I need some help tips pointers whatever you wanna call it. On welding vertically. Burnzya I know you got the same welder I was wondering how you did it what settings you had it at lemme know thnx guys

 

it all depends on your abilities really. the proper way to run a vertical weld is traveling upward. i know some people that have been professional welders for more than 20 years, and they still can't weld vertical up with MIG.

if you can weld up hill with mig, i'd suggest turning the heat and wire down a little (from the temp and wire speed you use for flat welding on the same material).

if you haven't learned to weld vertical up, i'd suggest turning the heat up. as you weld downhill the puddle will want to cover over the weld joint before it's fully welded. also keep the gun pointed up into the joint to help it slow down the puddle.

i've heard some people argue that it's unnecessary to weld vertical up with mig (due to not having flux), but professionally we always welded up on anything 1/8" and thicker. once you know how to do it, it makes for some really nice strong welds.

 

Thnx man tht helps alot

 

man just get as comfortable as possible, sounds like hippie advice but makes the biggest difference and definately go upwards with mig, also a well known trade tip depending on the length of the weld is to start by welding the top first then move down and weld up to it and so on, the previous weld will act as a heat sink

*thought they called mig gmaw in america?*

 

Pretty much with what Burnzya said. the major difference in welding upwards as to downward, is how much penetration you are getting in your weld.

 

So basically just turn the heat an wire speed down for welding up? An always keep the gun pointed up

 

Personally I weld down. Get a good rythem dont sit in one spot to long or you will blow through or the weld will puttle up. back heat just a bit. for the most part you always want to have yer tip pointed in the direction yer going so the gas can do its job. If yer running gas.

 

I am of this other school of thought. The only time IMO that you need to weld up hill is with flux cored wire. In 99% of applications we do on our trucks, hardwire with a shielding gas is best thing to use, so really I think welding down hill is fine for the most part. Like Bernie said, the welding up hill thing is because when you are welding with flux core, you end up with a puddle of flux and impurities on top of the weld, flowing downhill with gravity. If you weld downhill, the arc has to penetrate through these impurities before it even begins to penetrate into your base material, so obviously it's not going to get as deep of penetration. With MIG (metal inert gas i.e. gas shielded) there is very little surface contamination on the weld and no flux, so it really makes little difference in my eyes which way you weld it, except that all of us can do a prettier weld downhill than up.

I think it is ultimately a lot more important how you prep the joint. Pay a lot of attention to bevels. Like if you do a butt joint, grind a 30 degree bevel on both sides of the joint through 3/4 of the material (so the bevel does not grind all the way to a sharp point, like on 1/4" material, there should be a flat 16th, not a sharp end to the bevel). With this type of joint preparation I would also leave a root opening of 1/16th to insure complete penetration. If you are doing a fillet weld you don't need to bevel as the 90 degree angle made by the two pieces to be joined acts as an appropriate bevel, the exception to this is if you want the weld to lay in extra flat, then you can bevel a fillet weld if you want to. Hope that helps.