Tired74

Anybody whos had a frame welded have any idea of the rod or wire type used?
6011,7018 or what? Is the frame made of some exotic material requiring special rods?

norvalwilhelm

I don't know but 6011 is a penetrating rod so it would burn through very easily. 7018 is a low hydrogen rod , very good ductility, probably the best rod out there. 6013 rods are western rods, made for the wide open places, good for poor fit up, nice to work with. I only mig weld. I use whatever wire the supplier says is the most popular. For doing cages mig is the only way to go. Tig on the bars is better but hard to do unless you have a professional with equipment.
Good luck and sorry i couldn't be more difinite.

Mack

I don't think there's anything exotic about the frame material. If I were going to weld on the frame, I'd use a 7018. It's a good general purpose rod.

DeenHylton

I agree with Norval...Mig and Tig welding require less heating of the surrounding metal...less chance of cracking around the weld over a period of time. Also some sactioning bodies require rollbars/roll cages to be Mig or Tig welded...a stick welded bar will not pass tech. Deen

Dalannex

What kind of welder do you have? If you already have and AC/DC stick, you can set it up for TIG relatively affordably. For a roll cage and frame work I use my MIG. Actually, I stick weld very little anymore. It is all TIG or MIG on steel, TIG on stainless (and aluminum if I had high freq, but I don't), aluminum spool gun with MIG for aluminum.

As far as rod goes, I personally like 6011 because it's stronger than 6013 or 7018. The weld doesn't look as nice though. That's why I wire feed. The weld always looks perfect, and the strength is there as well.

Flareside

Hey guys, how difficult is aluminum MIG welding? I've gotten pretty good at steel with my small Lincoln MIG setup, but haven't tried aluminum yet. They sell a kit for it. Is it a different guage wire (needing a new feed tube)? Do you need different gas? I'm currently running CO2/Argon.

norvalwilhelm

As far as rod goes, I personally like 6011 because it's stronger than 6013 or 7018. The weld doesn't look as nice though. That's why I wire feed. The weld always looks perfect, and the strength is there as well.

A designation like 7018. The 70 stands for 70,000psi. The 1 stands for position 1 being overhead, 2 flat or filit. The last number designates the flukes? 8 being a low hydrogen rod, very ductile. The 6011 is a penetrating rod so it really bites in, burns through. Of the 3 rods mentioned the 7018 is the best. It requires a special rod for ac or dc. Get the right ones and keep them in a warm dry place.
If you are putting plates or anything with a gap mig is the only way to go. You can not fill in poor fitups with stick. Tig requires skill I do not have.

norvalwilhelm

Flareside. Aluminum requires pure argon. You are running a 15 % C02 with the balance argon. This will not work. As for the liner and contact tip they are the same. Make sure to turn the power up and don't get any bends that you can avoid in the line from the power supply to the gun. Aluminum will kink. Most professional guns are push pull. Keep the line straight and you should be OK.

blue_stingray

For Aluminum MIG or TIG, you can run either argon, helium, or a mixture of the two. i find it's best to preheat aluminum if it's over 3/16, regardless of joint type-especially in colder weather- you get better fusion and smoother beads. You can even stick and Oxy/Acetylene weld Alum, but they're not very efficient and theres more of a chance for porosity in the weld.

For steel, ER70S is a good all around MIG wire, it's the equivalent of a 7018 rod. Try to avoid the Flux Core MIG wire unless you have a lot of anti splatter spray and sanding discs.

BTW-- 6011 isn't stronger than 7018. if you're looking for a real strong rod, get some 10018's- same rods used to repair weld M1 Abrams tanks.

Just be sure to not quench your weld- let it air cool, or better yet, apply some post heat to it so that you take the stresses out of it.

I work full time as a welder (and machinist), and i was trained in the US Army. -- not trying to sound like an expert- i'm not. Just giving some friendly advice from experience.
:cheers:

Dalannex

Oops. My mistake. I guess I was always thinking wrong as to what is stronger. I wire feed or TIG almost everything. Haven't boughten rod in years. I guess it shows too.

Tired74

I also use a MIG. Lincoln SP 105 wire feed. I was wondering about the thickness of the material on the frame with the limited capability of the machine. Great for sheet metal though. Sounds like the mig is the way to go. I asked about rods only because they are still popular.
Thanks for the input.

Dalannex

Does your wire feed have gas? I guess it would work either way, but flux cored does spatter quite a bit. That welder should be adequate to weld on a frame. The metal that they are made out of isn't that thick. Should work fine.

Tired74

Yes I have gas on the machine ( as well as the body periodically). Autoweld Blueshield. Used it rebuild a truck and loved it. Welded all the sheet metal in with little distortion, grinding or filler. I haven't got my body off yet and am just gathering information on what do to when I discover the extent of the rust. Keep the posts coming.

Dalannex

I have the same welder as you, and used it to weld a frame back together once after piecing in some rusted out spots. Worked great. My Millermatic 250 was at a guys house where I was stretching a truck frame, so I had to use the little one. Nothing wrong with it. Works good.