If you have a piece of copper plate or even a piece of copper round pipe clamped against the back of the gap to take your heat away will work. With that gap, you have to get a heat sink behind it to cool down the weld. Also if you want less warpage you have to tack every inch first then then alternate again with your tacks until you fill up the gaps between tacks. Cheers
@@edyy6619 it does help, now they act like it’s so scandalous to do if the manufacturer doesn’t allow it but whatever. There’s a lot more pros than cons to it
@@JohnnyBravo02 yeah they want procedures to be done correct but sometimes you cut your panel to big end up with a wide gap to weld. Id rather have a backing have my welds hold than risk ripping off the whole section in an accident.
Thank you so much. I have watched a ton of videos on welding. I struggled years ago with my youngest son on shaving a VW GTI doors. Three sets of door panels finally got it. Wish I had seen this years ago. This was the most informative video I have seen on developing the correct MIG process for thin metal
@@ACDesignsGarage what amperage are you on? I'm new. I got the wire speed but don't know what "1 volt" you mean 100 volt? I'm still shopping for mig welder.
Hi, I have a little tip, I have been welding in thin sheet metal for many years and I can see that you are pointing the welding wire and the heat towards the hot points, try pointing the welding wire and the heat away from the points instead. if you do that, you point the heat at colder metal and you don't burn through as easily
Thanks for showing me how to weld together 22 gauge metal. I want to learn how to do this as I want to make a metal sculpture for my wife. It’s helpful how to know how to tack and weld this super thin metal. Thanks, I really enjoyed your video.
Awesome so glad i could help!!! Here is a video I made a while back on making a steel rose from sheet metal, hope you enjoy!!! ua-cam.com/video/p9RKpLa1QKg/v-deo.htmlsi=Vx2jJQQi3I5TtG4X
Hi Adrian, thanks for the tips. I’m welding new patch panels I’m making to rusty 100 year old metal. I started with my tig and the tacs were beautiful, then I ran out of gas. Switched to my mig flux core and used your tips from last time and it came out really nice, just more grinding req’d. I appreciate what you do. Thanks.
Found your channel yesterday, after watching this, I need to completely scrap my whatever approach to welding sheet to follow your recommendations here. I'll pick up some pieces from my local metal yard cut bin and start my re-education. Thanks AC.
@@ACDesignsGarage It helped today. I'm working on a 'low poly garden sculpture' and focused on edge alignment over jump gaps. Also tweaked welder, got great small tacks like you showed here. Thanks again.
thanks for this video I think its gonna help my problem I was having welding thin stuff. I discovered 3 things I was doing wrong from this. one was using my roll lock to clean the metal. two was I was turning heat and wire speed down when I blew thru. and three IM NOT A WELDER hahah. its alot harder than it looks Ill post an updater when I get at my project
Really great video. Plenty of folks show blowing air at the weld, which seems controversial..?, but you're actually showing how to adjust the settings. I think my more modern machine uses different numbers, but I can figure that out. Thanks for putting this out there!
MIG welders do add more amps with the wire feed speed; so turning up the 'speed' also turns up the power/heat. That's why your chart for C25 suggested '1/12' for 22g. Have you not noticed that the arc/puddle/HAZ is much larger/brighter on 'higher feed'?
It only really comes into play on continuous welds. With this type of tack welding the extra wire feed tends to cool the puddle. A lot of welders think their beads flatten out towards the end of a long bead on thick metal because of heat soak allowing the puddle to flow when in fact the amperage is rising to accommodate the wire feed rate which the hotter metal allows for. With short circuit wire feed welding high wire feed rates cause a more continuous short circuit raising the amperage, a dead short (most amperage) is sticking the wire, the slightest short (least amperage) is when you burn back to the tip. One dial is Voltage the other dial is wire speed, so amperage is a factor of the 2. I'm sure some expensive new welders can adjust this effect but if you only have Voltage and wire feed settings on your welder then wire feed rate absolutely affects amperage.
Thank you. Picked up a few tips. Trying to teach myself MIG welding and blowing holes. Will try increasing the feed rate. Still practicing before I tackle rocker panels.
Best video for welding thin sheet metal I have seen, and I have watched a bunch. I am working on a 1970 Datsun and the metal is 22 gauge and I have been having a hard time trying to weld. It looks like I have my heat and wire speed too low, will try again tomorrow.
You have been a huge help. I’m restoring a 68 short bed ford all my self. Not the best welder. I’ve built roll cages but never any body panels till now
I use a jeweler’s torch with oxyacetylene on 22 for expansion chambers. Hold the flame tangent to the curve of the two cones then bring the the inner flame in to fuse the joint, with practice you can walk around a curved or flat pretty fast. Adjust the torch to a fine flame cone. I don’t use any rod just fuse the joints together. I’ve never had a broken pipe. Every one uses tig or mig, but I think oxyacetylene with a fine 000 or better works well a lot faster than either tig or mig.
I still use an oxy/acetylene set with a Dylan/Cobra/Henrobe hand torch. It uses fine, small precision torch tips and is fantastic in thin sheet metal with practice. It's also a great tool for brazing and silver soldering. Oxy/Acetylene torches are something of a lost art these days with all the electronically controlled welders available today. I still have a 30 year old fully manually adjusted MIG welder that I use for welding heavier/thicker steel pieces together. Great presentation.
I welded heavier materials for years and had to learn the hard way for sheet metal. UA-cam has helped immensely. I like the way you showed how charts on a welder are not the end all but a start. They do help for thicker materials. If you really want to know your penetration and strength do a couple destructive tests like bending back and forth. You can also cut the seam afterwards and see if the weld is solid or has pockets. I think the 2 & 70 setting would cause more heat and distortion. Also degreasing the metal makes a huge difference before welding. Thanks for a great video.
