Stainless Steel FCAW without Gas
Вставка
- Опубліковано 2 січ 2025
- Bob will walk us through FCAW for stainless steel without gas.
Download the WELD™ APP, join the welding community, find welding resources, check out our member discounts through our brand partners and links to our podcast and social channels here: linktr.ee/Weld...
Disclaimer: As an Affiliate and Industry Influencer, Weld.com earns from qualifying purchases via our posted links and affiliate links. Videos produced and made available by Weld.com or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, or representatives (collectively, "Weld.com") are provided for informational purposes only. Although every effort has been made to provide the most accurate and useful information from sources believed to be reliable, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability, or usefulness of any information. As tools, products, materials, equipment, techniques, and applicable laws, regulations and ordinances are constantly changing, Weld.com cannot and does not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the information contained herein. Under no circumstances shall Weld.com be responsible or liable in any way for any content, including but not limited to death, injury, errors or omissions in the content, or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of any content communicated in a video, on a website or by other means, whether displayed by Weld.com, or a third party in its original or a modified form. All content is subject to Weld.com and any third party's applicable terms and policies. Carefully review all terms and policies.
ALWAYS USE CAUTION WHEN UTILIZING ANY DISPLAYED TOOLS, EQUIPMENT, TECHNIQUES OR PROCESSES. IF EVER IN DOUBT, CONSULT A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL. ANY RELIANCE ON THE PRESENTED INFORMATION IS STRICTLY AT THE VIEWERS OWN RISK. EACH VIEWER EXPRESSLY AND VOLUNTARILY ASSUMES ANY AND ALL RISKS INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DEATH, DISABILITY, AND/OR SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY RELATED TO THE USAGE OF ANY TOOLS, EQUIPMENT OR TECHNIQUES OR PROCESSES IN THE PRESENTED CONTENT. IN THE EVENT OF AN INJURY IMMEDIATELY SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION.
I'm a professional shipyard production welder with 27 years experience and I must say you guys are the best welders I've ever seen. Your videos keep me very refreshed and I learn something new every time I watch your material. Keep up the good work and I love the fact you take time out to teach a skill that can help many folks earn lots of honest money. Thanks.
Thanks
Based on that alone, I'm subscribing. I own/operate a repair shop and do a decent amount of welding but I know my skill level is nothing compared to a professional welder.
I hope you see this Bob, I gotta say I really appreciate your no BS style of teaching. Good tips and obviously experienced. You talk to the camera how a normal guy talks, not trying to put on a show lol. When I go back for my lvl 3, the instructor who will teach me has the same attitude
For somebody who does all his welding outdoors, this is some very useful information. Thanks for the video.
Finally! A SS FCAW video! This is very useful to me, thank you, sir.
I love this channel! You have made me a poor welder! Considering I started out as an absolutely TERRIBLE welder, that's pretty good! Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge.
I feel the same, i picked up my first welder a few weeks ago, amd all these free youtube channels on learning how to weld are helping a ton. Go from a teribad welder to just a shitty one
Same with me.😜
Very nice to see you being open minded about this stuff instead of discarding it just because of the different feel and appearence during welding. Thanks very much for sharing !
All the best from The Netherlands, Europe.
I purchased this blue demon wire and it save my life to be honest. It works great for a person like me the im learning how to weld and im making my own stainless steel exhaust. Thanks for the info.
How did it turn out? Considering making my own stainless exhaust with this wire.
ab to buy some to weld some flanges onto a stainless steel exhuast
As a farm welder with oxy, AC and new mig I am thrilled to know that there is not another bottle of gas in my future. Now I'm scared to go look for the price. Your work is always great and I'll have watched all of your pertinent videos this year. Your demonstrations are my next practice.
How did the flux core welding go?
Great info Bob. Finally a way to weld SS without so much headache, Thanks much.
i bought this wire and i can confirm it works startlingly well
GREAT VIDEO ! I feared stainless steel welding so much ,I never considered ever trying it .flux-core stainless wire is a game changer !
How did it go?
