what welder for floorpans?

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snowmobiler7c

snowmobiler7c

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I have 70 swinger that has a slight problem. It appears at one time or another the passenger side of the car;s rear shock broke through the floor. The funny part is the floor and trunk are solid on this car. To repair it someone welded in a washer with a mig welder to strenghen the metal around the hole for the bolt although they only welded it in 4 spots at 12,3,6,and 9 o clock. Well before i get it painted i had the great idea to complete the weld and grind it down to look a little nicer than the previous owner did. I was using a lincoln welder generator and stick welding with 6010 rod. No matter how low i set my welder i kept burning through and making bigger holes around it. I can weld with the best of them on anything 3/16" with this stick welder but never tried anything this thin before. I finally gave up and figure i need to just go buy a cheap 110 welder for sheetmetal. What seems to be the best welder for doing this? Any tips on finishing the holes? thanks
 
Mig or Tig is the way to go with sheet metal.
It may be easier to make a small patch out of some scrap 18 gauge sheet metal rather than try to weld up the hole, depending on how big the hole is. Generally if the hole is bigger than 3/8 I would make a small patch just to make the process quicker. Sheet metal welding is a bit different than thicker stuff, best rule of thumb to keep in mind when welding sheet metal is heat = warping = BAD. Use compressed air if you have it to keep the area from getting too hot, weld-cool-weld-cool, etc..

As for what welder, I've had great success with both Lincoln and Miller brands in 110 and 220 with gas, NOT FLUX.

I would suggest practicing on some scrap of the same gauge to get the settings dialed in. Good luck! And be happy its not a new car with 20-22 gauge!
 
You could get a Hobart 125 Or a Hobart 140. There a good welder and not that expensive. Lincoln and Miller are good to.
 
Mig is your best bet, and most cost effective.......Like the guys warned, do NOT trust that "flux" core wire welding will do a good enough job......USE GAS ........buy the welder (if you need one) that is all ready to add a tank to, and have fun.....and the 110 Volt models work great for our classic sheet metal.
 
ok i was thinking about the flux welders just due to price. What can i expect for a decent gas mig? Do you make any inexpensive tig welders? I use to be really good at tig back in college but was using a $2500 welder and its been 10 years
 
Hobart, Lincoln, or Miller 140 is the way to go. They all run on 110, and will cost $600 or less. Miller has a nice new small Tig machine it's the Diversion 165 and sells for around $1200.
 
I have Lincoln 175 I purchased from Home Depot. It is a 220 model that will let you weld thicker materials when needed. Be sure to use the gas setup a much cleaner and nicer welds.
 
dont waste your money on a cheap tig. it will take you forever to tig floorpans and you need get everything clean enough to eat off of. both sides. mig is much more forgiving, its way faster and you will get less warping. you will get much more use out of a mig on a car. i always recomend hobart migs for home and hobby stuff. they arfe very good, great customer service and warranty, a little cheaper than lincoln and miller but use some of the same parts as miller, they are both owned by the same company, oh yeah and made in the USA, i think the new small lincolns are made overseas.
 
I am so eager and anxious to learn how to weld! so I was researching on youtube and came across this. I hope I can do it but heres the video.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJrBxABswjs"]YouTube - how to mig weld, or wire feed weld.[/ame]
 
For auto body work you just can't beat the 175 amp mig welders. They will weld sheet metal and the heavy stuff as well. As suggested, make sure you get the gas setup for the light welding. The machines with both the constantly variable wire speed and amps instead of selector switches are a lot nicer too. Again s suggested, don't go cheap or you'll be wishing to upgrade almost immediately.
 
I know people here have discussed some of this before but some of the new epoxys are supposed to be good for body panels. Can you use it on a floor?
 
timbolia said:
I know people here have discussed some of this before but some of the new epoxys are supposed to be good for body panels. Can you use it on a floor?
Click to expand...

Yes. The Mopar Muscle web site has a nice article on glue in floorpans. Also, you can literally do ANYTHING to a car with a 110 volt mig. ANYTHING. As long as you get a good one with a good transformer with a good duty cycle. There's absolutely no need whatsoever for a 220 volt mig for the home do it yourselfer. I have a craftsman 85 amp mig welder my family got me for father's day last year. I have been a professional CERTIFIED welder in my life. I did it for almost ten years. I had a big miller 220 volt welder that the transformer burnt up on and a new one was real expensive. they got me this welder with cart, helmet gloves tool kit and all for like 379 at sears. I almost laughed at it when I opened it...but lemmie tell you sumthin. that joker has a 40% duty cycle and I have welded 1/4" steel in a single pass with it with FLUX CORE WIRE and NO gas. It's a bad little sumbitch. I never in my life wouldda thought it could do that. I think it is made by Clarke, because it's the same size and shape...it's just red instead of blue. Don't let people talk you into spending more money on one than you need. What you need to do is learn how to weld properly. THAT can help you weld things right without overkill on a welder.
 
I'm taking a welding course this quarter at my community college. You may want to look into something like that. I do know as StrokerScamp said, a lot of people go over kill on the welder to make up for no welding skills.
 
If you try to weld sheetmetal with a stick, you will drive yourself crazy filling holes. The best you can hope for is to build the buggers up thick enough to weld to, then grind it into the shape of your part. I welded my mufflers to the exhaust pipes and turn-outs with a bunch of 6010s on the lowest setting and the best thing to come out of that little experiment was a sunburn and the knowlege that I can slither my fat butt out from under a pick-up truck in under 3 seconds to get a fire extinguisher! You'll be much happier with a mig (point and shoot)!
 
I like the dual wire welders. I use the gas on higher quality finish work and use flux core on rough work, such as welding rebar and such. That way, I don't have to lug the gas tank outside away from the garage.
 
ive had a powerfist 220 vold mig for a few years now and i love it in my garage but it is a little too powerfull for sheet metal real hard to weld it nicely but it can be done ..i also have a small mastercraft 110 volt mig thats better for sheet metal gets the job done but still for body panels i dont like to use it unless i have to

ive been thinking alot about getting a spot welder i seen them work befor and sem to do a real awsome job and leaves no welds to gring and hide
but why does everyone use mig welders for body panels instead of spot welders ?
is there a big downfall to these that im not aware of because thats the only thing stopping me from getting one all the body work pics i see seem to have been mig welded

so can annyone tell why i shouldnt use a spot welder or why i should this is new teritory for me ....
 
I picked up a Lincoln MIG welder at Home Depot and it works great for sheet metal. Used it so far for floor pans and inner fenders. No complaints at all.
 
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