The Shed – September-October 2019

Gas flow
If you are using hard wire and shielding
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Many small machines come with a
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be put off by this; just make sure that
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soapy water every now and then and
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small diaphragms that can be torn if the
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from these regulators so, as a back-up
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when listening at the tip of the torch,
that should be economical enough
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a cylinder of gas, lay a simple bead on
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the weld has surface porosity, turn the
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Stick-out

Be aware of your wire extension, or

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10–15mm from the contact tip for most

standard welding procedures with hard

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a short, unstable arc with excessive

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position the gun with the wire lightly

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burst or two to link the metal at various

points along the join to be created) is

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Start

Hold the torch at roughly 40–45 degrees

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the torch forwards if using hard wire, or

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arc at the front of the weld pool and keep

the weld pool of a size that produces a

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a uniform speed while keeping your wire

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Wire-feed

indicator

Meter reads amps or

wire-feed speed

Voltage control

Inductance control —

alters characteristics

of the arc

Synergic control —

automatically sets

amps and volts

Mode selector to

MIG

Depressing this

knob activates the

inch button

Amperage control

Ready to start with hard wire

Hold briefly at the end to

prevent oxidization