That backyard thing you mentioned is exactly why I watched this video. Basically everything here rusts. I am looking to make stainless items for my yard.
Thanks Bob great to know there's an option for a hobbiest that doesn't require tri-mix.
Once again Bob great demo of a product i was unaware of. looks like im gonna order a roll In case a stainless repair job shows up, thanks for sharing your skills and knowledge.
I just ordered a roll yesterday, and came across your video today. Looking forward to trying it out.
KEWL 😊 I've never seen ss flux core. thank you for the welding lens in front of the camera not very many videos show that shot. well now I know I can weld stainless without gas. thanks for sharing your time experiences and videos with us.
Great video. I never knew such a thing existed either. How thin a material can you weld with this process? I'd like to try with my powerimig welder
I wonder if one can weld stainless with these cheap 90 amp AC flux core welders? Or only with DC?
I volunteer my 90 amp hazard fraught econo-shitbox as tribute.
Ss Flux runs just like mild steel flux. Just run the Ss a little hotter. Just got certified in Ss flux at my job in a shipyard.
The company I work for uses a couple different flux cored SS wires. We use 1/16th gas shielded wire for out of position work or smaller jobs and a 3/32nd self shielded wire for bigger stuff flat and horizontal only with that wire though. I've noticed the big wire runs more of a globular transfer if your travel speed is too slow, but when it's set right and your travel speed is right it's nearly a spray transfer. The globular transfer on that wire may just be the way it runs. Would like to see another video when you get more familiar with that wire.
Thanks Bob. Your videos are great. I've just started to learn to weld, i've got some pretty nice looking welds happening now, all thanks to your videos. Cheers from Australia
-Cyru5- Thanks for the support.
-Cyru5- gday from WA mate
I'm glad i found this video. It shows how well the results can be using Stainless flux core. I was trying to use this exact wire on my 110v 135a mig and was getting terrible results. And my welder should be fine going by the wire manufacturers specifications. Afterwards i found out i had to set it up as a Decp instead of Decn like usual with regular flux core. Worked much better! Now i just need to improve my welding skills. Thanks for this video!
How do you rate your welds?
This is a great tip. Thanks for mentioning it.
Anyone tried 308lfco from nice tech? I feel like it's easier to use the. Blue demons brand. You also don't have that ball sticking off the end
used this stuff to make myself a nice big mug out of some 1/16" 316 leftover from a job, before I got my tig, worked like a charm
That turned out surprisingly well!
This is very cool, thank you! Indeed a huge advantage particularly when welding stuff for boats. Ordering some now. A little pricey per pound but for occasional use (or on someone else's dime) not bad.
Thank you for the demo! I dont use my gas-less mig very often and have found the wire was getting rusty. I was looking at SS to help with that issue. You answered my question.
You can get coated flux core, I also find storing the wire in an ammo dry box can help alot. Just close the box up in a warb dry area and I find that alone is normally good enough. Of course that does involve unloading the gun each time.
@@rniejx4219 Thank you for the tips.
Just like running the dual shield great job Bob always lots of interesting info excellent
FCAW for s.s. great stuff, im used to 316L 16 ga, or 18ga.
Love the knowledge sharing 💪💪
I definitely haven’t seen ALL y’all’s content, and it WON’T be the same without Bob… however I would absolutely LOVE to see some updated videos on this ✌🏼
just like the old saying learn something new everyday and I have seen that wire on eBay not long ago was wounding how well it would work thank you for all the videos stay safe and have a good day
Wow, A lot of questions when it comes to welding. Different machines, direct current, A/C current, gas mixtures, flux or no-flux, penetration, looks. I guess I like the old days, even McDonalds only had three items on the menu once upon a time. I was there. I started with a crank-top Lincoln on the farm and what ever stick we had laying around, but step-dad and grandad neither knew how to weld. I am reminded of this when looking at burns in the crook of my elbow and once between the big toe welding upside down under a disc & tennis shoes.
Really appreciate your insight and honesty. Very interesting video
Outstanding. Just ordered some. Think this will be awesome since we don't do a lot of stainless work in the shop not having to have an additional three gas mix on hand will be great.
just welded a stainless boiling pot very sofisticated saturation control inverter cross transformer machine i could get rid of the bubble on the end but weld tip to job absulutly critical and used co2 beer gas to asist good luck
Just caught this video. I seem to have missed a few ones the last few years. Because of COVID, I can’t get more gas right now, so I’m doing more flux core than I normally would so as to preserve the gas as long as possible for where I really need it. Pretty much out of argon too, so TIG is out for now. I’m going to buy a roll of this. It seems very useful.
Well well!! I went through this last week and will be going through it again next week. Except I am running 410 flux with 100% co2 and man it does the exact same thing. Big old blobs coming off the wire lol not fun to watch it lay down but it work lol. This wire looks to be the part not having to use gas 👍🏼
This looks like it would be good option to use in my Hobart 140 and doing some small exhaust work
Way to go. Very educational!
The ball on the end is a process known as globular transfer as opposed to spray transfer it usually happens at voltages below 30 volts spray transfer happens at higher voltages. I've seen spray happen at under 30 volts but that is rare.
Very nice welds with what looks like a great product. Thank you, I have been looking for a product to take when I go cruising that I did not have to carry gas on my boat. This looks to be it.
Blue Demon is just a label.. they don't manufacture any consumables themselves. The "ball" at the tip of the wire has to do with how the current flow reacts with the stainless steel strip material used to manufacture the wire. Current flow is much different with s.s. compared to Fe steel.
@Bradley S. did you ever get around to doing it? I picked up a harbor freight flux core welder also and wanting to do the same
Interesting product, definitely an advantage for the occasional S.S job or a small run of S.S . No tri blend gas, would work great outdoors. Many advantages I can see to this product. Great video Bob thanks for bring this to us, I for one will get a roll and mess around with it the ball is a problem but i am sure with use it will not be.
How did the welds go?
@@jotk9440 I am also interested on both your aluminum and SS questions, let me know if they get back to you. Thanks.
Didn't even know flux core stainless was a thing
Logan Spence neither did i
As far as I can tell, there are other flux core wires for stainless from the major welding manufacturers, but they all seem to spec gas too, so are presumably used in what's called "dual shield" welding...
I haven't found any others that say they are to be used without gas...
About $30 a pound, so obviously if you do a lot of stainless, it would be best to get a bottle of gas for your MIG welder... But if you only have a wirefeed welder or are only doing small amounts of stainless work, seems like it would be an excellent solution. Price goes down a bit if you are buying a lot. They have 3 or 4 grades of it.
If anyone knows of a similar no-gas flux core wire for stainless, or has other info on this product, please post it here!
Waaaaiiittt is there such thing as flux core aluminum welding 🤔🤔
yes thats how fuse steel lincoln innersheild nr-211 is aluminum
We have used it for years
anyone notice how quick Bob is with his chipping hammer? that flux core doesnt seem to hump up like gas shielded wire. was always the problem i had w stainless mig. thanx Bob!
Great video and good news for ss welding. Thank you!
I've ran miles of gas shielded stainless flux core but never self shielded. When I saw this product on Amazon I naturally figured it was a typo. Thank for showing this, seems like it would be potentially one hell of a useful product. My only question is, what does a cut & etched cross section look like?? Will it shoot X-ray? Maybe a quick video showing the etch and film on the coupon you already have?
Tony, well see if we can dig this out of the scrap bin and cut it real quick. If we can find it we'll post the pictures over on the forum: www.weld.com/forum/
Definitely like this is a choice for small welding shops 💯
Nice to view your experiences thank you
I used Blue Devil flux core SS wire and what I noticed the weld looked like surface weld, not penetrating to the weld area and balling/clumping.
I've been wondering about this stainless flux core wire, thanks for the video. It makes you think, how long until somebody figures out how to make aluminum flux core wire?
I have been thinking about this for several years . Both straight flux core and dual shield (Flux and gas) , I think it's doable .
E Flanagan I don't know but it might be doable but I say it would be for out in the field only
Blue demon makes aluminum flux core gasless wire.