On 22 gauge you'll get that gap automatically even when its butted up because the heat of the weld is pulling the metal back during the process, but is then covered up immediately by the molten metal.
I use 0.030 and gap. I'm able to use a lower heat and speed setting than I used with 0.023. The thicker wire carries more current allowing lower settings.
Thanks for the great video. I have to do a lot of welding on my cars and it is a PIA with the thin metal. I am always playing with the settings trying to get a good weld. BTW, I am sure you know this, but some of your audience may not know that the numbers on the Voltage for the Millermatic are not actual output Volts. The Machine goes from 10 to 23 volts give or take, so the number 1 is probably around 10 volts and 2 is like 12v -14v or something like that. Thanks again for your video, it is really helpful.
Thank you, yeah I have trouble with people understanding the ole 1-5 on the voltage side of things, but I find it easier, guess cause im use to it lol. Thanks for watching!!!
What I learned from trial and error is to avoid having a gap or just a hair line gap at the most to avoid blowing holes. Both panels will join as the heat will melt them together and where possible, place a large heat sink behind it like Copper or Aluminum. That’s how I managed to weld thin metals. It is a joke some of the replacement aftermarket panels are actually made out of 22 gage steel. I actually had to fabricate my pieces from and 18 gage and sometimes 16 gage steel because 22 gage cannot take the heat and if it did, it gets even thinner when you grind the welds.
Awesome hope it helped, below is a link to video I did a while back on making a rose from sheetmetal if you want to check it out. ua-cam.com/video/p9RKpLa1QKg/v-deo.html
When I'm welding using a series of spot welds, I have to jump right back for the next spot before the metal cools. If I wait for the "orange glow" to die, then when I start the next spot, the welder starts with a "studded". I see you always wait for the ""glow" to disappear before you make your next "spot/tack". What is going on with my welding??
Thanks for the video. My issue doing cab corners is, I can’t get the Dolley behind to hammer it flat, so it’s SLOW going to try and keep from warping. I like to use compressed air, or in a pinch you can use air duster. I’m not a professional by any means (hence, why I’m watching different videos for techniques).
I know exactly what your talking about. Those cab corners can be tough. Keep your gaps tight as possible and keep it cool like your doing. That air duster is a great idea!!! The one thing i try to do is cut my cab corners higher so I can hammer my welds and get to them easier.
My Chevelle got hit by a drunk driver on Christmas Eve last year. Not super bad, but needs some welding on the rear 1/4 panel skin. I have been dealing with burn through with the exact same machine. I thought my wire was coming out too fast on the lowest feed setting. I was doing the opposite. Also need thinner wire. I have been using .035. Got so frustrated, I went and bought a tig welder.
Glad you're OK. Keep your gap tight as possible and take your time and cool it and last but not least get 0.030 or 0.023 wire if you can and youll do fine. Thanks for watching!!!
Thank you good luck on your journey, here is a link to my welding playlist, maybe it can help you out there are 27 videos in there I think. ua-cam.com/play/PLly0wFZ3b0EUfw-y66mVLdVwVd8CsHqgZ.html&si=ZJ-gjdWzdt2i_oCY
You see that 20 ga is as low as you can go with co2. That’s understandable. It’s a reactive gas and really even 20 ga is a bit thin for that. Yeah, co2 is cheap, but causes embrittlement and weaker welds. The thinner the material, the worse it is. You, like most of us, use 75/25 so 22 ga is fine. Also using .023 or .024 wire (with the right diameter liner, roller and tips!) helps a lot with really thin work.
On the gap you need more voltage and less wire speed. Maybe try 2 and 40 to start. Believe it or not the higher wire speed does finely increase voltage as well.
Can you use the same method on floor pans? I have an 85 Chevy Camaro. That the driver's side floor PAN is pretty bad and I do have the PAN ready to go in. Never done it before. But I do have a welder going to give it a go
If you are running 75% Argon / 25% Co2, why did you read off the chart on your welder for 100% Co2? Just a mistake I assume. I used 20 CFH regardless, but then I did a little experiment and discovered I can really turn it down for thin sheet metal. Now I go thru the gas half as fast and the welds are the same quality. I weld thin gage steel exactly like you have shown. No gap and as high a heat as I can get that bacon to sizzle without blowouts. Good Job!
Lol my mistake, trying to remember all the crap I have to say, I get tripped up sometimes lol, I dont script my videos, but I probably should hahahaha thanks for watching!!!
Not actually stated is ...LESSON LEARNED ...."no point in using a gap when welding thin material" ......now begin experimenting with the settings. And by the way, this is NOT "SUPER Thin Metal" ....not even close. .
What your not able to do, I have no problems doing. What welder are you using? I do just fine with a Lincoln 140 with gas & 0.023 wire for 22 gauge and aim at edge of the metal and puddle jumps over. Then from there I stack down the center. It looks your welder is to Hot for 22 gauge.
Thank you, yes I made a video a while back, ill put the link to the video below this comment, hope it helps!!!! ua-cam.com/video/kzTIGS7wuKk/v-deo.htmlsi=GG_ap4KNuOkbVR9t
What worked for me is instead of starting from the top I begin about an inch and a half away from the bottom tack. Run my weld to the bottom then begin above that about inch and a half away from where I started my last weld so the weld heat can dissipate away from the area where my next weld will end. I really hope I explained that correctly. Hope it helps someone out and great video brother.
Dont sell those small Miller's anymore, had mine stole. Got a Lincoln 140 I've gotta dial in this week, not an inverter, old heavy copper type so shouldn't be to different i hope. Always used .030 any smaller and i blew holes. Think i usually set it at 2 and 60, was the 110v 70amp.
