet metal as thin wire and argon shielding gas. Much cleaner results.
 
I'm sure you noticed the metal warping up and back down as it cooled.You dont want that to happen on any outer skins or anything you dont want to take a chance on warping.Just spot,move,spot,move dont let the metal get hot,keep a wet rag handy to cool it down.I just welded up my pans and trim holes and I didnt cool them down after grinding(at first)and that gets just as hot so be careful.I used flux wire and had no issues but I've been welding for 26 years.
 
Yep, the warping is kinda bad. Maybe it had something to do with doing it in a unheated, one car garage, that never got above 25 degrees, the day I did it. I did start with the corners and the middles, then put a weld at the halfway pionts and so on. I plan on doing the fenders, in my neighbors heated garage.
 
The flux core burns too hot,compared to argon and .023 wire.I have that same welder,yours looks pretty good.
 
Crazy4408pac said:
Yep, the warping is kinda bad. Maybe it had something to do with doing it in a unheated, one car garage, that never got above 25 degrees, the day I did it. I did start with the corners and the middles, then put a weld at the halfway pionts and so on. I plan on doing the fenders, in my neighbors heated garage.
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You are correct about the heated metal to an extent,the weld is going to heat to a point of 2600 deg atleast so if the metal is 20deg as aposed to 80 deg it heats up to a greater degree.With the pans if you weld a half inch then let cool a few seconds then smack it with a hammer it will go back into shape usaully BUT the body panels are a different story,weld a "long" spot or small 3/16" weld in a corner then move around the panel spacing the welds out atleast 6-10".Use the wet rag to place over the weld right after,this doesn't let the heat run thru the metal and "warp" it.Just take your time and you'll be fine.the pans were a good place to get some experiance with.
 
Oh I like to grind the weld down flat but not grind all the weld out,leave both edges of the weld then go over it with seam sealer,top and under neath the pans.
 
Gas is better, but flux can be down. Slow wire down, looks like maybe keep the heat, slower pass. It takes scrape panels to learn it. Old stick welder here, a lot of practice on a mig, and sheet metal is the worst to learn on.
Clean metal, you want the bacon sizzling sound, only 1/2" at a time on sheet metal, watch the flow, with no burn-thrus.

those welds look like too cold, and too much wire speed, and a mig will not blow thru the crap, like a stick. A flux can be turned up, and do good on 1/4".

After using flux and gas, I only use gas on sheetmetal. Let it cool; wet rag; hammer. Seems to be the same; IF you don't warp it to begin with. It is a slow weld.
 
Gas Mig is the best for sheetmetal work. Floorpans can be stitched every 6-8 inches.

On exterior panels you need to use thousand rule. Pull the trigger and count 1 thousand and release trigger, move 10 to 12 inches and repeat this process around the panel. Then start back at the begining and repeat the above process. This can take several hours so Do Not rush this process!!! Best bet is to keep the cuts really close to crowns at the top of the panel. I use a piece of sculpting clay and roll it into a long worm about 1" thick and stick it to the panel for heat absorbtion on the larger side of the replacement panel. I choose to use a small 1/32" gap between the panels. I often use a piece of copper plate as well behind the panel where it can be reached if the gap is larger. A large repair panel will warp like a piece of foil in your palm if too much heat is allowed.
Take your time!! This is key to a good panel replacement.

Be careful when grinding as that too will generate too much heat and warp the panel.

Just my 2 cents.

As bas as those fenders are I would find used replacements.
 
Ok here is the basic on flux or gas.Flux is basicly a spool of "arc" wire where arc rods and shielded from a coating on the outside and flux is shielded from the inside.Gas is usaully 75/25 argon/co2.The gas coming from the gun actaully cools the weld as aposed to flux so a novice or less than expert may find it "easier"to weld while the gas is keeping the weld from burning thru.On heavy metal 1/4 and thicker I prefer 95/5 argon/co2 which burns hotter much the way flux welds.The gas is cleaner while welding(less smoke) on clean metal.so the flux burns at hotter rate so shorter welds are required to keep the heat down thats why the wet rag is so important.The down side is gas is expensive for a couple welds a year.like I said ive been welding a long time so I see the issues and react in a way someone not used to welding alot may react,so flux or gas I just do what needs to be done.also if the weld is burning hot and you are burning thru turn the wire up alttle which will have more spatter but will run cooler.I have a 220v hobart and on the car I run the heat on 1 and the wire on 20 where 10 is the lowest.I hope this helps clear some of this stuff up.
 
Thanks for all the input. Lots of great ideas for me to try. I have tons of scrap metal. I plan to do a lot of practicing, before I attempt the fenders.

As for the fenders.. I live in bum-a** northern Michigan. Been trying to find replacement, on the net. So far no luck.
 
Crazy4408pac said:
Thanks for all the input. Lots of great ideas for me to try. I have tons of scrap metal. I plan to do a lot of practicing, before I attempt the fenders.

As for the fenders.. I live in bum-a** northern Michigan. Been trying to find replacement, on the net. So far no luck.
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What car are you working on or did I miss that?

If all you need is the rotted area of the fender in the pics, you can use "ANY" A-body fender for that piece.
 
pauly v.100 said:
good idea with the sculpting clay Cuudak.
never to old to learn something new!!
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I learned that from a Vietnamese bodyman. I watched him make a fender for a 36 Chevy from an old Ford hood with 5 different hammers, a piece of railroad track and a fricking sandbag! In less than 5 hours at that. Never know when someone can teach you a thing or two.:D
 
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