I think aluminum would be very hard to control with fluxcore - maintaining the narrow margin between optimal heat and blowout with aluminum I don’t think would be easily achieved
I use only gassless flux cored wire for mig welding here in the qeer old corrupt uk 🇬🇧 and had removed the shroud completely as u do not need it for no gas flux core mig welding wire as the shielding gas is produced at the direct heat source weld. Also u can see and control the men weld bead better.
You are seriously skilled. I’ve never welded, but I’m planning on buying a cheap gasless Mig Sealey Mighty Mig 100. Hoping I can make something cool😛💪🤣❤️
will you do a follow up video after you talk to the manufacturer?
My question exactly.
Seems like a good option for your home mechanic to do exhaust work
If your exhaust is too thin, you will blow through. Id suggest sticking with mig, much cleaner and you can control your heat better, just make sure your dialed in on your machine right
@@Ruben901 Could you back it with copper? I am a home guy without the cash for a whole bunch of different gas bottles, so it would really open up some options, and I want to do a bike exhaust.
Actually runs pretty good on exhaust without blowing through. I bought a roll to tack my exhaust together before using tig to do the final welds. May just use this stuff for all the welds.
Wow , I gotta try some of that, interesting wire , will you be doing an update after you speak to the manufacturer?
I want to use this to try and weld some slip fit stainless exhaust pipe and probably some V band clamps. I hope my welds look that good. I will practice of some scrap first. I see they sell this in .030 as well. Would that work better for the thinner exhaust pipe stuff?
Not sure how the polarity is on your welder but I reversed it on my Hobart 185 and it seems to lay down better and the ball on the end is smaller
Do you need to change the polarity on the welder to run Flux cored?
This is my theory about the strange tip ball: the inner flux is boiling right before the sorrounding metal melts and it produces a tiny amount of pressure that explains the formation of the tiny ball.
Maybe? Maybe not?
DCEP??? Really??? I've always thought that flux core "must" be run DCEN. This is an amazing break through if it is a standard welding process with this wire. Thanks for the video, and I'm going to have to try this on my Lincoln 140HD, yes a Home Depot machine. Will it work as well at 0.025 as well as the 0.035, with varying voltages/amp draws, and at what arc length? You used this flux core wire as a "push" too, (Slag = Drag???) Holy Cow! I'd have thought you'd get MEGA "porosity" from the slag build-up from in front of the puddle. I'd like to hear more about this wire, and it's abilities.
Please do a series on thin gauge welding from 18 to 26 Ag. Stock that a person could do cheap at home. Show how to weld Weld copper to copper & copper to Nickel, all gass-less
Another great video. Can this be done as a dual shield process?
Now for the home guy like myself I think this would work well for exhaust. I'm planning out my exhaust for my 73 dodge and don't need to go get a whole new gas bottle for stainless. Would love to tig it bit don't have that. Does it do good on thin material like exhaust pipe?
thanks for watching this video,,, greetings from stainless steel beginners
Nice content!
Very helpful. Thanks for sharing.
I don’t weld stainless often but this could be the ticket 💯
Thank Bob for making this great video!! I wonder if you could use this for thin sheet metal with a tig welder? You may not have to back purge pipe welds? Let me know what you think.
Can do a duel shield process with the wire?
Hey shield, I challenge you to a duel.
@@Fringeless Yes, you can usually see a prettier weld from a dual shield on gasless fluxcore even though it's a waste of gas/money as my ex-employer said. He liked to cry over shit like that.
awesome you got my subscribe and will be using this technique for a turbo project
it looks like a globular weld transfer.
does that change where you could use it?
could it be used for open root light tube. like exhaust pipe.
Bob did you do any testing after the video for penetration
christopher newton No sir. Still want to get with manufacturer.
Be curious how this stuff works overhead or pretty much anything but flat on the table. The little molten ball on the wire is what makes me wonder..
stainless steel welding with flux wire, very interesting. waiting to see your solution for the ball on the end of the wire that you talked about.