If it were a welding test id say maybe not, really depends on what there looking for. And also it really depends on the thickness of the thinnest material. If it were 16 ga. Id say just straight weld it but thinner than that its gonna be tough not stich welding it..But as for sheet metal on body pannel and floor pans id say go for it.
12:03 well... I am glad I am not the only one burning holes through it. Waiting for the metal to cool down all the way each time, holding something non-conductive behind it, using a thin filler piece seemed to be the only way I managed. Tapping each side then trying to slowly drag the weld over, kind of worked for me as well but took a lot of wire and was a bit messy, if I start further in (like you are) it would probably work better.
If your heat settings are right you should have 100% penetration. Do you some practice pannels and mess with your settings till you get the results you like.
I learned how to weld 26ga dam that’s hard melts like butter but with 22ga I use the Tac method with full penetration then use a wire bush to clean the weld
Thank you for the information, question if you are welding like a roof how long do you weld? should you move around? and last should you you use air to cool your wels??
Great video. I’m doing the same thing but using FCAW. Lincoln 140 machine. I am on the lowest voltage and very slow feed speed. To prevent blow thru this is best approach right? I’m welding in a rocker panel patch with 22ga.
I haven't messed much with FCAW. I just bought some fluxcore wire to try to do a video on sheet metal to see if I could help you guys out that wasnt runnin gas. Id say get some scrap and mess around with settings. Try your low setting and add more wire ,sometimes when you introduce more wire it cools the weld. Try to increase in small increments till you get the best results. Super short tacs as fast as you can may help. Make sure to subscribe and ill see if I can get a video out soon. Let me know how it goes!!!!
the quarter panel patch panel I need to do...I can't get behind it to dolly it after I weld it. How do I fix the warping that you beat out in this situation? Excellent video, thank you for sharing!
Thank you!!! Those are kinda tricky, there is 2 ways that I do them. First is to weld very slowly and cool after every tac and take your time fitting your patch as perfect as you can. The other method is if you can cut the brace out thats in your way till you get your patch welded in and hammered out ,then weld the brace back in. Just becareful that it's not structural , ive done this on front fenders alot, hope this helps!!!!
If you ever use flux core wire… I’d like you to do a similar comparison. I’m not sure it’s even possible to get decent results. Just wanted to get your opinion.
the chart on the welder doesn't have setting for 100% CO2. But if you look at 25Argon-75%CO2 as you have it also, then there is setting of 12 to 1 for it :)
@@ACDesignsGarage no advantage for thin metal. 100% CO2 will give you a hotter arc and more penetration on thick steel. Its a lot cheaper and lasts longer cause its in liquid form in the tank as appose to just gas state for 25/75. But produce more spatter and doesn't give a nice looking weld... but it certainly is not applicable for thin metal.
Really liking the information and techniques you are posting. Thanks a lot! I know you like air tools, but I would like to see flap disk grinding disks for electric 90 degree high speed grinders on your Amazon product lists. I haven’t seen them linked in any of your videos. I like that metal and wire gauge measuring tool too. I’d like to buy them through your Amazon links.
Thank you for supporting my channel, ill try and go put links to several flapper wheels on this video in the description if you want to check back, and thanks again for helping out the channel!!!!
Excellent tutorial. Thank you. Have 2 old cars needing this now. I'm down to the Yes Welder or the Prime Weld machine. Similar price points. Will be glad to get you review... On these type welds how do you go about prepping for paint/prime?
Thank you, Im fixin to do a video on how to prep and paint from start to finish soon.I have a yeswelder and did a review on it also have a discount code ACDESIGNS it will save you 10% . Video link below ua-cam.com/video/DFhg9Wq-iHs/v-deo.html
Here is a basic question, but i have to ask. How is the working piece grounded? Or is your whole table a ground? Love the video, these tips will help immensely when I get into my car project.
Thanks for the question, my ground clamp is on that plate that im working onand its also on a metal table, I just moved it down so it was out of the way.
You should be able to, the easy way is to go to your chart on your welder and set it up to the recommendation then tune it in up or down with some practice pieces. Hope this helps!!
Any recommendations for an online source for practice sheet metal? Also, would be interested to see a demo on welding a piece of sheet metal to a thicker piece of bar stock (fillet and butt joints).
Quick question. Sorry if it’s dumb, but when tack welding do you start on one side and drag the melted metal to the other side or do you just weld right in the center of both sheets of metal. I was told not to tack weld right in center because it could burn through but these tack welds look perfectly centered. Thanks
There are no dumb questions, thats how you get better. You can tac it in the center like I did on this video if your fit up is prety tight. If you have a decent size gap you'll have to start on one side and wash over. Its no biggie if you blow through, just keep tacin till you fill the hole. Thanks for the question!!!!!!
I’ve given up trying to butt weld 22 ga zinc coated auto body panels. Sure, if you skip around the panel leaving a 1” gap, letting those tacks cool naturally, then doing another round leaving a 1/2” gap, you will have ALMOST no warpage. Great! Now the warpage and shrinkage begins. WELDING CAUSES SHRINKAGE! Connecting ALL the spots has a cumulative effect. I don’t care how cool you keep the panel, the end result is serious warping. You cannot hammer and dolly this crappy metal straight. You also cannot grind the front surface flat without pinholes everywhere. Any paint job will fail! I’m convinced that using Panel Bonding Adhesive using a contour matching backing strip is the way to go. No warpage, super strong bond and waterproof seam!
