Restarts take a lot more practice than most think early on. It took me some time to have clean restarts. I couldn’t count the amount of finger and knuckle blisters I’ve have over the years from tolerating the heat to avoid a restart. Big fluxcore wire seems to be the trickiest for me as far as having a smooth uniform restart
i am always welding in the winter. I didn't like my welds until I started preheating the steel with a torch. I found getting the steel heated to 150 degrees then start welding makes a huge difference.
If you weld on cold steel it makes a huge difference. You run into an issue where the amperage the rods need to be optimal (say 120-130 for a 7018) produces a sluggish puddle on cold steel. Upping the amperage makes the rod more prone to arc blow, spatter, and makes it harder to control. In such cases heating the base metal makes a world of difference. The best case of this is aluminum stick rods. The rod itself can’t handle much amperage. It produces a bead of caulk on thicker aluminum because you literally can’t crank the rod up enough to get the heat needed to weld (the rod just melts/arc blows). By preheating the base material to 3-400 and then welding, you can use the current the rod can handle but you get a weld that fuses properly.
Quite good technic against lack of fusion to begin the welding 1cm fore. Then weld backwards, then do the whole welding. So here is the seam. vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv start here ^ move right to the end then weld left to the end. Hope you understand :).
Another very interesting video young man. These videso make me think about previous welds and question myself about my abilities. Top stuff really, because we should scutinise our own welds beyond them looking pretty.
When you can look at your own work and ask what you could have done better, and then do it, you will become a much better welder. The big goal everyone should have with welding is to be as consistent as possible. Strong welds are consistent welds, and little things like cleaning the material properly, avoiding unneeded starts/stops, running proper settings, and moving at a consistent proper travel speed will produce the best results.
Thanks Greg for doing all the hard work. It is almost Turkey season here in NY, let me know if you are a hunter, I would send you one of my wing bone calls. I also have deer grunts that I make on my lathe if you are interested.
I had a 5 day (out of cell reception) getaway, and didn’t realize I never hit “go live” on this video. There will be a bunch more videos this week than planned now lol.
I've searched for videos on restarting with SMAW or GMAW but didn't find one dedicated. I still haven't watched all your videos on basics in SMAW and GMAW. Maybe there you've mention on the topic. Would be great for dedicated video for restarts both in mig and stick. 👍
I did cover restarts a bit here and there with stick, but mig I haven’t touched on it. I will definitely cover it. Realistically it’s best to avoid restarts with mig (by welding long continuous beads) because it generally has a lack of fusion that is very difficult to fix with most machines. Higher end machines with run in controls can make it easier to get good tie ins. On most things a restart won’t significantly weaken a weld, but it’s definitely not something to make a habit out of doing on things that require strength.
Greg, doesn't your Esab have hot start for mig? I set mine at 50% and start on the end of the stopped weld and then go forward . Grinding the weld stop is needed with stick , it wonder if would make any difference on short circut mig as you are mainly on thin material.
On thinner material you will still have a lack of fusion (or an area of less fusion) but that’s generally not a big deal. On thin material people universally over weld (bigger weld than what’s needed) so any lack of fusion is made up for via oversized weld. The machine I have does have run in and burn back control, due to changing wire/gas so much for videos I have it set at parameters that work decent but it’s definitely not fine tuned. 😀
At reduced settings the same thing will hold true. The difference is on thinner material most people over weld (put down too big of a weld) and the material will likely bend before the weld fails, even if the weld has inconsistent fusion. With thicker steel (or something made from thin material that has multiple pieces that reinforce the main welded part) you can put enough force on it that the weld fails before the plate bends. Interestingly enough both stick and short circuit don’t have that much penetration (outside of 6010) so even 1/8th material can have poor fusion at starts. Almost all forms of welding will have reduced fusion at the 1/4in to 3/8th inch mark from the start. It’s not really a big issue until you have a lot of starts on a piece that needs strength.
When i was doing pipe , feather ,clean restart weld thru. All fast as i could so not to let it cool. I hated restart took time to learn it . If inspector see you do it on a test , guarantee thats the cut out.
hey Greg, a little off topic, but what is your opinion on Backstop welding to prevent distortion..... I have needed to use that technique on certain project to prevent the Pretzel/Banana Syndrome... thanks in advance, Paul
It can work but it depends on the material, the joint, clamps, etc. if you clamp a chunk of aluminum or copper behind a butt weld or outside corner, it will help pull heat out a ton. It allows you to get proper penetration/fusion without blowing holes or forming a lot of surface oxides. It will also help prevent excessive warping as well. There are limits. In the case of stainless you can still get warping because of how much the material moves when welded. The two best approaches I have found with controlling warpage is put as little heat into it, and factor in some warpage from the start. If that means “doping” things assuming they will move, or in the case of auto body using a hammer/dolly to work the metal to get rid of the problems, so be it.
