Mig welding sheet metal upsidedown?

[Stone Dragon]

I seem to have a lot of trouble welding the underside of the body. Just seems to want to drip. I have had some limited success with a touch and go method, but it isn't too pretty. Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

[CanMan]

Re: Mig welding sheet metel upsidedown?

Clean surfaces? Maybe your welding too hot, making the sheetmetal melt faster, causing drips?

 

[XJourney]

Re: Mig welding sheet metel upsidedown?

If your power is right then just turn up your wire speed a little. (half a notch)
X2 on the clean surface. Make sure you are getting rid of the galvazied coating. And do spot welds (5/16")

Hope that helps. Upside welding is not the easiest. Especially if you havn't practiced.

 

[Stone Dragon]

Re: Mig welding sheet metel upsidedown?

The surfaces are cleaned with a 60 grit flap disc down to the bare metal. I have had this welder about 6 months and have had good welds on 4 or 5 projects, but I do understand what you mean by practice. Sheet metal seems to be a whole different world. I set the speed and current on a piece I cut off, but when you get to the underside.....well..... There's nothing like that drip rolling down inside your shirt on a 100 degree day. I had a really fun spark get inside my sock, and I think it liked it there, because it sure wanted to stay a long time! Thanks for the suggestions. I'll try adjusting the temp and speed.

 

[scorpion]

Re: Mig welding sheet metel upsidedown?

I assume you're attempting to weld something thicker than sheet metal to sheet metal. It can be really tricky because the weld will penetrate much more quickly on the thin stuff (as you're seeing - or feeling in this case). The trick is to try to focus the heat to the thicker piece of metal and "push" it onto the thinner stuff. You will still have to weld in short bursts to prevent from blowing through the thin stuff. Also try to jump around a little. If your goal is to lay down a 2 inch stitch you can jump between 4 different stitches to speed things up. Doing so will give the sheet metal a short cooling peroid.

It may also help if you can get a few pieces of practice material on the bench and play with before you duck back under the rig. Being able to see how the weld impacts the sheet metal may help you dial in your technique/machine.

Matt

 

[OT]

Haha, I've got calluses on the tops of my feet!

 

[muddshutter]

We have found much success with covering ourselves well with welding blankets and looking like eskimos when we weld. Also, you can purchase a spray that reduces the spurt of molten metal. Practice helps.

 

[dan89XJ]

I'd upper the gas to 25 or 30 CFM

 

[GSequoia]

I don't know why nobody has suggested the obvious.

Just push the Jeep over, then you'll be welding on a verticle surface. If you still have trouble push it over again and kneel down on the floor pan.

Note: I am not responsible for broken mirrors.

:dunce:

 

[dan89XJ]

I don't know why nobody has suggested the obvious.

Just push the Jeep over, then you'll be welding on a verticle surface. If you still have trouble push it over again and kneel down on the floor pan.

Note: I am not responsible for broken mirrors.

:dunce:

Why didnt I think of that ! :gee: