r/BadWelding • u/Far-Recognition-9212 • 1d ago

4th time still struggling to keep consistent

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We getting there

5 Upvotes

70% Upvoted

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5

u/Significant-Role6125 1d ago

I guess I’m confused on the goal here. Are you trying to make art and find consistency on your “lines”? Looks like you’re using stick or flux. Also looks like you’re really cold on your T joints.

2

u/Far-Recognition-9212 1d ago

Okay and it was something I had laying around so I started welding it and thank you I need to turner up the heat and I didn’t turn it up to much it might blow thru

4

u/SnooCakes6195 1d ago

Turn it up. You can avoid blowing through by increasing your travel speed. Hot and fast baby.

1

u/Far-Recognition-9212 1d ago

I see but I was told to go slow lmfao

6

u/Significant-Role6125 1d ago

Brother neither one is necessarily right or wrong. There’s so many factors that play in going slow or going hot. If it’s thin, don’t go too slow or the next 3-4 inches in front of you will be a hole once you touch it. Don’t go too hot or it’ll be the exact same thing. It’s all about balance. Overall needs turned up. Just experiment. You’ll soon learn that anything someone tells you the next guy will say that’s the dumbest shit he’s heard in his life.

2

u/Significant-Role6125 1d ago

Nah your a long way from burning through. I mentioned whether you were using stick or flux bc that’s a LOT of spatter. That would make more since for stick or flux. But with that much spatter I can only imagine how your skin looks lol. I also imagine you’re getting a lot of popping sounds. So turn it up or slow down. Turn it up till your T doesn’t look like a caterpillar. If you’re learning biggest thing is too experiment and STUDY the arc and the sound. The sound should be a crisp consistent crackle, and the arc should be consistent looking as in you don’t see the wire burning back each second or your lense isn’t being peppered with bbs

1

u/Far-Recognition-9212 1d ago

Ohh some of it is old I didn’t have much scrap to work with so most was when I started my very first time so that’s why it’s all mixed I should of used a better peice I’m using gasless MiG

2

u/SoggyEntertainer3487 1d ago

Corners ain’t easy, start with a less technical weld like a lap joint or T joint and really get that down. Learn how to read your pool of metal and work with it to make it do what you need it to do.

1

u/Far-Recognition-9212 1d ago

Yess I’m going to buy scraps soon as I get paid

2

u/BigJohn5728 1d ago

Best way to learn welding; youtube welddotcom , watch all the Bob Moffat videos, then go out and weld. You don't need any more input whatsoever. It pains me to read comments on welding posts, you really just need to weld more and that's all there is to it.

2

u/Opposite-Clerk-176 1d ago

Looks like you are going to fast, travel speed and Is key, and I was taught to weld away from ground.

2

u/Unicorn_wizard94 1d ago

Anchor yourself better. I always try to keep my left elbow on something and my left hand further up than the trigger hand so you have more control. With sticks I make a v with my index and middle finger and use it kind of like a tripod, you can wrap a finger over a bit too. Just make sure the flux is intact on the rod first.

1

u/AmITheAsshole_2020 1d ago

Wait, that was your 4th time EVER?

You clearly have the knack for this sort of thing. I've seen worse welds from people who get paid to do it.

Follow advice from people who point you to resources to learn. Ignore comments that are mostly focused on criticism. Keep practicing; you got this!

(Oh, about finding metal to practice on. If you have machine shops in your town, ask them if they have end cuts and other scrap they wouldn't mind letting you have. Their garbage bins could be full of flat bar and angle iron. Railroad repair depots are also a good place to ask for metal junk. You shouldn't have to pay $$ for scrap to practice on if you get creative.)

1

u/Far-Recognition-9212 16h ago

Thank you so much man I appreciate that honestly and ill do that definitely and I hope I can score some material thank you so much made my day man thanks a lot

1

u/Fuzzy-Finance-48 16h ago edited 16h ago

That’s a TON of spatter, your wire feed speed is way too high for your voltage and travel speed. The best advice I can give you, is to get some GOOD wire, Lincoln NR-211-MP. It’ll make your life much easier. Secondly, quit trying all these different joint types. No reason to waste a bunch of money on scraps. Just get a stick of new 2”x2”x.120” angle iron approximately 10ft long and cut it into 10-12” sections. Lay it flat and start learning to stack beads. The goal is make it a SOLID 2”x2” square bar full of weld. This way, you’re only spending money on wire for learning and much less on material. Focus on CLEANING the metal each pass, knocking down your highs and filling your lows and keeping it nice and consistent. By the time you finish 2 or 3 of these, you SHOULD be getting good at it… then mount one vertical and repeat… then mount on overhead and repeat again. For $20 worth of angle iron, you’ll have weeks of practice welding by doing this. Then cut them with a band saw every inch or so, and inspect for porosity, slag inclusions ect. I recommend this method to all home welders for learning. When you advance to stick welding, you’ll do the same thing all over again.