It will to a certain extent however it likely will not completely get rid of it. This is one of many reasons why run on/off tabs are used, it allows the lack of fusion to happen on a plate that gets removed instead of on the weld. This is also why tig is preferred for certain critical welds, with skill you can eliminate all common defects other processes have (lack of fusion, weld craters, blow outs at ends of welds due to heat, etc. For most things it’s not an issue to have a slight lack of fusion right after the start, but on critical welds it’s worth figuring out a way to eliminate it.
If you use nr211 or fabshield 21b wire, that alone will knock 40% of the spatter out of a weld (over cheap wire). What is left (provided the settings are decent) will come right off with a wire wheel. If your welder outputs A/c power (some of the harbor freights and other cheap ones) the spatter will be a lot no matter what. Also if you weld on DCEP you will have a lot of spatter. Straight Gasless flux core can produce very clean solid welds with just a bit of practice and quality wire.
Hay I just want to say that weld, on the continuous weld looked amazing.I just started to learn how to weld. I unpacked my arccaptain m200 .And by watching your videos teaching myself how to weld, thank you for the help!!
Glad you are teaching yourself 😀. Expect to be frustrated a lot and to struggle at first. Just focus on trying to be as consistent as possible. Quality welds are ones that are consistent start to finish, which requires smooth movement, consistent travel speed, and likely moving in a straight line. Focus on being consistent as possible, and you will progress fast.
As a welder and college welding instructor, my advice to you is to practice your stops and starts until they are seamless and undetectable!! Dont avoid them when you are practicing because when you do need to stop and start, it will be a sound weld!! Cheers from Canada 🇨🇦
Welds were pulled, they produce that profile when pulled. If I would have pushed them they would be flatter with less penetration. The penetration is in the ballpark of what would be expected with short circuit. 👍
@@makingmistakeswithgreg I've found I prefer pull rather than push on just about any process. Except with vertical MiG, I've found going nearly straight in with a slight push angle helps, otherwise I get puddle dripping and fighting gravity, the little bit of arc force tends to keep the puddle under control going uphill. Drag downhill just isn't working for me, but I'm just a newbie beginner.
Restarts take a lot more practice than most think early on. It took me some time to have clean restarts. I couldn’t count the amount of finger and knuckle blisters I’ve have over the years from tolerating the heat to avoid a restart. Big fluxcore wire seems to be the trickiest for me as far as having a smooth uniform restart
i am always welding in the winter. I didn't like my welds until I started preheating the steel with a torch. I found getting the steel heated to 150 degrees then start welding makes a huge difference.
If you weld on cold steel it makes a huge difference. You run into an issue where the amperage the rods need to be optimal (say 120-130 for a 7018) produces a sluggish puddle on cold steel. Upping the amperage makes the rod more prone to arc blow, spatter, and makes it harder to control. In such cases heating the base metal makes a world of difference. The best case of this is aluminum stick rods. The rod itself can’t handle much amperage. It produces a bead of caulk on thicker aluminum because you literally can’t crank the rod up enough to get the heat needed to weld (the rod just melts/arc blows). By preheating the base material to 3-400 and then welding, you can use the current the rod can handle but you get a weld that fuses properly.
Quite good technic against lack of fusion to begin the welding 1cm fore. Then weld backwards, then do the whole welding.
So here is the seam.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
start here ^
move right to the end
then weld left to the end.
Hope you understand :).
Great job explaining things!!
Great demonstration Greg.
Another very interesting video young man. These videso make me think about previous welds and question myself about my abilities. Top stuff really, because we should scutinise our own welds beyond them looking pretty.
When you can look at your own work and ask what you could have done better, and then do it, you will become a much better welder. The big goal everyone should have with welding is to be as consistent as possible. Strong welds are consistent welds, and little things like cleaning the material properly, avoiding unneeded starts/stops, running proper settings, and moving at a consistent proper travel speed will produce the best results.
Thanks Greg for doing all the hard work. It is almost Turkey season here in NY, let me know if you are a hunter, I would send you one of my wing bone calls. I also have deer grunts that I make on my lathe if you are interested.
I don’t hunt, but you can reward me by spending time practicing skills 😀
I’ve been impatiently awaiting another video.
I had a 5 day (out of cell reception) getaway, and didn’t realize I never hit “go live” on this video. There will be a bunch more videos this week than planned now lol.
I've searched for videos on restarting with SMAW or GMAW but didn't find one dedicated. I still haven't watched all your videos on basics in SMAW and GMAW. Maybe there you've mention on the topic. Would be great for dedicated video for restarts both in mig and stick. 👍
I did cover restarts a bit here and there with stick, but mig I haven’t touched on it. I will definitely cover it. Realistically it’s best to avoid restarts with mig (by welding long continuous beads) because it generally has a lack of fusion that is very difficult to fix with most machines. Higher end machines with run in controls can make it easier to get good tie ins. On most things a restart won’t significantly weaken a weld, but it’s definitely not something to make a habit out of doing on things that require strength.
Greg, doesn't your Esab have hot start for mig? I set mine at 50% and start on the end of the stopped weld and then go forward . Grinding the weld stop is needed with stick , it wonder if would make any difference on short circut mig as you are mainly on thin material.