I just learned something about wire feed, thanks. But I have a bigger problem, on the car I'm working on the sheet metal from manufactor was 22 gauge. But when they put that 22 gauge in a big press to form the floor board, fender etc, the metal stretches and gets even thinner. Now I'm trying to weld it and it just burnes a hole because the metal is so much thinner than the orginial 22 gauge. You got any tips and trix? Thanks.
Thank you, sometimes you can cut up your wire feed a lil more can help with blowing through. Find you some scrap 22ga. And play around with your settings ,turning them up and down till you find your sweet spot. Hope this helps, and thanks for watching!!!!
Im gonna say it was 70 on my miller but im not sure that its acurate for inches per minute, I think its just a irrelevant number on the old machines. I have a new machine and ill be doing another video in the future and you have the accurate numbers.
Best video I’ve seen on mig welding lighter gauge metals
Thank you for the kind words and support 🙏
If you have a piece of copper plate or even a piece of copper round pipe clamped against the back of the gap to take your heat away will work. With that gap, you have to get a heat sink behind it to cool down the weld. Also if you want less warpage you have to tack every inch first then then alternate again with your tacks until you fill up the gaps between tacks. Cheers
Can do that if you’re sectioning in a quarter panel and have no access behind the panel
@@JohnnyBravo02 thats the only part i hate doing quarters like 30 minutes to weld 6inch bead unless you do metal backing helpsm
@@edyy6619 it does help, now they act like it’s so scandalous to do if the manufacturer doesn’t allow it but whatever. There’s a lot more pros than cons to it
@@JohnnyBravo02 yeah they want procedures to be done correct but sometimes you cut your panel to big end up with a wide gap to weld. Id rather have a backing have my welds hold than risk ripping off the whole section in an accident.
I figured the last part out since it seems logical, but having a backing is a great suggestion. (when possible)
Thank you so much. I have watched a ton of videos on welding. I struggled years ago with my youngest son on shaving a VW GTI doors. Three sets of door panels finally got it. Wish I had seen this years ago. This was the most informative video I have seen on developing the correct MIG process for thin metal
Thank you very much, so glad I could help!!!!
@@ACDesignsGarage what amperage are you on? I'm new. I got the wire speed but don't know what "1 volt" you mean 100 volt? I'm still shopping for mig welder.
@@ACDesignsGarage I'm buying a gasless flux mig so I can build my van. Would you be able to weld thin metal like this video using gasless flux mig?
Hi, I have a little tip, I have been welding in thin sheet metal for many years and I can see that you are pointing the welding wire and the heat towards the hot points, try pointing the welding wire and the heat away from the points instead. if you do that, you point the heat at colder metal and you don't burn through as easily
Thanks for the tip ill try that.
Thanks for showing me how to weld together 22 gauge metal. I want to learn how to do this as I want to make a metal sculpture for my wife. It’s helpful how to know how to tack and weld this super thin metal. Thanks, I really enjoyed your video.
Awesome so glad i could help!!! Here is a video I made a while back on making a steel rose from sheet metal, hope you enjoy!!!
ua-cam.com/video/p9RKpLa1QKg/v-deo.htmlsi=Vx2jJQQi3I5TtG4X
Excellent video!! I learned a couple things that I had never even considered before.
Awesome, thank you for watching!!!
Tip: putting the thick copper plate below. Tight to thin plate before welding. Use wire Weldinger SG2 Ti, 0,023’.
Awesome thank you for the tips!!!
You are the first welder I have subbed. I like your approach, methods, explanations. This from a retired high school teacher.
Thank you very much for the kind words, if you have any requests on videos let me know!!!!
Hi Adrian, thanks for the tips. I’m welding new patch panels I’m making to rusty 100 year old metal. I started with my tig and the tacs were beautiful, then I ran out of gas. Switched to my mig flux core and used your tips from last time and it came out really nice, just more grinding req’d. I appreciate what you do. Thanks.
Thank you Bill your very welcome!! I've been folling your t bucket build that's gonna be awesome, and I love your Sunday night message!!!!
@@ACDesignsGarage Thanks Adrian. I’ll be doing a mail call soon. You’re paint shaker and shirt will definitely be part 👍
Found your channel yesterday, after watching this, I need to completely scrap my whatever approach to welding sheet to follow your recommendations here. I'll pick up some pieces from my local metal yard cut bin and start my re-education. Thanks AC.
Thank you for watching ,I hope it helped you!!!
@@ACDesignsGarage It helped today. I'm working on a 'low poly garden sculpture' and focused on edge alignment over jump gaps. Also tweaked welder, got great small tacks like you showed here. Thanks again.
thanks for this video I think its gonna help my problem I was having welding thin stuff. I discovered 3 things I was doing wrong from this. one was using my roll lock to clean the metal. two was I was turning heat and wire speed down when I blew thru. and three IM NOT A WELDER hahah. its alot harder than it looks Ill post an updater when I get at my project
Awesome hope it helps!!! Let me know how it goes!!!
Really great video. Plenty of folks show blowing air at the weld, which seems controversial..?, but you're actually showing how to adjust the settings. I think my more modern machine uses different numbers, but I can figure that out. Thanks for putting this out there!
Awesome so glad it helped, make sure to subscribe, I'm gonna bring out my 66 vw beetle soon and do a little work on it I hope lol
MIG welders do add more amps with the wire feed speed; so turning up the 'speed' also turns up the power/heat. That's why your chart for C25 suggested '1/12' for 22g. Have you not noticed that the arc/puddle/HAZ is much larger/brighter on 'higher feed'?
Might be true on newer MIGs, but my old one from the 80's don't change the amps with wire speed.
All MIGs do it. From buzz boxes to inverters
It only really comes into play on continuous welds. With this type of tack welding the extra wire feed tends to cool the puddle. A lot of welders think their beads flatten out towards the end of a long bead on thick metal because of heat soak allowing the puddle to flow when in fact the amperage is rising to accommodate the wire feed rate which the hotter metal allows for. With short circuit wire feed welding high wire feed rates cause a more continuous short circuit raising the amperage, a dead short (most amperage) is sticking the wire, the slightest short (least amperage) is when you burn back to the tip. One dial is Voltage the other dial is wire speed, so amperage is a factor of the 2. I'm sure some expensive new welders can adjust this effect but if you only have Voltage and wire feed settings on your welder then wire feed rate absolutely affects amperage.
Thank you. Picked up a few tips. Trying to teach myself MIG welding and blowing holes. Will try increasing the feed rate. Still practicing before I tackle rocker panels.
Your doing it right, practice on scrap first! If you have any questions let me know!!!
Thanks for making this demonstration! I'm just watching as many videos on car metal as I can and this is helpful.
Thanks for watching ,so glad it helped!!!!!
Best video for welding thin sheet metal I have seen, and I have watched a bunch. I am working on a 1970 Datsun and the metal is 22 gauge and I have been having a hard time trying to weld. It looks like I have my heat and wire speed too low, will try again tomorrow.
Thank you very much ,good luck, remember take your time and keep it cool ,keep your gaps tight as possible and youll do fine!
Running into it right now..first time ever welding and your video is definitely helping so thanks!
Awesome so glad it helped!!!!
You have been a huge help. I’m restoring a 68 short bed ford all my self. Not the best welder. I’ve built roll cages but never any body panels till now
Awesome thank you, so glad I could help. I had a 67 f100 short bed years ago, wish I still had it!!!
100% agree on the practice on scrap and CLEAN metal (not ground too thin)
I use a jeweler’s torch with oxyacetylene on 22 for expansion chambers. Hold the flame tangent to the curve of the two cones then bring the the inner flame in to fuse the joint, with practice you can walk around a curved or flat pretty fast. Adjust the torch to a fine flame cone. I don’t use any rod just fuse the joints together. I’ve never had a broken pipe. Every one uses tig or mig, but I think oxyacetylene with a fine 000 or better works well a lot faster than either tig or mig.
Awesome, id love to try that!!!!
I still use an oxy/acetylene set with a Dylan/Cobra/Henrobe hand torch. It uses fine, small precision torch tips and is fantastic in thin sheet metal with practice. It's also a great tool for brazing and silver soldering. Oxy/Acetylene torches are something of a lost art these days with all the electronically controlled welders available today. I still have a 30 year old fully manually adjusted MIG welder that I use for welding heavier/thicker steel pieces together. Great presentation.
Thanks for the tip. Wire speed! Mow I know to put more wire on that thin stuff. Awesome!
Awesome thanks, good luck on your welding adventures!!!!
I welded heavier materials for years and had to learn the hard way for sheet metal. UA-cam has helped immensely. I like the way you showed how charts on a welder are not the end all but a start. They do help for thicker materials. If you really want to know your penetration and strength do a couple destructive tests like bending back and forth. You can also cut the seam afterwards and see if the weld is solid or has pockets. I think the 2 & 70 setting would cause more heat and distortion. Also degreasing the metal makes a huge difference before welding. Thanks for a great video.
Thank you for the comments and the support!!!!
Millermatic 200 manual says to reverse polarity to weld .023 and thin sheet metal , it lowers the heat
That Miller is a sweet unit. I'm using 20 ga. It's taking some time to dial it in. I use a paint pen and write the settings on my table. Works 4 me.
Thank you, yeah I do the same thing, you can look at my table sometimes and see sharpie notes on my welding table lol
On 22 gauge you'll get that gap automatically even when its butted up because the heat of the weld is pulling the metal back during the process, but is then covered up immediately by the molten metal.
I agree ,thats why I suggest making it fit as tight as possible because metal shrinks when you weld it, thanks for the comment 👍
Thanks a lot for making this video, very helpful
Thank you for the support,I hope it helped!!!
I use 0.030 and gap. I'm able to use a lower heat and speed setting than I used with 0.023. The thicker wire carries more current allowing lower settings.
Also hammer and dollying mig welds might crack the weld. Mig welds are much harder than tig welds.
Thanks for the great video. I have to do a lot of welding on my cars and it is a PIA with the thin metal. I am always playing with the settings trying to get a good weld. BTW, I am sure you know this, but some of your audience may not know that the numbers on the Voltage for the Millermatic are not actual output Volts. The Machine goes from 10 to 23 volts give or take, so the number 1 is probably around 10 volts and 2 is like 12v -14v or something like that. Thanks again for your video, it is really helpful.
Thank you, yeah I have trouble with people understanding the ole 1-5 on the voltage side of things, but I find it easier, guess cause im use to it lol. Thanks for watching!!!
What I learned from trial and error is to avoid having a gap or just a hair line gap at the most to avoid blowing holes. Both panels will join as the heat will melt them together and where possible, place a large heat sink behind it like Copper or Aluminum. That’s how I managed to weld thin metals. It is a joke some of the replacement aftermarket panels are actually made out of 22 gage steel. I actually had to fabricate my pieces from and 18 gage and sometimes 16 gage steel because 22 gage cannot take the heat and if it did, it gets even thinner when you grind the welds.
I totally agree, i have blocks of aluminum I like to clamp on, especially when I'm tig welding super thin stuff. A tight fit is key!!!!!
Excellent presentation, really well explained step by step…….. thumbs up 👍
Thank you very much!!!!
