Thread: welding S.S. sheet metal ???

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I wanted to see if you guys had any tips on welding 14Ga Polished S.S. . I am using a Miller 250DX to tig and doing a butt weld with a 1/16" tungsten. Thanks

The few times i did it, i did not see much difference than mild steel. It takes a little more heat to get it started, but other than that it seems the same. you do have to watch for heat though as it will warp easy, just keep your speed up. Thats my experience.

i have welded some with solar flux for a backer and not . not to much dif for the money ss welds good try to stay low heat if you have pulse on your machine try it stay under your gas if you work out from it you will have a black weld i use a gas lens on every thing seams to help me

Good point Pat! I forgot about the gas lens.

Yes , thanks . I do have a gas lens set up on the torch. I am using a Miller syncrowave with settings I got from their on line calculator. I have 1/4" alum. sandwitching the sheet metal to help pull the heat away. I am also leaving a gap inbetween the 2 pcs and using .035 filler rod. It still wants to dimple and being polished its very noticable. Forget about running a bead also, I am stich welding it. Anything Im missing?

well i would butt it close as you can to light tight many tacks. less filler rod fast off and on the joint

Rule of thumb----use amperage equal to medal thickness--.060=60 amps, .083=83 amps stating point

Purge the bottom side with argon if you can

you didn't say how thick or how long a weld you need to make

I like 1/16 rod and a half second pulse rate for most of the stainless flat or header work I do----

and I agree with Pat---butt the two pieces together--use several tack spots ang even possibly just fuse the two together without filler

Originally Posted by jerry clayton

Rule of thumb----use amperage equal to medal thickness--.060=60 amps, .083=83 amps stating point

Purge the bottom side with argon if you can

you didn't say how thick or how long a weld you need to make

I like 1/16 rod and a half second pulse rate for most of the stainless flat or header work I do----

well i agree with this to jerry. i have allways set my amps for the thickness of stock i am welding. it fun past 280 amps and the i blow the breaker box any thing past 250 amps gets the rosebud and heat crayon

Originally Posted by jerry clayton

Rule of thumb----use amperage equal to medal thickness--.060=60 amps, .083=83 amps stating point

Purge the bottom side with argon if you can

you didn't say how thick or how long a weld you need to make

I like 1/16 rod and a half second pulse rate for most of the stainless flat or header work I do----

Thanks guys I'll try adjusting the pulse settings a little more tomorrow. I am also purging the bottom . I am also not needing a "perfect" weld. The piece is 16" long and all welds are for just filling the seam to be ground down and polished out to a mirror finish. Like I told a guy at work its only to fill the seam the welds will not have any stress put on them.

You didn't say what alloy. If 304 use 308L rod or wire. If you don't use the correct alloy/rod you may get cracks that appear later.

One technique is to arrange your work so you weld downhill, and pull your tungsten out about 1/2" to 3/4" past the end of the gass cup, and when you establish your arc, rotate the stinger to where your arc is almost 90 degrees off the side of the tungsten. assuming you have a tack weld at 2 - 3" intervals, the stainless will fuse weld, and you can move the electrode fairly rapidly, and not need to add filler rod.