On thinner material you will still have a lack of fusion (or an area of less fusion) but that’s generally not a big deal. On thin material people universally over weld (bigger weld than what’s needed) so any lack of fusion is made up for via oversized weld. The machine I have does have run in and burn back control, due to changing wire/gas so much for videos I have it set at parameters that work decent but it’s definitely not fine tuned. 😀
You are doing this on relatively thick metal for short circuit mig. Do you get similar results working with 10-16 gauge?
At reduced settings the same thing will hold true. The difference is on thinner material most people over weld (put down too big of a weld) and the material will likely bend before the weld fails, even if the weld has inconsistent fusion. With thicker steel (or something made from thin material that has multiple pieces that reinforce the main welded part) you can put enough force on it that the weld fails before the plate bends. Interestingly enough both stick and short circuit don’t have that much penetration (outside of 6010) so even 1/8th material can have poor fusion at starts. Almost all forms of welding will have reduced fusion at the 1/4in to 3/8th inch mark from the start. It’s not really a big issue until you have a lot of starts on a piece that needs strength.
When i was doing pipe , feather ,clean restart weld thru. All fast as i could so not to let it cool. I hated restart took time to learn it . If inspector see you do it on a test , guarantee thats the cut out.
100%. If you don’t feather it and carry heat into the tie in it won’t fuse for crap. A lot of skill is involved in getting that 100% right.
hey Greg, a little off topic, but what is your opinion on Backstop welding to prevent distortion.....
I have needed to use that technique on certain project to prevent the Pretzel/Banana Syndrome...
thanks in advance, Paul
It can work but it depends on the material, the joint, clamps, etc. if you clamp a chunk of aluminum or copper behind a butt weld or outside corner, it will help pull heat out a ton. It allows you to get proper penetration/fusion without blowing holes or forming a lot of surface oxides. It will also help prevent excessive warping as well. There are limits. In the case of stainless you can still get warping because of how much the material moves when welded. The two best approaches I have found with controlling warpage is put as little heat into it, and factor in some warpage from the start. If that means “doping” things assuming they will move, or in the case of auto body using a hammer/dolly to work the metal to get rid of the problems, so be it.
@@makingmistakeswithgreg thank you Greg, best wishes, Paul
Would a “hot start” fix the lack-of-fusion start?
It will to a certain extent however it likely will not completely get rid of it. This is one of many reasons why run on/off tabs are used, it allows the lack of fusion to happen on a plate that gets removed instead of on the weld. This is also why tig is preferred for certain critical welds, with skill you can eliminate all common defects other processes have (lack of fusion, weld craters, blow outs at ends of welds due to heat, etc. For most things it’s not an issue to have a slight lack of fusion right after the start, but on critical welds it’s worth figuring out a way to eliminate it.
Can we get a demonstration on dealing with birdshot bbs after a flux core pass? I seems like there’s more bbs then weld
If you use nr211 or fabshield 21b wire, that alone will knock 40% of the spatter out of a weld (over cheap wire). What is left (provided the settings are decent) will come right off with a wire wheel. If your welder outputs A/c power (some of the harbor freights and other cheap ones) the spatter will be a lot no matter what. Also if you weld on DCEP you will have a lot of spatter. Straight Gasless flux core can produce very clean solid welds with just a bit of practice and quality wire.
Cheers!
Hay I just want to say that weld, on the continuous weld looked amazing.I just started to learn how to weld. I unpacked my arccaptain m200 .And by watching your videos teaching myself how to weld, thank you for the help!!
Glad you are teaching yourself 😀. Expect to be frustrated a lot and to struggle at first. Just focus on trying to be as consistent as possible. Quality welds are ones that are consistent start to finish, which requires smooth movement, consistent travel speed, and likely moving in a straight line. Focus on being consistent as possible, and you will progress fast.
As a welder and college welding instructor, my advice to you is to practice your stops and starts until they are seamless and undetectable!! Dont avoid them when you are practicing because when you do need to stop and start, it will be a sound weld!! Cheers from Canada 🇨🇦
Good lesson.
4:36....EasyStrike 6013.....oh my.....love my 6013, most of the time.....but not for everything....
then I use my 1109 rod......
thank You Greg....always great information, been really busy lately, so I need to catch up on your videos....
Paulie in Florida
Thanks Greg, another GREAT video!
Making fifteen gallon hydraulic and thirty gallon fuel tank with 14 ga, don't start or stop in the corner,o 35 wire, root gap get R done..
.035 dual shield wire? Or plain steel wire gas shielded.
Plain wire,,92-8.
Hey boss man why do you have your welder turned down too much?
Welds were pulled, they produce that profile when pulled. If I would have pushed them they would be flatter with less penetration. The penetration is in the ballpark of what would be expected with short circuit. 👍
@@makingmistakeswithgreg I've found I prefer pull rather than push on just about any process. Except with vertical MiG, I've found going nearly straight in with a slight push angle helps, otherwise I get puddle dripping and fighting gravity, the little bit of arc force tends to keep the puddle under control going uphill. Drag downhill just isn't working for me, but I'm just a newbie beginner.