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Kijiji welder, better than nothing!

Chicken lights

Forum Pony Express Driver
5DD1F6F3-404C-495D-A30C-F9688DC8F5E3.jpeg
It’s pretty basic, flux core only. I don’t know if I can convert it to be a gas mig welder yet. I have a couple projects I’m working on that a welder will be needed. I only have one 15 amp 220 circuit in the shop I rent, so unfortunately a 110v welder was in the cards.

$150 off kijiji, it’ll do for now.
 

DPittman

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Nope I think that's a flux core wire only machine. Any of the 110 mig welders are handy to have for very light material and definitely better than nothing! Just remember not to try to weld beyond it capabilities (IE trailer hitches etc)
 

Bofobo

M,Mizera(BOFOBO)
I praise my decision for a fluxcore welder purchase, its a mig also but through careless operation i melted the gas line in the “gun’s” cord. Used for so many projects its paid for itself countless times. From a wood stove and 3 vehicle exhaust systems, to tool stands etc. Pay attention to the duty cycle as that determines how long you can lay a bead. If you want a solid weld though its best to have a smaller than usual weld prep as penetration is not super great but you can put a lot of heat in and get thicker materials. On my machine because if the duty cycle i can only weld 3 minutes of 10 Unless its on thiner material.
 

GrayTech

Member
I have a similar size mig/flux core combo with 80% duty cycle. Works great for my needs, I mostly use the flux core wire without gas.
There's a mod for these that converts them to DC output which improves the weld quality a lot. Just do a search if interested. Not sure if that Lincoln is AC or DC output.

Adding gas is doable and would require a solonoid valve connected to the trigger circuit. You would need to replace the leads and gun wit a mig/flux core type. This mod plus gas and regulator would cost way more than the welder though, cheaper to just buy a combo unit.

Sent from my H3123 using Tapatalk
 

kevin.decelles

Jack of all trades -- Master of none
Premium Member
I've built so many welding stands over the years (because I'm cheap) and always start with a princess auto furniture moving dolly, one that has all 4 wheels on swivel. Add a piece of plywood on top and call it a day. Once you add a gas bottle the game changes as you need to support or counter the weight

Cord hangers are a nice imho as when I'm welding the cords are unravelled for use.

I'm hind sight , I should wait for the princess auto 69 dollar special and buy a couple ......



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

YYCHM

(Craig)
Premium Member
I picked up one of these KickingHorse™ F130 IGBT Inverter Flux Core Gasless MIG Welders. $200 + Tax landed.

WELDER.JPG

Works ok. All that I have done with it thus far is prove that I have absolutely no natural welding talent what so ever. LOL.

Practice3B.JPG
 
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DPittman

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Welding is definitely one of those things that the more you do and practice the better you are, I don't think many people are natural born welders. I took a welding course in college and actually became pretty good and knew stuff, but because I don't do a lot anymore my welding skills are just passable now.:confused:
 

Dabbler

ersatz engineer
Even with 6 months not welding, I really need top practice before I do any weldding, just to get the techniques back.
 

Chicken lights

Forum Pony Express Driver
I picked up one of these KickingHorse™ F130 IGBT Inverter Flux Core Gasless MIG Welders. $200 + Tax landed.

View attachment 4334

Works ok. All that I have done with it thus far is prove that I have absolutely no natural welding talent what so ever. LOL.

View attachment 4337
That’s a great deal on the welder!

Just to be clear, I found your comment about natural welding ability funny, as in haha funny!

I’m no natural welder either, I won’t be posting up any of my early efforts unless we start a weld of shame thread
 

YYCHM

(Craig)
Premium Member
That’s a great deal on the welder!

Just to be clear, I found your comment about natural welding ability funny, as in haha funny!

I’m no natural welder either, I won’t be posting up any of my early efforts unless we start a weld of shame thread

https://kickinghorsewelders.ca/inde...t_machines_info&cPath=125_133&products_id=440

No offence taken with regard to your comment.

This welding thing is way more difficult than I ever imagined. My biggest problem is that even with auto darkening lenses I can't see the path I want the bead to follow. Constantly wondering off the mark and having to start again.
 

Brian Ross

Active Member
This may sound kind of stupid but when I got my welder and auto darkening hood I was having the same problem with not being able to see where I was going with the weld bead. I could see fine before the shade darkened (the grind mode) but as soon as the arc started I couldn't see anything. It turns out that the new hood had one of those plastic protective coatings that you peel off on the outside (which I had removed) and one on the inside (which I hadn't). Once I realized that there was a film on the inside and removed it, I could see 100% better when I was welding.

What I thought was bad eyes turned out to be a simple thing to fix.
 

YYCHM

(Craig)
Premium Member
Once I realized that there was a film on the inside and removed it, I could see 100% better when I was welding.

Thanks for the heads up. I just checked my helmet, no plastic protective coatings found on the lenses.
 

kevin.decelles

Jack of all trades -- Master of none
Premium Member
I find that marking the path with a soap stone helps, kind of makes it jump out


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Bofobo

M,Mizera(BOFOBO)
Does your helmet have dials to adjust the darkness? I hate them (auto darkening) myself, and went old school with interchangable plates of slightly less shade (cringe worthy to some) i cut a 1/4” slot to see through at the top, no battery lag when they get weak, no batterys, last time i used auto darkening i kept getting flashed because of the battery being low and i cannot justify the replacement battery cost despite semi regular use. As you begin to watch the puddle form just keep it “wet” on both pieces at the same time as best you can, it took me a long time to develop my “welders wobble”, just keep practicing, possibly watch some videos on welding sheet metal (car panels) the power feed of wire machines can cause funny things to happen, to slow gets an inconsistant bead and to fast puts the wire through the puddle causing blow out and possibly ruining (especially thin) work pieces. Ive used mine to fill largeholes in pipe and on my motor cycle seat as it had a hole.
Positively not the worst welds ive seen, my high school fab class was largely ungifted in welding and some never got it, that just meant more time at the machine for me “helping”.
Ps the 10 lbs spool is the way to go, so much waste in the 1-2lbs spools.
 

johnnielsen

John (Makonjohn)
Premium Member
Besides highlighting the weld area with chalk, it can sometimes help to point a halogen work light directly at your work area.
 

yycwelder

Member
Hopefully this spring I could host a small group of people interested in learning some welding basics in my garage/shop. I love to teach those who want to learn.
It’s challenging to type/talk someone through welding tips and techniques. The number one rule you need to remember if you want to improve is being able to ‘see’ what is going on. First step is ensuring you have the proper shade lens. If it’s too light then you see spots after you stop welding. If it’s too dark you can’t really see anything other than the arc. Shade 10 is the starting point and then adjusting from there. I highly recommend the gold plated lenses as they allow the clearest vision. I’m not a big fan of auto darkening myself. A big window miller helmet from kms when the are on sale is a great deal for a fantastic helmet. Then buy a gold lens as a simple upgrade and you will have a fantastic setup. If you want you can upgrade the headgear as well but I’m not that picky but it is an option. So with that out of the way you don’t have to worry about your gear. You just have to focus on developing technique. Second step is making sure you are giving yourself the best chance to succeed. This means do a practice pass with you lid up and not pulling the trigger. Have the wire stick out past the end of the nozzle about 1/2” at most. The stick out and technical side of welding is unimportant at this time. Short version is the shorter the stick out the better. The longer the stick out and you begin to have problems. So with a bit of wire stick out you do your dry run. Position you body so that you can see the tip of the wire the entire time. If the nozzle blocks your view at any time you need to readjust so that you don’t lose sight of the wire. This will ensure you can ‘see’ the arc and puddle and surrounding area while actually welding. You should be in front of the puddle and not viewing it from behind while learning for best results. Now that you can ‘see’ do what they do to get to Carnegie hall, practice!
 

PeterT

Ultra Member
Premium Member
What a great gesture. I'm sure you will be oversubscribed. Just to refresh our memory, do you run MIG, TIG, Arc... all the above :)
 
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