Thank you for this, I've been working with thin metal trying my hand at some art, this was very helpful
Awesome hope it helped, below is a link to video I did a while back on making a rose from sheetmetal if you want to check it out.
ua-cam.com/video/p9RKpLa1QKg/v-deo.html
Great video! I now know what I need to do to stop blowing through my late 80’s Nissan. 80’s Japan metal is SO thin. Lol.
Awesome I hope it helps, I know about that that thin metal, i have a 94 nissan hardbody pickup
@@ACDesignsGarage oh nice! Are these settings good for that thin Nissan metal?
Trys 80s land cruisers, metal so thick you can sandblast it without warping
@@janeblogs324 i love fj's my dad had one years ago.
Thank you so much
Thanks for watching
Thanks Adrain. Be blessed
Thank you very much!!!!!!
Very informative and helped me to understand the differences of metal movement. Very nice video. Look forward to seeing more of them. Thanks
Thank you, I hope it helped. Im filming another one this week. Thanks for watching!!!
Thanks for your response my friend, very helpful,!
Nice work.
Thanks for sharing the process.
Take care, Ed.
Thank you and thanks for watching!!!
When I'm welding using a series of spot welds, I have to jump right back for the next spot before the metal cools. If I wait for the "orange glow" to die, then when I start the next spot, the welder starts with a "studded". I see you always wait for the ""glow" to disappear before you make your next "spot/tack". What is going on with my welding??
Maybe try turning up the heat a little at a time and see if that helps!!!
I have and old Miller 130xp and I set it on 2 and almost 60 it dose about like yours. PS Thanks for all the tips over the years 😃
Thank you for your continued support, its greatly appreciated!!!!!
Thanks dude! I learned a thing or two.
Awesome, thank you for watching!!!
Thanks for the video. My issue doing cab corners is, I can’t get the Dolley behind to hammer it flat, so it’s SLOW going to try and keep from warping. I like to use compressed air, or in a pinch you can use air duster. I’m not a professional by any means (hence, why I’m watching different videos for techniques).
I know exactly what your talking about. Those cab corners can be tough. Keep your gaps tight as possible and keep it cool like your doing. That air duster is a great idea!!! The one thing i try to do is cut my cab corners higher so I can hammer my welds and get to them easier.
@@ACDesignsGarage thanks for the advice man, I appreciate it. I’ll try cutting them higher, as the patch panel is oversized and will allow that.
Be careful, that air duster is often freon and becomes toxic with heat.
My Chevelle got hit by a drunk driver on Christmas Eve last year. Not super bad, but needs some welding on the rear 1/4 panel skin. I have been dealing with burn through with the exact same machine. I thought my wire was coming out too fast on the lowest feed setting. I was doing the opposite. Also need thinner wire. I have been using .035. Got so frustrated, I went and bought a tig welder.
Glad you're OK. Keep your gap tight as possible and take your time and cool it and last but not least get 0.030 or 0.023 wire if you can and youll do fine. Thanks for watching!!!
Best video for me a one week rookie
Thank you good luck on your journey, here is a link to my welding playlist, maybe it can help you out there are 27 videos in there I think.
ua-cam.com/play/PLly0wFZ3b0EUfw-y66mVLdVwVd8CsHqgZ.html&si=ZJ-gjdWzdt2i_oCY
You see that 20 ga is as low as you can go with co2. That’s understandable. It’s a reactive gas and really even 20 ga is a bit thin for that. Yeah, co2 is cheap, but causes embrittlement and weaker welds. The thinner the material, the worse it is. You, like most of us, use 75/25 so 22 ga is fine.
Also using .023 or .024 wire (with the right diameter liner, roller and tips!) helps a lot with really thin work.
Thanks for the tips!!!
On the gap you need more voltage and less wire speed. Maybe try 2 and 40 to start. Believe it or not the higher wire speed does finely increase voltage as well.
Ok thanks ill try that
Thanks for teaching us ,I need it.
Thank you for the kind words!!!!
Can you use the same method on floor pans? I have an 85 Chevy Camaro. That the driver's side floor PAN is pretty bad and I do have the PAN ready to go in. Never done it before. But I do have a welder going to give it a go
Oh yeah you should be good. Just do a little practice piece to set up your welder to make sure you have good penetration!!!! Thanks for watching!!!!
Fiber Roloc disc's are awesome for preparing sheet metal for welding. Extra clean with little metal removal
I love those fiber rolocs
If you are running 75% Argon / 25% Co2, why did you read off the chart on your welder for 100% Co2? Just a mistake I assume.
I used 20 CFH regardless, but then I did a little experiment and discovered I can really turn it down for thin sheet metal. Now I go thru the gas half as fast and the welds are the same quality.
I weld thin gage steel exactly like you have shown. No gap and as high a heat as I can get that bacon to sizzle without blowouts.
Good Job!
Lol my mistake, trying to remember all the crap I have to say, I get tripped up sometimes lol, I dont script my videos, but I probably should hahahaha thanks for watching!!!
I enjoyed watching the video and appreciate the time effort and coverage of the work done 👍
Thank you very much!!!!!
Not actually stated is ...LESSON LEARNED ...."no point in using a gap when welding thin material" ......now begin experimenting with the settings.
And by the way, this is NOT "SUPER Thin Metal" ....not even close.
.
Thank you. Very informative.
Thank you!!!!!!
What your not able to do, I have no problems doing. What welder are you using? I do just fine with a Lincoln 140 with gas & 0.023 wire for 22 gauge and aim at edge of the metal and puddle jumps over. Then from there I stack down the center. It looks your welder is to Hot for 22 gauge.
Great video, thank you wish I found it sooner.
Thank you very much for watching!!!
Watching again, I can have access to some 20g sheets, If i get great at those, I'll be great at 18g.
Your right, the 18 will be a walk in the park!!!!
Thankyou for posting this. Is it possible to weld sheet this thin with flux core?
Thank you, yes I made a video a while back, ill put the link to the video below this comment, hope it helps!!!!
ua-cam.com/video/kzTIGS7wuKk/v-deo.htmlsi=GG_ap4KNuOkbVR9t
Thanks for the demonstrations. It's quite helpful. Cheers.
Thanks for watching!!!!!!
What worked for me is instead of starting from the top I begin about an inch and a half away from the bottom tack. Run my weld to the bottom then begin above that about inch and a half away from where I started my last weld so the weld heat can dissipate away from the area where my next weld will end. I really hope I explained that correctly. Hope it helps someone out and great video brother.
Thanks for the tip, ill try that, always lookin to improve!!!!
Thanks!
Thank you for watching!!!!!
Dont sell those small Miller's anymore, had mine stole. Got a Lincoln 140 I've gotta dial in this week, not an inverter, old heavy copper type so shouldn't be to different i hope. Always used .030 any smaller and i blew holes. Think i usually set it at 2 and 60, was the 110v 70amp.
Yeah thats what id start with, good luck!!!!
If i had to do a weld test if i had to weld that thin type of metal onto a flate plate is it ok to mig using that stitch type style of welding?
If it were a welding test id say maybe not, really depends on what there looking for. And also it really depends on the thickness of the thinnest material. If it were 16 ga. Id say just straight weld it but thinner than that its gonna be tough not stich welding it..But as for sheet metal on body pannel and floor pans id say go for it.
Good video, one minus is the rest of us use the metric system 😀
Yeah I forgot on this video I usually try to add that info, sorry lol thanks for watchin!!!!!
Great video, and great accent 👍
Thank you very much, and thanks for watching!!!!!!
Great tips and a good education
Thank you, hope it helped!!!!!!
Good information. Thanks.
I have a cheep HF Tools 120v Flux core wire welder. Can you do some videos on a 120 v welder?
Thank you, yeah i have a 120 240 yeswelder. Im gonna try to do a flux core on sheet metal soon.
You said you're using 75/25% gas but were looking at the 100% CO2 chart for your speeds.
The 22ga with .023 wire said 1 and 12 for your gas
Very interesting and informative, thank you. Going out now to give it a try!
Awesome go for it, thanks for watching!
Your method works best - yes it does!
Thank you!!!!!!
Thanks I did enjoy your tips
Awesome thank you for watching!!!
Can you weld continually on thin gauge or like you do in the video small spot welds?
You need to do the small spots to keep the temperature down so it doesnt warp as much.
12:03 well... I am glad I am not the only one burning holes through it. Waiting for the metal to cool down all the way each time, holding something non-conductive behind it, using a thin filler piece seemed to be the only way I managed. Tapping each side then trying to slowly drag the weld over, kind of worked for me as well but took a lot of wire and was a bit messy, if I start further in (like you are) it would probably work better.
Awesome thanks for watching, hope it helps!!!
Love this, very informative 👍
Thanks for watching!!!!
Welding two pieces of 18 g end to end. What does the other side look like after mug weld? Thanks ahead.
If your heat settings are right you should have 100% penetration. Do you some practice pannels and mess with your settings till you get the results you like.
Love watching the grassroots of welding! Brought me back to my days working for Don Jacks at Street Metal Fab.
Thanks man, that is my mission I want to share what I've learned over the past 15 years building hotrods.
This helped a lot! Thanks for the great video.
Awesome, glad it helped!!
I learned how to weld 26ga dam that’s hard melts like butter but with 22ga I use the Tac method with full penetration then use a wire bush to clean the weld
Man 26 gettin thin. Thats how I like to do it, get it hot enough to penetrate but not blow through.
So you can weld 26 ga ?
@@ACDesignsGarageSo you can weld 26 ga ? Just start learning and pick up a few pieces of steel but it was 26 ga and was not for sure if you can weld
@awaken9468 you can tac it but it can be real tough to keep from blowing a hole, I need to do a video on it.
Good lesson. Thank you
Thank you for watching!!!!
Thank you for the information, question if you are welding like a roof how long do you weld? should you move around? and last should you you use air to cool your wels??
I move around and cool between each tac to keep distortion down. Thanks for watching!!!!!
Great job brother
Thank you very much!!!!!
Great video. I’m doing the same thing but using FCAW. Lincoln 140 machine. I am on the lowest voltage and very slow feed speed. To prevent blow thru this is best approach right? I’m welding in a rocker panel patch with 22ga.
I haven't messed much with FCAW. I just bought some fluxcore wire to try to do a video on sheet metal to see if I could help you guys out that wasnt runnin gas. Id say get some scrap and mess around with settings. Try your low setting and add more wire ,sometimes when you introduce more wire it cools the weld. Try to increase in small increments till you get the best results. Super short tacs as fast as you can may help. Make sure to subscribe and ill see if I can get a video out soon. Let me know how it goes!!!!
the quarter panel patch panel I need to do...I can't get behind it to dolly it after I weld it. How do I fix the warping that you beat out in this situation? Excellent video, thank you for sharing!
Thank you!!! Those are kinda tricky, there is 2 ways that I do them. First is to weld very slowly and cool after every tac and take your time fitting your patch as perfect as you can. The other method is if you can cut the brace out thats in your way till you get your patch welded in and hammered out ,then weld the brace back in. Just becareful that it's not structural , ive done this on front fenders alot, hope this helps!!!!
@@ACDesignsGarage Thank you, that gives me two options. 🙂
@@bushpilot73 hope it helps!!!!