I've ran that wire in 035 and I didn't have any technical specs for it. I ran it on DCEN and didn't have of the ball stuff going on... I only had a 1lb spool so I didn't get to try too much stuff. I was taught that DCEN was for preheating the Flux on self shielded wires to get proper slag coverage. Maybe this was wrong.... Let me know because I'm really curious now.
Good day Bob. Where you able to do a follow up with the Manufacture of Blue Diamond and what where the results?
Cheers mate and thanks for you really informative tutorial.
These videos come in really useful. I was just wondering if I could use my little flux/mig welder to tack together a stainless BBQ grill. Just something like an old beer keg, to replace our rusted out BBQ. Something that'll last longer than the cheap consumer grills. And if I build it myself, it's easier for me to rebuild in 10 years.
Yeah man we use 7018 on stainless in the mines, if you weld it hot it'll stick in a non critical application.
"Mesmerized by that ball thing goin on there"
That's an actual quote xD
I run a lot of dual shield c25 308LP and 316LP wire. it welds more like carbon dual shield.
Would love to see a DCEN result. Thought DCEP was the cause of a blobbed wire.
Interesting on the ball tip
I got their 5/64 7014's use them for most of my hobbiest type thinner gauge stuff but am planning on getting a wire unit as well.
I've found using the SS, FC wire takes alot of experimenting w/ wire speed, voltage and even both DC+ and DC-
I got it to run smoother with a short stick out rather than a long (3/4-1").
Be sure and NOT breath any of that SS smoke......
Hi Bob I watch your channel a lot you do a lot of great welds. I am retired from the state I weld a lot I like to weld small projects I learn more each Day.
JD
Hey Bob, did you do any manipulation of the weld puddle or just straight drag and push? I'm interested to see how it burns in with some sort of arc manipulation.
Wow thank you! I didn't know they made fcaw stainless wire.
Looking to try out stainless steel flux core wire. But I'm wondering if it's available in 0.03 rather than .035. Might that not work out better?
I have a flux core welder, I did some good welds on less than an hour . Still experimenting on it . No it not the kind one can switch from polarity to reverse polarity it just straight up . Anyway it a cool welder
Bought it new so getting the feel of the machine lol
Great video as usual, Bob. Would you happen to know if this can be used in food grade applications?
reverse polarity for flux cored and no need to keep the shroud. Flux cored feels like less penetration than MAG/MIG. Still a very good result for what it is.
Bob,
Thanks for trying something new and not having all the answers -------------yet. Great balls of fire, It looked pretty ugly coming off the end. But the bead seemed acceptable. I look forward more.
Tim
Thanks Tim. I'm not scared to try and don't always have all the answers. Yeah, it was a little strange looking running it but overall, it came out ok.
Have you ever tried the Blue Demon aluminum flux core wire? I think its pretty new and I have some on the way to try.
I see your post was 3 months ago, how did the fc aluminum work for you? Thanks
Hello can you weld galvanized steel and steel both sheet metal and 22 gauge? In any kind of joint?
Was there a difference between using different polarity? I heard that SS FCAW needed the opposite polarity of what you'd normally use for mild steel.
What are your thoughts on using this for on site commercial kitchen repairs? Sure would beat dragging a bottle of gas around the restaurant.
Did you ever use this in the kitchen? I have the same question. Sinks are always cracking. But the sinks are obviously 304 SS which the 308 wire is used , but they are a lot thinner than what he was welding here. So I’m worried about burn through. I and looking into backing tape
Just wondering if you went ahead and did the flux or decided to go with a TIG since they are advised to use on thinner material.
is there a reason to keep the nozzle on the end of the gun when using flux core?
Yes! I like having a contact tip in place when using GMAW equipment. On this gun, it is the only way to keep it in place.
Will this wire work with any Mig welder machine? Even the cheap ones?
What if you set a welder to use AC TIG setting, with whatever balance works, while using it as a MIG with this stainless wire? I assume you need electrode positive to yank off the oxide, and that also causes your wire to bead.
Will it run in all positions?
Is it better to run c25 gas or use this product?
Should i get a gasless mig to start to lern to weld on?
Would this still require purging the backside of the weld?
Thanks for the demo