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I have a Lincoln Weld-Pac 100 welder. I believe it is the lightest welder they make. I want to weld sheetmetal but have been told I need a MIG welder. I have also heard of TIG welders. What is the difference between the two and can I weld patch panels with my Weld-pac 100? Also I understand there is small lightweight wire for this welder. What is it called and where can I get it?
Mig and Tig only way too go,unless you get old school and pull out a torch.The mig will be fast ,tig best but it takes time ,double time.There are also specialized Tig's for sheetmetal.Quote:
Originally Posted by John Brian
What you have is a mig welder. They can be run with flux core wire that doesn't require a shielding gas, or a true mig which would use an argon or argon blend gas for shielding the weld. You should have a short length of hose and a regulator that connect to a fitting on the back of the box for feeding the gas to the welding lead. You should also have a manual that shows the different setups for using either. If you don't have those you should become familiar with the welding supply shop in your area that sells Lincoln equipment and have them get those items for you. They would also be a supply sourse for the proper wire........coated steel, .023 is typical, but you need to have the proper size drive rollers and tip at the business end. Sounds like you've got a lot to learn, so a good basic welding text or tape/dvd would be in order too. Given your limited experience, lets just say that a TIG welder is similar in concept to the mig in that it uses a shielding gas, but can weld without filler material, or if needed the filler rod is not fed through the gun, but rather externally. For patch panels a mig is very useful.
You can use the Lincoln WeldPac 100 for sheetmetal, but its highly recommended to use the argon shielding gas, especially for thin sheet metal like 18 gauge or thinner. I dont know if the one you have comes with the hardware to use the shielding gas, the one I bought only came with flux core wire, the hardware/hoses for sheilding gas had to be purchased separately. Anyway, I used the Weldpac 100 with flux core wire for welding in my floor pans, and it worked well but found myself blowing some holes in the metal here and there (the argon gas option helps you weld "cooler" and hence thinner sheetmetal). For body panels you really should use the shielding gas.
Good luck!
....the optional conversion kit for using shielding gas & solid wire is #K610-1. Yours might or might not have come with the kit. The kit gives you everything you need to run either .025 or .030 solid wire {use the .025 for thin stuff}. Doesn't include the bottle but you can either rent or buy one. Use the 75/25 gas, the 100 argon is too expensive & the 100 cheapo stuff {don't remember which gas it is} looks ugly & splatters a bunch. 75/25 is a good compromise.... They also sell an Aluminum kit #K664-2.... And I'll second the "use the shielded gas". The welds look SO much better & as stated above, you can weld thinner stuff..... Your local welding store should have all this.... Bill
Oh, & Lincoln also sells a 'How to weld video'. Learning how to Mig weld isn't hard, you'll have fun. Good luck & Enjoy l;)