If you ever use flux core wire… I’d like you to do a similar comparison. I’m not sure it’s even possible to get decent results. Just wanted to get your opinion.
Im no good at flux core, I make a big ole mess with it, it maybe possible but no with me lol ,try it out and let me know how you do!!!
very very helpful. thank you
Thank you for watching
the chart on the welder doesn't have setting for 100% CO2. But if you look at 25Argon-75%CO2 as you have it also, then there is setting of 12 to 1 for it :)
Thanks for the info, ive never tried 100%co2 before, are there any advantages to it?
@@ACDesignsGarage no advantage for thin metal. 100% CO2 will give you a hotter arc and more penetration on thick steel. Its a lot cheaper and lasts longer cause its in liquid form in the tank as appose to just gas state for 25/75. But produce more spatter and doesn't give a nice looking weld... but it certainly is not applicable for thin metal.
@@Amer-yl4gb thank you for the info!!!
what gauge steel do you use for new cars ? can you use galvanized sheet metal if its only available?
New cars probably 20 gauge ,I like my patch to be a the same as factory or a hair thicker than the metal on the car. Most new cars are probably 22ga.
As for galvanized id try to stay away from that stuff. The fumes welding it can cause you to get pretty sick.
Really liking the information and techniques you are posting. Thanks a lot! I know you like air tools, but I would like to see flap disk grinding disks for electric 90 degree high speed grinders on your Amazon product lists. I haven’t seen them linked in any of your videos. I like that metal and wire gauge measuring tool too. I’d like to buy them through your Amazon links.
Thank you for supporting my channel, ill try and go put links to several flapper wheels on this video in the description if you want to check back, and thanks again for helping out the channel!!!!
Excellent tutorial. Thank you. Have 2 old cars needing this now. I'm down to the Yes Welder or the Prime Weld machine. Similar price points. Will be glad to get you review... On these type welds how do you go about prepping for paint/prime?
Thank you, Im fixin to do a video on how to prep and paint from start to finish soon.I have a yeswelder and did a review on it also have a discount code ACDESIGNS it will save you 10% . Video link below
ua-cam.com/video/DFhg9Wq-iHs/v-deo.html
Here is a basic question, but i have to ask. How is the working piece grounded? Or is your whole table a ground? Love the video, these tips will help immensely when I get into my car project.
Thanks for the question, my ground clamp is on that plate that im working onand its also on a metal table, I just moved it down so it was out of the way.
What you did on the speed, like 1/50 or the 2/70 can you do that on a lincoln welder?
You should be able to, the easy way is to go to your chart on your welder and set it up to the recommendation then tune it in up or down with some practice pieces. Hope this helps!!
Any recommendations for an online source for practice sheet metal? Also, would be interested to see a demo on welding a piece of sheet metal to a thicker piece of bar stock (fillet and butt joints).
weldmetalsonline.com/ these guys have an awesome selection. I hope this helps!!!!
Awesome mate
Cheers Rory
Thank you very much!!!
Quick question. Sorry if it’s dumb, but when tack welding do you start on one side and drag the melted metal to the other side or do you just weld right in the center of both sheets of metal. I was told not to tack weld right in center because it could burn through but these tack welds look perfectly centered. Thanks
There are no dumb questions, thats how you get better. You can tac it in the center like I did on this video if your fit up is prety tight. If you have a decent size gap you'll have to start on one side and wash over. Its no biggie if you blow through, just keep tacin till you fill the hole. Thanks for the question!!!!!!
@@ACDesignsGarage thank you !
Great video, Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for watching!!!!!
I’ve given up trying to butt weld 22 ga zinc coated auto body panels. Sure, if you skip around the panel leaving a 1” gap, letting those tacks cool naturally, then doing another round leaving a 1/2” gap, you will have ALMOST no warpage. Great! Now the warpage and shrinkage begins. WELDING CAUSES SHRINKAGE! Connecting ALL the spots has a cumulative effect. I don’t care how cool you keep the panel, the end result is serious warping. You cannot hammer and dolly this crappy metal straight. You also cannot grind the front surface flat without pinholes everywhere. Any paint job will fail! I’m convinced that using Panel Bonding Adhesive using a contour matching backing strip is the way to go. No warpage, super strong bond and waterproof seam!
Can you use flux core to weld body panels?
You can it can be a lil bit of a pain, but doable!!
@@ACDesignsGarage I’m worried that the paint won’t stick to it.
I just learned something about wire feed, thanks. But I have a bigger problem, on the car I'm working on the sheet metal from manufactor was 22 gauge. But when they put that 22 gauge in a big press to form the floor board, fender etc, the metal stretches and gets even thinner. Now I'm trying to weld it and it just burnes a hole because the metal is so much thinner than the orginial 22 gauge. You got any tips and trix? Thanks.
Thank you, sometimes you can cut up your wire feed a lil more can help with blowing through. Find you some scrap 22ga. And play around with your settings ,turning them up and down till you find your sweet spot. Hope this helps, and thanks for watching!!!!
Excellent!
Thank you for watching!!!!!
Great advice! Thanks
Thank you!!!!!
Have you ever used a millermatic 250x? Did you get good results?
I have a old millermatic 185, Im a miller guy for sure, never tried that one but i bet it works great!!!
thank you for this video! helped me a lot! 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩
Awesome so glad it helped!!!!!!!!
what speed do you have the wire coming out at?
Im gonna say it was 70 on my miller but im not sure that its acurate for inches per minute, I think its just a irrelevant number on the old machines. I have a new machine and ill be doing another video in the future and you have the accurate numbers.
keep up the good work
Thank you for watching!!!!